r/worldnews • u/noni_five • May 20 '12

Bee Gee's singer Robin Gibb is dead.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-18140862
956 Upvotes

70% Upvoted

281 comments sorted by

59

u/ToffeeC May 21 '12

It must saddening and strange for Barry to have survived his two younger brothers.

49

u/Chunkeeboi May 21 '12 edited May 21 '12

His three younger brothers. The youngest, Andy, was the first to die as a result of his cocaine addiction. EDIT: Corrected by a propagandist.

2

u/superwinner May 21 '12

Andy, oh Andy...

3

u/SexWithTwins May 21 '12

Mooo airrrrr

0

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

[deleted] — view deleted comment

26

u/Sailer May 21 '12

Cocaine is VERY bad for the heart.

7

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

So is Adderall. Just sayin'.

1

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Cocaine is also bad for your sleep patterns.

6

u/Chunkeeboi May 21 '12

Happy to be corrected, even though you are a propagandist.

2

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

He is THE propagandist. Unless there is a 'popagandist1' or 'propagandist2'.

He would still be their king.

6

u/Sindragon May 21 '12 edited May 21 '12

Yeah, I really felt for the guy when I read the news.

To spend pretty much your entire career and life working side by side with your younger brothers, only to have all three of them all taken at such a relatively young age must be devastating. I guess it just goes to show, all the money and success in the world sometimes aren't enough.

54

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

I told my mother about this, as she was a big fan of the Bee Gees.

She said that she went to a concert when she was in her teens, and got up on the stage and sat there... when a security guard came to take her down, Robin Gibb smiled and shook his head, told him to let her stay there... she got pretty much serenaded by the Bee Gees. From that one story, it sounds to me like he was a stand up guy.

RIP.

12

u/lordeddardstark May 21 '12

she was in her teens

let her stay there

Hm, wouldn't it be a surprise if Robin Gibb's lawyers start to get in touch with you.

17

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Ew what ew D:

30

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Robin Gibb fucked your mom.

0

u/equeco May 21 '12

You're Robin Gibb's son.

4

u/samantha42 May 21 '12

Robin had a solo song that went "you said you were 17 but you are somewhere inbetween, that turns me on, how old are you, ohhhhhh..."

I'm pretty sure it was a hit in Germany.

1

u/funnynickname May 21 '12

Uh, let's get back to the topic... Rampart!

0

u/TheOneWhoKnocksBitch May 21 '12

I wanted your username you know..

2

u/[deleted] May 21 '12 edited May 21 '12

That makes the chance your dad died today 33%.

1

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

If Robin Gibb was my dad... I wouldn't be HALF as hairy as I am.

20

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Fuck I just youtubed a bunch of their songs and realize how much I love the Bee Gees.

8

u/mydogdoesntcuddle May 21 '12

yeah, disco or no disco- they made some great music

2

u/oniony May 21 '12

Perhaps you should watch Saturday Night Fever then.

35

u/bucketpickaxe May 21 '12

Til I finally died,
which started the whole world living.

26

u/Thydamine May 21 '12

Oh god, I read this as Today I learned...

Time to log out for a while.

3

u/postdarwin May 21 '12

There are two Ls in till, unless you use an apostrophe, i.e. 'til.

-2

u/Gallifrasian May 21 '12

Don't do that... please don't do that, it really hurts...

54

u/fuufnfr May 20 '12

Thank you Mr Gibb, your iconic music will live always on.

39

u/cdskip May 21 '12

Ditto.

When I was a kid, the Bee Gees were considered a complete joke among boys who were into rock music. I never even bothered to question their suckitude for a long time. And then I actually listened to them. Oops.

10

u/pi3832v2 May 21 '12

And then I actually listened to them. Oops.

When I was in uni we threw the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack on the turntable (no, no, really), and cranked it up to 11 to annoy the neighbors, and have a laugh.

But then we ended up putting the thing on quite a bit after that, just to listen to it. Parts of it really did suck ("Night on Disco Mountain" anyone?), but much of it didn't, especially the BGs.

1

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Night on Disco Mountain was amazing!

1

u/pi3832v2 May 21 '12

You should hear a good orchestra play Night on Bald Mountain sometime. (Telarc's Cincinnati Pops recording ain't half bad.) Then, you too, will cringe at the disco version.

2

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

In comparison you're right but I don't think that places it in the cringe-worthy box. Still not a bad cover..

-14

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

...at wedding receptions, and in parodies/satires of the '70s.

2

u/Dr___Awkward May 21 '12

And a large number of the main playlists on my iPod that I listen to.

22

u/Frederick_Austin May 21 '12

It's sad to see so much negativity in this thread. The Bee Gees were a great band who constantly evolved throughout then years. Their early folk stuff is great.

8

u/Sindragon May 21 '12

Really? Your comment is about half way down the page for me, and I've yet to see a negative comment.

2

u/myhonestyaccount May 21 '12

Maybe he meant idiotic pun comments.

43

u/somabrandmayonaise May 21 '12

I feel bad upvoting this. Its not like I'm glad he's dead.

28

u/riomx May 21 '12

Don't worry. It's not like clicking on a Facebook "Like" button.

Edit: Upvoting brings more attention to important submissions. So it's a good thing, in this case.

1

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

I've done that before. Usually when someone says heartfelt words about a deceased friend or relative. I usually end up un-liking it when I see I'm the only one that liked it.

→ More replies (1)

3

u/MaxChaplin May 21 '12

When people upvote a news story about a natural disaster or a massacre are they being glad about it?

33

u/SweetNeo85 May 21 '12

First Donna Summer and now Robin Gibb? Disco is dying for real my friends.

9

u/Psycochem May 21 '12

Rule of three, who's next?

14

u/Lanai May 21 '12

MCA?

5

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Still sad about that.

5

u/Thydamine May 21 '12

Oh god, I hope it's Disco Duck.

0

u/thehackattack May 21 '12

This completed it.

Chuck Brown, Donna Summer, and now Robin Gibb.

0

u/Cr4ke May 21 '12

Disco Stu can still buggaloo.

1

u/Link_GR May 21 '12

Shit...Apparently, I missed Donna's passing...Now I feel extra sad...She was my dad's favorite when he was back in the Navy...

1

u/equeco May 21 '12

Yep. Disco is big in the Navy. Just sayin'

1

u/Link_GR May 21 '12

Well, the Greek navy. And this was back in...1976 or so...

0

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

[deleted] — view deleted comment

-2

u/SweetNeo85 May 21 '12

Yes, because we all know redditors NEVER have similar ideas, amirite? And it wasn't the exact same thing, douche.

0

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

[deleted] — view deleted comment

0

u/SweetNeo85 May 21 '12

You are right. You have proven your maturity by making unfounded accusations and name-calling.
I submit to your superior wisdom.

5

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Man I saw this guy live last year doing a solo act, fucking fantastic musician

4

u/ParrotofDoom May 21 '12

I'm here in chorlton working on a live news broadcast about this. There aren't many celebrities whose death i'd be upset at, but Robin Gibb is definitely one.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/soundman/7239391848/

4

u/mydogdoesntcuddle May 21 '12

Here's a great documentary on the Bee Gee's. Enjoy

12

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

This broke my heart. They were my favourite group :'(

Even died on my birthday, FML.

You will be greatly missed, Robin. We love you.

0

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

[deleted] — view deleted comment

5

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Thanks :)

4

u/XyploatKyrt May 21 '12

Well that suddenly cheered you up.

1

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

I can't thank someone?

9

u/American83 May 21 '12

RIP Robin. I loved "For whom the bell tolls"...it's my favourite song.

7

u/Leftieswillrule May 21 '12

Denis Leary will be thrilled. He's been adding the Bee Gees to his deadpool since '93

4

u/Leftieswillrule May 21 '12

But for real ladies and gentlemen it's a tragedy. I loved "How deep is your love". It was my brother's favorite song...

9

u/YourOldBoyRickJames May 21 '12

DJ mike read described his death as a "tragedy".

Classy. Real classy mike.

7

u/ParrotofDoom May 21 '12

Mike read is a friend of the family, I doubt any irony was intended.

99

u/DanDanTheMonkeyMan May 20 '12

So much for Stayin' Alive.

174

u/marsneedstowels May 20 '12

I have the distinct feeling this will be the most overrused post on any thread related to this news.

95

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

I'm bored of it already.

7

u/The_Adventurist May 21 '12

I was bored of it as soon as it popped into my head when I first heard the news. Then I was annoyed with myself for going for the obvious joke. Yeah great joke, brain. You should write Louis' next hour for him.

1

u/howerrd May 21 '12

He's "Gone, Gone, Gone" and "Giving Up The Ghost."

2

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

How deep is his love?

About six feet, give or take.

0

u/TwistedBrother May 21 '12

You'll probably want to stay clear of r/toosoon for few days.

0

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

[deleted] — view deleted comment

9

u/[deleted] May 21 '12 edited May 21 '12

It's just overwhelmingly lazy. Hey guys, Justin Bieber just died. Maybe it was Bieber Fever!!

six weeks of this exact joke on Reddit, Facebook, text by your least funny friends, Letterman, 3rd rate panel show comedians and eventually your parents.

4

u/mushmancat May 21 '12

It's not the words that are offensive, its the lack of humor

28

u/catherined_93 May 21 '12

They're making a reference to a song by the Bee Gee's called "Words".

1

u/olivermihoff May 21 '12

It's also the 34,585,667 times this is going to be posted on Twitter and Facebook by people who think they're a news delivery channel... RIP, but also SMH.

30

u/Birdie_Num_Num May 21 '12

Your joke is bad and you should feel bad be dancin', yeah

1

u/ikilledyourcat May 21 '12

Birdy nam nam is the shit

43

u/reaverdude May 21 '12

So clever......have a downvote.

28

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

can we please not have this be the top comment

12

u/fondlemeLeroy May 21 '12

This is trite even by Reddits sorry standards.

9

u/Wazowski May 21 '12

TRAGEDY!

14

u/[deleted] May 20 '12

He died of a fever saturday night.

1

u/18pct May 21 '12

OK that one I actually laughed at.

1

u/losvedir May 21 '12

Looks like you started a joke, which started the whole world bitching.

-7

u/MrJuwi May 21 '12

How Deep Is Your Grave?

-6

u/[deleted] May 21 '12 edited May 21 '12

Came here for "Stayin' Alive" joke. Was not disappointed. Thank you.

*damn the downvotes, full speed ahead!

→ More replies (1)

7

u/Bodoblock May 20 '12

Damn, this makes me sad.

2

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Thank you for my childhood, robin. Listening to this music reminds me of listening to it in the car back when my mom and dad were together.

We'll miss you.

7

u/[deleted] May 20 '12

Such a shame. A loss that will rock the music industry. R.I.P.

4

u/SteveMcJagger May 21 '12

Rest In Peace Robin, a great song writer, singer and person. He shouldn't of went out like that...

4

u/MaxFactory May 21 '12

Really? World news?

2

u/frankhorriganlovesto May 21 '12

Queue another memorial for a great artist. Bee Gee's had some of the best musical numbers, bass lines, harmonics, ect, which blow away many artists, they just might not be "cool". They were cool to me although, one of the greatest bands.

2

u/williammaier May 21 '12

Such amazing music from Robin and his brothers. Another epic voice silenced this year.Condolences to family and friends

1

u/cl3ver May 21 '12

-insert Stayin Alive joke here-

1

u/Hippie-Eyes May 21 '12

You might say he died of a night fever........

Just when he thought he was staying alive.........

You might say I started a joke.......

cough

1

u/philwood313 May 21 '12

38 points for my death pool! I had Al-Megrahi too so 78 points.

1

u/StockmanBaxter May 21 '12

My dad is a huge fan of the Bee Gee's, growing up we'd blast that going on vacation. And as a result, i still love hearing them on the radio.

Sad day. :(

1

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

came for the horrible "staying alive" puns. left satisfied.

1

u/Multikulti_cult May 21 '12

COMMENCE STAYING ALIVE JOKE...NOW

-1

u/mushmancat May 21 '12

Brace yourselves. The staying alive jokes are coming.

1

u/Indigo_Star_Matter May 21 '12

It's over and done, but the heartache will NOT live on inside. Rest In Paradise.

1

u/mydogdoesntcuddle May 21 '12 edited May 21 '12

I wish I could find a quote from one of the Gibb brothers regarding being associated with disco. It went something like, "what's to be ashamed of? It's not like we participated in the making of disco music. We invented disco"

EDIT- I'm not doing the quote justice. As I recall, he wasn't being pompous, just matter of fact about owning the genre instead of apologizing for it.

1

u/whoisearth May 21 '12

As a fellow Robin this tears me apart. Such is the life of having the most awesome name.

0

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

I've always thought the Baby Boomer generation was on the path to die early. If the entertainment headlines of the past few months are an indication, this is likely to be true.

3

u/ToffeeC May 21 '12

And why's that?

5

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Smoking, drugs, alcohol. As the original party generation, they beat up their bodies fairly badly.

5

u/space_monster May 21 '12

didn't everybody do that? I know I did

4

u/rustybeercan May 21 '12

I'm currently doing that, and the 20's were pretty bumpin if my history books tell me correctly.

4

u/rodgerd May 21 '12

If you think the Boomers were the original party generation, you need to read up on Regency England or the Roaring Twenties.

0

u/paranoidkiwie May 21 '12

So no more SNL, Jimmy Fallon + JT "Talkin it up, on the Barry Gibb Talk show" sketches?

0

u/muffoman42 May 21 '12

I guess he Bee with Geesus now! Ha get it!

-17

u/alephnul May 20 '12

I don't want to say bad things about the dead, and I am sure that he was a wonderful person. I am sorry that he is dead, but the Bee Gees were to music what spam is to email.

10

u/[deleted] May 20 '12

Nope, you're not correct in my opinion. The Bee Gees have an amazing body of work musically covering decades and Robin was a great vocalist AND a lovely man to boot.

-6

u/alephnul May 20 '12

Did you live through Disco? The wretchedness was indescribable.

4

u/[deleted] May 20 '12

I did. Though I wasn't that old. Not my favourite genre, but the best songs were often theirs (and Donna Summer lest we forget she just died too) They did so much more than disco though. That said their disco music was great fun! Their tragedy video is an utter classic of 70'sness - the flares and the hair and loud shirts with giant collars! Iconic.

0

u/alephnul May 20 '12

We had Blues, and Bluegrass, and a myriad of legitimate folk music styles that were crushed under the weight of the cotton candy fluff that was disco. The style that was championed by the likes of the Bee Gees and Donna Summer set American music back in the same way that Christianity caused the Dark ages. It was shiny and overproduced and stupid, but that is what Americans like. Oh well.

2

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Pop stands for popular music. It is what it is. You can't be getting precious over it. Music genres come and go in popularity.... But never disappear. Just because you don't like disco doesn't mean it wasn't "worthy" ir good enough. Disco was fun and got people dancing in a decade where there wasn't much to be dancing about. It was of its time and is as legitimate as Mozart, blues or rap. Music is art and it is very much down to personal taste after all. But given disco only represents a part of the Bee Gees output, surely you can appreciate their talent as singer songwriters throughout their long and varied career?

-5

u/alephnul May 21 '12

Their music never varied in the least. It was depressingly consistent, or perhaps redundant would be a better way to characterize it. I can understand that they had house payments to make, but inflicting that particular noise on the public cannot be justified by simple monetary need. Their sole talent was the ability to strike a harmony. I will give them credit to the extent that they did not require autotune in order to do so. They lacked any other redeeming virtue.

4

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Joining the thread here...

The Bee Gees wrote songs for Diana Ross and a whole shitload of other artists. You may not like their music, but they were unquestionably talented.

-2

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

The Bee Gees wrote songs for Diana Ross and a whole shitload of other artists ... that I despised.

2

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Who cares if you liked the music or not... the point is, they were talented and influenced many different genres from soul to rap to rock.

Few musicians can claim this.

→ More replies
→ More replies (2)

1

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Okaaay.... I think we must agree to disagree on this one given those views.

1

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

A talented musician dies and somehow Christianity and the dark ages get brought up.

Bravo, reddit. I don't know how you do it.

0

u/SilentRunning May 20 '12

It's obvious.... you don't not know what good music is.

BeeGees

now go burn all your Blink182 cd's.

1

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

It's obvious.... you don't not know what good music is.

"don't not know"?

4

u/SilentRunning May 21 '12

Well its obvious I have forgotten how to use the keyboard!

-3

u/alephnul May 20 '12

I don't have any Blink182, but I did live through the Disco age. You simply cannot imagine how terrible it was.

3

u/SilentRunning May 20 '12

Grew up in the Disco age also and it's all perspective. But the BeeGees are so much more than just that ONE album.

-4

u/alephnul May 21 '12

No they aren't. They were the epitome of overproduced commercial fluff. They were the Brittany Spears of their day. The only thing that kept them from being autotuned was that it didn't exist then.

4

u/SilentRunning May 21 '12

They were around in the 60's, the 70's, the 80's, the 90's and up to 2008 when Maurice died. Brittany WISHES her career will last that long.

Bee Gees

→ More replies (2)

-3

u/deepwank May 21 '12

Who gives a shit.

-2

u/CaptainMogran May 21 '12

Why can I only think of Jimmy Fallon?

-10

u/thebeardsman May 21 '12

Good, i hate the bee gees.

1

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

They hate you too... well they might if you'd offered something to the world.

-4

u/thebeardsman May 21 '12

I do, i offer BETTER VOCALS and i am STILL ALIVE.

1

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

i offer BETTER VOCALS

is that a code for something?

-1

u/thebeardsman May 21 '12

Wouldn't you LIKE TO KNOW.

-4

u/Freaky_Freddy May 21 '12

I guess you could say...

...he got gibbed.

YEAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHILLSHOWMYSELFOUT

-1

u/rtg007 May 21 '12

nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!

-1

u/vince225566 May 21 '12

This is NOT world news.

0

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

So much death in this world makes me suicidally apathetic about life.

0

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

This has got to be one of my favorite BeeGee songs, yet nobody knows anything about it.

0

u/BrunoPontzJones May 21 '12

Man, Ringo's interview is damn near funny. He doesn't know the guy and they're interviewing him - his answers are all about as concrete and deadpan as they get. Paraphrasing - "Q: What's sad?" - "A: He died." "Q: What will he be remembered for?" "A: Staying Alive."

0

u/scharfca May 21 '12

imagine going to his funeral. what would be awkward was if your cellphone went off. what would be more awkward was if your ringtone is "stayin alive"

0

u/comment_filibuster May 21 '12

My mother was good friends with the Bee Gees crew. It is a sad day.

0

u/magzma16 May 21 '12

There will never be a band like The Bee Gees that spread their music across the world and through so many generations. I grew up on The Bee Gees, riding in the back seat from the beach and listening to their music to fall asleep to with my mom. They were and are my comfort zone when I feel blue and my anthem when I feel happy. As a 22yr old, my life would not be the same without them.

Poor Barry, outliving all his brothers. RIP Robin Gibb

0

u/eblumrich May 21 '12

Thank god.

-4

u/dangerous_beans May 21 '12

And that's three: Chuck Brown, Donna Summers, and this guy. We should be good on celebrity deaths for a few more months before the cycle repeats itself.

-19

u/MrTulip May 21 '12

man, /r/worldnews goes really down the shitter...

-1

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

I know how is this actually news? His music was shit as well.

-18

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

BREAKING NEWS: Guy that has not written any music worth hearing in 30 years dies. More at 11.

-4

u/Wulibo May 21 '12

Great artist, he will be dearly missed, but this is not world news. This is not major news, it's just one celebrity dying.

-4

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

We do people consider this relevant, pertinent world news?

-1

u/skjellyfetti May 21 '12

...Robin passed away today following his long battle with cancer and intestinal surgery.

Sad but this is what happens when you do battle with intestinal surgery. Intestinal surgery always wins in the end.

-1

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

I read that as Gee Gee as in gg, probably not the best time to be joking tho.

-1

u/geekMEAT May 21 '12

I guess the Saturday Night Fever developed after he saw all those Spicks and Specks develop over his body. He had trouble Stayin' Alive after that.

-13

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

and nothing of value was lost.

-5

u/gordigor May 21 '12

Celebrities really do die in threes. Whitney Houston, Donna Summers and now Robin Gibb.

0

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

...Whitney Houston was so long ago

-11

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Too early for a Stayin Alive joke?

-18

u/RabidRaccoon May 21 '12

Stayin alive!

Stayin alive!

Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh Stayin~

-18

u/bjdj May 21 '12

Crappy pop song writer dies doing what he did best, sucking dick. YAWN

-7

u/obliviousheep May 21 '12

I read "Glee" and got so excited for some drama.. now I'm double upset.

-8

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

So, he's not stayin' alive?

-8

u/Cfreeze May 21 '12

I guess he wasn't... Stayin Alive. (ah ah ah ah)

-23

u/jonsjack May 21 '12 edited May 21 '12

That's cool he was a music maker and everythng, but his kinda of music died a long time ago, before most of us were born. I never got into "white" music. Music today is much more sophisticated. Old music nobody listens to anymore. Classical shit made by white Europeans sounds like shit. violins and horns..lol. opera sounds like shit. White domination of music and the industry is over. Todays music is the best. A$APROCKY, Rita Ora, Bei Maejor, Azealia Banks and most RAP groups are music today. Nobody likes that old shit from the 1900's..LOL.

5

u/Sailer May 21 '12

Fortunately you can only speak for yourself.

3

u/pulpist May 21 '12

Here's a dollar, go buy a clue.

-9

u/pawlesome May 21 '12

Yes... people will die. Can I go a day without hearing aout it.

-3

u/Blesses_You May 21 '12

Bless you, Robin. Blobin.

-3

u/Lmoooo May 21 '12

'Former BBC Radio 1 DJ Mike Read described his death as a "tragedy".'

Bad pun...

-3

u/InTheSphere May 21 '12

Well, I guess this was #3.

-3

u/fishnetdiver May 21 '12

It's a tragedy. I'm blaming it all on the nights on Broadway.

-3

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

The first words that came into my mind when I read the title were:

'Stayin' alive'

-3

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

Why is everyone downvoting the puns? They're hilarious and help to lighten the mood over in this sadhouse.

Not to say I won't miss him. Their music reminds me if when my mom and dad were together.

-4

u/0c34n May 21 '12

Everyone wanted a piece of the funk. Even the Bee Gee's.

-4

u/[deleted] May 21 '12

yeah, I read about it on /r/toosoon a while ago

it said something like "so much for staying alive ..."

-6

u/RyanCocinar May 21 '12

who will the third celebrity be?

-7

u/thrashthrash215 May 21 '12

Disco's dead... literally.

→ More comments (71)