The British singer lost his battle with colon and liver cancer
and passed away on Sunday, according to his family. A statement reads,
"The family of Robin Gibb, of the Bee Gees, announce with great sadness that
Robin passed away today following his long battle with cancer and intestinal
surgery. The family have asked that their privacy is respected at this very
difficult time."
Born in the Isle of Man, Gibb began his music career as a teen when he joined forces with his twin brother Maurice and older sibling Barry to form the Bee Gees. The stars initially tasted fame in their adopted home of Australia, where the family had moved in 1958, but they were catapulted into the spotlight when they returned to their native Britain in the late 1960s.
Their harmonies helped them score early hits with "To Love Somebody", "Massachusetts" and "I Started A Joke", but Robin, a vibrato who shared lead vocals with Barry, quit the band to embark on a solo career in 1969 after a disagreement. He enjoyed minor success in Europe with his track "Saved by the Bell", but his album, "Robin's Reign", struggled to make much of an impact on the charts and he decided to reunite with Barry and Maurice just a year later.
The trio's popularity began to wane and it wasn't until the mid-1970s that they returned to prominence with the disco hit "Jive Talkin'". Follow-up tracks like "How Deep Is Your Love", "Stayin' Alive" and "Night Fever" - all from the bestselling Saturday Night Fever movie soundtrack - cemented the Bee Gees' place in history as one of the most successful acts of all time with total record sales in excess of 220 million.
The "Tragedy" hitmakers, who also penned songs for Dionne Warwick, Diana Ross, Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers, were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1994 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997. The Grammy Award winners disbanded in 2003 upon the death of Maurice Gibb, and it wasn't until 2009 that Barry and Robin decided to reteam and occasionally perform as the Bee Gees.
Born in the Isle of Man, Gibb began his music career as a teen when he joined forces with his twin brother Maurice and older sibling Barry to form the Bee Gees. The stars initially tasted fame in their adopted home of Australia, where the family had moved in 1958, but they were catapulted into the spotlight when they returned to their native Britain in the late 1960s.
Their harmonies helped them score early hits with "To Love Somebody", "Massachusetts" and "I Started A Joke", but Robin, a vibrato who shared lead vocals with Barry, quit the band to embark on a solo career in 1969 after a disagreement. He enjoyed minor success in Europe with his track "Saved by the Bell", but his album, "Robin's Reign", struggled to make much of an impact on the charts and he decided to reunite with Barry and Maurice just a year later.
The trio's popularity began to wane and it wasn't until the mid-1970s that they returned to prominence with the disco hit "Jive Talkin'". Follow-up tracks like "How Deep Is Your Love", "Stayin' Alive" and "Night Fever" - all from the bestselling Saturday Night Fever movie soundtrack - cemented the Bee Gees' place in history as one of the most successful acts of all time with total record sales in excess of 220 million.
The "Tragedy" hitmakers, who also penned songs for Dionne Warwick, Diana Ross, Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers, were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1994 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997. The Grammy Award winners disbanded in 2003 upon the death of Maurice Gibb, and it wasn't until 2009 that Barry and Robin decided to reteam and occasionally perform as the Bee Gees.
Goodbye Robin. We will miss you. The Bee Gees had a unique and original style of music. The body of music you have left us is a gift we will always appreciate.The Partners in Crime offer sincere condolences to Robin's family.
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