Writing and producing nine of their own No. 1 hits, dozens of Top 40 hits, and earning five Grammy Awards, the Bee Gees’ Barry, Robin (1949-2012), and Maurice Gibb (1949-2003) also composed a majority for the music for the 1978 John Travolta-starred musical drama Saturday Night Fever, including the head-over-heels, love song “More Than a Woman.”
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The Meaning
A direct love letter to a special woman, “More Than a Woman” begins with an unusual twist. The woman in the song is someone that the narrator apparently knew for a long time but never considered in a romantic way until they were both much older.
[RELATED: 11 Songs You Didn’t Know the Bee Gees Wrote That Were Made Famous by Other Artists]
Oh, girl, I’ve known you very well
I’ve seen you growing every day
I never really looked before
But now you take my breath away
Suddenly you’re in my life
Part of everything I do
You got me working day and night
Just tryin’ to keep a hold on you
The lyrics continue to profess a love for someone who is truly extraordinary…more than a woman.
More than a woman
More than a woman to me
More than a woman
More than a woman to me
There are stories old and true
Of people so in love like you and me
And I can see myself
Let history repeat itself
Reflecting how I feel for you
Thinking ’bout those people then
I know that in a thousand years
I’d fall in love with you again
In the song, the narrator expresses some insecurities at losing this woman, while imagining their forever together.
This is the only way that we should fly
This is the only way to go
And if I lose your love, I know I would die
Oh, say you’ll always be my baby, we can make it shine
We can take forever, just a minute at a time
Saturday Night Fever
The Bee Gees wrote and performed a majority of the songs featured on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack, including their classic hits—”Stayin’ Alive,” “How Deep Is Your Love,” “Night Fever,” “If I Can’t Have You” (performed by Yvonne Elliman for the film), which all reached No. 1 on the charts, along with top 10 hits “Jive Talkin’” and “You Should Be Dancing.”
[RELATED: Behind the History and the Meaning of the Band Name: the Bee Gees]
Still one of the best-selling soundtracks in history, Saturday Night Fever shot to No. 1 on the Billboard Pop Album and Soul Album charts and won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year in 1979, marking the only disco album to ever receive this honor.
In 2013, the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack was also added to the National Recording Registry in the Library of Congress.
Photo: GAB Archive/Redferns
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