All My Stories. A Great New Disc of Original Songs from Michael Robertson

All of My Stories

Michael Robertson

Michael Robertson is one half of a great brother team that includes his younger sibling Scott Robertson. Michael has a powerful contralto that hits the pocket with nuance and fire; he’s a perfect lead singer. Scott can sing lead or harmony. He’s one of the great tenors in rock & roll. I first got to know them as the Robertson Brothers and within a year or so they caught fire as Maybe August, supplementing the band with Roscoe Selley a harpist extraordinaire and a great singer. Keith Carolyn became the bass player and he laid down the bottom like a wrench putting the torque on a nut. The drummer was cool and laid back. But that was yesterday and yesterday’s gone. Now Michael is older and wiser. He’s eschewed the pomp and circumstance of a travelling band and decided to focus on lyrics, tones and the language of the country born of heart, hearth and struggle. The cover has a perfect black & white hue in sepia tones, Michael’s hair is windblown and impervious to the overgrown grasses and haggard trees.

The disc opens with the title song All My Stories. This is the plugged in version with Don Rich country style pickin’, the musicians let the instruments breathe and stretch out. The unison vocals of Robertson and Honesty Elliot shine softly above the instruments. This is a mature song cycle that speaks to loving as opposed to lust and loss for what is inevitable.

Highway Song is a precious diamond in the rough. The cry of the lap steel sets the tone in sepia color with Dylanesque charm and Al Cooper organ splashes. Robertson builds those stately notes big and beautiful and Selley’s lonely harp sings to the night.

Sirens hijack my attempts to fly

Those days we swore we’d never come back

Truth was fiction and fiction was fact

Big screens and real estate

How’d the hell did we get here

We drank to the future and pretended we didn’t know

We laughed as the bridges burned

And the lessons we learned

Take your maps and pictures and throw them away

Old Man sounds like a Rolling Stones outtake on the Honky Tonk Women sessions. Michael is doing his Keith Richards, lurking in the shadows with and bemoans his lost youth while looking back on his career. He’s still a rebel. This is great singing and great playing. Everyone in this project is a monster musician!

It wasn’t so long ago

We were young men

Frisky and ready to take on the establishment

Lines on our face don’t stop us from digging it.

Old man I don’t give a goddam

We all look into the mirror eventually

Sale on Salvation is a Maybe August song excavated and put in its proper place and time. Michael strums the acoustic and begins to sing as the organ splashes the backdrop. The lyrics are clever and the singer’s voice is road hard.There is a couplet within the song that was quite controversial back in the day, “shoot any more liberals” used to contain a naughty word.

We got a sale on salvation all of this week

So they‘re flying out the door as fast as we speak

If I can just keep my tongue out of my cheek

I might not be condemned to eternal damnation

But the song ends well enough with a rendition of Amen

Its Not What You Think is simply incredible. It opens up with Robertson’s lap steel and mindful strumming. Michael’s voice has aged well like a fine whisky and it parrells his wisdom for the ages. It’s our only time, our only life. It’s a song of sepia tones and ugly truths; a woman with a baby and a boss with a libido.  Robertson plays the lap steel and it whines in tune with the sadness and suffering. He reaches for the heavens. It’s a cry for life.

Michael inserts …

There once was a man from Nantucket

Kept all his dreams in a bucket

One day he woke up and said

Its funny how there is no one to blame

It is what it is and

It’s not what you think

Blame on Youhas a tightened up percussion, punctuated drum beat like Archie Bell & the Drells on steroids. Acoustic/electric guitar flourishes ring out.  Robertson is at his angriest best when he sings about his pain and getting away from words. The holes in your hands lyric appear to be a reference to Jesus or to suffering.

Get from your head to a place I understand

Get down from the mountain where you stand

Maybe I’ll just turn and walk

Like I don’t give a damn away

Little Man opens with a sweet circular riff followed by Michael’s voice – the drummer is in the pocket and the slide guitar soars like an eagle in flight. This is an ode to a father and son, a true agape, in the vein of Cat Stevens’ Over Young.

Little Man, Little Man

Look at you now

Before you know it

You’ll have stories like me

Little Man Little Man

You won’t know how fast it will be

Somedays you’ll wake up and outshine the sun

Little Man I already know

Shut Up and Go to Sleep has a great guitar riffthat repeats and brings it all home. Incessant drums and high hat lead the charge, great energy and a lot of fun. This involves kidding in the square, underneath it all are some very serious issues.

I left the Misses to Mr. Right

Hand cut to the Camaro

Parked out of sight

She was screaming out something

And I was trying to steer

There’s got to be someplace I belong

But I know it ain’t here

All My Stories (acoustic) is a masterpiece similar to Van Morrison’s You Stoned Me (like jelly roll). This alternate acoustic take is the most incredible song I’ve heard in years. Now I know for sure there is a spirit of heavenly love and bliss. It is in those soft voices that reassure us. Michael Robertson is the seeker and he knows true love can last way past the heat.

Tonight I lie Down on my bed

Escape the mantra in my head

The voice outside sounds just like you

Saying some dreams still come true

But you know all my stories

Some day the voices just won’t leave

They come to me and say…just breathe

Take me now for what I am

The shadow of a better man

Waiting here for you to save me

Take me now for what we’ll be

A better you and a better me

Michael Robertson and Honesty Elliot teamed up to create a musical landscape of harmony and peace. This is adult music and adult thoughts. What’s next; How will we wear it?

Peace & Love

Bo

Andy Reed Does it Again!

                                      

                                     

   

                                                                                

Andy Reed Relay Vol .1

Reed Hits a Home Run

Try as he may Andy Reed can’t help but to fashion these tasty little pop-up gems for the true believers. Doesn’t matter that power pop never truly existed save for Alex Chilton and Badfinger. All the rest is just a compromise and too much blah, blah, woof,woof. All in all I’m still a sucker for that saccharine music. It’s so sweet, like taking a huge spoonful of Duncan Hines chocolate fudge frosting when no one is looking. It’s totally addictive! But it’s when I slap the disc in the CD changer and Relay Vol. 1 comes on all nice and pretty that I’ve found a purpose and once again I’m a believer and though I’m actually working class, I want to  be a closeted bourgeoisie dilettante in the worst way; And I want to be respected! It’s a tall order, brother.

Relay 1 begins with an attack on my senses and I can’t stop it no matter what I do. Reed is the puppeteer and I’m the puppet. I cannot help but to do his bidding. All he had to do was build the music, write the lyrics and I’m his adoring pawn. For Reed, music is his life and it runs soul deep. It adorns all parts of his existence. Music feeds his sense of belonging to something bigger. He creates his own internal  and sends it to you, me and anyone who cares about  love, beauty and music.

Reed has done it again with Relay Vol. 1. It is the first of two eps that will hopefully be collected into a vinyl release in the spring of 2016.  It recalls early period Move, mid-stream Eric Carmen with a dash of Carl Wilson. Not bad!

But now let’s take a peak at @ Vol. 1

The disc opens with Waves. It’s an echoed atmospheric gem. Minor chords, strummed acoustic and piano accents segue into Reed’s backyard lead guitar. His vocals are front and center and the drummer kicks it in with plenty of heat and rim shots. Reed’s vocal is reminiscent of Bruce Johnston’s role in the Beach Boys with perfect mid-level harmonies; Reed sings “Will we ever get out of here.” But the west coast is a dream and a nightmare, depending on what’s next; too much heat and too many wildfires. But a great vision!

Love is Gone is based in minor chords that reflect the pain. The marching drum seems to be a call to arms. Reed is lyrically astute we are boys that become men. Hard lessons scaffold our lives. Wordless sound echoes at the coda.

Darlin’, You Don’t Know sounds like a Cars outtake, guitar and keys are prominent along with another set of atmosphere affects that give the song a boost. Sample lyrics:

Girl, you always talk about tomorrow

And you wake up the same as yesterday

I love a Long Goodbye is a cover by Sloan (not P.F. Sloan)/. Sample lyrics;

No one knows for certain

Where or when I’ll draw the curtain

I need to know you love me

This is a spectacular little gem with Beach Boys harmonies, perfect guitar breaks full bodied notes. Reed fills it all out. This could be a top forty hit!

Reed hits gold again with the help of the following musicians:

John Fossum, Cody Maracek, Donny Brown , Jason Reed and Ryan Fizgerald

The Bossmen Reunite

The Bossmen Reunite

Dick Wagner & Lanny Roenicke

This disc contains four versions of an incredible song simply entitled Lanny’s Song. As these two old friends reminisced, they no doubt cleared out a path of old wounds and treacherous memories that are not so easy to forgive or forget. Yet Wagner and Roenicke had far too much in common. Some might say they were at their most innocent peak of creativity when the Bossmen were riding high on the local charts and enjoying the view. Times were simpler and the music was amazing, even if some of the riffs were derivative and Beatle-ish. From 1964-66, they were our Beatles and they topped the charts on WNEM, WTAC and WSAM, right along side the Stones, Dave Clark 5 and the Beach Boys. But then Wagner formed the Frost and went on to create an incredible ahead-of-its-time supersonic band by the name of Ursa Major. He went onto massive fame with Alice Cooper and Lou Reed combining muscular guitar with rich harmonics that dazzled fans and critics alike. It was quite a ride!

Eventually Wagner returned to Saginaw and resurrected his career with notable gigs @ SVSU Stadium- The Remember The Child Concert, Callahan’s in Detroit, A Dick Wagner/Cherry Slush reunion at Titibawassee Park and the 1999 Frost Reunion Concert @ the Saginaw Civic Center. Through it all Wagner was a consummate showman with a huge list of famous songs such as Only Women Bleed, Rock & Roll, and Go To Hell. When he was in the right mood, Wagner would pull out all those golden chestnuts @ White’s Bar and get the ravenous crowd hungry for more. It was a moment of innocence recovered and memories preserved. I loved Wagner for his genius guitar work, exceptional arrangements and a wicked sense of humor.

Dick Wagner died on July 30^th, 2014 at 71 years of age.

                                               

However, Roenicke and Wagner recorded one last song together. And it is a harrowing epitaph about love and loss and looking into the abyss. It is a dark Nursery Rhyme that is uncomfortable to hear; yet speaks volumes about living near the edge of eternity and wondering how much time we all have left. Wagner’s long time partner in Desert Dreams, Susan Michelson remembers that Lanny wrote the song but didn’t know how to finish it. So he called Wagner in the winter of 2013 to seek his help in completing this labor of pain and suffering that was caused by a break up. Wagner added acoustic guitar, keyboard and a Yamaha synthesizer. Wagner devoted two full days to the project in Fountain Hills Arizona.

Wagner played all the instruments, atmospheric synth, primitive piano, and muted drums. Vocals were occasionally double tracked, sometimes to add accents and close harmony. The lyrics are incredible, stark and filled with the never ending pain of betrayal. Listen…

At a second hand store, was very poor

Saving for the day, for a house we could afford

We shook hands and we agreed, someday when we succeed

To build a house together and spend eternity

She…devised a plan to extend power and fame

With a man she revered, who promised everything

He was a business man, had a deceptive plan

Went riding in his truck, she gave him all her trust

They built the walls and laid the bricks, put in carpet and pretty sinks

But I just stood there helplessly as my whole world fell apart

She sued to hold me close, so tenderly

But she was plotting in her heart, to tear my world apart

When I found out the news, they put me in a room

It was just a mild case of severe heartbreak

And my whole world fell apart

I just stood there, my whole world fell apart

This is the last great Wagner vocal, subdued yet painful; tortured yet elegant. Sadness washes over Roenicke’s lyrics, it obliterates his sense of everything that gives him a glimmer of hope; a breath of sanity hovers over the song like a dark cloud. He gazed into the abyss and the only solace is the pain. This is a lost masterpiece, a tale of deep sorrow with a dark lyricism and Dick Wagner’s long shadow.

Peace

Bo White

However, Roenicke and Wagner recorded one last song together. And it is a harrowing epitaph about love and loss and looking into the abyss. It is a dark Nursery Rhyme that is uncomfortable to hear; yet speaks volumes about living near the edge of eternity and wondering how much time we all have left. Wagner’s long time partner in Desert Dreams, Susan Michelson remembers that Lanny wrote the song but didn’t know how to finish it. So he called Wagner in the winter of 2013 to seek his help in completing this labor of pain and suffering that was caused by a break up. Wagner added acoustic guitar, keyboard and a Yamaha synthesizer. Wagner devoted two full days to the project in Fountain Hills Arizona.

Wagner played all the instruments, atmospheric synth, primitive piano, and muted drums. Vocals were occasionally double tracked, sometimes to add accents and close harmony. The lyrics are incredible, stark and filled with the never ending pain of betrayal. Listen…

At a second hand store, was very poor

Saving for the day, for a house we could afford

We shook hands and we agreed, someday when we succeed

To build a house together and spend eternity

She…devised a plan to extend power and fame

With a man she revered, who promised everything

He was a business man, had a deceptive plan

Went riding in his truck, she gave him all her trust

They built the walls and laid the bricks, put in carpet and pretty sinks

But I just stood there helplessly as my whole world fell apart

She sued to hold me close, so tenderly

But she was plotting in her heart, to tear my world apart

When I found out the news, they put me in a room

It was just a mild case of severe heartbreak

And my whole world fell apart

I just stood there, my whole world fell apart

This is the last great Wagner vocal, subdued yet painful; tortured yet elegant. Sadness washes over Roenicke’s lyrics, it obliterates his sense of everything that gives him a glimmer of hope; a breath of sanity hovers over the song like a dark cloud. He gazed into the abyss and the only solace is the pain. This is a lost masterpiece, a tale of deep sorrow with a dark lyricism and Dick Wagner’s long shadow.

Peace

Bo White

Chris Zehnder is back with a spectacular new CD

                                                                

                                                       Chris Zehnder

                                Meaning Making and Going Back to the Future

Chris Zehnder has been a compelling presence in the Music Scene in the Great Lakes Bay Region of Michigan. He cut his teeth with the Avery Set, a great band that was done too soon. College, travel and life itself intervened to give Chris a wanderlust that served him well. As a result, Zehnder matured and blossomed as an artist. He can do rock, country, alternative and acoustic solo without blinking. He’s earned his stripes the hard way, moving out and moving forward but never leaving us behind. This disc is the proof that great music continues to be crafted. Thank god for Andy Reed, Donny Brown and the host of musicians that created this living document of great music.

Donny Brown - Drums/co-production

Hank Horton - Bass

Jim Alfredson - Organ, Wurlitzer

Ron RoscoSelley - Harmonica

Scott Vandell - Lead Guitar

Andy Reed - Bass on "Cold Water Blues"

Me - Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Organ, Piano, Rhythm Electric Guitar

                                                         

Goin’ Through the Motions–

Opens in a high pitched howl, like a green manalishi with a two pronged crown; segues into a country guitar like Don Rich admiring Porter Waggoner’s doo. The guitar slices, moans, bends the e-string and comes back for a cool bass line. He sounds like Red Rhodes from Michael Nesmith’s Ist National Band. Zehnder is an exceptional singer. He’s matured as a vocalist and is able to hit the notes strong and pure with cool vocal asides that help tell the story. Sample the lyrics

I got ghosts that are changing my luck

Sacrifice as a symbol of love

Sign me up as a candidate and cast your vote

Spill my blood on the parish lawn

Flatter me with a eulogy song

If you’re note broken hearted something's wrong

Baby I'm just going through the motions

Watching love from behind the gates

Step inside, you get flooded with devotion

I guess the devil says what he needs to say

Tablets roll down a lost highway

We shattered stone that should never break

Be my witness, but don't give me away

But now my baby's got a criminal past

She treads lightly on the capitol grass

Leave your footprints mama, I'm coming back

                                          
                                                           

                                                

Charlie's Smile begins with a staccato piano chords and the high hat signals the rhythm section to kick it in, bass, guitar and organ and hand claps for emphasis. Electric guitar solos, sweet as cornbread. Zehnder sings with feeling and a deeper sense of who he is and will be. He’s come along way

We're paying off the fisherman to catch us a note

A stranger to the faces that have made up that band

But native to the feeling of compassionate hands

But I don't know if we'll ever feel it again

And we been righteous so long,

All our disciples are gone

And I've been swimming the lengths of the river

Living it Down

The song opens with a cool circular guitar pattern followed by a high pitched ooh that signals the band it kick it in with some righteousness. Tambourine and drums pound out the heavy feel as circular guitar patterns give it a lift. The e-string gets a workout with a sweet unencumbered sustain

Escapist heart road a western wind

On a weak handshake for love to begin

Put faith in dirt if you wish to bloom

And the pouring rain fell none too soon

And your bags are packed with all you've got to prove

I'm living it down

I can't hold on

When you’re running around

We Ride Again. This is another countrified chestnut, acoustic struming, moaning guitar trills that sound like a pedal steel. The music is rich, layered, beautiful…and sad. Roscoe Selley fills it out with his evocative harp patterns, perfect! Zehnder sings with a cry in his voice like George Jones coming off a bender. It all coalesces at the end with a brush of organ, harp and guitar. I’ve been waiting for music like this since the Band called it quits

They said I'd never live to see tomorrow

They said my heart was gonna storm

And I will return what I have borrowed

The souvenirs that I've adored

But I never understand what you gave me

Like I never understand what it means to be a man

But holding it now makes me feel lucky

But I never understand what you gave me

Like I never understand how I vanish through your hand

It's only the living who could feel lonely

When all our time amounts to nothin

Round and again, round and again, we ride again

Cold Water Blues. The song opens with a false beginning followed by guitar and vocals. An organ screams and gives the music a punch. A slide guitar sneaks in, tough and provacative. The guitarist is a master, using economy as he goes from e-string to the bass string like ringing a bell. You can tell these cats are having the time of their lives.

I'm goin down to the cold water

Gotta bring my soul to life

Whatever’s in the river gotta get me in your graces on time

Well I'm goin’ down to the cold water

Gonna dress myself in white

Clean these evil urges gotta hide em from a Saturday night

I've never been a stranger to touch

Your medicine is never enough

You hope for liberation and end up getting caught in the mud

All these sounds that pass for rhythm

They sit crooked in my bones

Wave your flag and take me home

A Note from Chris Zehnder: I did most of the arrangements, Donny Brown also helped with arrangements and production. 

I was lucky enough to work with so many amazing musicians

The Bee Gees Odessa

 

                                             


                                                                                  

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Lost Masterpiece Series

                                                           The Bee Gees

                                                               Odessa

 

In conceptualizing this article I followed references to Odessa in various publications including the “The Ultimate Biography of the Bee Gees; Tales of the Brothers Gibb. It is a 700 page barn burner and page turner written by Melinda Bilyeu, Hector Cook and Andrew Mon Hughes. It’s a little more than I wanted for the article yet it gave me an insider’s view about their sibling relationships and how it influenced their one true masterpiece. Odessa was a double album that ran about 65 minutes; Robin Gibb even declared that it was not commercial; Maurice Gibb felt it had depth and obscure lyrics. Barry Gibb had mixed emotions about Odessa as the group was breaking up during the sessions and post production. He felt the band was in crisis…with each other. Perhaps it was the conflict itself that drove the creative spirit in the band. 

 

                                                                    

 

 

The disc opens with Odessa (City on the Black Sea) , it is wordless and awash with acoustic guitar, cello andthe swoon of wind, rain and an echo that gives the song a sense of foreboding. Robin Gibb intones the words in a stream of consciousness that reveal the story of the doomed British Ship;

“February 1899 the British Ship Veronica was lost without a sign…bah, bah, black sheep you haven’t any wool. Captain Richardson. Kept a lonely wife in Hull”

The instrumental part included flamenco guitar by Maurice Gibb and cello by Paul Buckmaster segues to Robin’s incredible vocal;

Cherub, I lost a ship in the Baltic Sea/I’m on an iceberg running free

Sitting-filing this berg to the shape of a ship/Sailing my way back to your lips

One passing ship gave word that /you have moved out of your old flat

That you love the vicar more than words can say

Tell him to pray that I won’t melt away/And I’ll see your face again

Odessa how strong am I

Odessa how time does fly

SPOKEN:

Fourteenth of February eighteen ninety-nine

The British ship Veronica was lost without a sign

Odessa is an incredible work of art, obscure lyrics, breathtaking harmonies and masterful orchestration. It’s a powerful reading by Robin Gibb especially when you realize he was only twenty years old at the time.

You’ll Never See My Face Again is a pop gem by Barry Gibb. It has a three chord acoustic strum that comes on like a pop song. But the lyrics are angry

Every single word has been spoken/ it’s much to late to change your ways

 Far to many vows have been broken/ You can’t expect a soul to stay

 It makes me laugh you’ve got no friends/ It took a thousand words to find out why

You’ll never see my face again.

 The soaring violins, insistent piano, aggressive acoustic guitar and the deep moans of the cello gave the music more color to the anger.

 

Black Diamond is all Robin Gibb at his most ambiguous and soulful. He sings

Where are you, I Love You (twice)/Where are you to keep me warm

I had a dream of a place far away/ I followed a river where the dead man would play

And I’m Leaving in the Morning (twice)/ And I won’t die so don’t cry

 I’ll become those big black Diamonds/that lie there for me

By the tall white mountains which lie by the sea/ If I come home and my woman has gone

Big Black Diamonds that lie there for me/By the tall white mountains that lie by the sea

I knew a man whom was as tall as the sky/Followed a river where thousands have died

And he was leaving in the morning (twice)

Say goodbye to Auld Lang Syne; Say goodbye to Auld Lang Syne (six times).

Another masterpiece by Robin Gibb

 

                            

 

 

Marley Purt Drive is a whimsical tale by Barry Gibbs. He’s at his very best in this tale of a post-modern orphanage. Gibb’s has his hands full meeting the needs of his children. It starts with a perfectly concise drum intro, followed by acoustic guitar and a clip of a pedal steel and just a bit of banjo.

Sunday Morning woke up yawning filled the pool for a swim

Pulled down the head and looked in the glass, Just to see if I was in

Went upstairs to kiss my woman, to make her come alive

‘Cos with 15 kids and family on the skids I gotta go for a Sunday drive (2 times)

That’s how they are so I grabbed out the car convertible ‘59

Headed to the freeway, tried to find the Pasadena sign

Ten miles and three quartersmore I wasn’t feeling any more alive

 ‘Cos with 15 kids and family on the skids I gotta go for a Sunday drive

Jose Feliciano had a moderate hit with it. He deleted some of the verses and added his own delicious guitar work

Melody Fair was Barry Gibbs Beatles tribute. He felt it may have been too heavily orchestrated though it retained a basic rock & roll vibe with some country flavors as well, this was Barry’s soulful side. He mentioned in an interview that Melody Fair was influenced by McCartney’s Eleanor Rigby, “I was trying to make the same kind of statement.”  It was a popular song with a top forty construction of verse, chorus and middle eight. It was perfect!

Lamplight was another incredible stream of consciousness lyrics, soaring harmonies a perfect bridge between pop songs and the sound of a full orchestra written by Robin Gibb. A few people who attended the recording noted that Bill Shepard had his hands full doing the charts on such lavish orchestrations and larger than life arrangements. Despite all the rumination and misgivings of the principal players, Lamplight was an incredible piece of music that merged melody and harmony with sorrowful and obscure lyrics as well as Robin’s emotive four octave range. It was slated to be the Bee Gee’s next single but it was scrapped due to its length and obscure lyrics. First of May (a great song) got the nod. This led Robin to quit the band.

Sung in French:

Alors viens encore cherie/J’arrendrai ans après ans sous la lampedans la

vieille avenue

Then I may end/she had things to buy

I closed my eyes/yet I don’t know why

I gave her money; said she knew someone

And she said she won’t be long

Lamplight keep on burning while this heart of mine is yearning

I sat alone with my thoughts and laughed

Then saw your face in an old photograph

I didn’t think that I could live without you but what Am I to do?

Come back home Dear

 I have waited year after year under the lamp of our old avenue

I Laugh In your Face

Barry Gibbs sings this one at his most Beatle-ish. It is multicultural gem that evokes issues of state and church before it was fashionable. The harmonies are exquisite and the instrumentation is inspired. It opens with a minor chord piano trill is insistent and signals the chorus and it segues into a dramatic orchestral flourish that reveals the anger underneath

The circus is coming to see you/The elephant smiles

Everybody can hear you/ say that’s out of style

My brother is friendly for reasons/If I am the same

Just for 400 seasons we all live in vain

So I laugh in your face/your only one race

And I’m Right

I’ll pull out your plug so your small/You’ll slide down the drain

On the steps of St. Peters you all look the same

 

 This next group of neglected songs is composed of incredible little gems that have an avuncular spin, gentle and tolerant. The music is layered with piano, mellotron, orchestration, string arrangements, imaginative composition and instrumentation

Edison is about Thomas Edison, each of the Gibbs brothers take a verse with Barry hitting stride on the middle eight. Maurice gives the piano a workout, Robin on vibes accompanied by a full orchestra.

Whisper Whisper (Keep it Quiet). Barry Gibb is doing his best John Lennon vocal. The Gibbs are down to a 4 piece that includes original Bee Gee Colin Peterson on drums. This was Barry Gibbs reaction to drugs, sexuality and freedom of expression.

Give Your Best. This is Barry teaming up with drummer Colin in an attempt at to deliver a country western song and it worked wonderfully. It’s a square-dance with fiddles and guitars. Peterson described it as the best recording session he’s ever been part of. It included two anonymous bluegrass musicians to make it real.

Sample lyrics include:

I’ve done my shows, everybody knows

I nearly sold all my clothes

One man can give, another has to lend

So I just give my best to my friends (and so you should)

Suddenly is a quirky little tune written by Maurice Gibb. It fits his personality to a “T”.  He performed the song only once on the BBC2 on May 17^th 1969. Sample lyrics:

How can you tell looking at me

How can you tell you like what you see

Suddenly there’s a boy in the rain alone

Suddenly there’s a girl in the rain alone

 

Sound of Love may contain some Barry Gibb’s most cloying and angst ridden lyrics, it misses the mark:

See the children play ball, see them play along the hall

It makes me cry to see them smile

I see the moon I see the sky, I see reflections in my eyes

And there’s no one to share my life

 

 Never Say Never Again was collaboration between Barry and Robin. They did disagree with some of the lyrics especially about declaring war on Spain. Here’s a sample:

Your lips could never show a smile

You never tried you just put me in a pile

I never lived inside your hole, child

I thought you needed me I never had no style

 In an interesting note the Bee Gees with Bill Shepard writing out the charts and hiring the orchestra decided to include three orchestral pieces, songs without words. The triad was a fascinating glimpse of the Gibbs Brothers growing musicality, possibly genius that was unlike released in 1969. It demonstrated the band’s versatility and total command of difficult orchestral passages. It was non-commercial music for the masses. Seven Seas Symphony, With All Nations (International Anthem), and the British Opera

First of May was the last song written for Odessa and it is perfect , a great vocal by Barry, a strong arrangement and a wistfulness about childhood and a lost love.

 When I was small and Christmas trees were tall

We used to love when others use to play

Don’t ask me why, but time has passed us by

Someone else moved in from far way

Now we are tall and Christmas trees are small

And you don’t ask the time of day, but you and I, our love will never die

But guess we’ll cry first of May

 The album was originally entitled Masterpeace or The American Opera. At the time people regarded it as the Bee Gee’s Sgt Pepper. Maurice Gibb thought it was heavy. I agree; it deserves another look

 

Addendum:

Over fifteen years ago I began to pour through archival material about the Bee Gees through magazines, books, Wikipedia and my own remembrances of their Concert in Detroit. I attended with my brother on March 20^th, 1973 @ the Masonic Temple ticket prices ranged from 4.50, 5.50, 6.50.  I admit that I loved their music yet I was disheartened by the low energy performance. The Bee Gees seemed to be stuck in their own made time warp, sticking to mid-tempo ballads and never straying too far from all their hits.

It was four years before that concert when I enrolled in both the RCA Record Club and Columbia House. The deal was I would get like 10 records for a penny and from then on I was required to pay the full price of the other albums that I purchased. I went hog wild, buying up all those goodies by The Small Faces, Beach Boys, the Kinks and The Bee Gees. I bought Odessa, a two album set that had a cool flocked cover. I listened to the Bee Gees baroque orchestration and vocalizations without words and I was totally astounded. I had never heard anything like except for my brief visit with Brahms and Beethoven in grade school. I put Odessa away in the junk bin and left it abandoned and forgotten, that is, until I found a deluxe CD version of Odessa. It contained Stereo and Mono mixes as well as a third disc of unissued “Sketches For Odessa.” I was totally blown away. I even looked through my crates of record albums and found my copy of Odessa just to feel that cool cover and to listen to this masterpiece with fresh ears.  It was worth the effort.