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Charted: February 17, 1979


Genre: pop/disco


Quotable: --


Album Tracks:

  1. Tragedy
  2. Too Much Heaven
  3. Love You Inside Out
  4. Reaching Out
  5. Spirits Having Flown
  6. Search, Find
  7. Stop (Think Again)
  8. Living Together
  9. I’m Satisfied
  10. Until


Rating: 2.900 (average of 5 ratings)


Sales:

sales in U.S. only 1 million
sales in U.K. only - estimated 300,000
sales in all of Europe as determined by IFPI – click here to go to their site. --
sales worldwide - estimated 21 million


Peak:

peak on U.S. Billboard album chart 1 6
peak on U.K. album chart 1 2


Singles/Hit Songs:

  • Too Much Heaven (11/18/78) #1 US, #3 UK, #10 RB, #4 AC. Platinum single.
  • Tragedy (2/10/79) #1 US, #1 UK, #44 RB, #19 AC. Platinum single.
  • Love You Inside Out (4/14/79) #1 US, #13 UK, #57 RB, #15 AC. Gold single.
  • Spirits Having Flown (1/5/80) #16 UK


Awards:

Rated one of the top 1000 albums of all time by Dave’s Music Database. Click to learn more. American Music Awards – Album of the Year, pop/rock. Click to go to awards page. One of the Top 100 All-Time World’s Best-Selling Albums


Spirits Having Flown
Bee Gees
Review:
Spirits Having Flown is regarded today as something of a letdown” (Eder), especially coming on the heels of the phenomenal success of Saturday Night Fever]. The album represents “the tail-end of the Bee Gees’ period of greatest success, [and] perhaps because it preceded a two-year layoff that, in turn, heralded a decline in their fortunes” (Eder).

“At the time, however, no one heard anything less than what they expected – beautiful slow dance numbers (Too Much Heaven, Love You Inside Out), achingly gorgeous romantic numbers (Reaching Out), soaring ballads (Spirits (Having Flown)), and pounding dance-rock numbers (Tragedy)” (Eder).

“If a few songs on the LP’s second side, like Stop (Think Again) or Search, Find, weren’t quite up to that high standard, even the latter song displayed dazzling interwoven vocals on the choruses (which were pretty infectious) that made the trip worthwhile” (Eder).

“The record showcased the usual superb singing, and featured the most delicate and ambitious production and arrangements in their history. It may have lacked the spirit of freedom and experimentation found on Main Course or Children of the World, but in its place was a boldness that manifested itself not only in the singing, but also the most intricate and ambitious production and arrangements of the group's entire history” (Eder).

“This was also the first Bee Gees album to get serious airplay on black radio stations, a major breakthrough for the trio and one of the last bits of unfinished business in the group’s move into soul music, which also likely helped – along with three chart-topping singles, the major tour that followed, and the network television special in the wake of the tour – in propelling Spirits Having Flown to” (Eder) one of the best-selling albums of all time.


Review Source(s):


Related DMDB Link(s):

Previous Album: Saturday Night Fever (ST – 1977)


Last updated November 20, 2008.