Gibb Songs : 1987

The Bee Gees went into the studio in the early months of 1987 to record their reunion album for Warner Bros. After the tremendous number of songs they had been creating each year 1987 marks a sudden and long-lasting decrease in output. The E S P project took up most of their time because of its importance. The brothers were not ready to give up being pop hitmakers, but after the recent weak showings with solo and production work, a successful Bee Gees album looked their last best shot at the charts. And E S P was successful, not in the United States where anti-disco prejudice still ruled, but in Britain and Europe.

In the second half of 1987 they worked on a few songs with Andy, and they may have started writing songs for the next Bee Gees album.

songs

YOU WIN AGAIN
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb
A side by Bee Gees, August 1987; album cut by Bee Gees, 1987

E S P
[ ECSTASY ]
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb
album cut by Bee Gees, 1987; A side by Bee Gees, October 1987

THE LONGEST NIGHT
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb
album cut by Bee Gees, 1987

BACKTAFUNK
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb
B side by Bee Gees, August 1987; album cut by Bee Gees, 1987

LIVE OR DIE (HOLD ME LIKE A CHILD)
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb
album cut by Bee Gees, 1987

CRAZY FOR YOUR LOVE
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb
album cut by Bee Gees, 1987; A side by Bee Gees, February 1988

THIS IS YOUR LIFE
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb
album cut by Bee Gees, 1987

OVERNIGHT
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb
album cut by Bee Gees, 1987; B side by Bee Gees, October 1987

GIVING UP THE GHOST
[ BABYSITTER ]
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb
album cut by Bee Gees, 1987

ARROW THROUGH THE HEART
Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, Andy Gibb
album cut by Andy Gibb, 2010

I’M NOT WEARING MAKE-UP
Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, Andy Gibb
album cut by Beri Rhoades, 1994

recording sessions

Barry Gibb — vocal; guitar (‘You Win Again’, ‘The Longest Night’, ‘Angela’ ‘Overnight’,
‘Giving Up the Ghost’); drum programming (‘Angela’, ‘Live or Die’)
Robin Gibb — vocal
Maurice Gibb — vocal, keyboards (‘You Win Again’, ‘The Longest Night’, ‘Live or Die’,
‘Crazy for Your Love’, ‘Giving Up the Ghost’); guitar (‘Angela’, ‘Overnight’);
drum programming (‘You Win Again’, ‘Live or Die’); sequenced guitar (‘This Is Your Life’)
Robbie Kondor — keyboards (‘You Win Again’, ‘E S P’, ‘The Longest Night’ ‘Angela’,
‘Backtafunk’, ‘Overnight’, ‘Giving Up the Ghost’); guitar (‘Live or Die’)
Rhett Lawrence — drum programming (‘You Win Again’, ‘E S P’, ‘The Longest Night’,
‘Overnight’); keyboards (‘Angela’); synthesizer (‘E S P’, ‘The Longest Night’)
Greg Phillingames — piano (‘Angela’); keyboards (‘Crazy for Your Love’, ‘This Is Your Life’);
drum programming (‘Crazy for Your Love’); synthesizer (‘Giving Up the Ghost’)
Marcus Miller — bass (‘E S P’, ‘The Longest Night’, ‘Backtafunk’)
Brian Tench — programming (‘Angela’, ‘This Is Your Life’, ‘Giving Up the Ghost’)
Nick Moroch — guitar (‘Angela’, ‘The Longest Night’, ‘Backtafunk’, ‘Overnight’)
Reb Beach — guitar (‘E S P’, ‘Overnight’)
Reggie Griffin — guitar (‘Backtafunk’, ‘Giving Up the Ghost’); drum programming (‘Giving Up the Ghost’)
Tony Beard — drums (‘Backtafunk’, ‘Giving Up the Ghost’)
Joe Mardin — programming (‘Crazy for Your Love’, ‘This Is Your Life’)
Will Lee — bass (‘Angela’)
Sammy Figueroa — percussion (‘Backtafunk’)
Arif Mardin — synthesizer bass (‘Backtafunk’); sequenced guitar (‘This Is Your Life’
Bob Gay — sax (‘Backtafunk’)
basic tracks arranged by Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb
orchestral arrangements by Arif Mardin, Robbie Kondor, Reg Griffin
engineer: Brian Tench; Scott Glasel
producer: Arif Mardin, Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb, Brian Tench
about January to March 1987, Middle Ear, Miami Beach; Criteria Recording Studios, Miami

Sessions for the Bee Gees album E S P. Recording of demos began in 1986, in New York in October and then at Maurice’s home studio in Miami Beach, but dates are unknown, so all of it is shown here as 1987.

Over the previous few years Barry and Robin had become accustomed to different recording styles. Barry preferred to write all the songs and record demos, and then go into the big studio with session players to record polished versions for release. Robin instead liked to come into the studio with ideas and use the sessions themselves to work out the songs. Maurice liked a hands-on approach and where he had a voice in production he either appears prominently on the finished tracks or worked out arrangements with a few session players during recording.

The compromise recording method adopted for E S P was for the brothers to start all the recordings with just the three of them and then complete the work with session players and a producer, replacing much of the original track. If they started with an idea and a rhythm track and built a song onto it as they recorded, that would accommodate something like what all three preferred to do. The result of this process would then be a ‘demo’, which was actually an early state of the finished recording with tracks that would be mixed out for the final version. It had vocals by the three brothers and instrumentals by Maurice and Barry. The ‘drumming’ was electronic sequencers programmed by Barry and Maurice and their engineer Scott Glasel.

The Gibb instrumental tracks were done from October 1986 into 1987. The second stage appears to have been recording the main vocal tracks, and where this was done is unknown. The ‘demo’ of ‘E S P’ on the box set Tales from the Brothers Gibb is at this second stage. It has the final vocals but still has the original instrumental tracks. In the final stage, session musicians replaced most of the instrumental parts and the brothers dubbed additional vocals. Also in the final stage, they edited out some brief sections, inserted new sections, and speeded up at least two songs.

With the Bee Gees now back in the Warner-Elektra-Atlantic conglomerate, producer Arif Mardin was once again available to work with them. All three brothers welcomed the idea. Arif’s encouragement and support had brought them the success of Main Course and they were hoping that history could repeat. Arif may have also got them onto their best behavior. It is not clear to what extent Arif had the opportunity to audition songs and give feedback about what and how to record. He presumably did so in October, but the brothers were now bringing in partially recorded songs as previously described.

The chronology here assumes that the copyright dates follow the dates of the finished recordings produced by Arif Mardin. This may not be correct. Here is the logic used.

First. Copyright registrations for the first four songs were filed on February 2, 3, 4, and 17, and then no more for a month. Since the first four happen to be the two future singles and two very good ballads, it’s pretty clear that the brothers chose them as the most important songs from a larger collection of candidates. That is, these are not the first songs written, but the first songs brought to some stage of completion that would be protected by copyright.

Second. Since the songs were not being performed publicly and were not being offered to other artists, there was no need for copyright registration before the finished recordings were completed. The filings included cassette recordings of the songs. While ‘demos’ could have been used for the filings, waiting for the finished recordings would ensure that the final version of the song would be protected including any last-minute changes like the edits and ad lib vocals. This is supported by a note in a fan club magazine saying that by February they had three songs ready: ‘E S P’, ‘Live or Die’, and ‘Giving Up the Ghost’ (an interesting list— see below).

There are two outlier dates in May and June. An alternate theory of dating is that the recording sessions were around that time, and that the earlier dates for the other songs show when the ‘demos’ were finished. While possible this is not satisfactory on two counts. First, it gives very little time between recording and the release of the first single in August. Barry tends to tinker and fuss over recordings, and as the Bee Gees comeback this was a very important album to them. Second, it gives too much time after the ‘demo’ recordings, which are said to be late 1986. But until more detail becomes available, who knows?

YOU WIN AGAIN
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo 4:02, lead vocal Barry Gibb
A side, August 1987; E S P, 1987
stereo (remix) 4:02, lead vocal Barry Gibb
B side, February 1988

The first song they completed, ‘You Win Again’, would the first single. It has a steady pounding beat and a straightforward verse-chorus structure, the style Robin and Maurice favored, but the melodic verse and lead vocal both suggest that it is primarily Barry composing this way in order to get the hit single they needed to start a new phase in the Bee Gees’s career.

The additional recording beyond the demo was done with a light touch that maintains the feel of the original while improving the sound. Barry takes lead vocal backed mainly by a rhythm track by Maurice and Rhett Lawrence (from Runaway) and synthesizer work by Robbie Kondor. There is no falsetto but the harmony vocals go fairly high into the trademark brother harmony of years earlier. ‘You Win Again’ would be recognizably Bee Gees.

Rhett and Maurice improved the sound of the original rhythm track, but it is still the same beats. The vocal tracks are identical over the two verses and choruses but then differ into the ending after 2:38. There are two edits: eight beats were added after the first chorus at 1:28-1:34 to allow for Robin singing ‘oh baby’, and nine beats were added after the second chorus at 2:38-2:44 before the key change into the repeats. The song was speeded up at some point in the process, raising it about a quarter tone. The sourness of the synth intro at 0:15-0:20 however is just Maurice sliding the notes.

E S P
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo (demo) 4:52, lead vocal Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb
Tales box set
stereo 5:38, lead vocal Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb
E S P, 1987; A side, October 1987
stereo (Extended mix), lead vocal Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb
12-inch single (UK), 1987
stereo (E S P N R G mix), lead vocal Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb
12-inch single, 1987
stereo (Extra Sensory House mix), lead vocal Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb
12-inch single, 1987
stereo (E S Piano dub), lead vocal Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb
12-inch single (US)
stereo (Extra Energy mix), lead vocal Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb
12-inch single (US)
stereo (edit) 4:17, lead vocal Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb
promo single (US)
stereo (no guitars), lead vocal Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb
promo single (US)
stereo (reprise) 0:34, lead vocal Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb
E S P, 1987

This song, called ‘X T C’ or ‘Ecstacy’ before the brothers realized that it sounded like a drug reference, was the second candidate for a single. Barry has most of the lead vocal, with a few lines sung by Robin, and he edges into falsetto for the choruses. The beat is less pounding than on ‘You Win Again’, and the melody keeps moving forward. The song is essentially two passes of verse-chorus but it has some extra parts: the intro, a section by Robin after the second chorus, and an extended outro.

The demo of ‘E S P’ was released in 1990 on the box set Tales from the Brothers Gibb. Like ‘You Win Again’ it has the same drum program as the demo, and the same main vocal tracks, and it was speeded up by the same amount (103.25%), raising it a little more than a quarter tone. The finished version has a new a cappella opening and reaches the start of the demo at 0:33. There are seven edits. Both times through, four beats are cut out after ‘on my mind’ and eight beats added before ‘E S P’. Sixteen beats are dropped before the second verse (‘There’s danger’). The last two edits are additions going into the end, around 3:20. Not long after that the finished version has different ad lib vocals into the fade. Rhett Lawrence and Robbie Kondor are again the main musicians on the track.

The number of alternate ‘mixes’ was absurd but it does show how hard Warner Bros wanted to push the single. The ‘reprise’, a piece of the a cappella opening, was used as the last track of the album.

THE LONGEST NIGHT
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo 5:46, lead vocal Robin Gibb
E S P, 1987

The ballad ‘The Longest Night’ was Robin’s featured number on the album. Although Robin sings the entire lead, Barry’s fingerprints are all over it: the variety of the melody, the flow of the lyric, and the inventive structure with two verses but no big chorus, setting a contemplative mood. The second time around as it hits the second verse section Robin goes off into a few lines of new melody as if he’s been distracted by his thoughts. The only misstep is the needlessly extended ending. Rhett Lawrence and Robbie Kondor once again, with Nick Moroch and Barry on guitars.

ANGELA
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo 4:55, lead vocal Barry Gibb
E S P, 1987

‘Angela’ was the other big ballad, with a brief catchy chorus and a long winding melody much in Barry’s style. On the demo, the focus is on Barry’s touchingly heartfelt vocal, its emotional peaks matched by his own guitar playing, and supported by tasteful instrumental and vocal work by Maurice and Robin. For the finished version Barry re-recorded another similar lead vocal, singing also the few lines Robin sings on the demo. But the gimmicky percussion sound effects and added synthesizer are distracting, and Barry’s distinctive guitar accompaniment is nearly lost in the mix. The result is that the song loses much of its impact. Who thought it was better this way? Again, Rhett Lawrence, Robbie Kondor, Nick Moroch, now with Greg Phillingames on piano (added later?— he appears otherwise in March). The distracting percussion track is credited to Barry and chief engineer Brian Tench.

BACKTAFUNK
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo 4:22, lead vocal Barry Gibb
B side, August 1987; E S P, 1987

LIVE OR DIE (HOLD ME LIKE A CHILD)
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo 4:41, lead vocal Barry Gibb
E S P, 1987

CRAZY FOR YOUR LOVE
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo 4:40, lead vocal Barry Gibb
E S P, 1987; A side, February 1988

THIS IS YOUR LIFE
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo 4:50, lead vocal Barry Gibb
E S P, 1987

YOUNG LOVE
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb (1987)
about February or March 1987
stereo 3:57, lead vocal Barry Gibb
unreleased

After a good start the next five songs, a month later, are an uneven lot. March 16 and 18 saw copyrights for ‘Backtafunk’ and ‘Live or Die’, and the next week on March 23 there were three more. Probably they’d spent the last few weeks on these. (Oddly ‘Live or Die’ was supposedly ready in February.)

‘Backtafunk’ is a pretty good dance track with a catchy hook and a less obvious verse melody, the Barry special, and they probably had fun recording it. Arif Mardin gets a credit for synthesizer bass. Likewise ‘Live or Die’, while weaker on energy, is reasonable album filler, and Barry provided for a big ‘Bee Gees’ harmony chorus. Robbie Kondor is on both tracks.

The next two though sound desperate. The vapid pop ‘Crazy for Your Love’ never takes off, making it a totally inexplicable choice for the album’s third single— as if someone thought this worked? ‘This Is Your Life’ starts off harmlessly but as it gets into the rap section and quotes from Bee Gees hits it turns into little more than an overly long novelty song. These two feature Greg Phillingames and Arif’s son Joe Mardin.

The last one of these, ‘Young Love’, has a fast beat and builds to a falsetto peak. It is known only from a ‘demo’ that sounds promising, and they may have done a more finished version too. But if so, why was it dropped?

OVERNIGHT
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo 4:20, lead vocal Maurice Gibb
E S P, 1987

‘Overnight’ was not copyright until May 19, but the musician credits to Robbie Kondor and Rhett Lawrence would place it with the first few songs. Convincing Maurice to sing lead might have been the delay. On the demo Barry sings a falsetto lead. This is one of the better songs on the album and if they were doing them in order of merit that again would put it early.

The vocal arrangement makes excellent use of the three voices, with Maurice singing a fine lead on the two verses, choruses by all three with Barry’s falsetto loud and clear, and Robin singing a few lines solo toward the end. There are two edits from the demo: both times through, seven beats (and a line of vocal) are dropped before ‘you know I’m only human’ to improve the build-up to the chorus.

GIVING UP THE GHOST
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo 4:26, lead vocal Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb
E S P, 1987

The last copyright, ‘Giving Up the Ghost’ on June 22, is also puzzling for its very late date. This is the only song on the album that sounds like one of the Robin and Maurice collaborations from Robin’s solo albums. But it is not a last-minute song. There is a demo for it just like the other demos from late 1986. Was there some resistance to including this one? It would be only the second song on the album featuring Robin on lead vocal, a surprise after he did so many solo recordings. Reggie Griffin is the main musician, but it has both Greg Phillingames and Robbie Kondor too, as if it was worked on over many sessions.

The demo had the same lead vocal by Robin and Maurice (or is it Barry?) on the verse and bridge, but they re-sang the choruses for the completed version in order to push the title phrase better. A long 24-beat section of chorus (12 seconds) is edited out before the second verse, and another eight beats at 2:39 going into the ending. The two differ from about 3:03 onward. Another mystery is why the song was ever called ‘Babysitter’, but it was.

This completed work on the album. The questionable judgement on the arrangements has been remarked on. The sound mix also is not up to par. Everything is washed in echo, most noticeable if songs from the next album with its cleaner sound are played next to any of these. It’s not clear what Arif Mardin was trying to do.

Andy Gibb — vocal
Barry Gibb — guitar, programming, vocal
Maurice Gibb — keyboards, synthesizer, guitar, programming, vocal
Robin Gibb — vocal
Scott Glasel — programming
Jeff Glasel — guitar (‘Hell or High Water’)
engineer: Maurice Gibb, Scott Glasel
producer: Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb
around June and July 1987, Panther House, Miami Beach

MAN ON FIRE
Barry Gibb, Andy Gibb, Maurice Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo 5:21, lead vocal Andy Gibb, Barry Gibb
Andy Gibb, 1991

HELL OR HIGH WATER
Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, Andy Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo 5:11, lead vocal Andy Gibb
unreleased

PRICE OF FAME
Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, Andy Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo 4:38, lead vocal Andy Gibb
unreleased

ARROW THROUGH THE HEART
Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, Andy Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo 3:39, lead vocal Andy Gibb
Mythology, 2010

In the first half of 1987 Andy Gibb went through another drug rehabilitation program and thought he had finally beaten his habits. He now aimed to get a recording contract for release of a new album in 1988. Toward this goal he worked on four songs with Barry and Maurice in the summer of 1987. To these he planned to add more songs that he would write by himself or with other writers.

Andy would never make any finished quality recordings of these four songs, but aside from minor tape hiss all four of these demos from Maurice’s home studio are quite listenable. ‘Man on Fire’ was released on the untitled Andy Gibb greatest hits CD in November 1991.

A portion of ‘Arrow Through the Heart’ was heard in an installment of the VH1 cable TV show Behind the Music devoted to Andy's life and career, first aired in November 1997. The complete song was finally released in 2010. Using the age-old imagery of love as a hunt, Andy as the stag cries out ‘I’m too young to die’ as he is hit by the arrow. It was probably too much for his brothers to take in the years soon after his death.

Beri Gibb — vocal
Barry Gibb — guitar, programming, vocal
Maurice Gibb — keyboards, synthesizer, guitar, programming, vocal
Andy Gibb — vocal
Scott Glasel — programming
engineer: Maurice Gibb, Scott Glasel
producer: Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb
probably October or November 1987, Panther House, Miami Beach

NAKED FEELINGS
Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, Robin Gibb, Andy Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo, lead vocal Beri Gibb
unreleased

I’M NOT WEARING MAKE-UP
Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, Andy Gibb (1987)
undated 1987
stereo 4:33, lead vocal Beri Gibb
Melody Fair, 1994

‘Naked Feelings’ and ‘I’m Not Wearing Make-Up’ were reportedly written for the brothers’ niece Beri. She was just six years younger than Andy, the nearest in the family to his age, and they had been close as children in England (Beri was raised by her grandparents). She probably sang on these demo tracks.

A version of ‘I’m Not Wearing Make-Up’ with lead vocal by Beri and with Barry (not Andy) singing backup appeared in 1994 on the Melody Fair tribute CD. The instrumental track sounds similar to ‘Man on Fire’ and may be the 1987 recording. Whether Beri’s vocal is from a later date is unknown.

The copyrights, dated November 12 and November 30 respectively, take unusual care for Gibb songs to state that Andy wrote only words, and that his brothers wrote both words and music. These were the last songs Andy would write.

Elton John — vocal
Barry Gibb — vocal, guitar
others unknown
engineer:
producer: Barry Gibb, David English
possibly 1987, Mayfair Studios, London

UP THE REVOLUTION
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb, David English (1986)
unknown location
stereo 4:21, lead vocal Elton John
The Bunbury Tails, 1992

The recording date is unknown. It must be later than 1986 when the same song was recorded by Errol Brown, and yet must be no later than the middle of 1988, when Eric Clapton mentioned in an interview that Elton John had recorded it. Since Barry was involved with it, the early months of 1988 after Andy died are unlikely. Therefore it is listed here as 1987.

selected record releases

NOTE— From this year onward audio CD was the standard format for albums. Song lists are shown as numbers without sides A and B. No reissue on CD is noted since all albums were issued on CD from the beginning. Vinyl LP copies were available in limited numbers for the next few albums.

Barry sang the two duets from Guilty with Barbra Streisand at a concert on September 6, 1986. The original occasion was a fundraiser for the Democratic Party in the 1986 elections, but revenue from the CD and DVD has gone to the Barbra Streisand Foundation, which supports various charitable causes. The concert was held at Barbra’s ranch in California.

The first Bee Gees single in four years, and more importantly their first hit single in eight years. ‘You Win Again’ went to number 1 in Britain and Germany and did well in most of the world outside North America. The Bee Gees were back.

The US single had a slightly early fade, 3:54 instead of 4:02. Warner Bros tried hard to break it in the US but there was great resistance in the US radio business to Bee Gees singles.

The first Bee Gees album since Spirits Having Flown in 1979 did well outside North America, like the single. It reached number 5 in Britain and number 1 in Germany. It barely entered the top 100 in the US at number 95.

The second single did much less well than ‘You Win Again’, reaching only number 13 in Germany and outside top forty elsewhere. Warner Bros pushed ‘E S P’ even more heavily with many alternate mixes on 12-inch singles and promo disks.