Trafalgar

Bee Gees

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 9, 1997)
• Original Release Date: September 1971
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Polydor / Umgd
• ASIN: B000001FNH
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #62,661 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The TRUE concept album, February 5, 2000

By	Martin A Hogan "Marty From SF" (San Francisco, CA. (Hercules)) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Although "Odessa" has been stated to be a concept album, "Trafalgar" seems to be more consistent in it's theme and musical harmony. Taking the motif from the battle of Trafalgar, this album excels in diversity and vocal variety. "How Can You Mend A Broken Heart" was #1 in the United States for four weeks but "Israel" was only released in Europe as a single. No matter. "Israel" shows demonstrates Barry's flair for screaming rhythm and blues with a marvelously typical passion. "Remembering" and "Dearest" are two ballads that Robin and Barry suck sorrow from their gut that surpasses anything they have sung before this album. Maurice also excels with a strong, consistent heavy bass and a piano pounding energy in songs such as "Somebody Stop The Music", "Israel" and "Walking Back To Waterloo". He was quoted as saying that Barry loved all his multi-layered work on the song "Trafalgar" and told him not to change a thing. He stated he felt surprised and happy to gain brother Barry's unconditional approval. "When Do I" shocks the listener with Robin's vocal range, stretching his pronounced vocals to the limit. Robin also screams out the blues on "Lion In Winter", fading into a rising orchestral arrangement. Maurice gets his way with "It's Just The Way" with some nice overlayed guitar work. Want to rock? "Somebody Stop The Music" pulls out all the stops and proves the Gibbs can still belt them out. On a more somber note, I wonder why "Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself" was released as a US single. It is far too long for AM radio and somewhat sullen. However, it did get to #52 on the AM charts, so it couldn't have been that unpopular. What better a song to finish this masterpiece than "Walking Back To Waterloo", a grand finale. What make this album so consistent? All songs have a orchestral lushness that carries from song to song, giving it a rich and appealing feel. Once Maurice was joking that there were too many strings on this album, but in person he said he felt it was a "wonderful" disc. Now this is a concept album and it is no small wonder that Polydor chose to release it on Ultradisc Gold.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Uneven: great and awful, April 10, 2003

By	J. Hardy (Columbia, MD USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

A tale of two albums.

Great: "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" was the Bee Gees' first US #1 hit; "Israel" is a terrific & passionate song; "Somebody Stop the Music", "Trafalgar" and "Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself" are layered and interesting in a way the Bee Gees hadn't been since "Odessa"; and I have always loved the finale, the lush "Walking Back to Waterloo" (for many years my favorite Bee Gees song).

Awful: "Dearest" has got to be the worst song they ever recorded, embarassingly and comically bad. It's hard not to laugh when you hear it. "Remembering" is hardly better. For some reason, the songs where Robin takes the lead vocals just don't work on this album: "Lion In Winter" and "When Do I" are also bad.

For me, the great stuff on this album easily outweighs the bad, thus the high rating. But be prepared for some jarring potholes when motoring thru this album.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing- it's all I have to say., August 2, 2002

By	duke14 "duke14" (NE Philly, PA) - See all my reviews

The variety of vocal attributes to this album are unbelievable. The brothers try every which way to produce hits in this album, in which they did in "How Can You Mend A Broken Heart". This is a lovely song and it reached #1 in the U.S. for almost a month. The other underdog hit of this album is "Don't Wanna Live Inside Myself". I love the chorus and I think it should've been a bigger hit. The hard rock type "Somebody Stop The Music" is also incredibly written. The title song "Trafalgar" sounds somewhat like the previous title song of "Odessa". But it also has a great melody. A lot of passionate truth is told in "Israel". "The Greatest Man In The World", a Barry Gibb single, is also a great song. "Remembering" and "Dearest" are not that great to me, but they deserve awards in the ballad category. Another one of my favorites is the BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN "Walking Back To Waterloo". Looking at the title of that song, I thought it would be ugly and dull. But the blend of voices and tunes makes this a breathtaking song. "When Do I" and "Lion In Winter", although are two very different songs, one in the ballad genre and one in the blues/ hard rock, are two great Robin Gibb/ a little bit of Barry songs. Maurice's song in this album is "It's Just The Way", and overall is a pretty well-written song. And overall, no doubt, this album deserves a perfect 5-star rating, with some great "what could've been hits" songs.