Bee Gees Trafalgra

One is the Bee Gees' eighteenth studio album (sixteenth worldwide), released in April 1989 (August 1989 in the United States). After the European success of their previous album, E.S.P., the Gibb brothers began to work on the One album in early 1988. In March, their brother Andy suddenly died and the Bee Gees took a break until November when they returned to the studio to complete the album, but this time they shifted to Mayfair Studios in London, making One their first album since Mr. Natural to be recorded partly or fully in the British capital, though "Ordinary Lives" was started before Andy Gibb's death. The style of One was more melancholic than E.S.P., and heavily influenced by the loss of their brother. The album was dedicated to Andy and the song "Wish You Were Here" was written as a tribute to him.

In its original form, this double-LP compilation was a very generous repackaging of four years' worth of hits and notable album tracks, plus the Andy Gibb-authored "(Our Love) Don't Throw It All Away." It was a perfect distillation of the sound that had put the Bee Gees on top of the pop music world from 1975 onward. At the time, it did elicit some unspoken resentment from older fans who knew their hits from the 1960s, but as a collection of first-rate '70s dance music it was unimpeachable. It's also a statement of just how successful the Bee Gees were at the time that this was a double LP, representing just those four years, and how generous the group and RSO Records could afford to be – indeed, anything less would have seemed like exploitation of the fans, but extending it out past the obvious hits (including the Saturday Night Fever material) made this collection an event of sorts, and a release that could stand alongside their albums from Mr. Natural (where their '70s sound really begins) through Spirits Having Flown.

The achievements of the brothers Gibb are truly unique. No other band has scored Number Ones around the globe in each of five decades. This album contains the best-loved number one singles, plus classic songs taken from Number One albums. In all, 20 stunning tracks which prove the Bee Gees' Greatest achievement: touching the heart and soul of millions of people with their music.

High Civilization is the nineteenth studio album by British pop group the Bee Gees, released on 25 March 1991 in the U.K., and 14 May 1991 in the U.S. It was their last album recorded for Warner Bros. Records, after a four-year contract (they would return to WB through subsidiary Reprise Records in 2006: after gaining the rights to their previously released material, they reissued each album through Reprise). Possibly in reaction to firm resistance from U.S. radio to the previous two albums, E.S.P. (1987) and One (1989), which had done well in other countries, the U.S.-based Warner Bros gave this one less promotion and did not issue remixes. They recorded this album and their next album Size Isn't Everything with engineer Femi Jiya.

This CD was given away free with the British national newspaper, The Mail On Sunday. Companies/organisations mentioned on CD & sleeve: "Upfront", "Reprise Records", "Respect The Value Of Music". All tracks are taken from the Bee Gees live albums "One Night Only" & "Here At Last".

The Bee Gees' third album is something of a departure, with more of a rocking sound and with the orchestra (apart from a few well-placed harp arpeggios) somewhat less prominent in the sound mix than on their first two LPs. The two hits, "I've Gotta Get a Message to You" and "I Started a Joke," are very much of a piece with their earlier work, but on "Kitty Can," "Indian Gin and Whisky Dry," and "Such a Shame" (the latter written by the group's then lead guitarist, Vince Melouney), among other cuts, they sound much more like a working band with a cohesive group sound, rather than a harmony vocal group with accompaniment…

The Bee Gees made a commercial comeback outside the U.S. with 1987's E.S.P. and its single, "You Win Again." One, on the other hand, had an improved chart showing in the U.S., while sales fell off elsewhere. The Bee Gees are remarkable pop craftsmen – "It's My Neighborhood" is a canny, if blatant, rewrite of Michael Jackson's "Beat It," for example, and it only reminds you that Jackson's falsetto whoops owe something to Barry Gibb. And, say what you will, "One" and "House of Shame" are convincing pop music. ("One" was a Top Ten comeback hit that topped soft rock radio playlists.) This stuff works as pop for the same reason "I've Gotta Get a Message to You" and "You Should Be Dancing" did: the melodies are catchy, the hooks are deathless, and the vocals convey emotion over meaning. It may be weightless, but it's polished.