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Rating: I've been revisiting this "Mr. Natural" for a few days now, released in 1974, the tenth studio album by the Gibb brothers. This is an album that shows us an unseen side of the group, and even though it isn't temporally far from "Saturday Night Fever", which would deliver the Bee Gees to legend status thanks to the disco hits that became part of the soundtrack of that famous movie, musically the gap that separates it from that period of the band is really significant.
In that distant 1974, indeed, the Bee Gees, after finding success at the end of the '60s with beautiful albums like "Horizontal", "Idea" (dated 1968) and "Odessa" (1969), found themselves in a very difficult commercial period; in fact, the last two albums produced, "To Whom It May Concern" (1972) and "Life In A Tin Can" (1973), had been complete failures, culminating in their record label refusing to release the new album, "A Kick In The Head", which continued with the soft-pop rich in ballads of the previous albums. At that point, the Gibb brothers realized that what was needed was an artistic shift to adapt to the changing times, as the first half of the '70s was witnessing a radical change with the explosion of early hard rock groups on one side (Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Judas Priest, Queen, etc.), and on the other, the emerging disco-music phenomenon. They were assisted by Eric Clapton (who advised the band to record the new album at the Criteria Studios in Miami, where Clapton himself had just completed his "461 Ocean Boulevard"); and especially by producer Arif Mardin, who convinced the group to introduce more black-oriented elements into their sound, and suggested to Barry Gibb to deepen the use of falsetto, which would later become his trademark.
The album opens with "Charade", a slow song that transports my mind to summer evenings in piano bars, and from this first piece, it is clear how radically the way of songwriting by the Gibb brothers has changed. "Throw A Penny" continues with the slow pace of the previous song, although starting from the bridge, the song becomes more animated before leading into a well-executed and engaging chorus that features new elements typical of American soul music; "Down The Road", however, is a faster track with predominantly rock rhythms with a touch of funk, and this piece also succeeds with a very spirited vocal performance by Barry. The album slows down with the introduction of the next and beautiful "Voices" where a delicate acoustic guitar arpeggio accompanies Robin Gibb's voice for what seems to be a very sweet ballad, although in the chorus, the song picks up pace along with Barry's voice taking over from Robin's; while in "Give A Hand, Take A Hand", we are presented with a piano ballad with a solemn sound, which Barry makes unforgettable with his passionate singing tinged with a veil of sadness. At this point, the album reaches its peak with "Dogs", a not very well-known song, but where the Gibbs achieve one of their highest points with an almost disco bridge, introducing Barry's falsetto, and a splendid and unforgettable chorus that truly leaves a mark on the heart; meanwhile, the title track "Mr. Natural" is a fun rock n' roll that only confirms the quality of the album. This is followed by "Lost In Your Love", another beautiful and very romantic ballad, where Barry's voice is accompanied by sweet piano notes. The subsequent "I Can't Let You Go" perhaps marks the first step towards the disco turn the Gibb brothers would embark on with their following albums, even though musically it remains a funk-rock piece, albeit with much more danceable rhythms, for a song that is engaging and successful; whereas "Heavy Breathing" is another funk rock, more guitar-oriented and with noteworthy solos in the finale, which are not exactly commonplace for a band like the Bee Gees. The album closes with "Had A Lot Of Love Last Night", which is the third ballad on the album and perhaps the most beautiful; it impresses with truly celestial choirs and a very heartfelt performance by Barry in a song that transports and strikes the heart with its romance and its truly touching lyrics, which in the end goes, "I'm casting all my dreams hereto, my fish have gone to sea; and fate no longer has the faith to walk ahead of me... I always used to think that I was better than my kind; we're all breaking promises, who will cry this time?".
This marks the end of "Mr. Natural", a very unique but truly inspired and successful album, which, however, did not enjoy good commercial success; although it managed to foreshadow the band's future and now imminent success, which with the next "Main Course", began to gain new acclaim for an album that had not yet been reduced to simple disco music; a genre that then took over in the subsequent "Children Of The World" (1976), which launched the band onto the wavefront, along with the subsequent "Saturday Night Fever" and "Spirit Having Flown", which consecrated them in the new Olympus of disco music.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
01 Charade (04:13)
Some nights we made our love in the sand
And at the tide we held our love in our hands
And we listened to music the ocean was playing
The words that our two hearts were saying
That only two lovers can make
Let us ride on the wind while this moment is real
Your the light of my life
You are welcome to my Charade
And this felling knowing you blessed me forever
And believing I have been touch by your love
And the pleasure of knowing the evening won't tare us apart
We can follow the sun to the day light is gone
We can gaze up the sky till the night is over
Light of my life
You are welcome to my Charade
And this felling knowing you blessed me forever
We can follow the sun to the day light is gone
We can gaze at the sky till the night is over
Light of my life
You are welcome to my Charade
And this feeling knowing you blassed me forever
We can follow the sun to the day light is gone
We can gaze at the sky till the night is over
Light of my life
You are welcome to my Charade..........
06 Dogs (03:45)
I was hungry and I was cold , had a father far too old
Couldn't make it to the place he'd like to be
In a treetrunk in the park , he was living in the dark
Keeping other dogs like him for company
In the evening I'd go down to a nightclub in the town
Try to get some bread to make another way
Back to the park I'd go , dig him out of the snow
You know he's lived a thousand years day to day
Well , the days get shorter and the nights get longer
And you never learn to know
If you love one another , could you look at each other
Could it ever really show
And at this moment in time you couldn't make up your mind
Now could you ever understand
Are you following me just like Moses to the sea
Do you think I'll give you freedom in the end
When I'm long dead and gone will your love for me go on
Will I be the one you run to in the end
And all my dogs need a friend
It was a quarter to three in the summer of '73
When I heard somebody call outside my door
Said "Are you friend or are you foe"
He looked up and he said "no, but I'd like to come inside and know you more"
Well the days get shorter and the nights get longer
And you never learn to know
If you love one another , could you look at each other
Could it ever really show
And at this moment in time you couldn't make up your mind
Now could you ever understand
Are you following me just like Moses to the sea
Do you think I'll give you freedom in the end
When I'm long dead and gone will your love for me go on
Will I be the one you run to in the end
And all my dogs need a friend
Need a friend
Need a friend
07 Mr. Natural (03:48)
Burning embers.
I still remember all of those little things.
But I don't feel it so much 'cause I am so out of touch
with my heart and it won't sing.
Rusty rainbows.
That's how the pain goes , turning me inside out .
Well , I come home at night and you are out of my sight.
Yes. I'm dying and there ain't no doubt.
Well, I'm dying and there's no way out.
Well I try try try try try
Mr. Natural (come on baby)
When I walk in the rain you won't know that I'm crying.
A smile on my face and I'm trying.
I'm trying to understand that a love that is lost can never be found again.
And you see me dance , I look like a happy man .
Just when I think I'm getting it over, an old friend I should see.
He said he knew you well , and baby I could tell .
You know he knew you more then me.
I went home laughing and inside I'm crying .
We had a special thing .
You know I loved you so much , but girl I'm so out of touch
with my heart and it won't sing .
You know my heart just won't sing.
Well I try try try try try .
Mr. Natural ( come on baby)
When I walk in the rain you won't know that I'm crying.
A smile on my face and I'm trying.
I'm trying to understand that a love that is lost can never be found again.
And you see me dance , I look like a happy man.
Still I try try try try try .
Mr. Natural ( come on baby)
Well I try try try try try
Mr. Natural (come on baby)
(repeat verse and fade out)
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