Jive Talkin'

For the language, see African American Vernacular English.

"Jive Talkin'"
Single by Bee Gees
from the album Main Course
B-side	"Wind Of Change"
Released	31 May 1975
Format	Vinyl record (7" 45 RPM)
Recorded	Criteria Studios, Miami, Florida, 30 January — 19 February 1975
Genre	Disco
Length	3:44 Label = RSO
Writer(s)	Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb
Producer	Arif Mardin
Bee Gees singles chronology
"Charade" (1974) "Jive Talkin'" (1975) "Nights on Broadway" (1975)
Saturday Night Fever track listing Side A "Stayin' Alive" "How Deep Is Your Love" "Night Fever" "More Than a Woman" "If I Can't Have You" Side B "A Fifth of Beethoven" "More Than a Woman" "Manhattan Skyline" "Calypso Breakdown" Side C "Night on Disco Mountain" "Open Sesame" performed "Jive Talkin'" "You Should Be Dancing" Boogie Shoes" Side D "Salsation" "K-Jee" "Disco Inferno"

"Jive Talkin'" is a song by the Bee Gees, which hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and reached the top-five on the UK singles chart in the summer of 1975. Largely recognised as the group's "comeback" song, it was their first US top ten hit since "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" in 1971.

History

The song was originally called "Drive Talking". The song's rhythm was modelled after the sound their car made crossing the Julia Tuttle Causeway each day from Biscayne Bay to Criteria Studios in Miami.

While hearing this rhythmic sound, "Barry didn't notice that he's going "Ji-Ji Jive Talkin'", thinking of the dance, "You dance with your ass"...that's all he had...exactly 35mph...that's what we got." Maurice goes on to say "We played it to Arif (producer Arif Mardin), and he went "Do you know what "Jive Talkin'" means? And we said, well yeah, it's, ya know, you're dancing. He says NO...it's a black expression for bullshitting. And we went OH, REALLY?!?" Maurice goes on to describe how Arif gave them "the groove, the tempo, everything." Robin then goes on to mention that, because they were English, they were less self-conscious about going into the "no go areas", referring to musical styles that were more black in styles, etc. He then said "We didn't think that there was any "no go" areas, it's music!"

Upon its release to radio stations, the single was delivered in a plain white cover, with no immediate indication of what the song's name was or who sang it. The DJs would only find out what the song was and who played it when it was placed on the turntable; RSO did provide the song with a label on the record itself. It was the second time in the band's career that this strategy had been employed to get airplay for their music, after a similar tactic had popularised their debut US single New York Mining Disaster 1941 in 1967.

Cover versions

In 1987 this song was covered by the Boogie Box High. Boogie Box High was a musical project by Andros Georgiou in the late 1980s, that featured a range of vocal collaborations such as his relative George Michael (of Wham!) and Nick Heyward (of Haircut One Hundred). A cover of the Bee Gees song Jive Talkin' was their biggest hit in 1987.

On Iron Maiden's song "More Tea Vicar", towards the end, Bruce Dickinson sings a bit of the song in a voice imitating The Bee Gees as a joke, then follows it up with "No, no no! You got the wrong track, you have to go in the studio next door." Then sings "Okay" in a Bee Gees voice.

Chart performance

Chart	Peak position
United States	1
Canada	1
New Zealand	4
United Kingdom	5
Ireland	5
Australia	14
Germany	20
Netherlands	23
Belgium	24
Spain	26

See also

• List of Hot 100 number-one singles of 1975 (U.S.)

References

Preceded by "One of These Nights" by Eagles

Billboard Hot 100 number-one single 9 August 1975 – 16 August 1975

Succeeded by "Fallin' in Love" by Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds