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Children of the World

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This article is about the album by the Bee Gees. For other uses, see Children of the World (disambiguation).

Children of the World
Studio album by
the Bee Gees
ReleasedSeptember 13, 1976
Recorded19 January – 6 May 1976
Studio
Genre
Length38:37
LabelRSO
Producer
The Bee Gees chronology
Main Course
(1975) 		Children of the World
(1976) 		Here at Last... Bee Gees... Live
(1977)
Singles from Children of the World
  1. "You Should Be Dancing"
    Released: June 1976 (UK), July 1976 (US)
  2. "Love So Right"
    Released: September 1976
  3. "Boogie Child"
    Released: January 1977
  4. "Children of the World"
    Released: February 1977

Children of the World is the fourteenth studio album (twelfth internationally) by the Bee Gees, released in 1976 by RSO Records. The first single, "You Should Be Dancing", went to No. 1 in the US and Canada, and was a top ten hit in numerous other territories. The album was re-issued on CD by Reprise Records and Rhino Records in 2006. This was the first record featuring the Gibb-Galuten-Richardson production team which would have many successful collaborations in the following years. Many consider this a "prologue" to the band's foray into disco, which would culminate with the iconic Saturday Night Fever soundtrack the following year.

Background

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Because their manager Robert Stigwood had ended his US distribution arrangement with Atlantic Records, Atlantic producer Arif Mardin, who had produced the Bee Gees' prior two albums, was no longer permitted to work with the group. In an effort to retain the same sound, the group recorded at the same studios (Criteria Studios in Miami). At first, they recruited producer Richard Perry, but they parted company after only a couple of weeks over the musical direction the group should take. At this point the Bee Gees decided to produce the album themselves, with Barry Gibb taking the lead role, along with engineer Karl Richardson. They added young musician and arranger Albhy Galuten to the control room as musical adviser. The new team saw the group through a series of top selling recordings over the next four years.

Recording

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The album was recorded from 19 January to 30 March, at Criteria Studios in Miami, when they recorded "You Should Be Dancing", "Love So Right", "Subway", "Love Me", "You Stepped Into My Life", "The Way It Was", "Walk Before You Run" (unreleased), "The Feel" (unreleased) and "Lovers" which had Robin singing lead in falsetto. All the songs were finished in Quebec, except the two unreleased songs and "Walk Before You Run" which was written by Barry Gibb with Stephen Stills.[1] During a break recording Children of the World , Robin and Maurice Gibb returned in England to spend time with their families, while Barry stayed in Miami to mix the new single and to record "The Way It Was".[2] From 2 April to 26 May, the group recorded songs in Le Studio, Quebec. "Rest Your Love on Me" (recorded 2 May) was not included on the album but it was used as the B-side of "Too Much Heaven" in 1978.[1]

Release

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The album was released in September 1976. Four singles were released. "You Should Be Dancing" in June 1976 (UK) / July 1976 (US); "Love So Right" in September 1976; "Boogie Child" in January 1977; and "Children of the World" in February 1977. "You Should Be Dancing" went to No. 1 in the US. "Love So Right" and "Boogie Child" reached No. 3 and No. 12 respectively in the US. "Love Me" was a hit for Yvonne Elliman and "You Stepped into My Life" was recorded by Melba Moore in 1978 and by Wayne Newton in 1979. Barry Gibb felt that other tracks could also be hits.[2]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Christgau's Record GuideB[4]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[5]
The Great Rock Discography5/10[6]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[7]

Bruce Eder in a retrospective review for AllMusic describes this album as the group's second R&B album and described "Love So Right" as a "beautiful soul ballad".[3]

Track listing

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All tracks written by Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb, except where noted.

Side one
No.TitleLead vocal(s)Length
1."You Should Be Dancing"Barry4:16
2."You Stepped Into My Life"Barry3:25
3."Love So Right"Barry3:34
4."Lovers"Barry and Robin3:36
5."Can't Keep a Good Man Down"Barry and Robin4:43
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocal(s)Length
1."Boogie Child" Barry4:12
2."Love Me"Barry Gibb, Robin GibbRobin and Barry4:01
3."Subway" Barry4:24
4."The Way It Was"Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Blue WeaverBarry3:19
5."Children of the World" Barry3:07

Personnel

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Bee Gees

Backing band

Additional musicians

  • George "Chocolate" Perry – bass on “Subway” and “The Way It Was”
  • Stephen Stills – percussion on “You Should Be Dancing”
  • Joe Lala – percussion
  • Gary Brown – saxophone
  • Borneroo Horns (Neil Bonsanti, Bill Purse, Whit Sidener, Peter Graves, Kenny Faulk) – horns

Production

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  • Bee Gees – producers
  • Albhy Galuten – co-producer
  • Karl Richardson – co-producer, engineer
  • John Blanche – assistant engineer
  • Nick Blagona – assistant engineer
  • Ed Mashal – assistant engineer
  • George Marino – mastering at Sterling Sound (New York, NY)
  • Ed Caraeff – art direction, design, photography
  • Tom Nikosey – cover typeface

Charts

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Certifications and sales

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[19] Platinum 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[20] Platinum 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ a b Joseph Brennan. "Gibb Songs: 1976".
  2. ^ a b Melinda Bilyeu; Hector Cook; Andrew Môn Hughes (January 2011). The Bee Gees. ISBN 9780857128942. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  3. ^ a b Eder, Bruce. Children of the World at AllMusic
  4. ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: B". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved 21 February 2019.
  5. ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). Encyclopedia of Popular Music: Concise Edition (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. p. 1990.
  6. ^ Strong, Martin Charles (2002). "Bee Gees". The Great Rock Discography. The National Academies. ISBN 1-84195-312-1.
  7. ^ Sheffield, Rob; et al. (2004). Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 58. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  8. ^ Kent, David. Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  9. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 5104A". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
  10. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Bee Gees – Children of the World" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
  11. ^ "Charts.nz – Bee Gees – Children of the World". Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
  12. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Bee Gees – Children of the World". Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
  13. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Bee Gees – Children of the World". Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
  14. ^ "Bee Gees Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
  15. ^ "Bee Gees Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
  16. ^ "RPM Top Albums/CDs – Volume 26, No. 14 & 15, Top 100 Albums of 1976". RPM. 8 January 1977. Archived from the original on 24 February 2014. Retrieved 6 May 2012.
  17. ^ "Top Selling Albums of 1977 — The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Recorded Music New Zealand. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
  18. ^ "Top Pop Albums of 1977". billboard.biz. Archived from the original on 15 January 2013. Retrieved 12 August 2011.
  19. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Bee Gees – Children of the World". Music Canada.
  20. ^ "American album certifications – Bee Gees – Children of the World". Recording Industry Association of America.
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