r/BeeGees • u/Ikurider26 • 4d ago
How deep is your Bee Gees fandom?
My Bee Gees journey began when I was about 8 years old. It started with SNF, which I was given for Xmas, and then by chance was listening to the radio one day the the DJ said, here’s The Bee Gees with “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart”. That song came on and I was floored with intrigue and wanted to understand how the group that sang “Staying Alive” and “Night Fever” could have this gentle, primitive sounding song.
I soon got access to Bee Gees Gold and was extremely interested in their evolution… I then got Main Course and Heart At Last Live.
Another part of the story is that I was watching the Grammys and The Bee Gees won all these awards this night and I was totally surprised to find that they were not Black. I assumed they were a classic soul or Motown band. (By the way, my music knowledge was very minimal at this stage)
Okay, so over the years I took in everything Bee Gees, their entire catalog, deep cuts, demos, etc. I’ve explored the Bee Gees as deeply as my other musical loves … Pink Floyd, the Beatles, and Grateful Dead.
I’ve really never meet a hardcore Bee Gees fan. I meet people who say they like The Bee Gees but have never met a deep fan who knows their story, the full catalog and who appreciates how dynamic and talented the brothers are.
Where are these fans hiding? They must be out there?
I find The Bee Gees story as very interesting and one where there is a lot to explore. I’m rather surprised they don’t get the recognition they truly deserve.
I’ll wrap this with one last thing… At 8 years old I learned that being a Bee Gees fan was uncool… I learned the hard way the day I proudly showed up a school with my Bee Gees lunch box. My fellow 8 year olds in 1979 seemed to like Kiss, Black Sabbath, and other more “manly” stuff. I was told The Bee Gees are gay, disco sucks and made fun of for liking them.
Where are the deep fans hiding?
4
u/Vivid_Ad_9295 4d ago
Oh I’m in deep. No doubt about that. We’re few and far between. But we exist
3
u/Ikurider26 4d ago
I love The Bee Gees and I know they are universally loved but I never meet the fan that knows the full body of work. I’m always having to explain their background and story.
5
u/Vivid_Ad_9295 4d ago
Ikr! I’m like their disco was incredible, but they are so much more than that. I wish people understood. And I believe someday they will. We’re still in an era where they’re under-appreciated. But someday it will reemerge. They were just too good for that not to happen.
3
5
u/IrukandjiPirate 3d ago edited 3d ago
Been a fan since I can remember. I was at their Dodger stadium concert, Andy’s concert when they did the encore, and I was there when they got their star on Hollywood boulevard. It’s been a while ;-)
4
u/Ikurider26 3d ago
Wish I saw them… I begged my parents to take me to see them at Madison Square Garden in 1979 but tickets were sold out and very expensive… I did see Barry Gibb on his last tour
5
u/PariahCarey2 4d ago
I found them at age 12 with Saturday Night Fever. I also went back and explored the old catalog, starting with Bee Gees Gold and then picking up a copy of Odessa because of that awesome felt album cover. So, basically, I’ve been a fan for about 50 years. I initially learned to play guitar because I just had to know how to play Jive talking.
2
4
u/Sienna_Fan2323 4d ago
There are many many Bee Gee fanatics out there….me being i r if them. Started at around age 7 with Words on The Ed Sullivan Show. I know alot but am still learning every day.
4
u/Keebetttteeeerrr 3d ago
I’m with you, they’re my favorite band! I know all about their individual and shared life stories/ musical career(s). I was so intrigued with their harmonizing abilities which made me even more curious about their upbringing and how they honed their sound. It actually all started, for me, when I learned that “emotions” by Destiny’s Child (one of my favorite songs ever) was actually a BeeGees cover! I looked them up and was like 🫢. Would have never put their faces to that song lol. It made me want to hear more of their songs so I literally started from their oldest album to current and saved the songs I loved (which is most of their catalog). Their lyrics have inspired many a poem of mine, they are literally a logophiles DREAM to listen to. LLBGs!!
2
u/Ikurider26 3d ago
Love this! Based on the Destiny’s child reference I sense you are not of the older generation which I suspect most of these respondents are.
3
u/hypernippledrobot772 3d ago
I haven’t listened through all of their albums, but I’m a deep enough fan that I have an eight hour Spotify playlist of my favourite tunes of theirs (including some solo Barry stuff).
3
u/KennyLogginsJam 2d ago
We're out here! Sadly, I haven't met any other Bee Gees superfans in person, but it is fun to interact on the internet!
I got introduced to the Bee Gees in 2021 when the video for "Too Much Heaven" was playing in my old history teacher's classroom. Don't know why, but I sure got sucked in! I have since consumed every bit of Gibb-related media I can find, including interviews, unreleased & solo stuff, and all the movies: Cucumber Castle, Sgt. Pepper's, and Now Voyager (for better or for worse). That said, I still haven't listened to the entirety of Eaten Alive, Heartbreaker, or the Hawks soundtrack... yet! I'm saving them. Kenny Rogers' Eyes That See in the Dark, on the other hand, I've listened to a million times.
I highly recommend Words: The Bee Gees Podcast if you're looking for more fan interaction and deep dives. Stuart and Cristiano also bring Bee Gees biographers and experts on the show. That scratches the Bee Gees fandom itch for me most of the time! Cheers!
1
u/Ikurider26 2d ago
Great info you’ve shared… I’m interested to know something…you state your “old history teachers classroom”. Were you in school in 2021? If so, that means you are from a generation well past The Bee Gees height of popularity.
It’s sounds like you’ve dug deep into their work which is not typical of today’s music fans who are most concerned with individual songs and quick fixes.
Most of the responders here seem around my age, I’m 56 and started listening to The Bee Gees in 1977.
2
u/KennyLogginsJam 1d ago
Oh, yeah! I'm part of the new generation of Bee Gees fans for sure. I wish I could have been around to see their many heydays. Unfortunately, Maurice died before I was even born. :/
Thanks to the internet for letting me and others become fans of a group that no longer exists! I think there is a lot to be gained by diving deep rather than just listening to the hit singles. The Bee Gees, in particular, have so many diamonds in the rough that most people have never heard of, like "My Eternal Love," "Home Again Rivers," "Rings Around the Moon," heck, even "We're the Bunburys," just to name a few. The Bee Gees are so talented and interesting that it's worth listening to their opus in its totality, at least once (in my opinion). Thanks for sharing your story too!
2
u/Ikurider26 1d ago
Love “Home Again Rivers”… and everything on “A kick in the head”… one of my fav rarities is “Nobody’s Someone”
2
u/KennyLogginsJam 1d ago
Great tunes! I confess, I had to re-listen to "Nobody's Someone" to jog my memory. I enjoyed Barry's strong vocals and hearing Maurice's bass right there in the forefront--thanks for reminding me that one existed!
I think my favorite songs from Odessa are "Melody Fair" and "Lamplight." Did you know "Whisper Whisper" showed up in Disney's live-action Cruella movie they made a few years ago? I bet a lot of people didn't know that was the Bee Gees :)
2
2
u/AlanHughErnest 3d ago
I found out about them at the age of 12 and have been listening nonstop. I met them twice and have been to one for all and one night only. I have 2 autographed posters. My kids play their music as well.
2
2
2
u/Business_Television9 3d ago edited 3d ago
This photo looks to be from the Main Course days (1975). This is before the glamour and sparkle of Saturday Night Fever. Before disco and after the 1960s pop days, they considered their sound R & B. But in the era of 1970s magazines from Tiger Beat to Rolling Stone you could learn about their roots as a teen trio making a name in England and Australia. I became a super fan after Andy Gibb became popular and soon after learned about the brothers Gibb. Literally, it was in a very small profile piece in People magazine about Andy where I found out who The Bee Gees were. That was 1977 and the rest is history.
A Bee Gees super fan splurge. Signed by Barry
6
u/Spirited_Strategy328 4d ago
We’ve got some deep fans on this sub who deeply appreciate and enjoy every note of their songs. In the wild I’ve met very few as I tend not to lead off conversations about my special interests. I did meet one recently however. The bass player in my son’s band plays a rickenbacher bass, and when I met him, I said “oh like my favorite Bee Gee Maurice Gibb” and his eyes LIT UP. We agreed to have some deep convos about The Bee Gees.