Reviews (page 4 of 8)
I don't get the historical, cultural, or musical significance of this album. The Bee Gees finally had a big hit? And I definitely don't get its significance as far as quality goes. It is at best average. There are some nice harmonies and soaring or orchestral instrumentals but it's a lot of the same thing over and over throughout the album. And you can hear right from the opening lines of the big hit How Can You Mend a Breaking Heart the halting vocal style that Jimmy Fallon and Justin Timberlake poke fun at on SNL. It's a bit cringeworthy when it's real and so I didn't really enjoy that song as much as I remembered. The title track's opening harmonies reminded me a bit of the Beatles, but fair or not I felt like that was a bit of a cheap knock-off. I feel like I might be jumping all over their vocals a bit too much so I'll just dial it back to this being an average album. I did give it a second listen and I didn't mind it. If you weren't a fan, this album wouldn't turn you off but it also wouldn't turn you on. And if like me you gave it multiple listens, it might just grow on you.
first listen i was excited to analyze more not-falsetto Bee Gees...this album is kinda ho hum and needed more variety i think
I only knew the disco falsetto Bee Gees, not the acoustic singer/songwriter Bee Gees. Pleasant surprise.
I prefer disco Bee Gees
Pleasant but not super memorable or outstanding. Should have been a different Bee Gees album on this list. My favourites were dont wanna live inside myself, when do I, and walking back to waterloo (I love waterloo). 3/5
Second Bee Gees and no "Stayin' alive"? It's unexpected, as unexpected as myself enjoying a bit of their music.
A bit sappy, but liked it better than the disco era. Prefer the Jive Talking mid 70's stuff
Disco invecchiato piuttosto bene. I Bee Gees possono piacere o no, ma si percepisce comunque la qualità
If you have heard the Bee Gees before, you have probably heard one of four different songs. You could point a gun to my head, and I wouldn’t be able to name any song other than Stayin' Alive and More Than a Women. Critically it doesn’t seem like they are the most popular band. Commercially speaking is a different story. And I didn’t know they made music that wasn’t disco. But that’s probably for a reason. Their pre-disco soft rock music has sort of been buried at the bottom of the pit of seemingly endless amounts of soft rock bands. And I can understand why. In the competition for the best of the genre, they get the participation trophy. This album doesn’t stand out for much of anything. And any ideas they do pull that are mildly more interesting are still lackluster in comparison. It’s a surprisingly dark album, and more solemn than I imagined it would be. I can appreciate how often they incorporate orchestral elements. That separates them from their competitors slightly. But overall this is nothing special. The one song I do think is actually worth your time is the last one. Super emotional and powerful. They aren’t really known for this era. And I think it is for the better that this stays rather unknown, and we just stay listening to the hits. Because this strikes out pretty hard more than anything. Rating: 5/10
Sweet '60s pop, ranging from all the way from sappy to sentimental to sacharine – all of it tending toward the overcooked and bombastic (e.g., the strings and drums on "Israel"). One can almost admire the schlock, the earnestness that is by definition campy and gets pretty close to predicting emo. "How Can You Mend" is achingly lovely, but such a sugar high is hard to sustain. The title cut is decent, too, maybe the highlight on of the non-ballads. "Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself" needs covering by today's enlighteneed artists – Phoebe Bridgers, say, or Wilco, maybe, or Bill Callahan? One Bee Gees record would serve the purpose of knowing what came before Saturday Night Fever and this is the better of the two, quite well made and sorta lovely if one can overlook the eye-rollingly cringey bits. The overdone-by-an-order-of-magnitude Odessa is the more interesting, for having an epically awful "symphony" and enough vibrato to last a lifetime. Not that we're short on wavering, overly dramatic vocals here – "Lion in Winter" is almost comic in effect. "Remembering," "When Do I" and "Dearest" are also embarrassing for everyone involved. And the closer can't help but recall Ridley Scott's recent biopic, which raises the same question: just how seriously to take this? That film and this record seem like a test of one's ability to balance sincerity vs irony in the enjoyment of an artistic or cultural product. Is it it cynical to like it even as one feels snarkily superior? The biggest question is for the editors, however: where the f are the disco records? That's what the people need to know. That was this band's – eternally reaching-for-relevance, acclaim-hunting lot that they were – long-sought after natural habitat and finest hour.
Bee Gees are like 1970s Coldplay. I quite liked the first couple of tracks, but then it mostly faded from there. I had an expectation I might find it a little bit insufferable, which I did not, but there wasn't much that grabbed me. 2.8/5
Started off kinda strong but fell off
A lot of hate in the reviews here for early Bee Gees. I actually don't mind it. Yeah, it's super mellow and a bit dull, but the harmonies are great and it's easy listening in the best sense of the term. I certainly prefer this to the later era disco Bee Gees. 3 stars.
3/5. There is a sense of sweet innocence among these songs that feels mature at the same time. Sure, many of them sound a little too similar and drags in some, but it's a calming atmosphere they create, a yearning. Interesting choice for album title, but I imagine this feeling among those who did not go to war and waiting for their family to return from the war, knowing full well they won't. It's grand at time but also not good at others. A solid mid album.
The Bee Gees were pretty good before they went Disco. This album is just a little too mellow for me.
De flesta spår är hyfsade, men det är överlag ändå rätt ospännande och tråkigt. Svårt att förstå varför denna är med på listan. Svag trea.
Now I know why they changed up their sound when disco blew up. I did however enjoy How Can You Mend a Broken Heart and Trafalgar. And yes the harmonies are top notch.
Still in their chameleon phase. Nothing overly wrong with that but there is no real sense of what. There are some good songs often let down by overblown orchestration. What works in one song doesn't necessarily work in another. The harmonies, as to be expected, are more than fine. Overall OK if a little monotone.
Not quite the Bee gees I was expecting. Decent
Only one top song. Memorable 70s sounds.
Huh sad
Fair enough
"Trafalgar" by the Bee Gees, released in 1971, offers a mellower journey compared to the band's more well-known and upbeat hits. This departure showcases the Bee Gees' versatility but may leave fans of their more dynamic sound wanting. The album's reflective and tranquil tone is evident in tracks like "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" and "Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself." While the mellowness adds a layer of introspection, it might lack the energetic spark that characterized their earlier works. "Trafalgar" is an interesting chapter in the Bee Gees' discography, revealing a different facet of their musical prowess. While the mellower approach may not appeal to everyone, it offers a contemplative and quieter side of the Bee Gees, earning it a fair 3/5 for its distinct departure and introspective moments.
Ég fílaði Bee Gees aldrei neitt sérstaklega en síðustu kannski 3 árin hafa þeir vaxið og mér er farið að finnast gaman að hlusta á þá. Það kom eiginlega bara út frá steggjun þar sem "ryksugulagið" þeirra (You Win Again) togaði mig á þeirra band. Því miður var það ekki á þessu albúmi en samt bara fínasta plata.
What a downer. This had moments of greatness, but it just made me realize how much they needed disco to really stay alive.
2.5
Back in the day, I wasn't exactly groovin' to the Bee Gees' disco beats, but let's talk about "Trafalgar." Released in 1971, it's of a different vibe from their later disco era, and I've got to say, it's got its merits. "Trafalgar" has this melancholic and introspective feel to it that appealed to me. The Bee Gees dived into some serious songwriting here. Tracks like "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" and "Israel" showcase a more mature and reflective side of their artistry. The harmonies, as always, are top-notch, and there's this emotional depth that's a far cry from the disco fever that came later. I appreciate the variety on the album. "Trafalgar" isn't just about catchy tunes; it's about storytelling. The orchestral arrangements add a layer of sophistication, giving the album a grand and timeless quality. While I might not have been the biggest Bee Gees fan during the disco days, "Trafalgar" offers a glimpse into their earlier, more diverse sound. It's an album that transcends the disco era and showcases the Bee Gees' versatility as musicians and songwriters.
Nisam znao da bee gees moze da zvuci i ovako.
Highs and lows here. The album starts very strongly, and the first two songs in particular really showcase the strength of their songwriting and Barry's pre-disco voice. It drifts in the middle, but it's still in the three to four range. Then towards the end, it hits you with Dearest, which is, in my considered opinion, the worst song I've ever heard in my life. Suddenly it's Sunday morning and Radio 2 is on, you're too hungover to change the station, and Elaine Paige is playing a show tune. Wait, this isn't every other week where she plays Memory from Cats or one of the boring ones from Les Mis. This is actual torture! That's...that's not Elaine! It's the Martians! We're being taken over! They're trying to kill us with this horrible sound! After several minutes of rocking back and forwards, the torture sound abates, and there are Elaine's plummy tones: That was Dearest by Bee Gees, and now, Barbara Swington sings Memory.
more soft and sentimental than expected
Ok I see why I’ve heard The Bee Gees thrown around as a staple band, they kind of reminded me of the Beetles, good thematic songs. 3.5
massan naama kun odottaa oveproduced aivoja turruttavaa sanantoisto poppi paskaa mutta sen sijaan saa tunnollista...soulful.. yskomaton tunne musiikkia... ('0'). ei kelpaa kansalle. noh kelpaaa minulle. hyvää menoa usrael...us real.
This album starts of with vocals so sour I thought it was a joke. These are not the smooth harmonies for which I rely on the Bee Gees. This is fine but How Can You Mend a Broken Heart is as close as this comes to the excellent quality cheese I expect from the brothers Gee.
At its best this is pleasant. There are Beatles and James Taylor influences, for sure, but also strains of someone like...who? Peter Skellern? Because when this dips, it goes into some soupy, maudlin territory. It's barely a shade or two from the easy listening mush of Englebert Humperdinck. Still, 'Lion in Winter' is faintly demented and 'It's Just the Way' contains gentle echoes of 'Hey Joe' and Status Quo's psychedelic blooter 'Pictures of Matchstick Men'. Overall - it's okay. Born to be mild.
Not the Bee Gees of the Disco, Saturday Night Fever, days. This album lacked energy and was much more of a downer than I wanted.
I wish I have this album more attention. I listened to it while doing homework so it didn’t get much focus. But I liked it I think.
These were the guys who did Stayin' Alive!? First of all - the album artwork fucking RIPS. Second, how is that shitty single the song that outperformed a deep, varied back-catalogue like this? It's actually such a shame that I'm sure most people out there have the same perspective I had just an hour ago - before I listened to this record. Thinking the Bee-Gees are this weird disco band that had a couple big dance hits and not much else. I had to look up to find this, but Stayin' Alive isn't even an album song, it was just for Saturday Night Fever's soundtrack. That was the most successful thing they ever did. Imagine in another world Elton John's biggest song wasn't any of the songs you know, and instead was some song called Fast Guy from Smokey and the Bandit soundtrack. You'd miss out on so many good "deep cuts"! I digress, this isn't as good as Elton John per se. But. I thought it was a fun, completely different listen than the few high-pitched Bee-Gees singles prepared me for.
Early Bee Gees really hits different. I didn't expect every song on the album to be a ballad, but because of this listen I learned that they were the original English harmonic family. All three of them are brothers! An interesting development that they moved from this to the disco era with such force, but this was there gateway to that level
Their version of 'How can you mend a broken heart' is so bad it's comical in comparison to Al Green's. But they did write it, so some credit is definitely due - just don't ever make me listen to it again, please. I think it is generally the case that other artists versions of their songs are preferable. I also noticed that the melody to the verses of 'Don't want to live inside' is very clearly identical to Neil Young's 'Helpless'. I was losing concentration, then a song cane on that made me listen again: but it was an Eagles song recommended by Spotify - the album had finished. This is happening quite often - clearly Spotify curates much better than this list!
A classical and magical album from the 3 rock and pop tenors. Given them 3+ really.
i suspect this is probably a lot of peoples' first exposure to pre-disco bee gees, which might be a big shock. I actually adore a lot of early bee gees stuff, but i've never really dug into this particular era of their evolution, which is a lot more soft than their early psych-ish stuff (bee gees' 1st, idea, etc). based on already liking their early output, and it being a rainy day, i think this album hit me particularly nicely today. not mind blowing by any stretch, but nice enough.
“Then there was a pushback, TOO MUCH BEE GEES THEY SAID!”
Bee Gees “How to mend a broken heart” is great. Robin Gibbs voice is so weird but I dig it. He does sound like n actual muppet some sometimes. A couple times made me think of Van Morrison. “Don’t wanna live inside myself” is cool. Maybe the weirdest record we’ve heard without being experimental. Not quite sure how I feel about it.
Similar to Odessa, some really strong tracks with passion with a few listless ones in between. More good than bad though, How Can You Mend a Broken Heart, Trafalgar, Don’t Wanna Live Inside Myself and Lion in Winter are the standouts for me. 3 stars
I mean it's some heartfelt shit but, like, not likely to revisit.
Pleasant soft rock. Gotta say though, I prefer their disco stuff. Has a bit more punch
Vissa lyrics är stendumma men det är helt charmigt
Was dreading this, but it was so much better than I thought it would be. Psychedelia tinged. Falsetto kepy well under control.
Ei ollutkaan discoa. Hyvää jopa. Aika akustista ja kevyttä rockia. Tykkäsin, ei ehkä ihan yllä 4 tähteä, mutta 3,5 ainakin
The more I learn about the Bee Gees and listen to music over the long arc of their recording career, the more impressed I am. It's not even that I love all the music; it's more about how they've kept going, reinventing themselves, and somehow made it last over several decades. I looked it up and saw that they've recorded and released over 20 studio albums. Wow. This album is one I had not heard before, and I don't think I'd heard any of the songs before. It's okay. Didn't do a whole lot for me, but I can imagine how it fit in with what was going on in the early 70s. And they are superb writers as well as very skilled performers.
Solid songs, easy listen. Nothing really makes it stand out for me though. Bee Gees were very good for a long time before the disco era when they were most famous.
Not my favorite, too blah and saddish but I love Bee Gees with more pep that might be sacrilegious to say But the radio that came up on Spotify after this album was perfect Sunday night drying my hair music, lots of Carole King, Bee Gees, etc. good vibes
Very interesting! Not the style I’m used to. I’d like to revisit this one.
Quite forgettable but not terrible.
when i first saw the artist i expected some repetitive stereotypical overplayed 70s disco, unaware of the bee gees origins. Honestly with a little tweaking in production quality and bit more creative song structures they could've been a much more than just a band with those like three disco hits. 3 stars
I love the Bee Gees, but this got a bit repetitive. A little one-dimensional, not a lot of dynamics.
I had previously only known the Bee Gees for their disco, this album was different than I'd expected, but nicely melodic.
it’s a very sad album
Standouts: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart, Others: Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself, The Greatest Man in the World, Israel 3/5
I hadn't fully recovered from the bloated "Odessa" album we got last year, so this one was a pleasant surprise. It starts with, what I think is the Bee Gees greatest pop song "How Can You Mend..." and "Israel" feels a bit soulful and early Elton John-ish, very passable. "Don't Want to Live inside myself" is also a great pop song. Hopefully it was a hit somewhere - I'm not sure if it made it to Sudbury. There are no doubt a few stinkers, "Remembering" being one, but in general, the album is okay, with many songs sounding like they could have been castaway ballads from a mid-70s Wings album.
Fun and at times even beautiful, but ultimately forgettable. Nothing here stays with you except for maybe an overall feeling of the album because all the songs blended together. None of them bad, per se, just that nothing jumps out. 3/5
Lovely little soft rock/pop album. I got this on the day Mr Gibb died so a little more sentimentality there from a fellow Aussie.
These songs have the power to either pierce your soul or trigger your gag reflex depending on your disposition and mood. I was getting both from song to song. Didn't hear any of the "hits" that I personally associate with the Bee Gees. This was a roller coaster than trended toward lows for me.
I like pre-disco Bee Gees, but why this particular album is on the list is kind of puzzling to me - especially when "Odessa" is already on here. I must admit, their voices often stray into the "is this a joke?" territory, and it's hard to take it seriously.
Parts are damn close to Bowie in a few songs which is cool. Overall a bit lacking in what I am looking for but Bee Gees are definitely more than "Staying Alive".
Still in their lame, pre-disco era. But at least it's more interesting than "Odessa".
3/5 The Bee Gees have such an odd sound. Sometimes they sound hip and funky, and other times, so old fashioned and plain. I can't keep up and I don't really want to. I think I'll just always enjoy the songs I know and leave the rest.
I'm not a Bee Gees fan and that's okay. I did prefer this to their previous entry to this list, but I was still definitely waiting for the album to end. Inoffensive but not my thing.
Kinda sad and sappy, but not bad
Bee Gees take there stab at a concept album and its a bit of a mixed bag. Individually, the songs are predominately strong, if at times, a bit formulaic. However, when sewn together, the album can feel uninteresting at times. They use the same "tricks" of the ballad starting off soft and then swelling up and then breaking back. When they break those up with a strong bassline or adding complex acoustic strumming patterns, the music strikes a nice balance. Their biggest offense is when they use nursery rhyme melodies instead of a well written one. However, the Bee Gees are strongest when they sing of regret, triple the vocal takes and harmonize their voices in front of strings and a piano like on "Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself". Worthy of a listen for those that can stand soft rock of the yacht kind.
Very different Gees. I even went gee this is different.
I like the Bee Gees a lot, but there's only so much warbling over a treble-heavy strings ensemble I can take. First song is amazing though.
This wasn't as bad as I expected, tempered expectations because I have a habit of reading other reviews before listening. I kind of expected something unlistenable, noisy or vulgar, but no, it was pleasant. Yet, it also wasn't particularly remarkable, either. Perfectly average in every little way, with but a few gems sprinkled throughout. If this album were any longer, I'd be harsher in my review, but it was just long enough not to overstay its welcome.
It's just the bee gees, nothing too crazy to see here
BANE
je suis peut etre contrariee
Album 74 of 1001 Bee Gees - Trafalgar Rating : 3 / 5 Favorite Track : How Can You Mend A Broken Heart Pre-falsetto Bee Gees. I like some of their stuff before this and some that came after. This a good listen, but I've heard better from them. The first track is starts it off well, but, while they don't totally disappoint, the rest are just kind of meh.
5/10. I didn't even know the Bee Gees made boring soft rock, but I guess they just shat out albums until something stuck
Boy, this was a conflicting experience. That first song had me pretty hyped for the rest of the album. But, after that, none of songs truly grabbed me. Most of the songs would have one or two parts I liked, but then parts I didn't care about. Every now and then I would get a little bit of a Beatles vibe. The voices were goofy sometimes, but that wasn't really a deal breaker for me. I liked the vocals a good chunk of the time. I'm kinda disappointed by this album, but it could have been worse. I guess I'll see what I think of Odessa when I get it. My favourite song was How Can You Mend A Broken Heart.
Love it. Really want to hear more. So different than the disco era group. 3/5
Soft Bee Gees are soft
This is easy listening at its peak isn’t it
Made as The Bee Gees were phasing out baroque pop in favor of the funk and disco sound that would define them for much of the 70s (and arguably beyond), Trafalgar is a perfectly acceptable group of songs. The brothers Gibb shine on harmonies as only they can, but How Can You Mend a Broken Heart proves to be the only real masterpiece of the bunch.
This is an interesting album. It started off really strong, with the song "Israel" probably being my favorite. Then, I feel like it never really gets back to that high, though I think there are some good songs throughout. I had always heard the Bee Gees were more than just their disco hits, so it was cool hearing this earlier music. It makes me want to dig deeper into their early catalog. Standout Tracks: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart, Israel, Somebody Stop the Music, Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself
Hilariously, piss-takingly over the top. I don't know whether I can laugh or not. A decent record.
It was a lot.
Wow this was really good! Some of it was kind of corny and I definitely didn't expect it to be so fucking sad?? But good album. 3/5 for me
Not a prior listener to the Bee Gees, but nothing stuck out for me here.
I really liked the first song then was a bit disappointed that the rest of the album didn't hold the same quality. Wasn't the worst listen. Somebody Stop The Music was also pretty good but the album as a whole was middling.
It was fine. 3.5 stars
Did they just stick a pin in a map and write songs?? It was a lil flat. Bring on disco Bee Gees.
i liked it. idk what else to say
ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
Nice soft rock/pop album, but I was not a fan of Robin's voice on the songs he sang alone
A quick fun breezy album by a great band. Hadn’t heard any of these before but enjoyed it overall including the title and cover.
Okay this is getting ridiculous. A SECOND Bee Gees album pre-dating their disco stuff that actually put them on the map? Like this first, this one isn't bad at all, but it's not that interesting. If you're going to even include the Bee Gees on a list like this, you HAVE to include their hits, the style they were best known for dominating. This is just generic rock opera type stuff, it's no surprise they needed a big pivot to catch the eyes and ears of audiences worldwide. Yet another day where this list puzzles me. Favorite tracks: The Greatest Man in the World, Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself, Walking Back to Waterloo. Album art: A busy harbor. Right as I'm typing this, I hear a brother Gibb sing "a thousand ships, a windy sail" on "Walking Back to Waterloo." I guess that helps? It's a cool cover, and the little scroll of text at the top is nice, but nothing too crazy or memorable. 3/5
it wasn't great but it wasn't bad. pretty much, certainly nothing noteworthy. 3.
I wanted to hate it because Bee Gees but this was actually not too painful to listen to.
I didn't know that the Bee Gees havde made such depressing song. They aren't bad. It's good songs on this album, but not amazing. A bit too depressing for me. Overall ok album. I don't mind listening to it, but I won't put it on myself. The rating is between 2.5-3
Soft rock. Muy blandito. Aburrido.
Prior to this listen, I'd only heard Bee Gees' big disco hits, so I was expecting a lot of falsetto, some grooves, and a lot of great harmony. Well...some of that is here. Not sure about the grooves, but it's definitely giving vocals throughout. It's also- surprisingly- giving a lot of deeply sad songs ("When Do I," "Don't Want Live Inside Myself") that are borderline hard to take seriously because of the production. I can't say I love a lot of these tracks - they feel overwrought and theater-y with the cheesy orchestral sounds, even for early 70's...but overall most are just okay. Solid 3.
pretty nice
Interesting album, not much disco, some big tunes
Not so bad. Not a 70s contemporary fan
I love the Bee Gee’s. I’ve only really listened to their 60’s albums and Saturday Night Fever, so this is new. I think Odessa is their best. Maybe it’ll come later. But, I love the name and album cover, and the opening track is getting me goin. The Al Green cover is superior, but it’s a great one regardless. Barry Gibb is my spirit animal. Want to give it 3.5. I’m glad we got an early Bee Gees album because everyone just views them as the disco group, but they’re much more. They were like a Beatles/Moody Blues mixture before SNF. I relistened to SNF after this and holy moly, I forgot how good it is.
i want to like it more than i actually do
Not to compelling
Not as bad as I expected from the Bee Gees.
Niet zo zot van dit album
beatles wannabes, plus one good song
A couple of songs I liked. Most were songs that sound like meh BeeGee songs. A couple were horrendous, but that was the way it was with albums.
Was a bit surprised to see this one has such a low rating. Sure, it’s not the iconic disco Bee Gees, but I thought it was a decent stab at Beatles-esque, cinematic pop-rock. Admittedly on second listen I realised there were too many ballads and a couple of stinkers… still, it just barely clings onto its third star.
Nice but nothing too crazy. Some songs were a little boring.
Enjoyed this more than I thought I would.
3.5
J’aime les bee gees mais je ne reconnais aucune chanson sur le disque. J’aiaime lecoute tout de meme. 3.5
An interesting listen in contrast to later Bee Gees. Definitely some hints of Beatles in here.
J'ai bien aimé le début, les chansons m'ont touchée. Mais, vers la fin, la prestation vocale commençait à me lasser, j'avais hâte que ça finisse.
Soft rock de los Bee Gees. Demasiado soft para mi gusto. Ni fu ni fa.
Es la primera vez que escucho un disco entero de esta primera etapa de los Bee Gees y me gustó, incluso ahora siento que prefiero este estilo al posterior movimiento "disco". Lo mejor está en la primera mitad del disco. Lo único que me molestó es no entender la elección del título y la imagen de tapa, porque es muy fuerte hablar de esa batalla y no encontrar relación en absoluto y ni siquiera información sobre eso.
To me, this just sounded like a subpar Beatles/John Lennon knockoff, about 5 years too late. I wasn't a fan.
I feel I'd have to give it a few more listens to see if I'd grow to like most of the songs more than I did. None of them was bad by any means, but after such a great start at the beginning of the record, I'm afraid the rest of the album didn't quite keep me as engaged. I thoroughly liked the first two tracks – How Can You Mend A Broken Heart and Israel. I also enjoyed Walking Back To Waterloo at the end of the album.
Surprisingly beautiful
I do like the Bee Gees and this album is not bad. So I would give it 3 out of 5, not super but still enjoyable. It is a little to dramatic for me. A few Favourite song: - Israel
Ok for what it is. Bit weird.
Beegees are all happy and jovial right? Wrong. This album is REALLY personal and introspective, with songs like "Don't want to live inside myself" and ones about missing an ex-wife. It's almost depressing at points. But wonderfully so. I almost LOVED this album. But - there's a couple of songs where the Gibbs try and hit REALLY difficult notes with their voices - they are competent, but aren't exactly amazing singers, so it fails at this point, songs like 'Dearest' and 'Remembering' I almost had to skip because the singing was too bad. But songs like the lead 'Mend a broken heart', 'Don't want to live inside myself' and 'Walking back to waterloo' are really good. 3/5
This is a lovely album, full of sweeping, string-laden arrangements and heartfelt vocals. The sound is pretty downbeat and slow moving, gloomy even, so it's a bit of a mood. Lyric-wise, I'm less than impressed. Some of these songs feel more like writing exercises than fleshed out ideas. I mean... "there's beautiful sand" in Israel? I hope they got support from the Israeli tourist board for that one. That said, the talent of the Brothers Gibb is unmistakable, even on the more lackluster songs. They have some of the most unique, powerful vocals in pop music and a real natural talent for songcraft. "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" is an achingly gorgeous song, one of their best. Fave Songs: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart, Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself, Walking Back to Waterloo, Trafalgar, Israel, Somebody Stop the Music
Glad to hear that they made different music than the disco which they are greatly known for. While the lyrics and themes were simple, the tunes were catchy and easy to listen to and enjoy. While not an album id listen to regularly, I can appreciate the artistry.
Soft rock de los Bee Gees. Demasiado soft para mi gusto. Ni fu ni fa.
Nice churchish music
good album!!
Reading the reviews was more enjoyable than listening! A surprisingly good attempt and easy listening, but more so in that it felt like a real attempt from a one dimensional band to be complete.
I have never really listened to a Bee Gees album in its entirety but I did enjoy this album. Nice, mellow, and relaxing.
Very similar story like their other album we listened to: starts out good with nice songs and harmonies that remind you of Simon & Garfunkel or Crosby, Stills & Nash however as the album goes on, one realizes that all the songs are very similar to each other and none really stands out. Not a bad album but I can't give this more than 3 stars again
This really isn't The Bee Gees Play--would definitely pick different albums for this list. Still okay experience overall though!
Before the disco days, when it was just about songs and harmonies.
I did not know this album, I did know "How can you mend a broken heart?" and there are a lot of strong harmonies here, but damn if Fallon and Timberlake don't mess with my head every time Barry and Robin solo.
Ej pa ovo je sasvim okej album. Vjerujem da su ovaki bili prije nego što su se diskotirali.
Like to listen bee gees *before* Saturday night fever.
There are some lovely songs. But it's filled with slow moving love songs that I can't do in huge batches.
Two Bee Gees albums on the list and neither have those songs we all know. This album is pleasant enough but not something I'm in a rush to play again.
Cet album a le mérite de nous donner une idée de ce que faisaient les Bee Gees avant de tortiller du cul et de ne chanter qu'en ultra-sons.
fine
Genre: Pop 3/5 Well, it's certainly not chock full of disco singles or pulsating late-70s backbeats, but it's the Bee Gees. Trafalgar finds the Bee Gees at a transition in their storied career. Not quite the 60s psych pop they were indulging in prior, and not quite the disco pop niche they'd fit in so delightfully later in the decade. This album is a soft rock experiment, eschewing rock backdrops for lush strings and expensive production, and it's fairly meh. The album swings from your average pop venture, like the intro, and lead single, How Can You Mend a Broken Heart, to near prog-pop with the title track, Trafalgar, to 40s-style standards with Lion in Winter. It's all played fairly straight, nothing experimental here, and unfortunately doesn't showcase the Gibb's sweeping harmonies they'd become more known for later in their tenure. But, truly inoffensive, although none too interesting.
udmærket
70’er soft rock, poppet, kørelejlighed, fængende, falcet
Bof bof
The perfect soundtrack for a depressed Travolta.
Surprising to see this album on the list. Can only imagine it would be on the list if it came out at the end of nineties or later (as there is a clear split in the 1001 list between absolute iconic albums and a mixture of solid / bomb albums right about that time when the list is starting to ignore the truly outstanding albums from say the last 20-25 years). In any case, this album is from one of the least interesting Bee Gees periods (expected to see Odessa, guess it is on the list too) where they made 1-2 stand-out singles per album and filled them up with competent stuff. Same goes for this album. How Can You Mend A Broken Heart has become an Al Green classic - it is of a different level than the rest ...which is pleasant but apart from sounding a bit too proggy they sound like other artists on this album (think Beatles especially in It's Just The Way). So one >=5 star song, a couple of 4 star songs (like the 2nd single or the album closer) and number of **/*** songs.
A rather intriguing album from Queensland-via-Isle of Man's finest, just a few years before their disco heyday. The Brothers Gibb's songwriting chops are in full effect and they give plenty of good to great songs that brim with excellence. Favorites: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart, Israel, The Greatest Man in the World, It's Just the Way, Somebody Stop the Music, Trafalgar, Lion in Winter.
Very different to what I expected
Not what I was expecting, but surprisingly good.
This was good, but felt like derivative Beatles wannabe music
For many years before the Bee Gees hit it big with the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack and became huge disco stars, the Bee Gees had a full career already in the 60's and early 70's. I admit I own a couple pre-SNF albums and they're pretty good. Keep the image of the Gibbs in tight pants out of your mind when you listen to Trafalgar and you'll be fine. The album has it's moments, but some of the songs are rather dull. All and all, a decent album which is typical for their "early works".
Eh, not bad, just nothing that caught my attention either
Good album about heartbreak.
Classic really BeeGees. Couple of great tracks
I mean...it was okay. I liked it better than the Doors, but I wouldn't go out of my way to listen again. Nice ballads, just a little too much cheese for me. Fave track: More than a Woman. A classic.
I can see why it's on the list but not my cup of tea really
Ok. Meh.
sad beegees less fun. Not awful.
This album surprised me, as I had only heard stayin alive before. Overall a solid listen but nothing really grabbed my attention.
Apparently I didn't know anything about the Bee Gees except for the most pop cult disco stuff. I found this album very odd. Not really my cuppa but I didn't despise it or anythong.
Easy to listen to
It's alright yo.
bee gees'in en kotu albumu bile simdiye kadar dinlediklerimizden daha guzel
3/5 Not really interesting sound Still little enjoyable
I do really like the bee gees, but I've only listened to best ofs/singles collections, which gives a great variety. As a whole album this wears a little thin, as the songs are all slower ones from this one era, but its still fairly enjoyable
on the slower side but pretty darn good 3.5
Curiosa l'elecció per formar part de la llista dels 1001. Disc obscur, pessimista, trist, ni tan sols especialment inspirat. Destaca el single 'How Can You Mend a Broken Heart', que va ser un gran hit a USA, potser d'aquí la pressència de l'àlbum a la llista. Diferent a tot el que van fer i a tot el que havia de venir
Pretty fascinating. Though nothing matches "how can you men", the rest of the album is pretty solid. It has moments that evoke the beatles/john lennon and even david bowie. The music is albeit a little mellow/slow, though it still holds up today. If they had something else that was catchy on it, it would be a 4, but comes just a bit short in my book.
A non funky/disco bee gees album full of ballads. A few are ok and the first song is pretty good. However a whole album of ballads just gets old. 5.9/10
cool
yeah alright, I saved one song, different from the single other song I associate with the bee gees, definitely a solid 3, could sneak into 4 territory
little flat
Too mellow
Although it lacks any stand-out tracks, this is a solid pre-disco Bee Gees album. 7.7/10
Interesting album. There are signs of a transition by the Bee Gees on this album in production as well as lyrically and vocally. What I probably like the least is that all of the songs are ballads. There are some great songs on this album but equally there are some not so good songs (Dearest). The harmonies are spot on and they stretch their vocals in some cases. Overall I would say I like the albumbecause of the steps taken to stretch a bit. It's not Odessa or Main Course but pretty good. Favorite songs: How Can you Mend a Broken Heart, Somebody Stop the Music, walking Back to Waterloo.
Sombre, but reasonable folk/pop. Wouldn't listen to again as a whole album so 2.8 out 5 rounded up.
Trafalgar has it's fair share of passable tracks, and my rating will reflect that, but there are some great songwriting and arrangements here. Somebody Stop the Music is a little more experimental, Walking Back to Waterloo is a great album closer with great arrangements and Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself has that overly-dramatic tension that the Bee Gees are so well known for. Fav Tracks: Somebody Stop The Music, Walking Back To Waterloo and Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself
I’m enjoying this album more than I thought I would, which is a good thing. I’m really only familiar w/ The Bee Gees disco material (which I love), so it is cool to see this side of them. Strong melodies, good choruses, varied instrumentation. A solid 3
Not what I expected. Don’t really know much of the Brothers Gibb, aside from the disco stuff, but enjoyed this melancholic effort. A bit McCartney-esque in places.
this opened my eyes (ears?) to the face that the Bee Gees were more than just staying alive, saturday night fever and disco. It was interesting and I enjoyed it but I would probably not choose to go back to it. I give it two and a half john travoltas
What a trippy album! There are parts of this that I really did. Some of it because it is faintly reminiscent of the Beatles. But oy, some of this was really awful. But mostly pretty chill. I would listen to this again.
Yeah yeah it’s boring and yeah the vocal spin is WILDly incongruous with the music but at least it’s pretty (but wow this is too long)
The beegees are fun. This wasnt fun. Lol
Quite cheesy, easy to listen
Some soft, well written music. Not much otherwise to pique my interest.
Wow, listening to Bee Gees songs that haven't been rammed into my ears a million times before is actually quite a pleasant experience! Fave track - "How Can You Mend A Broken Heart" at the moment, but I should maybe listen a few more times as there are some other contenders.
Fine. How Can You Mend a Broken Heart? is by far the best song here. 6/10
Early Bee Gees before their disco era. It was ok but didn’t particularly move me.
The bee gees have a different sound here than the disco era hits I was used to. This isn't a bad album, as it's more soft rock than anything, it just seems like they were trying to branch out a bit too far from their more distinctive sound. There were some good songs (" how can you mend a broken heart" and "country woman") but there were some misses for me too("israel" and "its just the way"). Lyrically "the greatest man in the world" was really good but fell a bit short with the instrumentals.
I mean idk
Started off way stronger than Odessa but they went back to they kind of lost me again about halfway through. Was hoping for some kind of big concept album about the battle of Trafalgar or something
I didn't listen to it enough to give it a proper review, but it was a bit unremarkable for me
Nice melodies and obviously great vocals, but in the end quite boring.
Not really sure how to rate this. I mean I guess it was an OK album. It wasn't bad but other than being a curiosity in that it is the Bee Gees but not what the Bee Gees became known for I don't see how it ranks on the list.
(Light 3/10) This album is absolutely dreadful. First of all, the lead single which is the first track is by far the best song on the album. It's a pretty decent ballad about post breakup-blues that we've all heard before a million times by now in other songs, but it's not bad. The second song is goddam awful. The Bee Gees were Zio? Oh wow that's awful. Yeah no, this song aged like milk that was left out in the sun for months, free Palestine. The rest of this album is just sappy balladry about broken relationships and the absolute WORST of these songs is "Dearest". Even the book that this album was recommended from (1001 albums obviously) says this song is horrendous. I'M SORRY BUT IF YOU'RE PUTTING THIS ALBUM IN A BOOK OF "MUST HEAR BEFORE YOU DIE" THE ENTIRE ALBUM NEEDS TO MEET THAT CREDENTIAL. YOU'RE BONKERS FOR THINKING THIS DESERVED A SPOT....... anyway. sorry. "Lion in Winter" has even more hilariously bad vocals and I'm just sitting here thinking....who in their right mind heard this record and went "yup this is good! Ship it!". I just can't take this seriously whatsoever. This is absolutely one of the worst albums I've ever heard, no where on the track list outside of the first song am I anywhere even close to being invested in the music, and the singing sounds like an alpaca with a vocoder, it's so bad..I want my 47 minutes back please. PLEASE.
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.
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.
Unmemorable
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.
(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.”
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.
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.
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.
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.
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
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.
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
I was very disappointed with this album. All it had was the great single release How Can You Mend....
Meehhhh
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.
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????
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.
I didn’t realize The Bee Gees did music outside of disco and could have kept it that way
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
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.
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
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
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.
..
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
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.
At its best it's a beatles tribute
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
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.
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
Good harmonies, as you would expect, but a pretty cheesy set of soulless ballads
Listened
Highlights: How Can You Mend A Broken Heart 2.9
zzz
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
As Wes said, “this is grandma music”
Read about the battle instead, it's much more interesting
i enjoy the bee gees beatle lite pre disco era, especially with them constantly referencing napoleon. but yuck song about israel 🤮🤮🤮🤮
Not my favorite but a few good songs. I particularly liked Lion in Winter.
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
Snoozer. 2.
If this is on the list, Saturday Night Fever better be too. Personal enjoyment: 2/5 Relevance to this list: 3/5
The style of singing feels so dated. ★★
It’s a good thing they found their strengths later on.
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
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
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.
It was ok. One of them has a real strange voice.
Eiii oikein lähtenyt ja iskenyt tämä rallattelu.
# 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'.
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.
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
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
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.
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.
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
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