Arrow Through the Heart

Last updated
"Arrow Through The Heart"
Song by Andy Gibb
from the album Mythology
Released15 November 2010
RecordedJuly 1987
Panther House, Miami Beach
Length3:43
Label Warner, Reprise
Songwriter(s) Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, Andy Gibb
Producer(s) Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb

"Arrow Through The Heart" was the final song recorded by singer-songwriter Andy Gibb before his death in 1988. The song was publicly released in its entirety for the first time on the Bee Gees' 2010 compilation box set Mythology .

Contents

Content

The song was written by Barry, Maurice, and Andy Gibb as the last of four songs that would have led to a comeback album from Andy after his long battle with drugs. As preparation for the prehumous album (which would have been released by Island Records, but never issued), Andy and two of his Bee Gee brothers, Barry and Maurice, recorded demos of the four songs, one of which was "Man on Fire", the latter would ultimately be released on Andy’s 1991 self-titled album. "Arrow" would turn out to be the final song Andy would ever record, in late 1987. The lyrics, about a man's vain search for happiness, would prove to be prophetic for Andy (he died in 1988, several months after he recorded this song).

"Arrow Through the Heart" would be unreleased to the public for many years until VH1's Behind the Music series profiled Andy in an episode that would debut a segment of the song over the show's end credits. The entirety of this song had been bootlegged until the estates of the deceased Gibb brothers (Andy and Maurice), the then-surviving Bee Gees (Barry and Robin), and Warner Music Group eventually sanctioned an official release of the complete song for 2010's Mythology , an anthology set covering the careers of Andy and the Bee Gees.

Personnel

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maurice Gibb</span> British musician (1949–2003)

Maurice Ernest Gibb was a British musician. He achieved worldwide fame as a member of the pop group Bee Gees. Although his elder brother Barry Gibb and fraternal twin brother Robin Gibb were the group's main lead singers, most of their albums included at least one or two songs featuring Maurice's lead vocals, including "Lay It on Me", "Country Woman" and "On Time". The Bee Gees are one of the most successful pop-rock groups of all time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barry Gibb</span> British-American musician (born 1946)

Sir Barry Alan Crompton Gibb is a British musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. Along with his younger brothers, Robin and Maurice, he rose to worldwide fame as a member of the Bee Gees, one of the most commercially successful groups in the history of popular music. Well known for his wide vocal range, Gibb's most notable trait is a far-reaching high-pitched falsetto. Gibb's career has spanned over 60 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andy Gibb</span> British-Australian pop singer and songwriter (1958–1988)

Andrew Roy Gibb was an English and Australian singer and songwriter. He was the younger brother of Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb, musicians who had formed the Bee Gees during the mid-1960s.

<i>This Is Where I Came In</i> 2001 studio album by the Bee Gees

This Is Where I Came In is the twenty-second and final studio album by the Bee Gees. It was released on 2 April 2001 by Polydor in the UK and Universal in the US, less than two years before Maurice Gibb died from a cardiac arrest before surgery to repair a twisted intestine.

<i>Best of Bee Gees</i> 1969 compilation album by Bee Gees

Best of Bee Gees is a 1969 compilation album by the English-Australian rock band Bee Gees. It was their first international greatest hits album. It featured their singles from 1966–1969 with the exception of the band's 1968 single "Jumbo".

<i>Mr. Natural</i> (Bee Gees album) 1974 studio album by the Bee Gees

Mr. Natural is the twelfth studio album by the Bee Gees, released in 1974. It was the first Bee Gees release produced by Arif Mardin, who was partially responsible for launching the group's later major success with the follow-up album Main Course. The album's rhythm and blues, soul, funk, and hard rock sounds initiated the group's reinvention as a disco and blue-eyed soul act, which would solidify on subsequent albums. However, Barry Gibb has said that the album was "whiter" than Main Course. The cover photograph was taken at 334 West 4th Street, Greenwich Village, New York City by Frank Moscati, which is today known as The Corner Bistro tavern.

<i>Size Isnt Everything</i> 1993 studio album by the Bee Gees

Size Isn't Everything is the twentieth studio album by the Bee Gees, released in the UK on 13 September 1993, and the US on 2 November of the same year. The brothers abandoned the contemporary dance feel of the previous album High Civilization and went for what they would describe as "A return to our sound before Saturday Night Fever".

<i>The Bee Gees Sing and Play 14 Barry Gibb Songs</i> 1965 studio album by Barry Gibb and the Bee Gees

The Bee Gees Sing and Play 14 Barry Gibb Songs is the debut studio album by the Bee Gees. Credited to Barry Gibb and the Bee Gees, it was released in November 1965 on the Australian Leedon label. It is a compilation of most of the Gibb brothers' singles that had been released over the previous three years in Australia, which accounts for the many different styles of music on it.

<i>Idea</i> (album) 1968 studio album by the Bee Gees

Idea is the fifth album by the Bee Gees. Released in September 1968, the album sold over a million copies worldwide. The album was issued in both mono and stereo pressings in the UK. The artwork on the Polydor release designed by Wolfgang Heilemann featured a "beehive" neon lightbulb with a group photo in its base, while the North American ATCO release designed by Klaus Voormann featured a composite head made from each band member. It was their third internationally released album – the first two albums being released only in the Australian market.

<i>Living Eyes</i> (Bee Gees album) 1981 studio album by the Bee Gees

Living Eyes is the sixteenth studio album by the Bee Gees, released in 1981. It was the band's final album on RSO Records, which would be absorbed into Polydor and subsequently discontinued. The album showcased a soft rock sound that contrasted with their disco and R&B material of the mid-to-late 1970s; having become a prominent target of the popular backlash against disco, the Bee Gees were pressured to publicly disassociate from the genre.

<i>E.S.P.</i> (Bee Gees album) 1987 studio album by the Bee Gees

E.S.P. is the seventeenth studio album by the Bee Gees released in 1987. It was the band's first studio album in six years, and their first release under their new contract with Warner Bros. It marked the first time in twelve years the band had worked with producer Arif Mardin, and was their first album to be recorded digitally. After the band's popularity had waned following the infamous Disco Demolition Night of 1979, the Gibb brothers had spent much of the early 1980s writing and producing songs for other artists, as well as pursuing solo projects, and E.S.P. was very much a comeback to prominence. The album sold well in Europe, reaching No. 5 in the UK, No. 2 in Norway and Austria, and No. 1 in Germany and Switzerland, though it failed to chart higher than No. 96 in the US. The album's first single, "You Win Again", reached No. 1 in the UK, Ireland, Switzerland, Germany, Austria and Norway.

<i>Spicks and Specks</i> (album) 1966 studio album by the Bee Gees

Spicks and Specks is the second studio album by the Bee Gees. It was released in November 1966, on Spin. Primarily written by Barry Gibb, the album includes the first Robin Gibb composition "I Don't Know Why I Bother With Myself" and a Maurice Gibb composition "Where Are You".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lonely Days</span> 1970 single by Bee Gees

"Lonely Days" is a ballad written and performed by the Bee Gees. It appeared on their album 2 Years On, and was released as a single, becoming their first Top Five hit in the US, peaking at number three in the Billboard Hot 100 and reaching number one in the Cashbox and Record World charts. Barry Gibb later re-recorded the song with country quartet Little Big Town for his 2021 album Greenfields.

<i>Eyes That See in the Dark</i> 1983 studio album by Kenny Rogers

Eyes That See in the Dark is the fifteenth studio album by American country singer Kenny Rogers, released by RCA Records in August 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ordinary Lives</span> 1989 single by Bee Gees

"Ordinary Lives" is a song by the Bee Gees from their 16th studio album One, released on 27 March 1989 by Warner Records as the album's first single. It was written by the group and they produced it with Brian Tench. Following the premature death of their younger brother Andy Gibb in 1988, the Bee Gees dedicated this song and their new album to him. Originally the song was titled "Cruel World" but was later changed to "Ordinary Lives". The song reached the top 10 in Switzerland and Germany, and hitting the top 40 in some European countries except France and the UK, where it peaked at number 49 and 54 respectively.

"Melody Fair" is a song by the Bee Gees, written by Barry, Robin & Maurice Gibb in 1968 and released in 1969 on their album Odessa. It was not released as a single, but this song was played on many radio stations, and was a hit in Japan. Andy Gibb's 1974 group, named Melody Fayre was named after this song. It also featured as the theme to Melody, a British film featuring a number of Bee Gees songs in its soundtrack.

<i>After Dark</i> (Andy Gibb album) 1980 studio album by Andy Gibb

After Dark is the third and final studio album by English singer-songwriter Andy Gibb. It features his last US Top 10 single "Desire", "I Can't Help It" and two Bee Gees numbers "Rest Your Love on Me" and "Warm Ride".

<i>Mythology</i> (Bee Gees album) 2010 compilation album by the Bee Gees and Andy Gibb

Mythology is a box set compilation of recordings by the Gibb brothers, mostly performed as the Bee Gees, arranged in a four disc set each highlighting a Gibb brother. Barry and Robin chose their own songs, with Maurice's songs selected by his widow Yvonne and Andy's songs selected by his daughter Peta. Several U.S. and U.K. hits are absent from this collection including "Lonely Days", "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart", "You Should Be Dancing", "Nights on Broadway", "World" and "One".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lamplight</span> 1969 single by Bee Gees

"Lamplight" is a song by the Bee Gees, released as the B-side of "First of May", but featured as the single's A-side in Germany. It also featured on their double album Odessa in March 1969. The song was written and composed by Barry, Robin & Maurice Gibb and featured lead vocals by Robin Gibb. No other singles were released from the album, and the fact that the group's manager Robert Stigwood chose "First of May", which only featured Barry Gibb's voice for the A-side, that caused Robin to quit the group.

"Where Are You" is a song by the Bee Gees, written by Maurice Gibb. It marked his debut as a lead vocalist and solo composer. It was included on the 1966 album Spicks and Specks. In 1968, it was released in the US.

References