"Spirits (Having Flown)" | ||||
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Single by Bee Gees | ||||
from the album Spirits Having Flown and Greatest | ||||
B-side | "Wind of Change" | |||
Released | December 1979 | |||
Recorded | 1978 | |||
Studio | Criteria (Miami) | |||
Genre | Pop, R&B | |||
Length | 5:21 5:10 (7" version) | |||
Label | RSO | |||
Songwriter(s) | Barry, Robin & Maurice Gibb | |||
Producer(s) | Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten, Karl Richardson | |||
Bee Gees singles chronology | ||||
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"Spirits (Having Flown)" is a song by the Bee Gees which was originally released on the 1979 album Spirits Having Flown . [1] Though not issued as a single in conjunction with the parent album, it was released in the UK to promote the compilation Greatest , which was released in December 1979. Its B-side was a 1975 song "Wind of Change" from the group's Main Course .
The song itself is a Caribbean flavored R&B track sung by Barry in natural voice during the verses and joined by Robin and Maurice on the chorus which is sung in falsetto. The count-in (1, 2, 3, 4) heard on the album version was omitted from the single version and on the album Bee Gees Greatest. Flute work for the track was provided by Herbie Mann. [2] A promotional video of the song, presenting the Bee Gees and Andy Gibb on holiday at Miami Beach, was released.
The single peaked at No. 16 in the UK, and would be the last Top 40 hit the band had in the UK for almost eight years.
Chart (1980) | Peak position |
---|---|
Ireland (IRMA) [3] | 14 |
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) [4] | 36 |
UK Singles (Official Charts Company) [5] | 16 |
The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio were especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in the disco music era in the mid- to late 1970s. The group sang recognisable three-part tight harmonies: Robin's clear vibrato lead vocals were a hallmark of their earlier hits, while Barry's R&B falsetto became their signature sound during the mid- to late 1970s and 1980s. The group wrote all their own original material, as well as writing and producing several major hits for other artists, and are regarded as one of the most important and influential acts in pop-music history. They have been referred to in the media as The Disco Kings, Britain's First Family of Harmony, and The Kings of Dance Music.
Cucumber Castle is the seventh studio album by the Bee Gees, released in April 1970. It was produced by Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, and Robert Stigwood. It consists of songs from their television special of the same name, which was named after a song on their 1967 album Bee Gees' 1st. Cucumber Castle is the only Bee Gees album not to feature any recorded contributions from Robin Gibb, as he had left the group before the album was recorded.
Mr. Natural is the Bee Gees' twelfth album, released in May 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.
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".
Still Waters is the twenty-first and penultimate studio album by the pop group the Bee Gees, released on 10 March 1997 in the UK by Polydor Records, and on 6 May the same year in the US by A&M Records.
Spirits Having Flown is the fifteenth album released by the Bee Gees. It was the group's first album after their collaboration on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. The album's first three tracks were released as singles and all reached No. 1 in the US, giving the Bee Gees an unbroken run of six US chart-toppers in a one-year period and equaling a feat shared by Bing Crosby, Elvis Presley, and The Beatles. It was the first Bee Gees album to make the UK top 40 in ten years, as well as being their first and only UK No. 1 album. Spirits Having Flown also topped the charts in Australia, Canada, Germany, New Zealand, Sweden and the US. The album has sold more than 30 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time.
"Love You Inside Out" is a 1979 hit single by the Bee Gees from their album, Spirits Having Flown. It was their last chart-topping single on the Billboard Hot 100, interrupting Donna Summer's "Hot Stuff", becoming the third single from the album to do so. In the UK, the single peaked at No. 13 for two weeks. It was the ninth and final number-one hit for the Bee Gees in the US, and the twelfth and final number-one hit in Canada as well. The trio would not return to the top 10 for ten years, with the song, "One".
Life in a Tin Can is the Bee Gees' eleventh studio album, released in January 1973.
Living Eyes is the Bee Gees' sixteenth original album, 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.
"Holiday" is a song released by the Bee Gees in the United States in September 1967. It appeared on the album Bee Gees' 1st. The song was not released as a single in their native United Kingdom because Polydor UK released the single "World" from their next album Horizontal.
"Desire" is a song written by Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb and Maurice Gibb, and originally recorded by the Bee Gees in 1978 during the sessions of Spirits Having Flown. Blue Weaver recalls that this version was originally intended for the album. After spending weeks on it, they dropped it from the album lineup. Weaver also recalls that the version sounded like "Too Much Heaven".
"Living Eyes" is a power ballad recorded by the Bee Gees and was released in November 1981 as the second single and title track off the LP of the same name. It was written by Barry, Robin & Maurice Gibb. The sound of this single was closer musically to the rest of the album than its predecessor, "He's a Liar".
"I.O.I.O." is a song by the Bee Gees, released on the album Cucumber Castle. It was written by Barry and Maurice Gibb. The song was released as a single in March 1970, and was also one of the highlights of the album. The single was a relative success mainly on European charts. Its music video is taken from the film Cucumber Castle.
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".
"Saw a New Morning" is the 1973 single released by the Bee Gees. It was also the group's first single released on Robert Stigwood's newly created records label RSO Records. The Bee Gees moved to Los Angeles in 1972 to record the album Life in a Tin Can which was a new direction for the group, who had been recording in England since 1967. The B-side, "My Life Has Been a Song" features lead vocal by Robin Gibb as well as Barry Gibb.
"Wine and Women" is a song written by Barry Gibb, and released by Barry Gibb and the Bee Gees in September 1965 on Leedon Records in Australia. The song's B-side was Follow the Wind. The single reached #19 in Australia, marking the Bee Gees' international chart debut. They achieved this by getting as many of their fans as possible to buy enough copies to get the song into the charts at #35 and, thus, to the attention of disc-jockeys.
"The Singer Sang His Song" is a song written by Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb and recorded by the English rock group Bee Gees, released in early 1968 as a single along with Jumbo. In some countries the song was the B-side of Jumbo but in others they were promoted as a double A-side.
Sunrise is the 11th and final album by American soul singer Jimmy Ruffin, it was released in May 1980 and was produced by Robin Gibb and Blue Weaver. The songs were co-written by Gibb either with Weaver and/or his brothers. This album was released in US, Netherlands, UK, Norway, and Germany. The lead single "Hold On " reached top ten in UK and US.
"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.
"Follow the Wind" is a song by Barry Gibb and the Bee Gees. Written by Barry Gibb, produced by Bill Shepherd, released as the B-side of "Wine and Women" which was charted in Australia. It was later included on The Bee Gees Sing and Play 14 Barry Gibb Songs (1965). It was one of the folk rock songs on the album the others are "I Don't Think It's Funny", "And the Children Laughing" and "I Was a Lover, a Leader of Men".