How a "bridge" inspired "Jive talkin'" by The Bee Gees

It was June 1975 and I was driving between Madison and Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  I switched stations looking for WLS out of Chicago, the big top 40 station of the Midwest.  And then I heard “Jive talkin’” for the first time.

My first reaction was that they were saying “child talking”.

Second, I knew that it was The Bee Gees because I instantly identified Barry’s voice.

Third, I knew that this was a very different sound from the Gibb brothers.

A week later, I got my hands on the 45 and it is still one of my favorite tunes from the 1970′s.

According to song facts, the very unique intro was inspired by the crossing of a bridge:

“The rhythm was inspired by the chunka-chunka-chunka sound of a car rolling over a bridge crossing Biscayne Bay near Miami. Robin Gibb explained to The Mail On Sunday November 1, 2009: 
“We’d already thought up the title for this song, but it wasn’t until Barry, Maurice and I drove from Biscayne Bay to Miami that we realised what the tune was going to be. We had the idea as we passed over a bridge. Some tar noises made a rhythmic sound on the wheels of our car, which created the feel to the type of song we wanted to write. We finished the song at the Criteria studios that day.”"

Great song and one of their many #1 songs!

Click here for the digital version of the song and the “Main course” LP.