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- Verified Buyer
As a devoted fan of The Beatles in high school, it was only natural that I would also like The Bee Gees, whose pre-disco body of work was frequently described as "Beatlesque". And it really was. In their eclectic choices of material, and in the creative execution of that material (strings, harps, various other instruments, the backup vocals), the Brothers Gibb showed that they deserved that comparison. Their first US hit, "New York Mining Disaster 1941", is a very serious folkish tune inspired by an actual tragic event. "Holiday", with its churchlike organ, is almost as solemn as a hymn. The lyrics, seemingly positive, are actually pretty ambiguous. "Words" has poignant meaning for me. It was popular when I was involved in a romance that I knew was doomed, and when I heard the line "It's only words, and words are all I have to take your heart away", I could relate to the feeling of despair. "Words" is also special to me because it features beautiful piano accompaniment. The same applies to "World", in which dramatic piano, including numerous ascending and descending arpeggios, is emphasized even more. The subject matter seems to be a not too cheerful examination of one's life: "Tomorrow, where in the world will I be?/Now I've found that the world is round/And of course it rains every day". "Massachusetts" is a pleasant mid-tempo track in which the singer longs to, and finally does, make his way back home. There's not much hope in "I've Gotta Get A Message To You". In this plaintive story ballad, a prisoner is an hour away from his execution, because "I did it to him, now it's my turn to die". I'm not certain about the meaning behind "Every Christian Lion Hearted Man", but musically the track is quite unique: chanting monks interspersed with main body verses, the vocals of which are totally Beatlesque.There is more diversity to be found in the remaining tracks. "I Can't See Nobody" opens with an absolutely gorgeous string intro, and the strings continue throughout the track. "I Started A Joke" is distinguished by clever use of wordplay: "I started to cry, which started the whole world laughing...I finally died, which started the whole world living". "To Love Somebody" is one of the Bee Gees' biggest early hits. Janis Joplin later covered it, and I prefer her emotional version. The lyrical content of these remaining tracks mostly concerns love affairs that didn't end well. But this does not mean that the album as a whole is depressing. While the lyrics describe real problems, the musical arrangements allow the listener to experience the tracks without too much sadness.
