Following on from our look at The Bee Gees album that never was in our last post, we are now going to have a look at what Robin did in his first attempt at a solo career. Initially, Robin’s solo career started with a bang with his first song ‘Saved By The Bell’ making number 2 in the UK singles charts. This single is thought to be one of the first to have been a hit with a drum machine on it. The drum machine sound might have been something new in 1969, but it has dated the recording on which it was used. After this impressive start, the momentum was lost. ‘One Million Years’, the follow up single was a minor hit and the parent album which was called ‘Robin’s Reign’ did some good business in Germany and Canada but failed to chart in the rest of the world. Unperturbed, Robin continued to record as a solo artist even though he did admit that at this stage he missed the camaraderie of working with his brothers.
The songs on these sessions dispersed with the drum machine and for the most part included orchestral arrangements to flush out the sound. Were these songs meant for a second album? Robin himself was unsure and hinted that he was not really trying to be a solo artist, but doing something to bide the time. The production on these songs would say otherwise considering Robin is backed up with what sounds like a full orchestra. As it was, none of these recording saw the light of day until 2015 when the ‘Saved By The Bell’ compilation was released, which was a collection of Robin Gibb’s solo work between 1968 and 1970. If only the solo works of Maurice and Barry would get this sort of treatment. This second album has been given the name ‘Sing Slowly Sisters’ down the years and using the material included on the aforementioned release, I have put together what could have been his second album, especially if Barry and Maurice had continued to release material as The Bee Gees*. In reality, by June of 1970, he and Maurice were back in the studio and by August, Barry had joined them reuniting The Bee Gees who would keep recording until Maurice passed away in 2003.
Side A
- Engines Aeroplanes
- I’ve Been Hurt
- Return To Austria
- Everything Is How You See Me
- The Flag I Flew
- Anywhere I Hang My Hat
- Life
Side B
- Sing Slowly Sisters
- Loud & Clear
- C’est La Vie, Au Revoir
- Irons On The Fire
- It’s Only Make Believe
- All’s Well That End’s Well
Single
- Great Caesars Ghost
- Sky West & Crooked
‘Great Caesars Ghost’ was talked about as being a single at the time, so if we were to continue with the time line of the second LP, why not have a single to go with it. ‘Sky West & Crooked’ was included as the B-Side because it sounds more like a demo and not the finished, orchestrated material that made up the rest of the album. It just sounded too out of place to be on the album but too good to be forgotten about completley. The front cover of the LP is taken from ‘I Design Album Covers’ website (https://idesignalbumcovers.tumblr.com).
*See the previous entry for further information.