Robin Gibb, the Bee Gees and the Immortality of Pop Culture

Robin Gibb, one of the three brothers who brought the world the Bee Gees, died on Sunday. Brother Barry Gibb is now the sole living member of the music group that gave music lovers Stayin' Alive.

Yes, I know that the banner picture is not Robin Gibb. I'm using it to make a point, though, so stick with me. Gibb and the Bee Gees had been making music since 1958, becoming international stars thanks to John Travolta's Saturday Night Fever. Pop culture can sometimes have a short memory, and while today's 20-somethings may have had parents who were fans of the Bee Gees, it's very likely those 20-something themselves would have no idea who some band from the 1970s is, much less know the names of the members of that band.

Everyone knows who the Bee Gees are, though. And most people can tell you that Robin Gibb and his brothers were the members who made up that band. Saturday Night Live wouldn't have based an entire reoccurring sketch featuring Jimmy Fallon and Justin Timberlake around two singers that its audience would be unfamiliar with or who didn't matter.



Robin Gibb and the Bee Gees transcended any era of music or pop culture. Because of that, they'll live forever.