The Bee Gees’ 10th international studio album, Mr Natural, turned 50 in 2024. Produced by 11x Grammy winner Arif Mardin (Aretha Franklin, Hall & Oates, Dionne Warwick, Donny Hathaway, Carly Simon, Roberta Flack etc.), here’s a deep dive – including detailed track-by-track analysis – about why this lost classic is one of the most important…
Category: Music
Oasis beyond Definitely Maybe & Morning Glory, d’you know what I mean? 10 essential songs
“All my people right here, right now, d’you know what I mean?” It’s my favourite line from my favourite Oasis song. Cocky and communal all in one. Relatable and untouchable at the same time. Noel and Liam Gallagher summed up in one almighty hook. Let’s hope D’You Know What I Mean makes the cut for…
The Bee Gees’ finest post disco-era LP turns 30 – Size Isn’t Everything, track-by-track
Album: Size Isn’t Everything Release date: September 13, 1993 (UK), November 2, 1993 (US) Recorded: August 1992 – June 1993, Middle Ear Studios, Miami, Mayfair Studios, London Producers: Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb with Femi Jiya Late period Bee Gees albums don’t come much better than this. Forget that, 90s pop albums by heritage acts…
10 Pointer Sisters’ essentials, from blistering funk to the country song Elvis adored
I’d always been a fan of the Pointer Sisters, but I don’t think I really understood the breadth of their brilliance until I became a dad. Baby Riley Roxy took to Neutron Dance the first instance she heard it. She couldn’t get enough. She’d bop her shoulders, bounce her bum-shuffling legs, and giggle every time…
Christine McVie dies aged 79 – the greatest Fleetwood Mac song you’ve never heard
Fleetwood Mac’s Christine McVie has died of a short illness at the age of 79. Here’s my tribute: Christine McVie was one of the two ‘Macs’ of Fleetwood Mac. She was the key melodic link between the first, more bluesy era of the band, to their transition to a second, more melodic pop-rock era. She…
Barry Gibb on Olivia Newton-John: “We’ve lived the same life”
Barry Gibb wasn’t exaggerating when he told me that he and Olivia Newton John had “lived the same life”. British born, Australian-raised, first strides to fame in the UK, superstardom in the USA, careers of various astounding triumphs that are perennially overshadowed by one particular cultural earthquake; it’s not hard to see the parallels between…
8 essential Paul McCartney & Brian Wilson songs to celebrate their 80th birthdays
Did we know that Paul McCartney and Brian Wilson were the exact same age? That save for a couple of days in June 1942, two history-changing songwriters – for whom the moniker “genius” is an understatement – both chose to enter this world? Well, if this synchronicity somehow passed you by for the undoubted euphoric…
‘Still Waters’ at 25 – How the Bee Gees’ late 90s comeback cemented their legacy
May 2022 marks both the 25th anniversary of the release of the Bee Gees’ Still Waters album, as well as 10-years since Robin Gibb died aged just 62. To commemorate these anniversaries, I’ve done a deep dive as to why Still Waters became the Bee Gees’ biggest LP since 1979. It’s hard to overstate just…
Taylor Hawkins, Dave Grohl & the visual power of friendship in rock & roll
When I think of Taylor Hawkins I immediately think of friendship. Sometimes the profound power of a band is beyond just the sounds they make. Indeed, that’s hardly surprising given the importance of image in entertainment. But what always stood apart for me with Taylor is that he was in a rock band – the…
Michael McDonald’s Yacht Rock classic with Kenny Loggins needs to be heard again
Michael McDonald is as mysterious as any singer I’ve ever heard. This most unassuming of entertainers – a man who couldn’t look more Dad-like and less rock-star if he tried, a Doobie Brother who’s been sober for 37 years, a showbiz veteran who’s been married for almost 40-years – is still, at the age of…
Remembering Meat Loaf: “I figured if the album sucked I could always hang the cover on my bedroom wall”
Guest columnist Rick Morin pays tribute to Meat Loaf who has died at the age of 74 of complications due to Covid. I was 17 when I bought Bat Out of Hell back in 1978. I’d never heard of Meat Loaf and assumed it was some kind of punk band. I suppose I was initially…
The Bee Gees ‘Living Eyes’ album at 40 – the lost song that gives Barry Gibb the chills
Arguably the greatest underdog in the entire Bee Gees catalogue turns 40 this month. Never heard Living Eyes before? Released in October of 1981, it stands as one of the most fascinating major artist flops in popular music history. The reasons it missed are as intriguing as the songs themselves, and these are some of…
