Odessa [City On The Black Sea] –

Melody Fair –

As 2017 begins, I wanted to feature a band that I’ve been listening to pretty intently over the last month.

Odessa (1969) by the Bee Gees. An album that was very poorly received both by the public and critics upon its initial release, but would later be considered one of their most significant achievements going on to be listed in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

This record has been on my turntable for awhile now and I’ve put it on my phone as well. Technically this version is the 1976 edit. The original is a double LP, but the edit is only a single LP. Since it didn’t sell well the record company hoped it would sell better if they sized it down to the more “popular” songs (and it was after the Bee Gees’ resurgence in popularity in the mid 70s).

The Bee Gees have a long and interesting track record. The Bee Gees lineup changed over the years, but their core staying steady with the Gibbs brothers, Barry, Maurice, and Robin. Starting their career back when they were teenagers in Australia, they moved back to England (where they were born) to try to make it big. Known for their three part harmonies and Robin’s vibrato tenor lead in their early years and Barry’s falsetto in their disco period.

Accused of being Beatles clones and selling out to whatever the music fad was, they were often disliked by music critics during their time. The Bee Gees countered that argument stating that they were singing and writing the songs for the moment, the songs that the public wanted to hear. My generation remembers them for their disco era (definitely their best selling years), but I’m a huge fan of their 60s stuff (but maybe that’s just the psychedelic fan coming out in me).

The songs I picked are the opening, title track “Odessa” and “Melody Fair.” “Odessa” is large and grand in nature, sweeping and incorporating the full orchestra. It tells of the story of a sailor longing for his love while lost at sea. “Melody Fair” is much simpler, but still touching in my opinion with its complementing harmonies and Robin’s distinct lead vocal part.