Childhood & Early Life
Barry Alan Crompton Gibb was born to Hugh, and his wife Barbara, on September 1, 1946, in the town of Douglas, Isle of Man. Hugh was a drummer, while Barbara used to sing for a band before becoming a homemaker.
In 1949, The Gibb family, which also included Barry's sister Leslie, moved from their old house to 50 St. Catherine's Drive, in Isle of Man. The same year, Barry's mother Barbara gave birth to twins Robin and Maurice.
On September 4, 1951, Barry joined 'Braddan School', but had to leave after two years when the family again moved house. He attended two more institutions to complete his education, the 'Tynwald Street Infants School' and 'Desmesne Road Boys School'.
As a young boy, in 1955, he founded the rock-and-roll band, called 'The Rattlesnakes', where he sang along with his brothers Maurice, Robin, accompanied by his neighbours Kenny Horrocks and Paul Frost.
He also played the guitar for his band that performed songs by famous artistes like Buddy Holly, Paul Anka, and Cliff Richards. The group first performed professionally at the 'Gaumont Cinema', on December 28, 1957.
However, the group disbanded the following year, when the Gibb family changed houses again, and the name of the band was changed to 'Wee Johnny Hayes and the Blue Cats'. The group was renamed once again, within a few months, to the 'Bee Gees'.
Continue Reading Below
Career
While performing at the 'Redcliffe Speedway ', in 1959, they were noticed by a DJ, Bill Gates, who was highly impressed with Barry's original compositions, '(Underneath the) Starlight of Love', and 'Let Me Love You'.
During 1961-62, the group performed in local clubs in the Gold Coast region of Surfer's Paradise, after the talented young musician dropped out of school. The next year, the family settled down in the city of Sydney, Australia.
In 1963, the 'Bee Gees' were signed on by 'Festival Records', who allotted them to their affiliated company, 'Leedon'. Under this banner, the band recorded their professional debut song 'The Battle of the Blue and the Grey'.
For the next three years, several artists including Sandy Summers, Trevor Gordon, Anne Shelton, and Michelle Rae, recorded the songs by 'Bee Gees', whose compositions were penned by their lead singer.
Songs like 'One Road', 'I Just Don't Like to Be Alone', and 'I Was a Lover, A Leader of Men', became record-breaking chart-toppers in Australia. The band went on to churn out hits like 'I Started a Joke', 'Playdown', and 'With the Sun in My Eyes', amongst others, before coming to England in 1967.
The same year, recording artist, Robert Stigwood took the 'Bee Gees' under his wing, managing their performances from then on. New performers, drummer Colin Petersen, and guitarist Vince Melouney, joined the band.
Other than performing their own songs, they also provided supporting vocals on Adam Faith's rendition of Maurice and Robin's lyrics, 'Cowman, Milk Your Cow'.
In 1968, they performed on TV programs like 'The Smothers Brothers Show', and 'The Ed Sullivan Show', as a promotion campaign for their album, 'Horizontal'. The following year, Robin left the band, and Barry and Maurice had to record the single 'Tomorrow Tomorrow' without him.
The band once again had a new member, Terry Cox, who filled in the position of their drummer, Peterson. Along with Cox, the group recorded twelve songs for the album, 'Odessa', of which five were included. The group disbanded completely by the end of 1969, and Barry was left to work on solo songs.
Continue Reading Below
As a solo artist, the exceptional singer released a song, 'I'll Kiss Your Memory', in 1970, that was supposed to be on an album titled 'The Kid's No Good'. The album however was never released and the remaining songs belonging to it remain today as bootlegs.
The same year, the 'Bee Gees' came back together and recorded songs like 'Lonely Days', 'How Can You Mend a Broken Heart', 'Saw a New morning', and 'Life in a Tin Can', in the days that followed.
From 1975-80, under the new recording artist, Arif Mardin, the 'Bee Gees' released singles like 'Nights on Broadway', 'I Just Want to Be Your Everything', and 'Saturday Night Fever'. The latter was sung by their brother Andy, who had joined the band recently.
In 1978, the eldest brother also appeared in the movie 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band', in the role of Mark Henderson.
In the 1980s, Barry helped release his brother's, 'Andy Gibb's Greatest Hits', and singer Barbra Streisand's album, 'Guilty', both of which saw commercial success.
Around the same time, the talented musician worked on Kenny Rogers' record, 'Eyes That See in the Dark', which became a big hit. During 1984-88, he brought out the solo albums, 'Now Voyager' and 'Moonlight Madness', containing singles like 'Shine, Shine' and 'Fine Line'.
During the 1990s, the celebrated musician recorded Kelli Wolfe's 'Born to Be Loved by You'. He also played the guitar for 'Let Me Wake Up in Your Arms', sung by Scottish singer, Lulu. Apart from solo assignments, he sung for the 'Bee Gees', producing records like 'Size Isn't Everything'.
In 2001, the 'Bee Gees' released their final album, 'Islands in the Stream'. The following year, Barry collaborated with Michael Jackson on the single, 'All in Your Name'.
During the rest of the decade, he provided supporting vocals to 'Living in the Rain', a single by his son Steve. He released the songs, 'Drown on the River', 'Grey Ghost', and 'Daddy's Little Girl'. He was also a judge on 'American Idol', in the sixth season, in 2007.
