Woodland sunflowers, wildflowers blooming in our backyard!
In the long ago days of February of this year (before we had the lock down and everything changed!) Richard and I visited our son. He surprised us with playing on the guitar and singing to us. We were delighted. He told us that the song was a bit tricky to play with complex chords, so I think he was glad to finally perfect it. (Christopher is very polite and he wouldn't say it was perfect but you know it certainly was, right?)
The song, as you can see from my post title, was "How Deep Is Your Love" by the Bee Gees. It was one of the huge hits from 1977 from the Bee Gees! Barry Gibb, the last remaining Bee Gee has stated that it is his favorite Bee Gees song.
Sir Barry Alan Crompton Gibb is his proper name. "Crompton" is after a very interesting ancestor. Samuel Crompton invented the spinning mule in 1779. He actually earned money from playing the violin at the Bolton Theatre in Bolton, Lancashire. (And when I say money, it was just for pennies a show!)
All of his earnings were put towards his invention. The spinning mule was called that since it was a hybird of a spinning jenny and a water board,which pulled the thread through the spindle much faster. I can't say I quite understand all the science behind the production of the muslin from this time but I can tell you that by 1812, 4 MILLION of Crompton's spinning mules were in use !
In 1779, the spinning mules were humming along. In 1977, we were humming the tunes from the Bee Gees! (Yes, I said it!)
Good news! I have read that the same producer who did the film "Bohemian Rhapsody" is planning on a film on The Bee Gees! I hope that comes about really soon!
The Bee Gees wrote their own songs, were wonderful singers and musicians!
Oh! Just one more thing I want to tell you...when Barry Gibb moved to South Florida, there were several bridges one had to cross to get to his home. One of them, had concrete strips and as the car would drive over it made a sound like..."clackety clack...clackety clack....clackety clack. There, can you hear that in your mind? Now, when Barry Gibb heard that...he turned that into "Jive Talking"! (And by the way, if you ever need to do CPR, do so by the beat of "Stayin' Alive"!) Songwriting! I never tire of learning of how songs come about.
I am thrilled that my son is just as interested in stories behind songs. AND that he has good taste in music, like his parents!
Very interesting story. I have one CD, the best of the Bee Gees. I should take it out and listen to it again.
ReplyDeletePlease do! And listen to those great harmonies, just perfect.
DeleteI adored the Bee Gees. Barry Gibb was one of the few men my sister and I would have fought over. He was so gorgeous. I hope they do the movie.
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to see the film and hope it was be as well cast as "Bohemian Rhapsody". Those actors were just right.
DeleteA great group....I look forward to learning more about that movie!
ReplyDeleteI really thought "Bohemian Rhapsody" was very well done so I look forward to the one about the Bee Gees!
DeleteAnd, as you are no doubt aware, Kay, the Gibb brothers spent some of their younger years in Redcliffe, a northern beach suburb of Brisbane, capital of Queensland.
ReplyDeleteAs per details in responses in my latest blog post...they were discovered by a Brisbane radio announcer by the name of "Bill Gates"...and the rest is history, as the saying goes! :)
Quote" "Born on the Isle of Man to English parents, the Gibb brothers lived in Chorlton, Manchester, England until the late 1950s. There, in 1955, they formed the skiffle/rock and roll group the Rattlesnakes. The family then moved to Redcliffe, in the Moreton Bay Region, Queensland, Australia, and then to Cribb Island. After achieving their first chart success in Australia as the Bee Gees with "Spicks and Specks" (their 12th single), they returned to the UK in January 1967, when producer Robert Stigwood began promoting them to a worldwide audience." End Quote
This all occurred before the youngest, Andy, tried his wings. Sadly, Andy Gibb died at the young age of 30....
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andy_Gibb
I, too, love the Bee Gees...they were masters at their craft.
https://www.mustdobrisbane.com/features/bee-gees-way-redcliffe
Before I did my post, I looked into more info about them. When they left Australia, the Gibb brothers performed on the ship in exchange for their passage fare! I loved learning that!
DeleteAlso, they sued RSO, the record company owned by Stigwood and it said that it was the most successful lawsuit ever brought against a record company! The Bee Gees are one of the few groups who own their music rights.
AND it also said that their film "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" film was panned by critics but I really liked it!Even though I liked Peter Frampton in it, he must have felt embarrassed to be in with the Bee Gees, their singing was so much better than his! AND it had Billy Preston in it and he was AWESOME!
Hope you see this reply, Lee and I think I have all my facts right. If not, I still love the Bee Gees and always will! xx
It is a long, long time since I saw that movie, Kay....in all honesty, I can't remember much at all about it. The movie sure did have a cast and a half!! :)
DeleteBack when the brothers Gibb were first discovered here in Aus, in the early 60s there used to be a TV show "Bandstand"...hosted by Brian Henderson. We never missed it! You might find this video below of interest. :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbsUj3oK1wU
Yes! I love it! And how to finish it with "Blowin In the Wind" with their very young voices in perfect harmony!
DeleteAnd I bet I am the only American who can listen to this and already know "My Old Man's A Dustman"! (I know this from Chas & Dave!)
We had American Bandstand in the 1960's with Dick Clark and we never missed that either!
"We're living in a world of fools..." Now that resonated with me. 😏
ReplyDeleteIt had to be a particular thrill to have your son sing for you. I will never know that joy. My son does not sing. He doesn't even hum, but he's a good boy and I couldn't get by without his help.
I like the stories of songs, too. It does make it all the more intriguing.
In a world of fools, yes it does seem that way.
DeleteOur son always sang and played the guitar when he was at home and then, when he moved out, he formed a band! This was years ago and I wrote about it then, they called themselves "The Sevens" and we were thrilled to watch them perform at a venue in Atlanta. The members of the band have gone on to other things but I hope our son will always love his music. I didn't say but he is also a songwriter besides being a great singer and guitarist! You can see why we love the Bee Gees!
Lovely to see your comment here!
A Bee Gees movie? Good stuff!
ReplyDeleteI Know! Isn't that the best of the news! Hope it will do the Bee Gees proud.
DeleteNever knew most of that so an education for me.
ReplyDeleteMy reply is below! Don't know how I manage to do that all the time!
DeleteBesides being a bit of a nut about music and songwriting, I am also very interested in people who INVENT things! So, when I found out that their ancestor invented that machine that was such a VAST improvement over what was being used at the time, I had to write this post! You see, if you can take something and make some kind of adjustment or combine it with something else to make it an entirely different thing, THAT is where your talent and the world's needs come together! Sad thing, the inventor never made loads of money off of it. Very interesting background with patenting but also quite sad.
ReplyDeleteThis was a take-out meal from a Thai restaurant. I don’t have the recipe. Maybe, you could find one on the internet.
ReplyDeleteBut, this is what the menu states:
Boneless minced fish w/ Thai spices, kaffir lime leaves, & long beans. Deep fried & served w/ a house pickled vegetable sauce.
It's those Thai spices that make it so good, I bet!
DeleteAnd lime is so good with Thai food. I once bought a package that was labeled gluten free, it was something from Thai Kitchen and it had a sauce packet that you squeezed over it at the end. I looked at the box, it was from Thailand! I have looked at the same box and it is now made in USA. Tried it again, it was NOT that good! So...
Anyway, thanks. I know it said you got it as a takeaway meal but somehow thought you might have made the fishcakes! Don't ask me why, you don't want to know how my brain works these days! :-) Mmmm that house pickled vegetable sauce sounds so good!
That's one of my favorite songs too! I have to do CPR review every 3 months and that is a good rhythm! I'll look forward to that movie! Have a good week!
ReplyDeleteHope you have been having a good week too! And I like the idea of you doing your CPR review with Stayin Alive! Take care!xx
DeleteWow! I’ve never heard of the spinning mule. I had to actually check online to see what it looked like. It’s rather complex. I’m so in awe of inventors. Your Christopher is such a handsome, talented young man. And yes, I do like The Bee Gees too.
ReplyDeleteThanks Kay I will see Christopher soon and I will tell him about this comment!
DeleteAnd I am tickled that you looked that up about the spinning mule. I am also in awe of inventors! And I didn't talk too much about the invention because...well, you read about it, you see what I mean! Still, I hope it came across how important an invention it was!
Oh my goodness, I had forgotten about the Sgt. Pepper movie until I saw it in the comments. I really liked that movie, though I have to say I wasn't as fond of some of the Bee Gees' other work at the time. I think I appreciate them more now than I did then. I'll look out for the new movie. If it's even half as dynamic as Bohemian Rhapsody it will be worth watching.
ReplyDeleteP.S. I think you're a Beach Boys fan like I am - have you ever seen the movie "Love and Mercy"? If not I think you'd really enjoy it.
I always loved the Bee Gees! I didn't like hardly any of the Disco music from the time but theirs were on a different level, I think!
DeleteDid I see that film about the Beach Boys? I don't think so, I will look out for it! I wrote about a book about them, "The Nearest Faraway Place". I highly recommend it!!
So happy to see your comment here, Sue! Take care!!