Bee Gees hit #1 with “Night Fever”

Night Fever Bee Gees

Writer(s): Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, Robin Gibb (see lyrics here) First Charted: February 3, 1978 Peak: 18 US, 18 CB, 17 GR, 18HR, 16 RR, 19 AC, 8 RB, 12 UK, 15 CN, 7 AU, 6 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 2.5 US, 0.5 UK, 3.15 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 1.0 radio, 168.1 video, 219.85 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: The Bee Gees’ “How Deep Is Your Love” was the first single from the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack and “Stayin’ Alive” is the one which endured to become the most iconic, but “Night Fever” was the biggest hit at the time. In the U.S., the first two spent a combined 7 weeks atop the chart, but “Night Fever” stayed there for a whopping 8 weeks. It was the biggest #1 of the year. Saturday Night Fever was such a juggernaut that “Night Fever” was knocked from its perch by yet another of the soundtrack’s songs – Yvonne Elliman’s “If I Can’t Have You.” The three Gibb brothers in the Bee Gees shared writing credits on all four #1 songs. Barry Gibb, however, also co-wrote “Love Is Thicker Than Water,” the song for his brother Andy that held the #1 slot between “Stayin’ Alive” and “Night Fever.” It meant that for the week ending April 1, 1978, Barry Gibb had a writing credit on five of the top 10 songs and four consecutive #1 songs. The song contributed to the name of the movie. Robert Stigwood, who produced the movie and the Bee Gees, was developing a film about the disco scene in the Big Apple. He was inspired by the article “Tribal Rites of the New Saturday Night” in New York magazine about teens going to dance competitions. With the working title of Saturday Night, the movie’s star, John Travolta, rehearsed his dancing moves to the Bee Gees’ “You Should Be Dancing,” SF a #1 from 1976. Stigwood reached out to the Bees in hopes that they might contribute some new songs. He asked the group to write a song with that title, but they balked, thinking it was a dumb title. SF They did, however, already have a song called “Night Fever” and convinced Stigwood to use it and call the movie Saturday Night Fever. WK The final soundtrack featured five #1 songs by the Bee Gees – “Night Fever,” “Stayin’ Alive,” “How Deep Is Your Love,” the aforementioned “You Should Be Dancing,” and “Jive Talkin’” from 1975. Resources: SF Songfacts TB Thunder Bay Press (2006). Singles: Six Decades of Hot Hits & Classic Cuts. Outline Press Ltd.: San Diego, CA. Pages 172-3. WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 10/23/2020; last updated 4/12/2023.

Bee Gees hit #1 with “Stayin’ Alive”

Stayin’ Alive Bee Gees

Writer(s): Barry Gibb/ Robin Gibb/ Maurice Gibb (see lyrics here) First Charted: December 10, 1977 Peak: 14 US, 14 CB, 16 GR, 16 HR, 16 RR, 28 AC, 4 RB, 4 UK, 14 CN, 17 AU, 1 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 4.0 US, 0.6 UK, 5.77 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 2.0 radio, 889.2 video, 635.81 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Robert Stigwood was born in Australia in 1934. He came to England in the 1950s and became an agent for actor John Leyton. When Leyton had dreams of making it in music, Stigwood took on the role of music producer as well. He became a manager working with Cream and the Bee Gees. In the 1970s, Stigwood had moved into film and television production as well. One of his projects was a movie based on an article in a New York magazine about the club scene in Brooklyn. RS500 He asked the Bee Gees to contribute some songs to the project. The movie, Saturday Night Fever, was about “a vigorous subculture of working-class kids, mostly from European immigrant backgrounds, who loved to dance.” TC It was “a low-budget film with a gritty, not particularly romantic story.” TC Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees “confidently predicted [it] would flop in the face of the rising tide of punk.” TB The movie was introduced with a “largely unmemorable” TB trailer in December 1977 that was mostly a close-up of the feet of the leading man, John Travolta, strutting down a New York street. The song that played was “Stayin’ Alive,” “a first-rate piece of falsetto” DM with “a pounding dance beat.” SS It “brought the trailer vibrantly to life,” TB perfectly complementing the character; both were “confident, cocky, streetwise and upbeat.” LW Surprisingly, the Bee Gees had never seen the script or a rough cut of the movie. SS Robin Gibb said it was “a very straightforward song about survival in the city.” TC When Stigwood first heard it, he asked why the group wasn’t singing “Saturday Night, Saturday Night.” Maurice Gibb explained that “It’s corny; it’s a terrible title.” FB “There are so many blood records out there called ‘Saturday Night.’” FB The Bee Gees won out and, for better or worse, few songs are more associated with disco than “Stayin’ Alive.” BB The Bees became superstars on the level of the Beatles because of the massive success of the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack, which sold 25 million copies worldwide, making it the biggest album of all-time until Michael Jackson’s 1982 Thriller album. FB “Stayin’ Alive” was not intended as a single, but after fans saw the trailer they swamped radio stations and RSO Records with calls for the song. WK The fans were appeased when the song was released as the second single after the blockbuster ballad “How Deep Is Your Love.” Those songs, as well as the Bee Gees’ “Night Fever” and Yvonne Elliman’s “If I Can’t Have You,” gave the soundtrack four #1 songs and gave the brothers Gibb bragging rights to having penned four chart-toppers in six months. However, Barry could boast an even bigger accomplishment. He shared writing credit on all three of younger brother Andy’s #1 songs from July 1977 to July 1978. This gave Barry seven trips to the pinnacle and a total of 29 weeks in the pole position as a writer in a year’s time. Resources: BB Billboard (9/08). “All-Time Hot 100” FB Fred Bronson (2003). The Billboard Book of Number One Hits (5th edition). Billboard Books: New York, NY. Page 478. TC Toby Creswell (2005). 1001 Songs: The Great Songs of All Time. Thunder’s Mouth Press: New York, NY. Pages 533-4. LW Alan Lewens (2001). Popular Song – Soundtrack of the Century. Billboard Books: New York, NY. Page 147. DM Dave Marsh (1989). The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made. New American Library: New York, NY. Page 457. RS500 Rolling Stone (2011). “The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time” SS Steve Sullivan (2013). Encyclopedia of Great Popular Song Recordings (Volumes I & II). Scarecrow Press: Lanham, Maryland. Pages 240-1. TB Thunder Bay Press (2006). Singles: Six Decades of Hot Hits & Classic Cuts. Outline Press Ltd.: San Diego, CA. Pages 172-3. WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 1/6/2015; last updated 4/12/2023.