Reviews (page 2 of 8)
Did they actually listen back to their singing over the monitors and think, "Yeah, that sounds good"?
Not sure why this is on here. I had to go listen to Al Green after.
Uggh! The album is a blancmange of tedious easy listening pre disco boredom.
When later changing to disco actually IMPROVES your band ...
Although the album did slowly grow on me, it was by then already in a deficit so its still very firmly a negative.
Really Good, lacks a little something outside of the better songs/singles. Interesting to hear such a strange style from beegees i only know Saturday night fever and Andy Gibbs solo stuff so fun
No way I would have known this was the Bee Gees without being told. They’re a different band from what I’ve always thought! There were some sweet spots on this one, but I was mostly bored.
Some of this is perfectly adequate, some of this is utter drivel. I didn't know what to expect, and I'm thoroughly confident I didn't need to hear it, nor will I listen again. I'm glad it's not their disco stuff at least. All in all a bit pish. It's one of those where 47mins feels a very long time.
they were whipping up shit in a kettle, literal shit fucking Isreal song dogshit fucking album wow
Опа, би джис. А вы в курсе что в некоторых мед. заведениях учат делать непрямой массаж сердца под Stayin' Alive потому что ритм песни идеально подходит под это действие? Не? Неинтересно?.. Ну ладно, тогда про альбом. Первая песня оч симпатичная и сквозит какими-то битловскими гармониями и напоминает то ли саму четверку, то ли какой-то потерянный сингл от ELO. Прикольно. Остальные песни выдержаны в плюс-минус том же софт'рочном стиле, интересно, причёсанно, приятно, если кто-то включит такое в гостях/машине/ с удовольствем послушаю и получу удовольствие, но целенаправленно (сам) слушать не буду. Вощем-то, это можно переложить в целом на мое отношение к Bee Gees как группы.
meh
I was up for enjoying this but it’s really really shit.
The Beatles in disguise It's still insane to me that these people turned out to do disco
Iy was alright but I'm already forgetting it and by this time tomorrow I would be able to hear it for the first time again Standouts - 3/5
Unmemorable
One of my favorite band. Some great tunes on this album. Overall a great album.
I’m confused why that out of all the Bee Gees album, this is the one on here. I appreciate their talent, Iv just never been a huge fan and I don’t find this very enjoyable to listen to, I got a bit bored. I felt like I was listening to the same track multiple times. Pre-Disco Bee Gees is just less interesting in my opinion. I just feel really underwhelmed listening to this.
So I was never a big fan of The Bee Gees, but if you’re going to put one of their albums on the list surely you can do better than this one. Saturday Night Fever would be THE one that has the most impact on history, this album has one decent track and then a bunch of forgettable tracks. Sadly compared to most of the albums on the 1001 list this album is like fucking Mozart, so plus one for being actual music with intelligible lyrics.
This is an incredibly dull record. Hearing How Can You Mend a Broken Heart just makes me want to listen to the Al Green version. The second song is called Israel and is a tribute to the country. Yuck. Otherwise it's just Beatles worship and is putting me to sleep.
Mopey as all hell. I'm not a fan of the Bee Gees but at least the later stuff has a bit of groove to it.
Nice enough but not for me
I am not overly familiar with the Bee Gees aside from "To Love Somebody" and their disco stuff in particular the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. This is ok. I like Barry's broken falsetto voice, but their was nothing that really stood out to me. "Lion in Winter" is the standout track because it sounds more like an old R&B song and has some good hollering.
You cannot convince me that anyone on this planet goes "Let me put on Trafalgar" by the fucking Bee Gees. There is nothing worse in music than albums, where absolutely nothing happens. At least have the balls to make a shit album that sounds terrible. At least I will remember it for how shit it was. This you couldn't remember even if someone held a gun against your head.
4/5
(I am sitting in a clockwork orange chair with a thousand albums all playing at the same time, real loud, real close. There’s blood pooling in the corner of my eye. I focus as hard as I can and for a moment, Trafalgar by Bee Gees clearly threads through the noise) “So this is what Bee Gees sounded like before disco. How about that.”
This is normie Bee Gees. I prefer the weird Bee Gees albums.
the second track is a self proclaimed Love Song To Israel lol. i love the beach boys i love the moody blues i love paul mccartney's granny songs. i always Perk Up To Attention when we reach the sappy ballad portion of an album. i love when already slow and soft and boring bands decide to Take It Down A Notch by their own standards. its genuinely hard for me to Not like this stuff, and i think musically its a bit stronger then the other bee gees on this list (and not an hour long!). but part of why i like all this stuff despite its lack of raw Musical Interest is that mood it creates and the spell it casts, and even without a Love Song To Israel i just cant see what theyre doing here. it makes me like the other record i heard from them a lot less, frankly. i rly had hoped i could be in on this band's weird cult status but they don't even have a ray thomas in their ranks, much less a brian wilson.
Just in no way ever was or will be my thing.
This mostly vacillated between boring and annoying. Can't say I enjoyed much of my time with this one, although it's not quite deserving of a 1. 1.5
I guess I really hate the beegees
Too slow and a bit dreary, much better to come from them
I was surprised I wasn't vibing
This album had all the tools to be a great album but when the lead singers voice makes you audibly infuriated, it’s a hard uphill battle as far as ratings go. I liked enough songs for it not to be a one but damn that voice really pisses me off.
Definitely the lamest thing I heard recently. 47 minutes that felt like 47 years
There are some albums on here that I don't really like but I understand why they're here. Stevie Wonder comes to mind...I don't like his music and I've tried multiple times to listen to it and figure out what I'm missing. And then I just shrug and realize maybe I'm not the intended audience and that's okay. But I never doubt why Stevie Wonder is on this list. I get why he's here. This album isn't that. This is really well crafted music, but it doesn't feel essential. It feels like whoever made this list said "Hey, you know what? The Bee Gees made some great stuff before disco and it needs to be recognized." If you like melancholy music and velvet curtains, this is for you. I'm also not sure which one of them sounds like Kermit The Frog but once I heard it (it's the first voice you hear on the album) I couldn't stop hearing it. Giving it a 3 because it's well crafted. They're talented, but this isn't essential.
King of "meh". This album has one big track ("How Can You Mend a Broken Heart") and even that one doesn't really grab me. The overall sound at times reminds me of Simon and Garfunkel but the songs are just OK.
Y’onow, there’s actually one or two songs on this that are quite nice. But The Bee Gees will forever be known primarily as a Disco band, so it stands to reason that this is the second non-disco album of theirs on this list.
Schmaltzy garbage.
Not for me but it has some really nice instrumentation and vocal performances.
How Can You Mend a Broken Heart is originally a Bee Gees song! Wow! Some other interesting songs too
Harmonys were good but overall a boring album.
There are some good harmonies and some good melodies, but it’s just a little too sappy for me.
I love all beegees
Not sure why this gets a bad rap
Ugh, I hate it.
"when do i"es mi favorita del album
unremarkable pop rock. the vocal harmonies are pretty solid but one of the leads isn't really doing it for me.
The Bee Gees fucking suck, even before their dogshit disco era. This album is so bad it's just them trying to copy what every other rock band was doing at the time. It's bad enough that there is a song about how much they love the state of Israel. No thanks. 3/10
What a weird bummer of an album. Kept checking the timestamp.
are we ever going to get a fun Bee Gees album or are we pretending fun music isn't intellectually interesting or important
On va être parfaitement honnête cinq minutes : même avec la meilleure volonté du monde, la bienveillance la plus totale et une envie sincère de me replonger dans la discographie pré-disco des frères Gibb, je n'y arrive tout simplement pas. Pourtant, je vous assure que l'intention était là et après la rupture temporaire du groupe et leurs escapades solo bancales du tournant des années 1970, voir Robin, Barry et Maurice se rabibocher pour enregistrer un disque au nom évoquant une bataille navale historique avait de quoi attiser une certaine curiosité. On pouvait légitimement espérer un sursaut d'orgueil, une étincelle de génie dramatique ou au moins un album de pop baroque bien ficelé. Au lieu de ça, Trafalgar s'apparente plutôt à une longue traversée de la Manche sous une pluie battante, la tête collée contre la vitre d'un ferry en panne. Le véritable problème de cet album ne vient pas d'un manque de savoir-faire technique ou vocal, car les harmonies familiales sont évidemment réglées comme de la horlogerie suisse. Non, le souci majeur réside dans cette surcharge permanente de mélodrame poisseux et de violons larmoyants qui étouffent la moindre velléité de rythme. On a l'impression tenace d'écouter la bande-son d'un enterrement victorien au ralenti. Tout y est lourd, empesé, presque théâtral jusqu'à la caricature. Les arrangements de cordes nappent chaque morceau d'une couche de sirop si dense qu'on en vient à chercher désespérément une guitare électrique un peu nerveuse ou une batterie qui taperait plus fort qu'un battement de cœur sous tranquillisants. Certes, il y a la présence incontournable du tube "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart", qui sauve un peu le navire du naufrage absolu. C'est une ballade efficace, indéniablement bien construite, où le trémolo légendaire de Robin fait des merveilles pour qui aime le pathos assumé. Mais une fois ce titre passé, l'album s'enfonce dans une monotonie pesante dont il ne se relève jamais vraiment. Les ballades s'enchaînent et se ressemblent toutes, noyées sous les mêmes thématiques d'amour déchu, de solitude plaintive et de cœurs brisés. À aucun moment le disque ne tente une prise de risque, une rupture de ton ou une petite embardée groovy qui nous rappellerait que le monde ne s'arrête pas de tourner quand une relation prend fin. Je veux bien admettre que cette période de transition des Bee Gees possède ses fervents défenseurs, ceux qui y voient un sommet d'émotion brute et de pop mélancolique orchestrale. Mais à mes oreilles, l'exercice devient vite épuisant et le manque cruel de diversité dans les tempos ainsi que l'absence d'énergie globale finissent par engourdir la critique la plus indulgente. On navigue constamment entre la mièvrerie bien léchée et l'apitoiement sur soi-même, sans jamais trouver ce grain de folie ou cette étincelle rock qui faisait le charme de leurs premiers travaux des années 1960. Au final, Trafalgar reste pour moi une œuvre datée, figée dans ses excès de mélancolie ampoulée et plombée par une production d'une lourdeur académique. On repense alors avec une pointe de nostalgie à ce que le groupe deviendra quelques années plus tard en embrassant la funk et le disco : une machine à danser lumineuse, dynamique et décomplexée. Mais en 1971, le compte n'y est pas du tout. Deux étoiles sur cinq, donc, et c'est bien parce que je suis d'humeur généreuse face à la justesse de leurs voix. Pour le reste, je passe mon tour sans le moindre regret.
Sounded very good but I don’t know if I’ll be back to it.
Some of pretty decent certainly an improvement over the stayin alive crap. 2.5
Not very good
yeah fine, random ass song about israel lmao??????? tf??????
Nah.
Yeah they shoulda stuck to disco Like obviously these guys have some talent, otherwise they wouldn’t have achieved global stardom with their disco stuff. Some of this album is pretty inoffensive Beatles-at-home tracks that are solid enough, a little relaxing while being technically sound and well executed Unfortunately so much of this album is just horrendously boring soft rock that does little to capitalize on the bands talents. Lion in Winter just sucks, definitely stood out as a uniquely bad song on this that actively makes this record worse. I don’t think these guys sound is suited to sweet ballads really at all, they just lack the charm to make that work Have definitely had worse, but yknow it’s been a while since we had an album that was just straight up boring. This really should be closer to a 3 but I’m feeling spiteful and agree with the sentiment that the list writers really botched this one and shouldn’t have included this on the list over more deserving entrants. Just a wholly mediocre album in the worst way
This is so gay. I hate to use that word as an insult but thats exactly what this is. I can feel myself getting bullied for listening to this.
Like all the other Bee Gees albums I've ever heard, this one is uneven. I really like about half the songs, the rest are either interesting failures or just not very memorable. Also, the unrelentingly gloomy tone of the album ensures that I would never want to listen to more than about half of it at one sitting. The tracks I like are "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart", which ranks among their classic singles, "Remembering", a good old over-the-top Bee Gees ballad complete with huge vocal harmonies on the chorus, "Trafalgar", which sounds like an outtake from "Imagine", "Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself", which probably would have been the hit single had there been no "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart", and "When Do I", which may be my favorite cut on the album. "Dearest", "Lion in Winter", and "Israel" are appealing but flawed... on the first two, the tunes rise above the singer's vocal range, not a good place for the Bee Gees to be, the last is a misguided attempt at a more standard soul-ballad sound, and the lyrical content is a bit odd for the world of pop.
I was very disappointed with this album. All it had was the great single release How Can You Mend....
Meehhhh
Alrite, another legendary band I know only by their greatest hits...do the Bee Gee's deep tracks hold up as well as the chart toppers? Let's find out... OK - some solid, some drag...actually side B drags a lot.
Never heard this before. Not bad, but not very interesting, especially when considering their later work.
3.5/10 - Very dull. There were a few songs that sounded like they could have been David Bowie covers, and those were the only songs that sparked anything for me. Not a fan.
This is a snooze fest. There are some nice harmonies and vocal moments which keeps it from being a complete disaster. 3/10
Nope
Nope
If you are going to have a zionist song, try to make descent album. Waste of time.
An anomally. Enjoyable, has some fantastically orchestral arrangements, felt like there was a world in here you can settle into. Often taken out of it by the strangely supporfulous and tenuous concept for the sake-of-it concept, and at times a bit too derivative of Neil Young, The Beatles and Atlanta soul. This is a sometimes lovely, and sometimes quite confusing listen. It's a bit of a suprise that this is on the list and ... no Night Fever sound track!?
Why can’t I have disco Bee Gees guys why not? Also not to be that guy but also to totally be that guy - ISREAL????
Have never really delved into the bee gees properly before, this was actually very enjoyable, unexpected so it gets a 4
At least they had the self awareness to put a single called Somebody Stop The Music on this thing. The best song on here sounded a bit like Pictures of Matchstick Men by Status Quo meets Let It Be. After this finished I had to go listen to Massachusetts to remind myself I like some early Bee Gees. Its a bit harsh giving this a 2 because it's more a 5 out of 10 album but a three would be too high for something I won't be checking out again.
Baroque pop and soft rock built from lush orchestration, melodic piano, layered harmonies, and tender vocals feels like leafing through an old family photo album of a stranger where every picture is carefully posed but AS you don't know a thing about the people you see you don't care. The album hast a consistent gentle melancholy and polished sentiment rarely develops enough momentum to become emotionally gripping and I was Happy about it ending.
The Bee Gees give me a headache. Next album please
Not what I was expecting when I saw Bee Gees. Interesting album and a fun listen.
I didn’t realize The Bee Gees did music outside of disco and could have kept it that way
I thought I liked the Bee Gees but this was not great.
p226. 1971. 2 stars. Well, they knew how to knock out a tune, I'll give them that. Set against that we have maudlin lyrics, syrupy strings, and the horror that is Robin Gibb's voice - which is simply not up to the task of handling most of these songs. Imagine what Roy Orbison could have done with the same material. I have a theory that the best Bee Gees songs are the ones covered by other artists.
It's fine. Early Bee Gees just don't have the sauce yet, like someone playing Stayin Alive acoustic. Israel has aged poorly also.
chill. didnt know bee gees do other genres
Great the Bee Gees. Wrong wrong wrong. Pick an album with no hit songs. Then subject us to songs about wanting to kill yourself because the wife left. Do this in the most smaltzy over wrought way possible. Then the crown jewel, Israel. Your sandy beaches and lovely ladies. Taking out any politics this is one of the worst songs iv ever heard. Made it to the end that was truly dire. Worst album iv heard on this. I know I won't like jazz or prog but I like the Bee Gees. I thought the start was bad the last 4 songs plume new depths of awfulness. I checked I was playing at the right speed and that it wasn't a parody album. It's also a concept album two songs Trafalger and Waterloo the second being really cringe. 1 star.
Nope. Listened to the first two songs, was greeted by Kermit the Frog attempting to sing a ballad, and then a sickening love song to the "country" of Israel. I shan't be listening any further. Fuck this album.
What do you mean Trafalgar and Odessa are on the list but not Main Course? Not an actually fun, memorable Bee Gees album with bangers on it? I have a lot of love for the Bee Gees but what do you MEAN? The vocals are mostly fine – apart from some bizarre noises that are just unintentionally funny – but it's all so fusty and low-energy. If we're going for lame Bee Gees albums that haven't stood the test of time, I'd rate One and Still Waters over this, but maybe I'm just a sicko for loving their really late-career stuff.
Well, I started off listening to this in an optimistic frame of mind after the drivel we've been served recently. The orchestration and general production was superb and the melodies were in the main enjoyable but the lyrics and the tone were SO depressing!! The vocals near the end lost it completely but it was nevertheless an interesting taste of the first album which I hadn't heard any of before. Not surprised it had no impact on the UK charts when released after hearing it though. Happily, better was to come.
Actually didn’t hate this and not what I was expecting from the Bee Gees. Where are the falsetto’s, tight trousers and disco moves? Honestly (and I know I will get hate for this) but some of the tracks kind of sound like slightly shit Beatles b-sides I quite liked Israel & It’s Just the Way, Lion in Winter The voices are equally terrible but then also … there’s something I like about them. For example in When I Do and Lion in Winter the voices are bonkers but I still enjoyed them. The song Remembering even has the great line ‘now I feel as good, as good as if I were dead’ - emo!
Bee Gees, more like BORE Gees, geddit?? Soft rock, wibbly wobbly warbling, very dull, very wet, very not for me.
Why is this on the list? What qualified this to be on here? Later, 'Disco' Bee Gees are clearly the superior Bee Gees. Room temperature, melted vanilla ice cream Bee Gees are **not**. This is really a head scratcher. I guess it's because they're British. Is this a filler album? It's got the energy level of a lethargic sloth, and arrangements best suited for funeral dirges. If you need some help getting to sleep just throw this on.. unintentional musical Ambien. (1/5) Thanks, Dimery, for helping me to realize that Disco is ok..
In 1971, "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart?" was the first Bee Gees' No. 1 single in the United States. So what the hell was wrong with people in the US in 1971?? And following it up with a love song to Israel? Just, wow. This entire album was an exercise in making nails on a chalkboard a boring pasttime, and honestly made me question whether I like the Bee Gees as much as I thought I did (obviously, I do not). The title track may have been the least horrible song here, but it was never going to be enough to round this one up to a 2/5.
130. Trafalgar - Bee Gees (1971) 7.2.26 Variety: 1 Adequacy: 3 Listenability: 2 Uniqueness: 1 Emotionality: 3 = 2.0 Despite having owned this on vinyl ( picked it up in a giant lot that also included Odessa and a few others), I never got around to listening to it before selling it off. The Bee Gees were one of those bands, much like ABBA, that I actively avoided as a young person, as they reeked of uncoolness. By the time I started caring about such things, I was too old to have suffered an infection Saturday Night Fever, and the Gibb boys were already something of a pop cultural punchline. Later on after I more or less stopped listening to new music and began the long, slow drudge into the depths of nostalgia that comes for a lot of us, I began to revisit the oldies type material my mom would play and had to admit a lot of it was pretty well crafted, if not exactly my sort of thing. The Bee Gees in particular were always undeniable talents, whatever you think of their music, but I had no idea how many songs they had their fingers in that weren't in the "Staying Alive" mode, and as I heard more I grew to respect if not exactly appreciate the brothers Gibb. ABBA songs got way more play as I think their stuff holds up a lot better, but the Bee Gee's greatest hits stuff floated around as well, so I must have heard a few of these in the meantime. I'm fairly certain this won't blow my mind enough for me to raise them up any higher than "yeah, they're ok" in my book, but who knows. "...now I feel as good as if I were dead" THE TRACKS Side one "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" - This is definitely one I heard as a kid and had ZERO idea it was the Bee Gees. Sad without being too maudlin, the Gibbs don't over gild the lily here. The production and overall vibe is something that sits up with the best stuff from the Carpenters and Paul Williams ( both of whom I've since come around on appreciating later in life). There's a not quite, but almost country leaning to the sound. The fullness and light touch of the vocal performance goes without saying, and these guys somehow manage to be soulful despite the easy, laid back nature of the whole thing. Emotional resonance is hard enough to pull off by the best of the best, but these dudes manage it even under the constraints of the mellow as fuck mood. Top notch example of this sort of thing, and easy to see why it was beloved at the time. Elvin Bishop/ Mickey Thomas outdoes this type of thing with "Fooled Around and Fell in Love" though. "Israel" - This feels like I've heard it before, but it could just be that it reminds me so much of Elton John, whose stuff I've heard a lot more of. This was a solid piano ballad that John would have been proud of I think. Looking at the credits I see that these guys even played on the album. I don't normally think of them as anything other than singers, and this is definitely due to the disco era picture of them I have in my mind. But this all sounds pretty damn good. Maurice apparently was the instrumentally inclined brother, and he does a bang up job here on the piano and (presumably overdubbed) bass. "The Greatest Man in the World" - Here's where they lose me. Some fine enough playing and singing but the schmaltz factor soars sky high on this one. The sort of thing that's built for middle school slow dances and the closing credits of terrible ABC after school specials. "It's Just the Way" - A rare Maurice track. The man does fine on lead vocals, but easy to see why he's relegated to the Ringo/ John role in the group. There's a not-quite Beatlesy vibe here that ultimately does not work, but which you can feel rising up through the cracks in the floorboards of this one. Interesting, but nothing special, and the overdone sappy strings at the end leave me with a bd taste in my mouth. "Remembering" - Oh no. This is some Andy Williams Perry Como shit, and is what I was worrying this whole thing would be like. This is the sort of mawkish trite that gives the 70s a bad name. The dramatic Roy Orbison drums are the only decent thing about this. The bleating, vibrato is leaned into unnecessarily hard which is another strike against it. "Somebody Stop the Music" - This is better. Dynamic chord changes, a more subtle use of the string section, and a chorus that's actually memorable. There's a goofball quality to this about 2/3 of the way in that, along with the dramatic mood and tempo changes, that reminds me of some of the 60s David Bowie stuff that I could never quite wrap my head around and enjoy. Side two "Trafalgar" - Another Maurice song, where he does his best John Lennon impersonation, at least vocally. This was also not awful, but ends up musically being closer to something you'd find on a mid 70s Kinks album. A mixed bag, but a whole album of this would have been interesting. I always see references to the group's obsession with the Beatles and that their first few albums have some soundalikes. I might have to seek some of those out given Maurice's performance here. "Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself" - Man, now I'm imagining a version of this album without the strings and thinking it might all go down a whole lot easier. Eric Carmen's "All By Myself" eats this song's lunch as far as mopey easy listening histrionics go. And Gary Wright's "Dream Weaver" has a more effective combination of melody and go-for-broke vocals. Great showcase for Barry's solo voice though. "When Do I" - Robin is by far my least favorite vocalist of the brothers, and on this track he sounds like Glenn Yarbrough off of the Rankin and Bass animated Hobbit tv special. This is bottom of the barrel sad boy music. "Dearest" - Two in a row. Robin works best in tandem with Barry who can mitigate some of the worst qualities of his voice. The back and forth between them does not cut it though. That shit needs to be mixed together. Liberace would have blushed at how corny this one was. "Lion in Winter" - Another decent enough Elton John-ish impression, but too bad the track itself is pretty boring and lacking any decent hooks. "Walking Back to Waterloo" - The Minstrel of Gondor is back for one last hurrah, as we get another pity party track. Speaking of Waterloo, The rest of the song fails to deliver upon the promise of the ABBA-esque chorus. HIGHLIGHTS - "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" MIDLIGHTS - "Israel" - "It's Just the Way" - "Somebody Stop the Music" - "Trafalgar" - "Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself" LOWLIGHTS - "The Greatest Man in the World" - "Remembering" - "When Do I" - "Dearest" - "Lion in Winter" - "Walking Back to Waterloo" FINAL THOUGHTS Even the lone highlight on here is not anything I'd ever put on a playlist. This was a pretty disappointing listen, considering the praise I see heaped on these early albums. As much as I also don't care for their disco stuff, it's light years better than the mostly sentimental, teary stuff on here. There many interesting moments, especially instrumentally, but overall I can't see myself ever revisiting this. It doesn't help that I was constantly reminded of better artists the whole time who pulled this stuff off to much better effect. That said, I might still track down some of their most Beatlesesque stuff if I can find a good curated list. Beatles soundalike stuff I find pretty entertaining as a rule. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS FURTHER LISTENING - Close to You by the Carpenters - Just an Old Fashioned Love Song by Paul Williams - The Tumbleweed Connection by Elton John - The Dream Weaver by Gary Wright - Eric Carmen by Eric Carmen - Greatest Hits by ABBA - Struttin' My Stuff by Elvin Bishop featuring Mickey Thomas
Before I even press play to listen to this album, that cover art is pretty badass. It is one of the best examples of the flaws of this list, in my opinion, that the Bee Gees (nicknamed the Kings Of Disco because their disco tracks are synonymous with that sound) have two albums on this list and neither of them are from their disco era. And I say that as someone who doesn’t like disco for the most part. I bounced off this album at first contact. It was slow soft rock on a day I didn’t need that. So I punted until later in the day. When everything had slowed down I gave it another listen, it was much better for it. That still can’t make up for how soft rocky it demands to be. For me its a 2.5 that I’m not rounding up.
More evidence that this list of 1000 albums is way too long. Why on God’s earth is this one on the list? I actually kind of like the pre-disco BeeGees, but although I thought this album was ok, they did much better work. This is a ho-hum three stars, and I am probably being generous.
I just kept thinking of the word “overwrought”. The penultimate song sounded like if Janis Joplin and Rod Stewart had a baby, fed it nothing but cigarettes and then told it to sing about being a lion.
A set of weepy, overly dramatic ballads that wears out your welcome halfway through. This fails as rock, as it has no groove or edge, and it fails as pop, because the hooks are limp. The songs are too slow, with too many strings layered over them, possibly to cover for the uninspired songwriting. And for a band known for its vocals, those vocals are pretty awful, affected and with no power behind them. There are some OK moments - the drums on "Lion in Winter" are kind of interesting and "Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself" has decent climaxes drowned out by its overall sappiness. "Dearest" is the nadir; it's a song that would stain even a great album, but there are several here on its level. This doesn't add anything new to the pop of the era, and it sounds bad doing it.
So un-disco
They kind of sound like the Beetles. I liked the historical references and enjoyed this album more than I would have originally though
70
что-то и не запомнилось ничего нормально
I find the Bee Gees’ ‘Early Years’ less appealing than their later music. Two stars…
I found nothing unique or worthy about this one
I was actually looking forward to this one - my dad used to talk.about how the Bee Gees used to be a rock band/pop group before they found massive success with disco, but I'd never actually heard what they sounded like. Unfortuantely, now I know. The sound of pre-Saturday Night Fever Bee Gee's is weepy, treacly love ballads. Every song lopes along at a very tired (and tiring) gait, smearing disgusting urgliness over everything it touches. The lyrics are fairly ridiculous on the page, but the vocal performances are so bad I can't believe they let this be released. Please see the chorus to "Lion in Winter" as exhibit A. Some of the worst singing I've ever heard in my life that was *trying* to be good. But all over the record, the brothers employ this incredibly cloying, way-too-deep vibrato. When they're all singing at once I feel like I might get sea sick. Oh, and they have a song gushing over Israel, which - might have been fine in the early 70s but in our current political climate hits a bit different. This was garbage, but it was totally benign garbage. None of this made me angry, as much as I might have hated it. For that reason I can only muster the energy for - TWO STARS
This was a pleasant surprise for me as someone with quite superficial knowledge of the Bee Gees' work. It's a very lush, romantic album filled with ballads; a far cry from their popular contemporary image as the white faces of disco. I'm sure the old heads out there would roll their eyes at my ignorance here but don't blame me, nobody ever plays their early stuff these days! Anyway, I found this record to be pretty enjoyable on the whole. Lots of really nice melodies and good uses of harmonies, which I'm always a sucker for. The songwriting is often on the simplistic side, but it's usually carried well by the vocal performances of the brothers and their diverse voices. Having looked up which songs had which brother on lead vocals, I'm generally more of a fan of Barry's songs on this record, but Robin certainly gave a unique texture to his songs, even though I'm not a huge fan of his singing style. I do get the impression from this album that the Bee Gees were more followers than trendsetters when it came to their musical style. I figure that's probably how they ended up becoming such a big name in disco; and how they came to be quite poorly regarded by contemporary critics. For instance, Somebody Stop The Music sounds a lot like Bowie's music from that era, and Trafalgar sounds like it could easily be a Beatles song up until you reach the somewhat uninspired chorus. They're well crafted songs, but they do feel slightly derivative at times. I wouldn't say any of the songs here stand out as all-time classics, but Walking Back to Waterloo probably comes closest to that. I really love the chorus on that track, so powerful yet tinged with an aching wistfulness. It's the most emotionally evocative track on the record for me. A few more tracks on its level of quality would have led to this album being more fondly remembered I imagine. I'll give this a 3.5, with a sympathy rounding up because of how harsh a lot of the other reviews are on here. Favourite Tracks: Walking Back to Waterloo, How Can You Mend a Broken Heart, Somebody Stop The Music
Instead of ships they should have put sheeps on the cover.
mmmm... not my favorite by them, but listenable.
Meh. Kind of corny. Not a big far of their voice (turns out Jimmy Fallon’s impression on SNL was more accurate than I thought). You end up singing the final choruses because they can get stuck in your head, but they are not amazing songs
Reminds me of that medieval/Renaissance fad of the 60s-70s. Very much of that time. Slow, singer-songwriter ballads. Weird knowing this is the Bee Gees. Not really a bad album, but there's been so many done better. No track really stood out, overall. I think I liked "Trafalgar" the best.
..
Oh, how boring it is! Very.
Good to hear they got their stuff together after "Odessa". Decent album, high 3* 3/5
I was kind of excited to dive into Bee Gees before disco. I kind of hated this. I don’t know why. Maybe it was his voice? The vibrato of it? I’m not sure. I wanted to like it more. 6/19/26
As they sing in Somebody Stop The Music, “Don’t love you, baby, don’t love you’.” 2/5
"Led Zeppelin didn't write tunes everybody liked. They left that to the Bee Gees." - Wayne Campbell
Album in desperate need of disco dopamine. Not bad tho
Early bee gee lots of guttural pre disco not sure where to place this!
Lot of ballads where the singing is a bit warbly, not for me, but not terrible.
I guess it was interesting because this isn’t the sound I know by the Bee Gees. However, it wasn’t especially good. A sound that hasn’t aged particularly well and plain songs.
meh
Cheese. Derivative. Cheese.
it's ok? don't know what to do with pre-disco bee gees there's a bunch of music tho
At its best it's a beatles tribute
Excuse me tf is this shit and where is the disco? 0 stars
No stand ours here but inoffensive 3
you will like this if you like non-glam Elton John which is okay but kinda boring and nothing spectacular I do wish this project reported a justification on why the album is included. some of them don't make sense to me
Pre-disco era efforts by the Bee Gees (such as this record) were cloying sub-Beatles wimp rock that finds a hard time justifying its existence. Not only do the Gibb brothers over-emote on every track, their vocal stylings lean more towards Broadway than to Liverpool or London.
When I got my first job and had my own money, the first thing I did was buy 2 CDs, and one of them was a Bee Gees greatest hits album. I played the shit out of that CD and still have it. So when I generated Odessa, I was so bummed because I was not expecting to dislike one of their albums so strongly. I'm happy to say I liked Trafalgar much more overall, but it kind of gave me whiplash because I either really liked or really disliked just about every other song. The ones I disliked the most were probably the ones with the clearest Beatles influence. (Oh and also Israel and Lion in Winter.) I adore the Beatles of course but I'm here for the Bee Gees! How Can You Mend A Broken Heart is an all time great song. I think The Greatest Man In The World, Somebody Stop The Music, Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself, When Do I, and Dearest live most comfortably in that same world. That collection of songs would be a lovely EP. The rest of the songs I either didn't care for or care about. I almost want to give this 4 stars simply for how great hcymabh is, but 3 is a better reflection of my feelings for the album as a whole.
Forgettable but not terrible album, it had the stuff that would eventually make them into them. -1 points for a song called “Israel” and being positive of it
At least I was aware of what I was heading into with this album before listening to it, and not expecting any disco. This still wasn't a great listen; the harmonies are typical of what you'd expect from them, but it is a bit boring and dull. I'm so glad that they pivoted to disco. Oh, and that Israel song, just straight IDF propaganda at this point.
Several years ago music snobs were trying to repaint the BeeGees reputation by pointing to this album. To be honest, it falls flat. Let’s just accept their best is disco.
a very different Bee Gees. I enjoyed Walking Back to Waterloo. The way he sings on this album is addicting.
Not as good as abba
# Album Name: Trafalgar # Artist: Bee Gees # Rating: 2/5 # Comments: Boring AF # Top Tunes: # Would I listen to it again? No
Pretty solid, kinda sounds like the Beatles
Good harmonies, as you would expect, but a pretty cheesy set of soulless ballads
the bee gees are incredible and this is one of their best. most think disco when they think bee gees, but they were much more. early garage rock “i want home”. revolver-era psychedelic. soul tunes. one of the best bands ever. “it’s just way”, “trafalgar”, “don’t wanna live inside myself”, “lion in winter”, and “walking back from waterloo” are jams.
Intolerable - this band never should’ve made it to their disco era
1.2 fuck off with these nerds
Listened
I really enjoyed this one!! A few mid songs towards the end stopped it being 5 stars
Landing at 3 based on How to Mend a Broken Heart. Otherwise this would be a 2. They are hit and miss with me and this one misses.
Highlights: How Can You Mend A Broken Heart 2.9
zzz
Lite väl långsamt men skön stämning ändå.
Tror detta var första Bee Gees-albumet jag hört och lät inte som jag väntat mig. Men riktigt bra vibe!
I wouldn’t say this was bad, it sounded nice…but wow was this hard to give my full attention to. Likes: How Can You Mend A Broken Heart
This was a hard listen, I know rh3 bee gees are highly talented- but not for me in any shape
Had some pretty moments but ultimately not as electrifying as some of their other work
Not my favorite mode of Bee Gees but still pretty good
Always enjoyed their music since their disco era and listened to their Greatest Hits so much in 1982, while driving around with my dad to his soccer games and wherever else we went. It was years later that I found they existed before their Stayin Alive/Tragedy/Saturday Night Fever era, and had a whole catalog of really good music. This is a 4+ for me, probably closer to 5. Hell, I'm giving it a 5.
Only made it to track 4. Shite.
This is some crazy sad boy music. And some of the songs sound pretty happy? But everything is about how this guy is depressed because his wife/girlfriend/partner (not really sure) left him. Also, what the hell is the end of this album??? It's really not good. Oh my gosh, that wasn't actually the end. Maybe it's me. Maybe I just don't understand the Bee Gees, but this album is very not good. There's only like 2 or so songs that are even all that listenable.
Ridiculously dull.
I at different times said: "this is grandma music", "this sounds like it was made by birds", and "this sounds like it was made by sheep". The vocals were nearly always either painful or funny to me. I now know there are 2 flavors of Bee Gees music that I don't like. Honestly almost "horseshoe theoried" itself into being enjoyable by being so funny. But I don't have a negative scale ala JelloApocalypse or Brandon Sanderson.
As Wes said, “this is grandma music”
Sorry I could not get past the love song to a genocidal state
They have a unique sound, but definitely not my preferred music
Interesting to hear the bridge between R&B Bee Gees and disco Bee Gees. There’s a lot of great tracks here, but also a few I skipped over on the second lesson. I still much prefer their 60s stuff.
How Can You Mend a Broken Heart
Read about the battle instead, it's much more interesting
Saccharine sweet and ultra schmaltzy. I feel like I’m being punked. The lyrics are embarrassing and the embellishments and strings make the whole album sound like a parody. What a joke.
At first I thought "hey I like some Bee Gees songs, this album probably won't be great but it'll at least be fun." I'll give myself half credit. The album in fact wasn't great, but it also wasn't fun.
i enjoy the bee gees beatle lite pre disco era, especially with them constantly referencing napoleon. but yuck song about israel 🤮🤮🤮🤮
Huh, today I learned The Bee Gees existed before disco, and it's just as cringey and saccharine as what I knew.
No thanks
Not my favorite but a few good songs. I particularly liked Lion in Winter.
I really like pre-disco Bee Gees. What a weird and interesting band they were. I can’t help but wonder how the song Israel would be informed my current events though.
I knew Bee Gees had an extensive career before their pivot to disco, but I had never heard anyone actually talk about their pre-disco era. Having now listened to this, I understand why. The vocal harmonies are nice and it sounds pretty, but otherwise this is just really boring, schmaltzy, and thouroughly unremarkable soft rock
Let’s start with the harmonies. Yeah, they are great. The rest of it….. well I’m not one for maudlin, over orchestrated Pop rock sung in a querulous voice. Syrupy strings and fairly standard arrangements sometimes hide what are in principle well written songs
Musikalisch top. Aber mir isses es auf Dauer nox
2.5 - ok
Some samey songs but overall a big fan
Snoozer. 2.
If this is on the list, Saturday Night Fever better be too. Personal enjoyment: 2/5 Relevance to this list: 3/5
A weird record, would never have picked it as the Bee Gees
So mellow, so lovely. Another album I completely overlooked my first time around.
Not for me 1/5
The style of singing feels so dated. ★★
Apart from the first song, this is completely insipid crap. A real waste of an orchestra.
It’s a good thing they found their strengths later on.
Typically, to get 1star you need to make me angry. Meh work that’s not for me gets 2stars as a rule. The exception to this was the Bee Gees’ Odessa, which I pitied rather than being angry at it, but it’s 1star. Trafalgar gets us back to basics; this record is incompetent and wastes your time. One of handful on here where I think the curator is picking trash at random to see if we’re paying attention. The Beeges made 22 albums. If these are the best two, the band should be erased from memory. This music is for no one.
Musical critics can be particularly frustrating when it comes to the Bee Gees. While the group was predominantly a singles-driven act, their most culturally significant output undoubtedly arrived in the mid-to-late 1970s. Yet, within the narrow scope of many "essential" lists, only "Odessa" and "Trafalgar" tend to make the cut. If asked to name their most memorable album, most would identify the "Saturday Night Fever soundtrack". The Bee Gees contributed seven tracks as writers and six as performers to that record - every one of them a superb tune. However, it is conspicuously absent here. Instead, "Trafalgar" and "Odessa" feel like token inclusions - an attempt to recognise the brothers as great songwriters and performers, albeit via the wrong records. Upon its release, "Trafalgar" received mixed reviews in the UK press. Its sales were poor and both the album and its single (a US number-one single) "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart", failed to chart entirely in the UK. At the time, the British press and public seemed less enamoured with the group’s transition into lush, melancholic ballads. Trafalgar is not a bad album, but it doesn't strike me as essential. It captures a group in transition, moving from 1960s baroque pop toward the soulful, ballad-driven sound of the early 1970s. The result is often maudlin and downbeat. While it is extremely well-produced, arranged, and performed, the material occasionally lacks inspiration. For the uninitiated, its greatest flaw is simply that it isn't the Bee Gees of the disco era and beyond. It is a polished piece of work, but it lacks the definitive energy that made the band a global phenomenon and essential listening. Four stars. Side one 1 "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" (5/5) 2 "Israel" (4/5) 3 "The Greatest Man in the World" (3/5) 4 "It's Just the Way" (3/5) 5 "Remembering" (3/5) 6 "Somebody Stop the Music" (3/5) Side two 1 "Trafalgar" (4/5) 2 "Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself" (4/5) 3 "When Do I" (4/5) 4 "Dearest" (3/5) 5 "Lion in Winter" (3/5) 6 "Walking Back to Waterloo" (4/5) Total - 43 Average - 3.58 321/1001 175/321 albums reviewed were new to me.
Really odd choice to be on this list. It’s like a cheap Rod Stewart, Elton John, and Beatles cosplay record. I think the Disco Beegees records are fun and definitely indicative of a specific time period. But this was not good and also didn’t feel important. It’s very odd that the Beegees are on this list 3 times, and none of those albums are their popular work.
Well not again, don't get me wrong it's not awful but it very very ordinary Cover : Really original, like the idea
ok
No se, tiene canciones buenas, pero suenan a una combinación de muchas bandas. Tenía potencial. 2.5
Por alguna razon la cancion 3 me recordo a Nothing Hill
Delightful little album. It appears that, based on reading a lot of the reviews, the only reason this album is rated as poorly as it is is because it's the Bee Gees not doing Disco. While I wholeheartedly agree that it would have been a nice inclusion to the book, and I'm a bit confused as to why this album as well as another pre-disco album was included as well, this album is not bad by itself. Plus, I was just in Trafalgar Square last week. While it would have been very cool to roll this album then, the week after is still a pretty fun coincidence. Anyway, as all Late 60's, Early 70's albums are, there are some Beatley aspects to this one. It's interesting hearing this band perform Soft Rock instead of Disco, and I think it really does work. I was also surprised to have recognized the first, and my favorite song on the album, "How Can You Mend A Broken Heart". I also really liked the titular "Trafalgar". Overall, I'm not going to remember this album in a week, but I still enjoyed spending the day listening to it, and I wholeheartedly disagree with the low rating. At 47 minutes long, it does overstay it's welcome just a little bit. It also doesn't bring anything new or interesting to the table, but that doesn't mean it's bad. The singer has a great voice, the mood is upbeat and cheery, and the instrumentation more than does enough to bring this album up to a very easy 3 rating. Not every album needs to be high energy to be great, and this album is a good example of that. If I wanted to just relax, perhaps go for a nice walk in the park, I would absolutely return to this album. It's mostly filler that blends in with itself, and absolutely nothing reached out and grabbed me, but it's far from terrible filler, and I love the vibes. That's all that really matters. I'm still confused why there are 2 Pre-Disco Bee Gees albums on this list, but it was cool to hear what they sounded like before that, even though this is inexplicably also their ninth album. Wow. They must have put out a metric ton of albums over their careers. Shoutout to my dude Trafalgar Law. He knows what's up.
Long before the disco era, this is a highly polished, melancholic slice of early 70s baroque pop. The vocal harmonies are undeniably immaculate and the orchestration is lush, but the songwriting stays strictly within very safe, somber, and slow paced ballad structures that can feel a bit uniform across the entire record.
One of the big bands in the 70s but not one of their big albums.
Really strong start with "How Can You Mend A Broken Heart" everything else was pretty good too
3.5/5
Beautiful set of love songs
4/10… baroque pop / oldies / *1971
Hey, it's the Beatles again!
Okay, I get that some times bands make songs/albums that are outside their genre: Taylor Swift and 1989; Darius Rucker’s country collection; Dolly Parton going metal. Sometimes it works. Sometimes, it’s a regarded effort of self discovery, and sometimes you want the original sound back. The problem is when you appreciate a band (not love) because of its kitchy-1970s disco era and then you hear an album that presents as a yokel James Taylor or a knock off Elton John and you question both their and your own life choices. Honestly, the normal falsetto never truly appealed to me anyway. This album replaces that with over dramatic, overproduced and operatic singing. I started with an open(ish) mind and found myself wishing it would end soon, which is not a good sign. If there was a song that I favorited it was the Elton sounding Lion in Winter. This is best left for the BeeGee aficionados.
Random thoughts: * Why was this added to 1001? Just to prove the Bee Gees existed before disco? * This is perfectly meh. I'm sure it was somewhat popular at the time of its release. * If you are going to put a Bee Gees album on here, it should be a disco one. * I just went and looked and there are two early Bee Gees albums on 1001 and no disco era albums. Are they trying to punk us. * Skip this and go play the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack instead.
It was ok. One of them has a real strange voice.
I think these guys were better than we all have them credit.
Eiii oikein lähtenyt ja iskenyt tämä rallattelu.
Never heard this album in its entirety. A bit too melancholy in some of the songs, but it is a Bee Gees vibe for sure.
I was unaware of the non disco side of these guys which was cool to learn about. This is more of a soft rock where the second half of the album loses a bit the thread. I don't dislike what they are doing but it's not their best
# Playlist Track - How Can You Mend a Broken Heart? # Notes - Really slow and sad, but not in a good way. More in 'man, I'm really tired of trying to finish this album'.
I love 60s Bee Gees and the later disco stuff, but a lot of this record just sounds like syrupy easy listening to my ears. Ended up digging a few of the tunes, though, especially those written and sung by Maurice. I also enjoyed Barry's raspy Lennon-esque singing on "Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself," but Robin's voice grates on me here.
Me not like that. I know that in all generality pop is not my cup of tea. This album just proves it again. It's not irritating yet but there's still 32 minutes to go.
After the first song it was all downhill for me…
Day841 - the brothers voices are something you can’t get just putting three guys in a room. not an album i particularly liked but barry gibb was a great song writer
I've got a soft spot for the mopey, melodic and occasionally downright odd pre-disco Bee Gees, and there are some gorgeous songs here. As an album though, Trafalgar could probably have done with a bit more variation.
Not for me
3.5/10
Overall: 4/10 God this is unbearably boring. Disco Bee Gees may not have been high art or anything, but at least there was some personality to it. This is just straight up sappy, irritating and not really worth your time. The only reason I'm not giving it a lower rating is because I still love the brother's voices. Fav Song: The Greatest Man in the World
What elevator music would listen to if it was on an elevator.
This is indeed the birth of cool
++: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart, The Greatest Man in the World, Somebody Stop the Music, Walking Back to Waterloo +: Israel, When Do I +-: It's Just the Way, Remembering, Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself, Dearest, Lion in Winter -: Trafalgar 4,5/10
Portada terrible. Fin de la época barroca antes de su imparable y arrollador salto al disco, con falsete incluido. Puente entre otras dos joyas como e 2 Years On de 1970 y To Whom It May Concern de 1972. Y venían nada menos que de Bee Gees’ 1st de 1967 (mi favorito), Horizontal (68), Idea, (68), Odessa de 1969. Y luego estarían Life In A Tin Can de 1973, Main Course de 1975, One de 1989 y el emblemático Saturday Night Fever de 1977. Vamos , una de las mejores bandas de la historia, por calidad, éxito y trayectoria. Sin duda, únicos. Pero claro, el comienzo con How you can mend a broken heart? es simplemente sobrecogedor. Sigue co otro sencillo (el 3º): Israel. Uno no puede evitar acordarse de otro tema histórico con ese mismo título (el de Siouxsie Sou and The Banshees). Este es muy bueno, pop-soul de quilates. The Greatest Man In The World, es de lo mejor, con una orquestación perfecta. It’s Just The Way, con más brío pero sin perder su preciosismo. Las dos últimas canciones de la cara A son Remembering y Somebody Stop The Music con el protagonista del vibrato de Robin Abre de un modo imponente Trafalgar, que nada tiene que ver con la batalla, sino con Trafalgar Square. Va de la soledad rodeado de gente. Otro tema melancólico como Don’t Wanna Live By Myself, otro sencillo más del álbum. When Do I, con Robin y su voz grave acompañada de orquestación bastante lograda. Dearest, con Robin y Barry, se hace un poco insulsa, hace de puente hacia el final con Lion In The Winter, que comienza con un tambor y va cogiendo altura aunque la voz de Robin deascarrila por momentos. El cierre con Walking Back To Waterloo es magestuoso. Un gran disco 12 temas, pero otros 14 se quedaron fuera, se les caían las canciones de los bolsillos.
3/5
Ugh. I don't actually mind the Bee Gees. Their early folk stuff circa New York Mining Disaster is lovely, Saturday Night Fever is a deserving classic, and I have a soft spot for 90s stuff like You Win Again. But this? This is shite. How Do You Mend A Broken Heart is a pleasant enough opener, but otherwise this is saccharine, string laden emptiness. One of the Gibbs - possibly Robin? - sounds very much like a horse, and on a later track when he tries to emote he just sounds like he's being strangled. I kept wanting to find reasons to make this a 2 and it just kept failing. After the album finished, Tidal played me a Carpenters track, and I found that interesting by comparison. The Carpenters FFS! Maybe this has historical importance, but for me, it just reminded me why punk happened. Godawful.
Overblown, overproduced and overly dramatic, the 100th album that I end up rating here is a big fat miss. Whilst I was hoping for something special for the landmark, like my first Beatles record for example. Instead of that, I get an album desperately trying to sound like the Beatles and failing at everything that made that band so iconic. The high-pitched vocals are irritating and unpleasant. On 'Lion On Winter' the vocals are so insufferable, they sound like nails on chalkboards. When you're average person on the street thinks of the Bee Gees, they think of their disco hits. Listening to this made me wish they included an album of those tracks instead of these sorry songs.
Nice album, classic early beegees, a few years ago I would liked it much more, at the moment not my style, so maybe revisit it in the future. 1. How Can You Mend A Broken Heart? 2. Israel 3. When Do I
I would give it 2.5 stars if I could, but I will bump to 3.
A zionist ballad from the falsetto disco dudes was not on my bingo card.
This was mainly slow sad songs about a break-up, fairly dull and average. I did really like Somebody Stop the Music. Had Wish You Were Here vibes.
Where the fuck is the disco? But in all seriousness, this record has zero fun things about it, which is fine if that is what you are into. A bit extravagant in its emotionality and pretty much wall to wall simpering ballads. I respect the production and sound of some of the instruments on this to totally trash it, but it this this way trying to be Beatles runoff. The best two tracks for me are the title song 'Trafalgar' and 'Walking Back to Waterloo', both invoking Napoleon for some reason. Also includes one of the more poorly-aged songs i've ever heard, 'Israel'.
The Bee Gees have better stuff than this
Only knew them for the disco- but really enjoyed this one on the drive to work! I also told the really scary site super at one of my jobs about listening club and he sang me one of the songs off this album acapella. It was surreal
idk who I thought the bee gees were but it wasn’t this - really enjoyed the first half but not so much the second.
Fine
Much like the first Bee Gees album that popped up on here, I was surprised to hear the boys do more than disco. Obviously less of a suprise this time. And obviously I still didn't actually enjoy it that much. If I keep saying obviously will it appear on the keywords? Obviously obviously obviously.
Very surprised by the reaction to this album on here. It's not perfect, but some of y'all make this album out to be one of the worst of all time and I can't hear anything on this that would make me even fathom that. The Bee Gees are more than Saturday Night Fever and this album really showcases that.
Solid album. Wasn’t super familiar with The Bee Gees before this outside of Saturday Night Fever. I’d check out some of their music based on this album. Has kind of rock/folk rock sound.
me gustó el álbum, no era lo q me imaginaba al pensar en los bee gees pero está bueno, no destaca mucho ni me sorprendió fuera de q esperaba otro estilo
We've got the Beatles at home! The Beatles at home:
I was only familiar with the Bee Gees from their disco hits (which I actually enjoy for the most part). I was not really aware of their earlier stuff being so different. I may need to relisten to this one to really evaluate it, but overall I found it just wasn't my thing.
Just kind of boring. All mid-tempo, soft-rock, AM radio fodder. A couple songs near the end were ok, but then others had really weird vocal choices that were more comical than good. A real miss.
0/10 - fuck this album for having a love song to shitrael, not an excuse that "it was a product of its time", they've been stealing land from the get go
Me tomó por sorpresa el estilo, pensé que iba a ser todo muy arriba onda Staying Alive o More than a woman, pero nada que ver. Me encontré con algo más meloso y con sonidos muy Beatles. Se me hizo largo igualmente. Si bien dura 47 min, las canciones son promedio 4min todas. Entre lo meloso que es y la duracion se torna un toque aburrido
Meh. Not what I was expecting from the Bee Gees. Not terrible but really not my jam.
Me gustó pero pensé que me iba a gustar más, me aburrió un poco
Pre Saturday Night Fever and Barry falsetto. Pop ballads with orchestration. Barry's vibrato is annoying. I like Robin's voice best. Attempts at screams are lame. No comparison to early Beatles.
No entiendo qué debería llevarme del álbum. Que Bee Gees se mandó a hacer folk y le salió bien? Por eso está acá? Por la novedad? No termino de entender. 3/10
Someone listened to Across The Universe too many times
Huh. I'm familiar with the name Bee Gees, but I never got the impression that they were putting out albums with this kind of cover. I'd figured them for some some kind of surf rock band, but now I'm thinking that this is some hackney, nautical music a la The Pogues. Guess I'll lock that in for my prediction. Here goes. Soft rock. Pop rock. I was way off base, huh? Anyways, this was alright. Just a perfectly fine album, though it does kind of come apart as it goes along. I'd completely lost interest in this music by the time the last four or so tracks rolled around. The music is firmly rooted in the same style, and that style is unambitious piano ballads underscored by some nice strings and paired with a kitschy, sentimental vocal style. It's fine in short bursts, but this music was never meant to go the length of a full album. I hope to one day be a trillionth as philosemitic as "Israel", and that's speaking as someone who would graciously, without thinking, sacrifice gorillions of White people for a single grain of Israeli sand as my forefathers have so proudly done before me. Book time. This album saw the band "...truly working together in harmony again." The book calls "Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself" a knock-off of While My Guitar Gently Weeps and "Dearest" outright terrible, but reels the entry back in by describing the remaining material as "...pure lush pop brilliance." Had many successful singles, with "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" topping the US charts. Wikipedia says this album reached No. 34 in America and No. 8 in Australia and garnered a split reaction from critics. All of the band's albums appear to have been critically ignored, but taking a look at their artist page reveals that these guys are one of the best-selling musical acts ever and pivoted towards a disco sound of all things throughout the mid-70s. Guess that's how I know of these guys - they made "Stayin' Alive" and "How Deep Is Your Love". I'm honestly surprised that the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack isn't on this list given its standing as one of the best-selling soundtracks ever, though in all fairness I haven't listened to the thing. Honestly, two list albums seems like a perfect number for this band given their standing as a critically-ignored, yet immensely successful band. I cosign this inclusion.
Man, this was brutal. Why is this on here?
The Bee Gees are probably the most disappointing discography I've learned about. This is the second album of entirely soft ballads and they're just not interesting
Omg, un pile ou face pis c’était ÇA mon dernier album? Il y a juste Robert qui mettrait dans ça liste pas un, MAIS DEUX albums d’un mythique band DISCO pis dirait «C’est beaucoup trop mainstream tout ça, moi j’étais là pour les rock ballades molles de pharmacie, ça, ça avait du cachet, pardis!» Là je réalise que ça finit bel et bien demain, j’suis full stressé
It's weird hearing non-disco Bee Gees, but it doesn't make it worse. There's a lot of great songs that happened before that era, and there are a couple of them on this album. The harmonies have always been around, and they hit throughout the album. Its not a "great" album but I put the Bee Gees in the good song makers section instead of good albums. Biggest Hit - How Can You Mend A Broken Heart Biggest Miss (if I had to choose) - Dearest Hidden Gem - Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself
Yeah it's ok. It kind of washed over me. Not grabbing me, but not offending me either.
This is #day601 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and… here's my second and final record from Bee Gees. Like the previous one, I'd never listened to this or any of their other records before. So when it comes to their disco era, I've no idea what y'all are talking about. Somehow, the music or maybe the late-night listening or maybe both matched my current mood. My almost eight-year marriage gave another crack today. Some songs, like "Remembering" and "Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself," actually hurt to listen to. I hate the generator for throwing this album at me today. Otherwise, let it be a 3 out of 5. Looking forward to #day602.
Better than I thought it would be
That was weird, I like it. It is not the beegees in the disco era yet
It’s a good thing that Disco and Funk were introduced to The Bee Gees five years after this album was released. Without those musical elements, The Bee Gees were bland and boring like this album.
A perfect example of how 1 star albums can be more worthy of being on this list than 2 stars, because they at least make an impression on you.
This is a surprise. Maybe it isn't, since my only exposure to Bee Gees is through their disco era, but to hear them in a lush, soft context that completely separates itself from the decadence they'd become iconic for is pretty fascinating. That's about as far as the fascination goes though. I was pretty uninterested with most of this. It's a shame when the first track is such a heavy peak and the rest of the album pales in comparison.
snoozefest god Lion in Winter is awful
Boring and has a love ballad to a genocidal country? No thanks, this shit sucks.
Rating: 2.5/5 Favorite song(s): Uhhh… Review: Wow, this is incredibly boring. It’s not /bad/ per say, but it’s certainly not what I was expecting. I had my dancing shoes on, and was instead confronted with B-rate America. I guess this was a good music history lesson? I didn’t realize Bee Gees released 10 stinker studio albums before turning to the disco sound. It’s almost sort of incredible to produce that many mid albums in such a short amount of time. The song “Israel” has aged particularly poorly, lol. Barry Gibb is a non-Jewish, British man from the Isle of Man, so I’m not really sure what’s up with the “Israel take me into your arms” stuff. I’d certainly be afraid to discuss geopolitics with him today. Other than that questionable concept, I’m having a hard time recalling specifics of the rest of the album. The songs all seem to blend together. There is nothing interesting enough instrumentally to make any of the songs a worthwhile listening experience. I wish I could point out specific features of the music, but it turned my mind to total mush for 45 mins. This feels kind of like a case of trying to be the Beatles (as many others did in the early 70s), but without the skill to produce anything that’s actually meaningful. I would take Stayin’ Alive over this any day. Listen again?: No
Sonically nice but not for me
Oh dear. Sometimes songs are SO appallingly bad that they make me want to laugh, cry, scream and break things, all at the same time. My friends all know that I consider Silvia's Mother - Dr Hook - to be one such song. Now, there's another. If anyone ever makes me listen to "Remembering" by the Bee Gees again, I won't be responsible for my actions. Very few songs on here were actually any better. The whole album gave me rage. I like the disco stuff; they were lovely guys, but this was (almost entirely) utterly dreadful. At least I can avoid it, now.
no me genero nada y este estilo de musica la verdad que ni me gusta mucho. aveces hasta de ofndo me es molesto, pero nada kcy. no parece malo, solo qu eno me genera nada
О! Ніііііі!!!!! Але що робити? Треба слухати)))
I hate disco Bee Gees but I didn’t mind this. The guy’s voice wasn’t as annoying in this context as I find it in all that Saturday Night Fever garbage. This reminded me of less weird Todd Rundgren or Harry Nilsson. I won’t ever listen to this again but it didn’t bother me, which is the highest praise I can give any Bee Gee’s songs other than “Guilty” by Barbara Streisand and Barry Gibb because that song makes all of the ladies in the area pregnant.
too soft for me
I shouldn’t have ignored the instructions that came about half way through.
Wow. Why? It's like wannabe Beatles, but a lot worse? Holy shit that's some bad fucking vibrato. Like -- take a voice lesson man. And I thought the whole point of The Bee Gees was the falsetto so, what are we even doing here? It's not completely horrible. Just so bizarre and melodramatic, and not a particularly enjoyable use of 47 minutes. Fave tracks: - How Can You Mend A Broken Heart - It's Just The Way
Ooft. Sub album art and sub music.
Even the "good" song wasn't good. 2/5
A few good tracks on this one, but it mostly dropped into the background. An okay album, but I know The Bee Gees have better.
pretty boring honestly, not for me. the only 2 songs that stood out was the album closer, and the second track, which is hilarious, how much do you think they got paid to write/ release that shit? AIPAC is pleased im sure. ill never listen to this again most likely
I've never been a fan of the Bee Gees. But I wanted to give the album a chance to pleasantly surprise me. During the first track, I thought it might actually work. After that, though, the cheesiness that was already present in the song became too much for me. I couldn't bring myself to finish the album, and I won't be trying again. 2/5
LMFAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ISRAEL?!?!?! Gibb said of writing the song "I wrote this as a tribute; a dedication to the country." HE'S NOT EVENJEWISH i would've rated this 1 just for israel but it really is just a terrible album too what the fuck is lion in winter lmfao
Classic sad boi
En el mundo de la música hay personas dotadas, carismáticas, generacionales... Y luego están estos tipos que lo único que dan es grima. Desde sus caras a sus voces pasando por sus portadas y sus composiciones. Pura grima.
Tough album to get through.
Can't believe they made me listen to a early Bee Gees album. Thought I would never see the day. I can see how they were inspired by literally everyone from their contemporaries to the past. I've heard of some alright music from other groups that sounds just like this. Do I really care for this album? Not really, but at times it was plesant.
Niet per sé een album wat je van de bee Gees zou verwachten, een stuk oubolliger en blijkbaar nog voordat ze echt disco werden. Ik vond de tracks allemaal redelijk "forgettable"
saai
Isch es es Schmerzmittel oder es Album vo Bee Gees? Gege Schmerze hets ned ghulfe, defür gege schlechti regewetter-luhne. Liked it. Da schmeissi grad vier Dafalgan hinedri
So now I know what the Bee Gees sounded like pre-disco. Pretty crap.
I liked this considerably more than I expected. “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart” is great, but I really appreciate the lively sound and harmonies of so many of the songs (e.g., “Israel”). 3.5?
Anyone remember Air Supply? Now imagine if they were worse. First of all, 47 minutes. Really? The Beatles did Revolver in 34. And this, believe me, is no Revolver. It's 12 slow ballads full of heart break and pathos, almost to the point of masochism. The one that is a little upbeat - The Greatest Man In the World - contains lyrics like "I'd be the Greatest man in the world, 'Cause I can say I've got the greatest girl." and runs out of words with a couple of minutes to go, so they just keep repeating the title over and over in a maudlin way. Oh, it's SO NOT Revolver! It's emotional to the point of melodrama with lyrics that come close to self-parody, all sung in vibrato laden voices that are, at times, only more or less in tune. The fact it is, they're not very good song-writers. And yes, I know they went on to write a lot of songs for other people, but does anyone really think Chain Reaction is Diana Ross's finest moment? Or that Dolly Parton couldn't have written something better than Islands in the Stream? At times it's like Abbey Road, only awful. And a song that's "a love letter to the Nation of Israel" hasn't aged well. "Israel, you make the whole world think about you." Well, quite.
60/100. This record has some really enjoyable tracks on it but most of it feels like a lesser work from the Bee Gees overall. The opening track is a total classic for sure and it shows how good they were at those big emotional ballads.
Oh joy. More early Bee Gees…. It’s not quite as awful as Odessa, but that’s not saying much. I don’t get it. Just leaves me stone cold. Like a bunch of bad 70s variety show cover songs. 1
1/5. These days when we think of 70’s music most people often go to either the rockers of the era (Zeppelin, Floyd, Glam/Berlin Bowie, etc.) or the rise of disco later in the decade. But if you look at what was topping the charts before the rise of disco, it wasn’t any of those bands, it was easy-listening soft rock. Some of it still holds up, like the best Carpenters songs, but a lot more of it is like this pre-disco Bee Gees album. And man this thing was insufferable to me, if I wasn’t listening to it for this project I would have shut it off a few tracks in. I already don’t particularly like Disco Bee Gees but this is even worse. It tries to be so dramatic and emotionally heavy, but it’s completely unearned and ends up feeling forced. The vocals are also quite annoying at points. might be my least favorite on the list so far.
Way too milk toast for me.
Did not enjoy, from the first note
Just fine
I like it
Meandering folk/soft rock. Didn't really get it.
I prefer disco era Bee Gees much more than this if I’m being honest.
I really enjoyed this today. I did not know Bee Gees pre disco, but lyrically this was so introspective and very pretty instrumentally. Don't Want to Live Inside Myself hit hard, as well as How Can You Mend a Broken Heart, so much sadness and heartbreak found here. Vocals aren't my favourite but emotion filled certainly, but overall sounds very of its time. Lion in Winter surprised me even further on the back half, gets a bit wild vocally, but instrumentally builds nicely. And I really loved the closer Walking Back to Waterloo, it feels cinematic.
little too long
Starts strong (very different and likely much better than their greatest hits). Will need to revisit.
How can you mend a broken heart - 3 Israel - 2 The greatest man in the world - 2 It's just the way - 4 Remembering - 2 Somebody stop the music - 3 Trafalgar - 4 Don't wanna live inside myself - 2 When do i - 2 Dearest - 2 Lion in winter - 2 Walking back to waterloo - 3
Great
Give. Me. Robert. Dimery's. Address. I JUST WANT TO TALK.
i think the _saturday night fever_ sdtk. is the closest i've come to listening to a bee gees album until today. it's some pretty great pop music with lots of emotional ups and downs. i do like their disco stuff ("tragedy" remains an eternal gem), but i think i prefer them in this baroque pop vein. "it's just the way" is some magnificent beatles-esque pop.
Esse álbum é muito agradável. Interessante ouvir o Bee Gees antes da fase disco. TRN Medusa.
2.5
Pre-disco era Bee Gees are not memorable and not worthy of inclusion on this list. Not offensive meriting a one star review, just…nothing. 2⭐️
Just did not like. Nothing like Staying Alive, which I guess is the only song I like from them. Some of the lyrics are godawful and cringe. Really dislike how the singer sounds weepy no matter what kind of song it is. He can't even hit some of the high notes. Having a song basically glorifying Israel is also such a choice - I understand that back then they probably did not know the scope of the atrocities happening there, but still, out of all places, fucking Israel???
The first half is a combo of Electric Light Orchestra and Paul McCartney. If you're expecting disco, you'll be mistaken. The second half is a bit of a snoozer.
1.5
I think this is good, but not the album I would reach for when I want a bit of BeeGees