"
Massachusetts" is a song written, recorded, and released by the
Bee GeesThe Bee Gees were a singing trio of brothers — Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The group was successful for most of its forty years of recording music, but the trio had two distinct periods of exceptional success: as a harmonic "soft rock" act in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and as the foremost...
in 1967 and later appearing on their 1968
albumAn album or record album is a collection of related audio or music tracks distributed to the public. The most common way is through commercial distribution, although smaller artists will often distribute directly to the public by selling their albums at live concerts or on their websites.-...
,
HorizontalHorizontal is the Bee Gees' second album. It was released in early 1968, and included the international hit singles "Massachusetts" and "World"....
. It was their first Number 1 hit in the
UKThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
.
Vocals are by
Robin GibbRobin Hugh Gibb CBE is a singer and songwriter. He is best known as a member of the singing/songwriting trio the Bee Gees, cofounded with his twin brother Maurice Gibb , and elder brother Barry....
(most of the lead),
Barry GibbBarry Alan Crompton Gibb CBE is a singer, songwriter and producer. He was born in the 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...
, and
Maurice GibbMaurice Ernest Gibb CBE was a musician and singer-songwriter. He was born in the Isle of Man, the twin brother of Robin Gibb, and younger brother to Barry. He is best known as a member of the singing/songwriting trio the Bee Gees, formed with his brothers Robin and Barry...
. The band are Barry Gibb (rhythm guitar), Maurice Gibb (bass guitar),
Vince MelouneyVince Melouney was a founding member of Billy Thorpe & The Aztecs, playing with the band as lead guitarist from 1963 to 1965, which was followed by a short-lived duo with fellow Aztec Tony Barber, called Vince & Tony's Two.In 1967, after moving to the UK, he was invited to join the Bee Gees...
(lead guitar), and
Colin PetersenColin Petersen is a former child actor and rock drummer. He played as a member of the Bee Gees on the first five albums.-Biography:Petersen began his acting career at the age of seven...
(drums), with an orchestral arrangement by Bill Shepherd.
For Maurice Gibb, the song had a painful memory attached.
"
Massachusetts" is a song written, recorded, and released by the
Bee GeesThe Bee Gees were a singing trio of brothers — Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The group was successful for most of its forty years of recording music, but the trio had two distinct periods of exceptional success: as a harmonic "soft rock" act in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and as the foremost...
in 1967 and later appearing on their 1968
albumAn album or record album is a collection of related audio or music tracks distributed to the public. The most common way is through commercial distribution, although smaller artists will often distribute directly to the public by selling their albums at live concerts or on their websites.-...
,
HorizontalHorizontal is the Bee Gees' second album. It was released in early 1968, and included the international hit singles "Massachusetts" and "World"....
. It was their first Number 1 hit in the
UKThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
.
Vocals are by
Robin GibbRobin Hugh Gibb CBE is a singer and songwriter. He is best known as a member of the singing/songwriting trio the Bee Gees, cofounded with his twin brother Maurice Gibb , and elder brother Barry....
(most of the lead),
Barry GibbBarry Alan Crompton Gibb CBE is a singer, songwriter and producer. He was born in the 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...
, and
Maurice GibbMaurice Ernest Gibb CBE was a musician and singer-songwriter. He was born in the Isle of Man, the twin brother of Robin Gibb, and younger brother to Barry. He is best known as a member of the singing/songwriting trio the Bee Gees, formed with his brothers Robin and Barry...
. The band are Barry Gibb (rhythm guitar), Maurice Gibb (bass guitar),
Vince MelouneyVince Melouney was a founding member of Billy Thorpe & The Aztecs, playing with the band as lead guitarist from 1963 to 1965, which was followed by a short-lived duo with fellow Aztec Tony Barber, called Vince & Tony's Two.In 1967, after moving to the UK, he was invited to join the Bee Gees...
(lead guitar), and
Colin PetersenColin Petersen is a former child actor and rock drummer. He played as a member of the Bee Gees on the first five albums.-Biography:Petersen began his acting career at the age of seven...
(drums), with an orchestral arrangement by Bill Shepherd.
For Maurice Gibb, the song had a painful memory attached. Shortly after it was recorded, Beatles manager
Brian EpsteinBrian Samuel Epstein was a British music entrepreneur, and the manager of The Beatles. He also managed several other musical artists such as Gerry & The Pacemakers, Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, Cilla Black and The Remo Four...
told him that it was beautiful and would be the hit of the summer. These proved to be Epstein's last words to Maurice; Epstein died a few days later.
The song has a minor claim to fame in the history of British radio. While many people know "
Flowers in the Rain"Flowers in the Rain" is a song by the sixties Rock band The Move. The song was released as a single and reached number two in 1967 on the UK Singles Chart....
" by
The MoveThe Move were one of the leading British rock bands of the 1960s from Birmingham, England, and were among the most popular British bands to not find any success in the US....
was the first record played on
BBC Radio 1BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the BBC which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock or interviews. It is aimed...
,
Massachusetts was the second.
Ed Ames recorded a version of this song on his album "Who Will Answer?", in 1968.
This single is the first number-one hit single by a non-Japanese artist on Japan's official hit chart,
Oricon, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
.
When Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb wrote this song it was originally intended to be recorded by
The SeekersThe Seekers were a group of Australian folk-influenced popular musicians that was formed in Melbourne in 1962. They were the first Australian popular music group to achieve significant chart and sales success in the United Kingdom and the United States....
, but they did not record it. That's why the Bee Gees recorded it themselves. The Seekers finally recorded it after Maurice Gibb's death in 2003, as a tribute to him.