Tracks
- How Can You Mend a Broken Heart?
- Israel
- The Greatest Man in the World
- It's Just the Way
- Remembering
- Somebody Stop the Music
- Trafalgar
- Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself
- When Do I
- Dearest
- Lion in Winter
- Walking Back to Waterloo
Trafalgar is a grand album. The music is pop and rock. It has a large, sweeping sound which doesn't diminish or overshadow the vocals of the Brothers Gibb. The singing is melodic, powerful, grave and expansive. They really know how to carry a tune and their melodies are pleasant.
Despite the quality of the album, it never becomes as grand and epic as it wants to become. I felt the material could have been more inspiring. The songs, too, suffer from superficial lyrics. I also think most songs were never able to develop to their fullest potential, except for Lion in Winter.
I really like the album even though adult oriented pop music isn't my cup of tea. I do think the Bee Gees are far superior to other singer/songwriter pop artists. In fact, the worst of the Bee Gees is much better than the best of the other artists. So, I do think this album should be on the 1001 Albums list since it's a far better representative of what adult-oriented pop music can be.
Most of the songs are good. I think the stand outs are: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart?, Israel, The Greatest Man in the World, It's Just the Way, Trafalgar, Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself, Lion in Winter and Walking Back to Waterloo.
★★★★★★★★★☆
Tracks
- Odessa (City on the Black Sea)
- You'll Never See My Face Again
- Black Diamond
- Marley Purt Drive
- Edison
- Melody Fair
- Suddenly
- Whisper Whisper
- Lamplight
- Sound of Love
- Give Your Best
- Seven Seas Symphony
- With All Nations (International Anthem)
- I Laugh in Your Face
- Never Say Never Again
- First of May
- The British Opera
Odessa is a pretty album. Many of songs are melodic and have a big orchestral sound. The Gibb brothers have pleasing voices, but unfortunately their singing doesn't lend itself to singing along unless you can hit the high notes.
The album starts off strong, but peters out at the end. The three instrumentals right at the end are partly responsible for that. The Bee Gees play their instruments well, but the main reason for listening to the Bee Gees is for the singing. If it had been a single instead of a double album, it would be a strong effort from beginning to end.
Another problem is that it's a disorganized album which is a common problem with double albums. There's no coherent theme. Fortunately, the songs do sound good together.
I'm not sure the significance of this album with respect to the 1001 Albums list. It's a good album and I enjoy listening to it. I'd venture a guess that it's an early album heralding the soft rock genre that begins to develop during the early 1970s.
The stand out songs are Odessa (City on the Black Sea), You'll Never See My Face Again, Black Diamond, Marley Purt Drive, Edison, Melody Fair, Suddenly, Lamplight, I Laugh in Your Face and Never Say Never Again.
★★★★★★★☆☆☆
