Bee Gees' 1st - Recording

Recording

On 13 March, the Bee Gees first remixed and overdubbed three songs started on 7 March; "New York Mining Disaster 1941", "I Can't See Nobody" and "Red Chair, Fade Away". They then moved on to two new ones: the rocker "I've Got to Learn" which was taken no further and "Cucumber Castle" which would be continued days later. The early version of it found on The Studio Albums 1967-1968 is 13 March track with a lead vocal that was replaced on 15 March. On 15 March they did no new songs but remixed and overdubbed seven songs previously recorded; "Turn of the Century" (7 March), "I Close My Eyes" (9 March), "Cucumber Castle" (13 March), "One Minute Woman". These dubs included the finished lead vocals, replacing the guide vocals they recorded at the earlier sessions. Orchestral parts were then added to many of the songs done so far. Some were arranged by Bill Shepherd, who was about to start his six-year run as the Bee Gees' arranger and conductor in the studio and on tour and some were done by a young manager Phil Dennys, whose arrangements for four songs appear on the album. An acetate sold at auction in the 1990s reveals the state of some songs at about this date, It included three songs arranged by Phil Dennys, "Red Chair, Fade Away" which is still missing the mellotron flutes which Maurice must have added afterwards, "One Minute Woman" that has a lead vocal by Robin (not the vocal released on The Studio Albums 1967-1968), and "I Close My Eyes" which has a different mix. It also has three Bill Shepherd orchestral arrangements of "Turn of the Century" (to the same Bee Gees tracks), an important song as the opening of the album, a variant mix of "Cucumber Castle" and "Mr. Wallor's Wailing Wall" with fewer sound effects than on The Studio Albums 1967-1968. It does not contain "New York Mining Disaster 1941", probably because it was still not in a satisfactory state. Phil Dennys wrote two similar arrangements for "New York Mining Disaster 1941". The more overblown one, complete with intro and outro sound effects is version two. Another similar take by the Bee Gees got a less elaborate arrangement and became the standard version. These two sound like different mixes of the same tracks, but a side-by-side analysis shows that they are completely different recordings. On the take that would be released, the Bee Gees took the verses a little slower, and lingered slightly over Robin's last "someone that i knew".

Shortly before the album's completion, Barry implied that Ossie Byrne and his production team were deserving of great credit, just for their patience alone.

They also recorded six songs, on which not included on the album, the songs were: "House of Lords" (8, 15 March 1967), "Mr. Wallor's Wailing Wall" (8, 15 March 1967), "I've Got to Learn" (13 March 1967), "Life" (23 March 1967) and "Harry Braff" (recorded two times, 21 April and 10 May 1967), For some reasons, the group also re-recorded their 1966 single "Spicks and Specks" (recorded 16 May 1967) but it was not finished, after that, they took a break from recording. They also recorded "End of My Song" (also called the Otis Redding demo), with lead vocals by Barry, but was not released, and the recording date was only 1967, the exact recording month and day was not documented.

Barry Gibb talks about the album's producer Ossie Bryne:

We drive the producer and technicians mad. We have nothing knocked out. We sit about and think upa subject, then write a song on the spot. We did the whole of the LP like this. It's the really the only way we can work, spontaneously off the cuff.

Years later, Barry would add "Ossie was a good producer. I think he was crazy to go back to Australia".