They’re Not Making A Comeback; Bee Gees Never Left

It was such a strange day, Barry Gibb would say later. The Bee Gees - Barry, 49, and twins Maurice and Robin Gibb, 47, - had been on Washington Avenue in South Beach earlier in the month, shooting the video for their new ballad, “I Could Not Love You More.” In the late afternoon, someone was stabbed in an adjacent alley, halting production for a bit.

Then a hapless driver in an orange VW broke through police, onlookers and clearly marked barricades to land on a direct path toward the Bee Gees, who shot puzzled glances at one another as they stood in the middle of the cleared street. (The driver found his way back out.)

Later, once night had fallen, the Bee Gees stood in a dank alleyway; leaky overhead pipes dripped on camera crew and hangers-on, neighbors peered curiously from apartment windows and the stench of urine hung in the air like a shroud as the trio repeatedly sang the classy ballad.

Through it all, the Bee Gees remained unfazed. Miami Beach may have changed immeasurably since the Brothers Gibb first moved here 21 years ago from England, but they sound and look basically the same (some hair loss notwithstanding): easygoing, straightforward, amiable.

And they’re busier than ever. The current craze for 1970s disco is winning them new young fans. Their new CD, “Still Waters,” is fresh in stores. Then they were inducted into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland.

They’re the musical guests on “Saturday Night Live” and the subject of an “Oprah” special this month. Recently they collected a Legend award at the World Music Awards in Monaco, which they added to the Lifetime Achievement Awards they garnered at both the British and American Music Awards. In March, VH1 devoted a segment of its “Storytellers” series to them. Finally, their world tour tentatively kicks off Sept. 5 at the Miami Arena.

Despite all the activity, despite “Still Waters” sprinting to the top of the charts throughout Europe and Japan after its release abroad last month, the Bee Gees haven’t made much of a ripple on the American public’s consciousness.

The group’s career has suffered a similar fate: Though they’ve been working continuously for more than 30 years, selling more than 100 million records, the Bee Gees haven’t been burning up U.S. music charts or played much on radio stations.

Because of their low profile, in fact, each new endeavor has been pegged as a “comeback.”

“It seems to go with our territory,” says Barry. “Other people put an album out and it’s not called a comeback.”

Blame it partially on overexposure: Audiences enthralled with “Saturday Night Fever” in the late ‘70s tired of the Bee Gees’ sound soon afterward (one critic referred to them as “three bland mice”), and the group bore the brunt of the disco backlash.

Blame it, too, on the fickleness of radio programming. The Bee Gees did have one Top 10 single in 1989 (“One”), but they have remained largely ignored on the airwaves, as U.S. radio’s reliance on demographic studies dictate what audiences hear - and don’t hear.

“The music business is different in America,” Robin says. “It is more black-oriented at the moment. It’s very hard for white male artists to break through on the radio. In the U.K., it’s not dominated by one or the other; it’s down to the record.”

Nevertheless, the Bee Gees’ recent work is drawing critical praise. “Still Waters” is a return to the smooth R&B/pop craft of their first “comeback” album, 1975’s “Main Course” (the disc that first brought them to record and then reside in South Florida).

Music historian and Billboard editor-in-chief Timothy White calls them “one of the three Great Killer B’s: the Bee Gees, the Beatles and the Beach Boys. These are the artists who knew how to make maximum use of the studio as an instrument. ‘Still Waters’ is emblematic of that incredible skill. Journalists don’t have any idea on how well-respected these guys are by other producers, musicians and artists.”

Awards and kudos are sweet, but they’re not what drives the Bee Gees.

“I think we’re still trying to be famous,” Maurice says as the three relax in their private Middle Ear Recording Studios in Miami Beach, shortly before setting off to shoot the video.

“We’re artists first, and it’s a fulfillment to us. There’s always a void we have to fill and it’s not just fame or success … or girls,” Robin adds, setting off a series of chuckles and good-natured teasing from his brothers.

The brotherly chemistry, honed 42 years ago when their late musician father Hugh started coaching their first live performances, remains intact.

After cracking the American market in 1967 with the Beatles-inspired “New York Mining Disaster 1941,” the Bee Gees practically defined the ‘70s with their contributions to the “Saturday Night Fever” soundtrack and follow-up LP, “Spirits Having Flown.” The two albums spawned six consecutive No. 1 singles (tying the Beatles’ record).

In the ‘80s, the Gibbs produced career-boosting albums for Barbra Streisand, Dionne Warwick, Kenny Rogers and Diana Ross. (Streisand and Ross have both requested new Gibb songs for sequel albums; Celine Dion wants a song. too, Barry said.) Royalties from their songwriting have made the Gibbs very comfortable.

Ironically, the Bee Gees have never been a disco group.

“‘How Deep Is Your Love’ was a ballad,” Robin points out. “We were doing our album at the time. If those songs hadn’t come out in the film, they would have come out on our album anyway. It wouldn’t have been called disco.”

“It’s very complex now,” Barry says. “We still have a good feeling about what we do. (But) we believe that on New Year’s Eve 2000, people will still be dancing to ‘Saturday Night Fever.’ The nostalgia factor never goes away. We’re sort of alternative retro is what we are.”

“Hard-core twilight rock,” Maurice suggests.