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In 1989, a year that felt like a major comeback for the Bee Gees, Robin Gibb sat down for a raw, deep-dive interview that gave fans crazy information on his and his brother’s life!
Sitting comfortably and speaking with that gentle, thoughtful tone fans adore, Robin gave us a backstage pass to his life that no one saw coming. He revealed that long before the private jets and the global fame, his life was a scene out of a movie. Robin, Barry, and Maurice were so poor that all three brothers shared a single bed in a one-room flat, dreaming of a future they had no evidence would ever come true.
Robin Gibb – Intimate with Robin Gibb (interview)
But it gets weirder. Robin shares a mind-blowing story about the day they were recording their classic hit, “Words.”
While they were recording, they began hearing strange, static voices. At first, the brothers thought the studio was haunted, but then they realized it was Chinies. There were no ghosts, but secret coded messages from the Chinese Embassy next door! This all happened while Robin was singing a love song!
Because their studio was located right in the middle of a row of international embassies, they were literally intercepting top-secret intelligence from Beijing while trying to record a love song.
Robin also opened up about the “ghostly” quality of his voice. He admitted that as a kid, he didn’t have vocal coaches; he had sewage pipes. He used to sneak into disused pipes and empty bathrooms just to sing to the walls, obsessed with how the echo made his voice sound “angelic” and larger than life.
Bee Gees – Stayin’ Alive (Official Music Video)
Perhaps the funniest twist in the interview is the birth of “Stayin’ Alive.”
While the world thinks of it as the ultimate New York City anthem, Robin reveals it was actually written and mixed in a drafty French chateau surrounded by cows. He vividly remembers perfecting the track at 5:00 AM while watching the animals roam and smelling the heavy scent of pig dung wafting through the window.
Robin Gibb was truly one of a kind. Click the link above to hear the man himself tell his incredible story.
