| Robin Gibb |
| Background information |
| Birth name |
Robin Hugh Gibb |
| Born |
December 22, 1949 (1949-12-22) (age 57) |
| Genre(s) |
Pop Rock disco |
| Occupation(s) |
singer-songwriter,
vocalist |
| Instrument(s) |
Vocals |
| Years active |
60s - Present |
| Label(s) |
Universal
BMG Music Publishing |
Associated
acts |
Bee Gees |
Robin Hugh Gibb CBE (born December
22, 1949) is
a singer and songwriter. He was born in Douglas,
Isle of Man, to English parents, the twin brother of Maurice
Gibb (1949-2003), and younger brother to Barry.
He is best known as a member of the singing/songwriting trio the Bee
Gees. The trio got their start in Australia, and found major
success when they returned to England. The Bee Gees became one of the
most successful pop groups of all time.
-
|
Contents
- 1 Origins
- 2 Solo
career
- 3 Collaborations
- 4 Concerts
- 5 Personal
life
- 6 Awards
- 7 Discography
- 8 External
links
|
Origins
Son of Hugh and Barbara Gibb, he grew up with his two brothers
in Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester,
England
until the Gibbs moved to Redcliffe, Australia in
1958, shortly after the birth of Andy Gibb, youngest of the Gibb
brothers. They settled in as they went to school at the local public
school Humpybong State School. Their music careers began in Australia,
and flourished when they returned to England in 1967 and were spotted
by Robert Stigwood.
Solo career
Traditionally, Robin's role in the group has been that of lead
singer, for which he vied constantly with his elder brother Barry
Gibb during the group's first period of British success in
the late 1960s. This eventually resulted in Robin leaving the group to
begin a solo career after his song "Lamplight" was relegated to the 'B'
side of Barry's "First of May". Meanwhile, there were rumours of drug
problems, and his parents threatened to have him made a ward
of court (the UK age of consent at that time being 21,
and Robin then only 19).
Although initially successful, with a number 2 hit, "Saved by
the Bell", his album, Robin's Reign, was less
successful and he found that being a solo artist was less than
satisfying. He reunited with his brothers, who had disbanded the Bee
Gees in search of their own solo careers, when Robert Stigwood created
RSO records in 1970. The initial post-reunion albums Two
Years On, Trafalgar and To Whom
It May Concern suggested that the rift had not totally
healed, with an element of split songwriting teams, Barry on the one
hand and Robin and Maurice on the other together with different music
publishers, in contrast to a uniform construction before the split.
Only when they relocated to Los Angeles to record Life In A
Tin Can did it appear that they were as one on disk. Upon
reinventing themselves with "Blue-Eyed Soul" the Bee Gees went on to
their second period of phenomenal success in the disco-era late 1970s.
While continuing in the group, Robin also promoted his solo
career, and during the 1980s he released three further solo albums (How
Old Are You, Secret Agent, and Walls
Have Eyes) which were more successful in Continental Europe
than in the UK or USA. However, his 1984 single "Boys Do Fall in Love"
did reach the Billboard top 40.
In the same month as his twin brother Maurice's sudden death,
Robin's next solo album, Magnet, was released in Germany on January
27, 2003
(Label: SPV), and worldwide shortly afterwards. It features the old Bee
Gees classic "Wish You Were Here" in a new acoustic version. With
Maurice's death, his two surviving brothers Robin and Barry announced
that they would no longer perform as the Bee Gees.
Robin has recently sung the vocals to the opening titles to "The Dame Edna Treatment"
A Lovers Prayer/Bring It On January 2004
Collaborations
In August 2003, Robin announced that he would be releasing a
new single of "My Lover's Prayer", a song first recorded by the Bee
Gees in 1997, with vocals by Robin, Wanya Morris, and Lance
Bass. This was played on radio, but was never actually released. In
October 2003 another version was recorded as a duet with Alistair
Griffin, runner-up in the UK television program Fame
Academy, on which Robin had appeared as a
judge. My Lover's Prayer,
credited as "Alistair Griffin featuring Robin Gibb", was eventually
released in the UK in January 2004 as a double A side single, together
with Griffin's solo recording of "Bring It On". It reached number 5 in
the UK charts. The duet was also on Griffin's debut album Bring It On
which charted at number 12.
In January 2005 Robin joined his brother Barry and several
other artists under the collective name of One World Project,
to record a charity single in aid of Asian tsunami relief,
titled "Grief Never Grows Old". Other artists who performed on the
single included Boy George, Steve
Winwood, Jon Anderson, Rick
Wakeman, Sir Cliff Richard, Bill
Wyman, America, Kenny
Jones, Chicago, Brian
Wilson (The Beach Boys), Russell Watson and Davy
Spillane.
In June 2005 Gibb joined X Factor runners up
G4
at a sell-out concert at the Royal Albert Hall, London, singing
the Bee Gees song "First of May" . A recording of this performance was
released in December 2005 as part of a double A side single, credited
as "G4 feat Robin Gibb" together with G4's own cover of Johnny
Mathis' "When a Child is Born". This track was also included on the
platinum selling album G4 & Friends which
reached number 6 in the UK album charts.
In November 2006, Robin released an album of Christmas carols
called Robin Gibb - My Favourite Carols, backed by
London choir The Serlo Consort. The album also
features a brand new song written by Robin called "Mother of Love",
which was released in Europe as a download single. The song was
inspired by Maurice Gibb, and is the first new Robin Gibb composition
to be published since his twin brother died in January 2003. Royalties
of Mother of Love will be donated to the "Janki Foundation for Global
Healthcare", and Robin dedicated the song to Dadi Janki, the
organisation's spiritual leader. It is also dedicated to Robin's own
mother, Barbara Gibb. The album also has a bonus DVD titled A
Personal Christmas Moment with Robin Gibb.
Concerts
In late 2004, Robin embarked on a solo tour of Germany, Russia and Asia, with Alistair
Griffin as the opening act. On his return he released a CD and DVD of
live recordings from the German leg of the tour, backed by the Frankfurt Neue
Philharmonic Orchestra. A further solo tour of Latin
America followed in 2005.
In February 2006, after a long period of coolness following
rumoured disagreements about a planned memorial concert for Maurice
Gibb, Robin joined his brother Barry live on stage at a charity concert
in Hollywood, Florida This was the
first time they had performed together since the death of their brother
in 2003.
In March 2006 he announced plans for more solo concerts in Shanghai and Portugal. In
May 2006, Robin took part in the Prince's Trust 30th Birthday Concert
at the Tower of London along with his
brother Barry. They sang 3 songs: "Jive Talkin'", "To Love Somebody" and "You Should
be Dancing". In September 2006, Robin Gibb performed "Stayin'
Alive" at the Miss World 2006 contest finals in Poland.
Also in November 2006, Robin performed a solo concert,
entitled Bee Gees - Greatest Hits, at the Araneta
Coliseum in Manila,
the Philippines.
Robin Gibb will mark his return to his birthplace by playing a
concert at the Isle of Man TT festival in 2007. The
TT festival takes place at the end of May and beginning of June. Star
acts such as The
Who, Ronan Keating, Madness
and The Stranglers have all
been confirmed for the event. The Peel Bay TT Festival - February
12, 2007.
Robin donated all of his share of the money from this gig to the
children's ward at Noble's Hospital, Isle of Man and invited all
emergency service staff and marshals for the TT to attend for free.
Personal life
In 1968 Robin married Molly Hullis, a secretary in Robert
Stigwood's organisation. The couple had survived the Hither Green rail crash,
which killed 49 people on the 5th November 1967. They had two children,
Spencer and Melissa, but they eventually divorced in 1980 after years
of living separate lives, with Robin almost permanently in the USA and
Molly remaining in the UK. He remarried in 1985. Robin's second wife,
Dwina Murphy, is an artist, and they have a son, Robin John. Robin is a
member of the Vegan Society. Dwina was described as a 'bisexual druid'
by the press in 2006, on the occasion of Tony
Blair's stay at their house in Florida. [1][2]
Gibb is currently living in Thame, Oxfordshire, England, but
announced in early November 2006 that he was in the process of buying a
house on the outskirts of Peel, Isle of Man.
Awards
In 1994, Robin Gibb was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame,
and in 1997 the Bee Gees were inducted as a group into the Rock and Roll Hall of
Fame.
Robin was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire
(CBE) in the 2001/2002 New Year's Honours List,
along with his brothers Maurice and Barry. The official presentation
ceremony at Buckingham Palace was delayed
until 2004 owing to Maurice's death.
Robin and Barry Gibb both received Honorary
Degrees of Doctor of Music from The University of Manchester in
May 2004.
Discography
The Bee Gees' catalogue is one of the most covered in the
world. Their classic hits like "To Love Somebody," "Tragedy" and
"Emotion" have been reborn as hits for current artists like Destiny's
Child. In 2006, ex-Atomic Kitten singer Liz
McClarnon reached number five on the UK singles chart with
her cover of "Woman in Love," which was co-produced
by Robin. This was a former number one hit Robin and his brother Barry
originally wrote for Barbra Streisand in 1980.
Robin Gibb's entire song catalogue is published by BMG
Music Publishing.
Magnet January 2003
Albums
- February 1970: Robin's Reign. Germany #19, Canada #77
- Unreleased, 1970: Sing Slowly Sisters.
- July 1983: How Old Are You. Germany #6, Italy
#13, New Zealand, Switzerland #26
- June 1984: Secret Agent.
Germany #31, Switzerland #20
- November 1985: Walls Have Eyes.
- January 2003: Magnet. UK: #43, Germany #10
- July 2005: Robin
Gibb with the Neue Philharmonie Frankfurt Orchestra Live
- November 2006: My Favourite Christmas
Carols
Singles
- June 1969: Saved By The Bell. UK #2,
Netherlands, South Africa #1, Germany #3
- November 1969: One Million Years. Netherlands #6,
Germany #14
- February 1970: August, October. UK #45, Germany #12
- July 1978: Oh Darling. US #15, Chile #5
- September 1980: Help
Me! (Duet with Marcy Levy). US #50
- June 1983: Juliet. UK #94, Germany,
Italy, Switzerland #1, Austria #2
- October 1983: How Old Are You. UK #93, Germany #37
- January 1984: Another Lonely
Night In New York. UK #71, Germany #16, Switzerland #19
- May 1984: Boys Do Fall In Love. UK #71,
US #37, South Africa #7, Italy #10, Germany #21
- August 1984: Secret Agent.
- November 1985: Like A Fool.
- February 1986: Toys.
- November 2002: Please. UK #23, Germany #51
- January 2003: Wait Forever.
- January 2004: A Lover's Prayer (Duet
with Alistair Griffin) UK #5
- December 2005: First of May with G4
- November 2006: Mother of Love
External links
| The Bee Gees |
Barry
Gibb | Robin Gibb
| Maurice Gibb
Colin Petersen | Vince
Melouney |
| Studio
albums |
| Bee
Gees 1st (1967) | Horizontal (1968) |
Idea (1968) |
Odessa (1969) |
Cucumber Castle (1970) |
2 Years On (1970) |
Trafalgar (1971)
| To Whom It
May Concern (1972) | Life
in a Tin Can (1973) | Mr.
Natural (1974) | Main
Course (1975) | Children
of the World (1976) | Spirits
Having Flown (1979) | Living
Eyes (1981) | E.S.P. (1987) |
One (1989) |
High Civilization (1991) |
Size Isn't Everything (1993) |
Still Waters (1997) |
This Is Where I Came In (2001) |
| Compilation
albums |
| Best
of Bee Gees (1969) | Best
of Bee Gees, Volume 2 (1972) | Greatest (1979) |
Their Greatest Hits:
The Record (2001) | Number Ones (2004) |