"Too Much Heaven" is a song by the Bee Gees, which was the band's contribution to the "Music for UNICEF" fund. They performed it at the Music for UNICEF Concert on 9 January 1979. The song later found its way to the group's thirteenth original album, Spirits Having Flown. It hit No. 1 in both the US and Canada. In the United States, the song was the first single out of three from the album to interrupt a song's stay at #1. "Too Much Heaven" knocked "Le Freak" off the top spot for two weeks before "Le Freak" returned to #1 again.[2] "Too Much Heaven" also rose to the top three in the UK. In the US, it would become the fourth of six consecutive No. 1s, equalling the record set by Bing Crosby, Elvis Presley, and the Beatles for the most consecutive No. 1 songs. The six Bee Gee songs are "How Deep Is Your Love", "Stayin' Alive", "Night Fever", "Too Much Heaven", "Tragedy" and "Love You Inside Out". The songs spanned the years of 1977, 1978 and 1979.
The recording process was the longest of all the tracks on Spirits Having Flown as there are nine layers of three-part harmony, creating 27 voices, though the high falsetto voices are the most pronounced in the final mix:[5]
Barry on falsetto lead three times
falsetto high harmony three times
falsetto low harmony three times
Barry on natural voice lead three times
high harmony three times
low harmony three times
Barry, Robin and Maurice together on lead three times
Imbued with their falsetto style, it is also notable for being one of two songs on the album featuring the Chicago horn section (James Pankow, Walt Parazaider and Lee Loughnane); the other track that features the Chicago members is "Search, Find", in return for the brothers' appearance on the Chicago song "Little Miss Lovin'". On its demo version, Barry begins with count-in. This track does have some backing vocals. The demo lacks the full orchestral feel of the final song.
Release
"Too Much Heaven" was released nine months after "Night Fever". The single "Too Much Heaven" was released in the late autumn of 1978 and started a slow ascent up the music charts. In the first week of 1979, preceding the Music for UNICEF Concert, the single first topped the charts in both the United States and Canada. In the United Kingdom, the single peaked at number three late in 1978. In the summer of 1978, the Gibb brothers announced their latest project at a news conference at the United Nations in New York City. All of the publishing royalties on their next single would go into UNICEF, to celebrate the International Year of the Child, which was designated to be 1979. The song earned over $7 million in publishing royalties.
The Bee Gees were later invited to the White House, where President Jimmy Carter thanked the group for their donation. At the ceremony, the brothers presented Carter with one of their black satin tour jackets. In later years, the brothers performed the song with only Barry's guitar and keyboards, with all three singing in their normal range. This version was part of a medley the brothers did as part of their 1989 One For All tour, and is also included on the Tales from the Brothers Gibb box set alongside the original version.
"Too Much Heaven" also reached No. 2 in Cash Box charts in six weeks between 30 December 1978 and 3 February 1979 behind Chic's "Le Freak".[6][7]
Reception
Cash Box said it is "gentle and silky with the famous falsettos rising upwards."[8]Record World called it a "flowing ballad, with [the Bee Gees'] trademark falsettos and a light touch."[9]
Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys spoke positively of the song, stating, "I was really loved and impressed with the harmonies they achieved on that record. I'm very very proud of those guys; they're exceptionally good at harmony. They’re a very heavy duty harmony group."[10]
In 1997, Nana covered the hit for his album Father. Compared to the original, this version is increasingly listening to rap passages while retaining much of the original's lyrics. Nana is responsible for the rap, while Van der Toorn sings the lyrics and chorus of the original. In German-speaking countries, this cover version was a top ten success. In Germany, this version was also awarded with Gold.[41]
Music video
The music video plays both in a sky setting and in a detached house. In a family home, the coexistence of a large family is the focus. In parallel, Nana mimics the song in the sky and beamed to the extended family. In the course of the video, the parents argue in the video, but find themselves together again in the end.[42]
In 1979, the Cantonese singer Alan Tam covered and released it as 唱一首好歌 ("Sing A Good Song").
Hip hop boy band US5 released a cover of "Too Much Heaven" in 2007 as a duet with Robin Gibb. "Too Much Heaven" was their first single with new member Vincent.
Norwegian pop duo M2M used the chorus from "Too Much Heaven" in the chorus of their own song "Our Song" which appears on their debut album Shades of Purple.[48][49]
British soul singer Beverley Knight released a cover version of "Too Much Heaven" in 2009 on her album 100%. Knight's version featured backing vocals at the request of Robin Gibb, as they had previously collaborated on the song live.
Paul McCartney recorded this song in December 2004 in Sussex as a tribute to Maurice Gibb but it was not released.[50]
American gospel recording group Winans Phase 2,[51] released a cover of "Too Much Heaven" on their 2000 album, We Got Next.
In 1999, South Korean singer, 조관우 (Joe Kwan Woo) covered the song on his album Special 99 Edition.[52]
American R&B singer-songwriter Criss Starr released a cover version of "Too Much Heaven" for his Yours 4Ever CD in 2013.[53]
British comedian Tim Vine occasionally closes his shows by performing a comedic version of the song.[54]
^"Top 100 Single-Jahrescharts". GfK Entertainment (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
^"Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Nana; 'Too Much Heaven')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 3 December 2018.
^Paoletta, Michael (11 March 2000). "M2M: Shades of Purple". Billboard: 26.
^. Canoe.com. 3 April 2000. Archived from the original on 30 September 2015. Retrieved 29 September 2015.
^Brennan, Joseph. "Gibb Songs: 2004". Columbia.edu. Retrieved 12 February 2015.
^"Winans Phase 2 - We Got Next CD Album". Cduniverse.com. 2 July 2002. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
^"조관우 - Special 99 Edition [compilation] (1999)". Maniadb.com. 28 March 2006. Archived from the original on 17 July 2013. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
^CRISS STARR~"Too Much Heaven". 7 December 2012. Retrieved 7 April 2014 – via YouTube.[dead YouTube link]
^Tim Vine Bee Gees Tribute, retrieved 7 August 2022
External links
Too Much Heaven info at SuperSeventies
June 17, 2023
much, heaven, confused, with, much, heaven, song, gees, which, band, contribution, music, unicef, fund, they, performed, music, unicef, concert, january, 1979, song, later, found, group, thirteenth, original, album, spirits, having, flown, both, canada, united. Not to be confused with Too Much of Heaven Too Much Heaven is a song by the Bee Gees which was the band s contribution to the Music for UNICEF fund They performed it at the Music for UNICEF Concert on 9 January 1979 The song later found its way to the group s thirteenth original album Spirits Having Flown It hit No 1 in both the US and Canada In the United States the song was the first single out of three from the album to interrupt a song s stay at 1 Too Much Heaven knocked Le Freak off the top spot for two weeks before Le Freak returned to 1 again 2 Too Much Heaven also rose to the top three in the UK In the US it would become the fourth of six consecutive No 1s equalling the record set by Bing Crosby Elvis Presley and the Beatles for the most consecutive No 1 songs The six Bee Gee songs are How Deep Is Your Love Stayin Alive Night Fever Too Much Heaven Tragedy and Love You Inside Out The songs spanned the years of 1977 1978 and 1979 Too Much Heaven Dutch vinyl singleSingle by Bee Geesfrom the album Spirits Having FlownB side Rest Your Love on Me ReleasedNovember 1978 1 RecordedJuly 1978StudioCriteria Miami GenreR amp B soulLength4 58LabelRSOSongwriter s Barry GibbRobin GibbMaurice GibbProducer s Bee GeesAlbhy GalutenKarl RichardsonBee Gees singles chronology Night Fever 1978 Too Much Heaven 1978 Tragedy 1979 Music video Too Much Heaven on YouTubeRobin Gibb reportedly said on the Bee Gees interview for Billboard in 2001 that this track was one of his favourite songs of the Bee Gees 3 Contents 1 Background and recording 2 Release 3 Reception 4 Charts 4 1 Weekly charts 4 2 Year end charts 4 3 All time charts 5 Certifications 6 Nana version 6 1 Music video 6 2 Track listing 6 3 Charts 6 3 1 Year end charts 6 4 Certifications 7 Other cover versions 8 References 9 External linksBackground and recording EditBarry Gibb Robin Gibb and Maurice Gibb wrote this track with Tragedy in an afternoon off from the making the Sgt Pepper s Lonely Hearts Club Band movie that same evening the Gibbs wrote Shadow Dancing for Andy Gibb but that song was later credited to all four Gibbs 4 The recording process was the longest of all the tracks on Spirits Having Flown as there are nine layers of three part harmony creating 27 voices though the high falsetto voices are the most pronounced in the final mix 5 Barry on falsetto lead three times falsetto high harmony three times falsetto low harmony three times Barry on natural voice lead three times high harmony three times low harmony three times Barry Robin and Maurice together on lead three times high harmony three times low harmony three times 5 Imbued with their falsetto style it is also notable for being one of two songs on the album featuring the Chicago horn section James Pankow Walt Parazaider and Lee Loughnane the other track that features the Chicago members is Search Find in return for the brothers appearance on the Chicago song Little Miss Lovin On its demo version Barry begins with count in This track does have some backing vocals The demo lacks the full orchestral feel of the final song Release Edit Too Much Heaven was released nine months after Night Fever The single Too Much Heaven was released in the late autumn of 1978 and started a slow ascent up the music charts In the first week of 1979 preceding the Music for UNICEF Concert the single first topped the charts in both the United States and Canada In the United Kingdom the single peaked at number three late in 1978 In the summer of 1978 the Gibb brothers announced their latest project at a news conference at the United Nations in New York City All of the publishing royalties on their next single would go into UNICEF to celebrate the International Year of the Child which was designated to be 1979 The song earned over 7 million in publishing royalties The Bee Gees were later invited to the White House where President Jimmy Carter thanked the group for their donation At the ceremony the brothers presented Carter with one of their black satin tour jackets In later years the brothers performed the song with only Barry s guitar and keyboards with all three singing in their normal range This version was part of a medley the brothers did as part of their 1989 One For All tour and is also included on the Tales from the Brothers Gibb box set alongside the original version Too Much Heaven also reached No 2 in Cash Box charts in six weeks between 30 December 1978 and 3 February 1979 behind Chic s Le Freak 6 7 Reception EditCash Box said it is gentle and silky with the famous falsettos rising upwards 8 Record World called it a flowing ballad with the Bee Gees trademark falsettos and a light touch 9 Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys spoke positively of the song stating I was really loved and impressed with the harmonies they achieved on that record I m very very proud of those guys they re exceptionally good at harmony They re a very heavy duty harmony group 10 Charts EditWeekly charts Edit Chart 1978 1979 PeakpositionArgentina 11 1Australia Kent Music Report 12 5Austria O3 Austria Top 40 13 13Belgium Ultratop 50 14 8Brazil Brazilian Top 100 11 1Canada Top Singles RPM 15 1Canada RPM Adult Contemporary 16 1Chile 11 1China 11 5Finland 11 4France SNEP 17 2Germany Media Control Charts 18 10Ireland IRMA 19 2Italy Musica e Dischi 20 1Netherlands Dutch Top 40 21 2New Zealand Recorded Music NZ 22 1Norway VG lista 1Portugal Musica amp Som 23 3South Africa Springbok Radio 24 1Spain AFYVE 1Sweden Sverigetopplistan 25 1Switzerland Swiss Hitparade 26 1UK Singles Official Charts Company 27 3US Billboard Hot 100 28 1US Billboard Easy Listening Charts 29 4US Billboard Hot Soul Singles 29 10US Cash Box 30 2US Radio amp Records 11 1US Record World 11 1 Year end charts Edit Chart 1978 1979 PositionAustralia Kent Music Report 31 32Austria O3 Austria Top 40 13 13Belgium Ultratop 50 14 25Canada 32 22New Zealand Recorded Music NZ 22 49South Africa 33 2Sweden Sverigetopplistan 25 13Switzerland Swiss Hitparade 26 14US Billboard Hot 100 34 11US Cash Box 35 2All time charts Edit Chart 1958 2018 PositionUS Billboard Hot 100 36 571Certifications EditRegion Certification Certified units salesCanada Music Canada 37 Platinum 150 000 France SNEP 38 Gold 500 000 United Kingdom BPI 39 Gold 500 000 United States RIAA 40 Platinum 2 000 000 Sales figures based on certification alone Shipments figures based on certification alone Nana version Edit Too Much Heaven Single by Nanafrom the album FatherReleased1 December 1997Recorded1997GenreHip hopLength3 56 single version 3 59 album version LabelMotor MusicSongwriter s Barry Robin amp Maurice GibbProducer s Bulent Aris Toni CotturaNana singles chronology Bible in My Hand 1997 Too Much Heaven 1997 Remember the Time 1998 In 1997 Nana covered the hit for his album Father Compared to the original this version is increasingly listening to rap passages while retaining much of the original s lyrics Nana is responsible for the rap while Van der Toorn sings the lyrics and chorus of the original In German speaking countries this cover version was a top ten success In Germany this version was also awarded with Gold 41 Music video Edit The music video plays both in a sky setting and in a detached house In a family home the coexistence of a large family is the focus In parallel Nana mimics the song in the sky and beamed to the extended family In the course of the video the parents argue in the video but find themselves together again in the end 42 Track listing Edit CD maxi Too Much Heaven 3 56 One Second Nana feat Alex Prince 5 40 Lonely 6 09Charts Edit Chart 1997 98 PositionAustria O3 Austria Top 40 43 6Germany Official German Charts 44 2Switzerland Schweizer Hitparade 45 7Year end charts Edit Chart 1998 PositionGermany Official German Charts 46 38Certifications Edit Region Certification Certified units salesGermany BVMI 47 Gold 250 000 Shipments figures based on certification alone Other cover versions EditIn 1979 the Cantonese singer Alan Tam covered and released it as 唱一首好歌 Sing A Good Song Hip hop boy band US5 released a cover of Too Much Heaven in 2007 as a duet with Robin Gibb Too Much Heaven was their first single with new member Vincent Norwegian pop duo M2M used the chorus from Too Much Heaven in the chorus of their own song Our Song which appears on their debut album Shades of Purple 48 49 British soul singer Beverley Knight released a cover version of Too Much Heaven in 2009 on her album 100 Knight s version featured backing vocals at the request of Robin Gibb as they had previously collaborated on the song live Paul McCartney recorded this song in December 2004 in Sussex as a tribute to Maurice Gibb but it was not released 50 American gospel recording group Winans Phase 2 51 released a cover of Too Much Heaven on their 2000 album We Got Next In 1999 South Korean singer 조관우 Joe Kwan Woo covered the song on his album Special 99 Edition 52 American R amp B singer songwriter Criss Starr released a cover version of Too Much Heaven for his Yours 4Ever CD in 2013 53 British comedian Tim Vine occasionally closes his shows by performing a comedic version of the song 54 Barry Gibb re recorded the song with Alison Krauss as part of his 2021 album Greenfields References Edit Bee Gees singles Billboard Top 100 January 20 1979 Retrieved 16 March 2020 The Bee Gees 35 Years of Music Billboard 27 24 March 2001 Retrieved 12 February 2015 Tragedy by Bee Gees Songfacts com Retrieved 14 February 2015 a b Brennan Joseph Gibb Songs 1978 Retrieved 12 February 2015 Cashbox Top Singles 1978 Cashbox Archived from the original on 15 February 2015 Retrieved 14 February 2015 Cashbox Top Singles 1979 Cashbox Archived from the original on 17 February 2015 Retrieved 14 February 2015 CashBox Singles Reviews PDF Cash Box 18 November 1978 p 20 Retrieved 1 January 2022 Hits of the Week PDF Record World 18 November 1978 p 1 Retrieved 13 February 2023 Sharp Ken Best Individual Artist Brian Wilson Goldmine Magazine Record Collector amp Music Memorabilia Retrieved 23 July 2022 a b c d e f g Songs Written by the Gibb Family on the International Charts Part 3 PDF Brothersgibb org Retrieved 14 February 2015 Kent David 1993 Australian Chart Book 1970 1992 doc Australian Chart Book St Ives N S W ISBN 0 646 11917 6 a b Austrian Chart Austriancharts at Retrieved 9 November 2014 a b Bee Gees Too Much Heaven Ultratop be Retrieved 13 February 2015 Canadian Chart Collectionscanada gc ca Archived from the original on 29 November 2014 Retrieved 9 November 2014 Item Display RPM Library and Archives Canada Collectionscanada gc ca 3 February 1979 Retrieved 12 June 2019 Hits of the World Billboard 10 March 1979 Retrieved 13 February 2015 German Chart Charts de GfK Entertainment in German Archived from the original on 29 November 2014 Retrieved 10 August 2014 Irish Charts Irish Charts Archived from the original on 26 February 2012 Retrieved 9 November 2014 Classifiche Musica e Dischi in Italian Retrieved 27 May 2022 Set Tipo on Singoli Then in the Artista field search Bee Gees Dutch Chart Dutch Top 100 Retrieved 9 November 2014 a b Bee Gees Too Much Heaven Charts nz Retrieved 13 February 2015 Hits of the World PDF Billboard 28 April 1979 p 107 Retrieved 9 November 2021 Hits of the World Billboard 31 March 1979 Retrieved 13 February 2015 a b Bee Gees Too Much Heaven Swedishcharts com Retrieved 13 February 2015 a b Swiss Charts Charts de Swiss Hitparade in German Retrieved 9 November 2014 UK Charts The Official Charts Company UK Retrieved 9 November 2014 Bee Gees Chart History Hot 100 Billboard a b US Charts Billboard Prometheus Global Media Retrieved 9 November 2014 Cashbox Top 100 Cashbox Archives 30 December 1978 Archived from the original on 14 February 2015 Retrieved 14 February 2015 Kent Music Report No 288 31 December 1979 gt National Top 100 Singles for 1979 Kent Music Report Retrieved 10 January 2023 via Imgur com Image RPM Weekly Bac lac gc ca Library and Archives Canada 17 July 2013 Top 20 Hit Singles of 1979 Retrieved 2 September 2018 Musicoutfitters com Cashbox Top 100 Cashbox Archives 3 February 1979 Archived from the original on 14 February 2015 Retrieved 14 February 2015 Billboard Hot 100 60th Anniversary Interactive Chart Billboard Retrieved 10 December 2018 Canadian single certifications Bee Gees Too Much Heaven Music Canada Retrieved 29 March 2012 French single certifications Bee Gees Too Much Heaven in French InfoDisc Retrieved 29 March 2012 SelectBEE GEESand clickOK British single certifications Bee Gees Too Much Heaven British Phonographic Industry Retrieved 29 March 2012 American single certifications Bee Gees Too Much Heaven Recording Industry Association of America Retrieved 29 March 2012 Datenbank BVMI Musikindustrie de NANA Too Much Heaven Official Video Archived from the original on 21 December 2021 via YouTube Nana Too Much Heaven in German O3 Austria Top 40 Retrieved 23 April 2020 Nana Too Much Heaven in German GfK Entertainment charts Retrieved 23 April 2020 Nana Too Much Heaven Swiss Singles Chart Retrieved 23 April 2020 Top 100 Single Jahrescharts GfK Entertainment in German offiziellecharts de Retrieved 23 April 2020 Gold Platin Datenbank Nana Too Much Heaven in German Bundesverband Musikindustrie Retrieved 3 December 2018 Paoletta Michael 11 March 2000 M2M Shades of Purple Billboard 26 M2M chats with fans on AllPop Canoe com 3 April 2000 Archived from the original on 30 September 2015 Retrieved 29 September 2015 Brennan Joseph Gibb Songs 2004 Columbia edu Retrieved 12 February 2015 Winans Phase 2 We Got Next CD Album Cduniverse com 2 July 2002 Retrieved 7 April 2014 조관우 Special 99 Edition compilation 1999 Maniadb com 28 March 2006 Archived from the original on 17 July 2013 Retrieved 7 April 2014 CRISS STARR Too Much Heaven 7 December 2012 Retrieved 7 April 2014 via YouTube dead YouTube link Tim Vine Bee Gees Tribute retrieved 7 August 2022External links EditToo Much Heaven info at SuperSeventies Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Too Much Heaven amp oldid 1157435326, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
