High Civilization

High Civilization is the nineteenth studio album by British pop group the Bee Gees, released on 25 March 1991 in the U.K., and 14 May 1991 in the U.S. It was their last album recorded for Warner Bros. Records, after a four-year contract (they would return to WB through subsidiary Reprise Records in 2006: after gaining the rights to their previously released material, they reissued each album through Reprise). Possibly in reaction to firm resistance from U.S. radio to the previous two albums, E.S.P. (1987) and One (1989), which had done well in other countries, the U.S.-based Warner Bros gave this one less promotion and did not issue remixes. They recorded this album and their next album Size Isn't Everything with engineer Femi Jiya.

High Civilization
Studio album by
Bee Gees
Released25 March 1991 (U.K.)
14 May 1991 (U.S.)
RecordedAugust – December 1990
StudioMiddle Ear Studios, Miami Beach, Florida
Genre
Length60:12
Label
ProducerBarry, Robin and Maurice Gibb
Bee Gees chronology
The Very Best of the Bee Gees
(1990)		 High Civilization
(1991)		 Size Isn't Everything
(1993)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Calgary HeraldC-[2]
Chicago Tribune[3]
NME6/10[4]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[5]

In the U.S., the album was available only on the CD and cassette, but the LP version was released in limited quantities in some countries. While it did not chart in the U.S., it reached No. 6 in Switzerland, No. 2 in Germany (reaching platinum certification in both countries), No. 24 in the U.K.

Background

The songs as sequenced on the "High Civilization mixes" tell a story of "secret love" that might be all in the singer's head and secret from the girl too. He hesitates one moment and speaks explicitly the next, but is he telling her what he feels. The contradictions give the story a dreamlike effect of details shifting while the singer's feelings remain consistent. The only song that does not fit is the dystopian political title song, unless it expresses the singer's anger and confusion with the world as he feels things are all falling apart. He then casts it all as a romantic tragedy, before finally proposing that maybe even the girl being in love with someone else does not mean the end of it.[6]

High Civilization found a new change for the Bee Gees sound, with heavier use of drum programming and electronic effects, giving a more modern dance feel to the production. Highlights from the album included the first single, "Secret Love", an up-tempo ballad, which was a top five hit in the U.K.; "When He's Gone", a heavier pop song, issued as the album's second single, featuring Alan Kendall's guitar solo ending on that song; and the sentimental ballad "The Only Love", released as the third and final single from the album. The soft ballad "Happy Ever After" was released as a cassette-only single. "True Confessions" was the bonus cut available only on the CD version; it was also issued only in the U.S. as the B-side of "When He's Gone". The album's length was 60 minutes for only eleven songs.

Both High Civilization and Size Isn't Everything were the only post-RSO era albums not to feature concert dates in the U.S., presumably due to health issues with Barry Gibb and lackluster record sales. The band did play three dates in the U.K. and toured Europe.

Despite the album's failure in the U.S., the brothers would work with Femi Jiya again on the follow-up, Size Isn't Everything.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb

No.TitleLead vocal(s)Length
1."High Civilization"Robin and Barry5:27
2."Secret Love"Barry and Robin3:36
3."When He's Gone"Robin and Barry5:53
4."Happy Ever After"Barry6:15
5."Party With No Name"Barry4:50
6."Ghost Train"Barry and Robin6:02
7."Dimensions"Maurice5:25
8."The Only Love"Barry5:32
9."Human Sacrifice"Barry5:37
10."True Confessions"Barry5:14
11."Evolution"Barry5:36

Alternate release
  1. "Human Sacrifice"
  2. "When He's Gone"
  3. "Secret Love"
  4. "Ghost Train"
  5. "Evolution"
  6. "Party With No Name"
  7. "True Confessions"
  8. "High Civilization"
  9. "The Only Love"
  10. "Happy Ever After"
  11. "Dimensions"

Personnel

Bee Gees

Additional personnel

Production

  • Femi Jiya – sound engineer
  • John Merchant – sound engineer
  • Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb – producer

Charts and certifications

References
  1. High Civilization at AllMusic
  2. King, Frank (19 May 1991). "Recent Releases". Calgary Herald.
  3. Caro, Mark (19 September 1991). "Review: Bee Gees – High Civilization". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 31 August 2011.
  4. Quantick, David (13 April 1991). "Long Play". New Musical Express. p. 33.
  5. Cross, Charles R. (2004). "The Bee Gees". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 58. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  6. Gibb Songs 1990
  7. "Austriancharts.at – Bee Gees – High Civilization" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
  8. "Dutchcharts.nl – Bee Gees – High Civilization" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
  9. "Offiziellecharts.de – Bee Gees – High Civilization" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
  10. "Swedishcharts.com – Bee Gees – High Civilization". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
  11. "Swisscharts.com – Bee Gees – High Civilization". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
  12. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
  13. "Jahreshitparade Alben 1991". austriancharts.at. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
  14. "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts". GfK Entertainment (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
  15. "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1991". hitparade.ch. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
  16. "Austrian album certifications – Bee Gees – High Civilization" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  17. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Bee Gees; 'High Civilisation')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
  18. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Bee Gees; 'High Civilization')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
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