Disco de Bee Gees: “Idea [Remaster]”

By late 1968 the Bee Gees had already had a string of hit singles as well as two fairly successful albums 'The Bee Gees 1st' and 'Horizontal'. In the summer of 1968 the Bee Gees scored their biggest hit to date with I'VE GOTTA GET A MESSAGE TO YOU (which reached #8 in the U.S). Captilizing on the single's success the band released their third album 'Idea' in September (it reached #17). Unlike their bright lush pop rock debut, or their colder more hard rocking follow up, 'Idea' was more of a transitional stage for the group as their are various styles of music on this album.

The band decided to put I'VE GOTTA GET A MESSAGE TO YOU on the U.S. version of the album. For whatever reason it was omitted on the U.K. version in place of the blues rocking SUCH A SHAME which is the only song not sung or written by the brothers Gibb (it was written and sung by the group's guitarist Vince Melouney) Thankfully we can enjoy both songs on this cd version. The other hit here is the follow up single I STARTEDA JOKE which was released in December of '68 (it followed the same success peaking at #6). Apart from those two hits the rest of the album is filled with wonderful progressive pop rock of contrasting styles. LET THERE BE LOVE is a beautiful love ballad that could have been a single. Both Barry and Robin's voice are great on this one! The bouncy KITTY CAN and the catchy INDIAN GIN AND WHISKY DRY are nice simple novelty pop tunes. IN THE SUMMER OF HIS YEARS and DOWN TO EARTH are tragic ballads. DOWN TO EARTH is a particular is a great song. The title track IDEA is an awesome catchy rock 'n roll song. WHEN THE SWALLOWS FLY is a nice tune with a great Barry Gibb vocal. I HAVE DECIDED TO JOIN THE AIRFORCE is a novelty rock tune but it's by no means the best track here. Still it's listenable. KILBURN TOWERS is an excellent smooth jazz experimentation Barry's vocals are once again wonderful here. The last track SWAN SONG is a beautiful yet powerful ballad that appropriately closes 'Idea'.

The Bee Gees were definetly becoming more confident as a group third time around. Their song writing was improving and 'Idea' was another success for the Gibbs. Although the two singles GOTTA GET A MESSAGE and I STARTED A JOKE are the true highlights, other songs like LET THERE BE LOVE, DOWN TO EARTH, IDEA, WHEN THE SWALLOWS FLY, KILBURN TOWERS and SWAN SONG proved that 'Idea' wasn't just two singles and bunch of filler.

Overall 'Idea' is a good effort by The Bee Gees. Whether or not it's their best 60's album is up to you but it is worth getting thats all I can say! Highly recommended.

Wrapped in a snug fold-out digipak, this Rhino re-issue of Bee Gees Idea is a wonder to behold. Being the third album by the three brothers, Rhino has beautifully remastered the original into one CD that has all the original thirteen songs in Stereo and Mono. These are different sounding recordings and not simply Stereo condensed into Mono. Classics like, "I've Gotta Get A Message To You" and "I Started A Joke" is given new life.

Disc 2 contains fantastic Alternate Versions and previously unreleased material. It's interesting to compare "I've Gotta Get A Message To You", "Kitty Can", "Let There Be Love" or "Idea" to the original takes. Also include on album for the first time are singles, "Jumbo" and "The Singer Sang His Song". Other new delights are the rocking, "Bridges Crossing Rivers" and "Chocolate Symphony". "Completely Unoriginal" is `tongue in cheek', being one of the most original songs the Bee Gees have ever written. Also of note is the rare instrumental, "Gena's Theme" and two classic Coke commercials. With 39 songs and a running time of over 100 minutes, this is a long awaited release. "I've Gotta Get A Message To You" went to #8 on the Billboard Charts and "I Started A Joke" went to #6! The album hit #17 in the USA and #4 in the U.K.! Also includes a colorful booklet packed with trivia, history, album and single photos as well as comments from Barry and Robin Gibb.

Many fine performances and compositions. A hit in the U.K. (#4 on the charts, their best showing until 1975), and did well in the U.S. along with their first top 10 hits in the States. A couple of silly songs (there always seem to be some on their discs up to the early 1970s) (Kitty Can, ...Airforce). Perhaps the Bee Gees were meant to be more than just the three brothers in the future; one song in this album is not by the brothers (Such A Shame). This album, plus Bee Gees 1st, are my best bets from 1967-1970, perhaps even up to 1974. Really top-notch. Faves: Let There Be Love, Idea, Down To Earth, When The Swallows Fly, Gotta Get A Message To You, I Started A Joke, Swan Song.

The Brothers Gibb score again with "Idea". There are lots of great songs to be found here. My faves: "Let There Be Love", "Kitty Can", "Such A Shame", "I've Gotta Get A Message To You", and "I Started A Joke". I also like "In The Summer Of His Years" and "I've Decided To Join The Air Force". All and all, another classic Bee Gees album. Anyone who likes the Bee Gees and doesn't have this should get it. You will not be disappointed. This deserves a 10-star rating!

These were the songs that made me love their music ! Old school sure, but that's why they call them oldies but goodies.