This review was originally published Yahoo! Music – read the original article here (third review down the page)
Robin Gibb: 50 St. Catherine’s Drive (Rhino)
I’m not sure anyone expected so substantial a posthumous album from departed Bee Gee Gibb, whose death in 2012—though no one can possibly rank these things—was particularly painful for fans. Though the commercial acclaim he enjoyed with his brothers was truly phenomenal, the critical acclaim he similarly deserved—for his early solo work, released or otherwise, and his slightly skewed ‘80s sets—was inevitably muted by comparison. This set, compiled by Gibb’s wife and son, offers a wealth of fascinating new Gibb recordings, including a redone version of early Bee Gees’ track “I Am The World,” the positively bouncy “Alan Freeman Days,” and the moving album closer “Sydney”—his final recording, a demo, which he intended to complete in the studio with his brother Barry. Though released after his death, there’s nothing lacking in terms of material, polish or songwriting here that would indicate the typical sort of money-grab the cynical among us might suspect; 50 St. Catherine’s Drive is instead a beautiful capping of one of pop music’s most memorable careers, and further evidence that the Brothers Gibb were singers, songwriters, players, and musicians of the highest order.