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Barry Gibb
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Barry Alan Crompton Gibb CBE (born 1 September 1946) is a singer, songwriter and producer. He was born in Douglas, Isle of Man, to English parents. With his brothers Robin and Maurice, he formed the Bee Gees, one of the most successful pop groups of all time. The trio got their start in Australia, and found their major success when they returned to England. He is known for his high-pitched falsetto singing voice. Gibb holds the record for consecutive Hot 100 Number Ones as a writer with 6.
Barry Alan Crompton Gibb to Barbara (née Pass) and Hugh Gibb, he grew up in Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester, England.
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Encyclopedia
Barry Alan Crompton Gibb CBE (born 1 September 1946) is a singer, songwriter and producer. He was born in Douglas, Isle of Man, to English parents. With his brothers Robin and Maurice, he formed the Bee Gees, one of the most successful pop groups of all time. The trio got their start in Australia, and found their major success when they returned to England. He is known for his high-pitched falsetto singing voice. Gibb holds the record for consecutive Hot 100 Number Ones as a writer with 6.
Early life
Born Barry Alan Crompton Gibb to Barbara (née Pass) and Hugh Gibb, he grew up in Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester, England. The second-born of five children, he has an older sister, Lesley (b. 1945), and three younger brothers, twins Maurice and Robin (b. 1949), and Andrew (b. 1958). In late 1958, his family moved to Brisbane, Australia, settling in one of the city's poorest suburbs, Cribb Island, which was subsequently obliterated to make way for Brisbane Airport.
Personal life
Barry Gibb married a former "Miss Edinburgh (Scotland)" Linda Gray on 1 September 1970, choosing Barry's birthdate "so he wouldn't forget [their] anniversary" according to Linda from a 1979 biography of the Bee Gees. At that time they lived in Abbey House, a mansion block in London near the Abbey Road crossing made famous by The Beatles. They have five children: Stephen (b. 1973), Ashley (b. 1977), Travis (b. 1981), Michael (b. 1984), and Alexandra (b. 1991). Michael Jackson is the godfather of Barry's son Michael. Gibb's son Steve Gibb has toured with the Bee Gees and is currently a guitarist for the bands Crowbar and Kingdom Of Sorrow.
According to the biography Tales from The Brothers' Gibb ... In the early 90s Barry had a heart attack brought on by morphine during a back operation and suffers from arthritis. He also thought that his career was over because his hands were badly affected and sometimes wears a glove to keep his hand warm while playing the guitar.
In January 2006 Gibb purchased the former home of country legends Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash in Hendersonville, Tennessee, intending to restore it and turn it into a songwriting retreat. This house was destroyed by fire on 10 April 2007 while under renovation.
Gibb resides in Miami Beach and Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire.
Political activity
On 7 December 2006, Barry Gibb, along with around 4,500 other musicians, took out a full-page advertisement in the Financial Times newspaper calling for the British Government to extend the existing 50 years copyright protection for sound recordings in the United Kingdom. The fair play for musicians advertisement was viewed as a direct response to the Gowers Review published by the British Government on 6 December 2006 which recommended the retention of the 50 year protection for sound recordings.
Recent work
On the 8 May 2007 episode of American Idol, Gibb mentored the four remaining contestants, and on the following night, he sang his own song "To Love Somebody" before the elimination of LaKisha Jones.
As a preview to his forthcoming country album, Gibb has released the song "Drown On The River" to iTunes. The song will also be featured in the 2008 movie Deal starring Burt Reynolds.
According to interviews, Gibb has some resistance to his late 70s music being called 'disco' and had thought of the music that they were writing at the time as R&B and soul.
Gibb composed the theme music for ITV's Grease Is The Word.
Pop culture references
The Barry Gibb Talk Show has been a popular satirical segment on Saturday Night Live, and featured Jimmy Fallon as a temperamental Barry and Justin Timberlake as his brother Robin. Gibb had a short cameo role in the Only Fools and Horses film Miami Twice, in which he is seen in the garden of his Miami home as a tourist boat passes by.
Discography
Albums
- 1984: Now Voyager
- 1988: Hawks
- 2006: The Eyes That See in the Dark
Singles
External links
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