For the past several days, I have gone into the musical archives to retrieve those dusty old collections of tunes, that those of us who admit to being on the dancefloor in the seventies, call the classics. Of course I mean the best of the Bee Gees. Since learning of the untimely, and much too early passing of Maurice Gibb, our house has been transformed into Dick Clark’s studio, minus the spinning glitter ball, and platform shoes. From “Night Fever” to “More than a Woman”, the songs take us back to the colorful time of dance contestants and an almost theatrical style of steps. But apart from all of that, I recall the hype and hysteria surrounding a concert at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto in 1979. It was magic, as the brothers were riding a tidal wave of popularity, unmatched in history, and we fans were for two short hours, transfixed on the trio, as they sang in perfect falsetto harmony, hit after hit, after hit. Through watching some of the flashback profiles on the group over the weekend, we learn that though they are almost synonymous with the disco era – something that over the years, they have felt cursed by – the brothers did not set out to make their mark in that particular genre, but rather were swept into the fever surrounding the movie Saturday Night Fever, that spawned the largest selling soundtrack of all time. It is sad to think that only on the death of one, that their standing in musical history comes to the forefront. That they rank 5th among a list that includes the Beatles and Elvis, in top grossing performers of all time is definitely a feat that should be celebrated. Credit is also warranted for their efforts in supplying songs to a stellar list of entertainers, including Celine Dion, Barbara Streisand, and Kenny Rogers to name a few. The Gibb Brothers never really were given the respect they deserve, so perhaps now, though in such a sombre event, people will look closer at the legacy that lives on in the memories of so many. Someday I’ll dig out the photos of that concert so long ago, among my over 150 albums, but for now I’ll be content to sing along, even though I should be dancing!