"The Battle of the Blue and the Grey" | ||||
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Single by Bee Gees | ||||
B-side | "The Three Kisses of Love" | |||
Released | 22 March 1963 | |||
Recorded | February 1963 Festival Studios, Sydney, Australia | |||
Genre | Country pop [1] | |||
Length | 2:05 | |||
Label | Leedon | |||
Songwriter(s) | Barry Gibb | |||
Producer(s) | Col Joye | |||
Bee Gees singles chronology | ||||
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"The Battle of the Blue and the Grey" is a debut single by the Bee Gees, backed by "The Three Kisses of Love" and released on March 22, 1963. [2] Like all the Bee Gees' output prior to 1967 (with the notable exception of Spicks and Specks) it was only released in Australia. It was performed in Australian television Bandstand, the footage of that performance still exists. It reached #93 in Australia.
In September 1963, it was included as the third track on their first EP The Bee Gees . [3] Neither song appeared on an album until the mop-up compilation Turn Around, Look at Us in 1967 but both are included on the 1998 compilation Brilliant from Birth [4] which collects all of the Australian material.
It was written by Barry Gibb when he was only 16 years old. [2] Col Joye recalls producing the sessions and using his backing band the Joy Boys, the members were Kevin Jacobsen, John Bogie, Laurie Erwin, Norm Day, Dave Bridge, Bruce Gurr and Ron Patton. [5] As was the norm for the Gibb brothers at the time, Barry sang the vocal solos while Robin and Maurice harmonised around him. It was recorded in February 1963 in Festival Studio, Sydney. Robert Iredale was the engineer in charge. [6]
"The Battle of the Blue and the Grey" was released on 22 March 1963. The song failed to become the hit that their record company had hoped for. In the words of Robin Gibb: "We recorded our first flop based on the story of the American Civil War. Now this record was very hot with one guy 2SM in Sydney. He was playing all this time and, of course, it didn't do anything". The song did reach the top twenty in the local Sydney chart. While the song achieved a reasonable amount of publicity, the music press also made mention of one other member of the household. Tucked away in small print, was news that their sister Lesley Evans had also embarked on a show business career in Surfer's Paradise as a snake-dancer. [2]
The song's length is 2:05 like most of their Australian releases. In an attempt to promote the single, stories appeared in Sydney newspapers about the new 'singing group' and its young songwriter. [2]
The song is about war. It bore a resemblance to Johnny Horton's 1959 hit "The Battle of New Orleans" albeit somewhat more violent with references to shooting people 'full of lead'. The story was of a retired soldier remembering his fighting experiences including dealings with the real historical figure Stonewall Jackson. [7]
Chart | Year | Peak position |
---|---|---|
Australia (Kent Music Report) [8] | 1963 | 98 |
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.
Robin Hugh Gibb was a British musician, singer and songwriter. He gained worldwide fame as a member of the Bee Gees pop group with elder brother Barry and fraternal twin brother Maurice. Robin Gibb also had his own successful solo career. Their youngest brother Andy was also a singer.
Sir Barry Alan Crompton Gibb is a British musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. He rose to worldwide fame as a member of the Bee Gees, one of the most commercially successful and influential groups in the history of popular music. With his younger brothers, fraternal twins Robin and Maurice Gibb, he formed a musical partnership beginning in 1955. He has lived in Britain, Australia, and the United States, holding dual UK–US citizenship since 2009.
Vincent Melouney is an Australian guitarist, singer and songwriter. He is best known as an official member of the Bee Gees from 1967 to 1969 during the group's initial period of worldwide success.
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.
Children of the World is a 1976 album by the Bee Gees. The first single, "You Should Be Dancing", went to No. 1 in the US and Canada, and was a top ten hit in numerous other territories. It was the group's fourteenth album. The album was re-issued on CD by Reprise Records and Rhino Records in 2006. This was the first record featuring the Gibb-Galuten-Richardson production team which would have many successful collaborations in the following years.
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.
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.
"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.
Eyes That See in the Dark is the fifiteenth studio album by American singer Kenny Rogers, released by RCA Nashville in August 1983.
"Guilty" is a vocal duet between Barbra Streisand and Barry Gibb. The song was written by all three Bee Gees: Barry, Robin & Maurice Gibb. Released as a single from Streisand's 1980 album of the same name. "Guilty" peaked at No. 3 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 5 on the adult contemporary chart. In the UK, the song reached No. 34 on the UK Singles Chart. The single was certified gold by the RIAA. In addition, "Guilty" won a Grammy Award in the category Best Pop Vocal Performance, Duo or Group. The song also appeared on the 2001 Bee Gees compilation, Their Greatest Hits: The Record.
Bee Gees' 1st is the third studio album by English group Bee Gees, and their first international full-length recording after two albums distributed only in Australia and New Zealand. Bee Gees' 1st was the group's debut album for the UK Polydor label, and for the US Atco label. Bee Gees 1st was released on 14 July 1967 in the UK. On 9 August it entered the UK charts; on that same day, the album was released in the US, and it entered the US charts on 26 August.
Here at Last... Bee Gees... Live is the first live album by the Bee Gees. It was recorded on December 20, 1976 at the LA Forum and was released in May 1977 by RSO Records. It reached No. 8 in the US, No. 8 in Australia, No. 1 in New Zealand and No. 2 in Spain.
"Peace of Mind" is a song by the Bee Gees, released in Australia as their third in March 1964 and backed with "Don't Say Goodbye".
"I Can't See Nobody" is a song by the Bee Gees, released first as the B-side of "New York Mining Disaster 1941". With "New York Mining Disaster 1941", this song was issued as a double A in Germany and Japan, and included on the group's third LP, Bee Gees' 1st. "I Can't See Nobody" charted for one week at number 128 on the Billboard Bubbling Under the Hot 100 in July 1967.
"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 Bee Gees is the first EP by the Bee Gees, released in September 1963 on the Leedon label only in Australia. The songs were recorded in February and June 1963 on Festival Studios in Sydney.
"New York Mining Disaster 1941" was released on Spin Records by the Bee Gees in 1967. It was their second EP and, like their first EP, was released only in Australia. All of the songs on this EP were originally released on their third LP Bee Gees' 1st.
"The Three Kisses of Love" is a song composed principally by Barry Gibb and recorded by the Bee Gees. It was released on 22 March 1963 as the B-side of their debut single "The Battle of the Blue and the Grey". It was later included in numerous compilations.
"Timber!" is a song recorded by the Bee Gees, written by Barry Gibb. The song was released in Australia as their second single in July 1963, backed with "Take Hold of That Star". It was later included on the group's first album The Bee Gees Sing and Play 14 Barry Gibb Songs.
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