Albums I Should Have Listened To Earlier: Bee Gees 1st (1967)

Tonight's album that I discovered almost a half-century after its first release: The Bee Gees 1st, from 1967. I picked up the CD version of this a couple of years ago, and just found a fine condition vinyl copy today. 

 

I regret that I never listened to the Bee Gees when I was younger. Because I didn't know much of their earlier music, I had mentally miscategorized them based on their 1970s disco hits, and had totally overlooked their brilliant earlier albums. Great harmonies, musical experimentation, strong songwriting... it's all here.

 

The big hits like "To Love Somebody" (one of my favorite Bee Gees song, right after "Lonely Days"), "New York Mining Disaster 1941," and "Holiday" are here, but it's the quirky gems like "Turn of the Century," "Red Chair Fade Away," and "Craise Finton Cook Royal Academy of Arts" that really pique my interest. Even from the beginning, the Brothers Gibb were striving to be more than just a pop band.