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| “Too Much Heaven” | |
|---|---|
| Dutch vinyl single | |
| Single by Bee Gees | |
| from the album Spirits Having Flown | |
| B-side | “Rest Your Love on Me“ |
| Released | 24 October 1978 (UK) 21 November 1978 (US, Canada) |
| Recorded | July 1978 |
| Studio | Criteria (Miami) |
| Genre | R&B, soul |
| Length | 4:58 |
| Label | RSO |
| Songwriter(s) | Barry GibbRobin GibbMaurice Gibb |
| Producer(s) | Bee GeesAlbhy GalutenKarl Richardson |
| Bee Gees singles chronology | |
| “Night Fever“ (1978)”Too Much Heaven“ (1978)”Tragedy“ (1979) |
“Too Much Heaven” is a song by the Bee Gees, which was the band’s contribution to the “Music for UNICEF” fund. They performed it at the Music for UNICEF Concert on 9 January 1979. The song later found its way to the group’s thirteenth original album, Spirits Having Flown. It hit No. 1 in both the United States and Canada. In the United States, the song was the first single out of three from the album to interrupt a song’s stay at #1. “Too Much Heaven” knocked “Le Freak” off the top spot for two weeks before “Le Freak” returned to #1 again. “Too Much Heaven” also rose to the top three in the United Kingdom. In the US, it would become the fourth of six consecutive No. 1s, equalling the record set by Bing Crosby, Elvis Presley, and the Beatles for the most consecutive No. 1 songs. The six Bee Gee songs are “How Deep Is Your Love”, “Stayin’ Alive”, “Night Fever”, “Too Much Heaven”, “Tragedy” and “Love You Inside Out”. The songs spanned the years of 1977, 1978 and 1979.
Robin Gibb reportedly said on the Bee Gees’ interview for Billboard in 2001 that this track was one of his favourite songs of the Bee Gees.
Background and recording
Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb and Maurice Gibb wrote this track with “Tragedy” in an afternoon off from the making the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band movie; that same evening, the Gibbs wrote “Shadow Dancing” for Andy Gibb (but that song was later credited to all four Gibbs)
The recording process was the longest of all the tracks on Spirits Having Flown as there are nine layers of three-part harmony, creating 27 voices, though the high falsetto voices are the most pronounced in the final mix:
- Barry on falsetto lead three times
- falsetto high harmony three times
- falsetto low harmony three times
- Barry on natural voice lead three times
- high harmony three times
- low harmony three times
- Barry, Robin and Maurice together on lead three times
- high harmony three times
- low harmony three times
Imbued with their falsetto style, it is also notable for being one of two songs on the album featuring the Chicago horn section (James Pankow, Walt Parazaider and Lee Loughnane); the other track that features the Chicago members is “Search, Find”, in return for the brothers’ appearance on the Chicago song “Little Miss Lovin'”. On its demo version, Barry begins with count-in. This track does have some backing vocals. The demo lacks the full orchestral feel of the final song.
Release
“Too Much Heaven” was released nine months after “Night Fever“. The single “Too Much Heaven” was released in the late autumn of 1978 and started a slow ascent up the music charts. In the first week of 1979, preceding the Music for UNICEF Concert, the single first topped the charts in both the United States and Canada. In the United Kingdom, the single peaked at number three late in 1978. In the summer of 1978, the Gibb brothers announced their latest project at a news conference at the United Nations in New York City. All of the publishing royalties on their next single would go into UNICEF, to celebrate the International Year of the Child, which was designated to be 1979. The song earned over $7 million in publishing royalties.
The Bee Gees were later invited to the White House, where President Jimmy Carter thanked the group for their donation. At the ceremony, the brothers presented Carter with one of their black satin tour jackets. In later years, the brothers performed the song with only Barry’s guitar and keyboards, with all three singing in their normal range. This version was part of a medley the brothers did as part of their 1989 One For All tour, and is also included on the Tales from the Brothers Gibb box set alongside the original version.
“Too Much Heaven” also reached No. 2 in Cash Box charts in six weeks between 30 December 1978 and 3 February 1979 behind Chic‘s “Le Freak“.
Reception
Cash Box said it is “gentle and silky with the famous falsettos rising upwards.”
Sales and certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Canada (Music Canada) | Platinum | 150,000^ |
| France (SNEP) | Gold | 728,000 |
| United Kingdom (BPI) | Gold | 500,000^ |
| United States (RIAA) | Platinum | 2,000,000^ |
| ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Nana version
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By Nana (rapper) – Personal collection, Fair use, Link
| “Too Much Heaven” | |
|---|---|
| Single by Nana | |
| from the album Father | |
| Released | 1 December 1997 |
| Recorded | 1997 |
| Genre | Hip hop |
| Length | 3:56 (single version) 3:59 (album version) |
| Label | Motor Music |
| Songwriter(s) | Barry, Robin & Maurice Gibb |
| Producer(s) | Bülent Aris, Toni Cottura |
| Nana singles chronology | |
| “Bible in My Hand” (1997)”Too Much Heaven“ (1997)”Remember the Time” (1998) |
In 1997, Nana covered the hit for his album Father. Compared to the original, this version is increasingly listening to rap passages while retaining much of the original’s lyrics. Nana is responsible for the rap, while Van der Toorn sings the lyrics and chorus of the original. In German-speaking countries, this cover version was a top ten success. In Germany, this version was also awarded with Gold.
Other cover versions
Jordan Hill – Too Much Heaven
Paul Mauriat – Too Much Heaven
- In 1979, the Cantonese singer Alan Tam covered and released it as 唱一首好歌 (“Sing A Good Song”).
- Hip hop boy band US5 released a cover of “Too Much Heaven” in 2007 as a duet with Robin Gibb. “Too Much Heaven” was their first single with new member Vincent.
- Norwegian pop duo M2M used the chorus from “Too Much Heaven” in the chorus of their own song “Our Song” which appears on their debut album Shades of Purple.
- British soul singer Beverley Knight released a cover version of “Too Much Heaven” in 2009 on her album 100%. Knight’s version featured backing vocals at the request of Robin Gibb, as they had previously collaborated on the song live.
- Paul McCartney recorded this song in December 2004 in Sussex as a tribute to Maurice Gibb but it was not released.
- Rebecca Conklin, an avant garde gypsy funk sound stylist based in Bucharest, performed an electronic rendition at the Romanian Pavilion of the Shanghai World Expo 2010.
- American gospel recording group Winans Phase 2, released a cover of “Too Much Heaven” on their 2000 album, We Got Next.
- In 1999, South Korean singer, 조관우 (Joe Kwan Woo) covered the song on his album Special 99 Edition.
- American R&B singer-songwriter Criss Starr released a cover version of “Too Much Heaven” for his Yours 4Ever CD in 2013.
- The original Bee Gees recording was featured in the film Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001) Official Trailer
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