Ordinary Lives
"Ordinary Lives" is a single released by the Bee Gees in 1989. It was taken from their 16th studio album One. Following the premature death of their younger brother Andy Gibb in 1988, the Bee Gees dedicated this song and their new album to him. Originally the song was titled "Cruel World" but was later changed to "Ordinary Lives".
| "Ordinary Lives" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Bee Gees | ||||
| from the album One | ||||
| B-side | "Wing and a Prayer" | |||
| Released | March 1989 | |||
| Recorded | April 1988 | |||
| Genre | Pop | |||
| Length | 4:01 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. Records, Warner Music | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Barry, Robin & Maurice Gibb | |||
| Producer(s) | Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb, Brian Tench | |||
| Bee Gees singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Composition and inspiration
Scott Glasel recalled that "Ordinary Lives" was started before Andy died, but as completed it seems to be a philosophical comment on life and death. For a time it was called "Cruel World", a phrase heard at the start of the second verse as complete. The rhythm has some similarity to "You Win Again" and may have been a deliberate attempt to follow it up, but it has many new features including the brief spoken word parts and the existential musings of the lyrics, something often associated with Robin but clearly here coming from Barry. Probably the finished recording has added dubs by the musicians who worked on the album One.[1]
Barry Gibb performed this song in the 2013 Mythology Tour accompanied by his son Stephen Gibb and Maurice's daughter Samantha "Sammy" Gibb. He still used the backing vocal effect from the last part of the original record.
Personnel
- Bee Gees
- Barry Gibb – lead, harmony and backing vocals; rhythm guitar
- Robin Gibb – lead, harmony and backing vocals
- Maurice Gibb – harmony and backing vocals, keyboards (played bass on TV show performances of this song)
- Additional musicians
- Peter-John Vettese – keyboards, synthesizer
- Tim Cansfield – lead guitar
- Alan Kendall – lead guitar
- Nathan East – bass
- Steve Ferrone – drums
Chart performance
| Chart (1989) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Austria | 19 |
| Belgium | 22 |
| France | 49 |
| Germany | 8 |
| Switzerland | 9 |
| The Netherlands | 23 |
| United Kingdom[2] | 54 |
References
- "Gibb Songs : 1988". Columbia.edu. Retrieved 2014-04-07.
- Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 51. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
