
Introduction
MIAMI, FL â For more than six decades, Sir Barry Gibb has commanded the worldâs greatest stages, sold hundreds of millions of records, and defined the sound of an entire generation. But now, at 79, the last surviving Bee Gee has made a startling revelation: there was ONE voice he could never escape, a voice that became his eternal benchmark â the haunting cry of Roy Orbison.
In a rare and emotional confession, Gibb admitted that Orbisonâs power wasnât just influence â it was obsession.
âRoy had one of the most extraordinary voices Iâve ever heard in my life,â Gibb confessed with his voice breaking. âIt wasnât just singing. It was as if he was pulling something down from heaven itself. You could feel every ounce of pain, joy, and longing in that sound.â
For Barry and his brothers Robin and Maurice, early sparks came from Elvis Presley and the raw excitement of American rock. But it was Orbisonâs tragic ballads of love and loss that struck a deeper chord.
âWhen Roy sang about loneliness, it felt like he was telling your story â not his, not mine, yours,â Gibb recalled, his eyes wet. âThat connection is what we all craved as musicians. Thatâs what made him untouchable.â
A Legacy Born from Pain and Glory
From humble beginnings in Australia to global superstardom, the Bee Gees rose on the wings of harmony. When they returned to Britain in the 1960s, their lush melodies soared onto the charts. By the 1970s, with Barryâs falsetto leading the way, they rewrote history.
The soundtrack to Saturday Night Fever didnât just break records â it turned the Gibb brothers into immortal icons of disco. And yet, with every triumph came unbearable tragedy.
Mauriceâs sudden death in 2003, followed by Robinâs passing in 2012, left Barry standing alone â the sole guardian of a dynasty built on three voices.
Family friends confirmed the pain was devastating. âBarry carried the weight of that loss every single day,â one insider revealed. âMusic became his only way to survive.â
And in those silent hours, when the lights of fame burned out, it wasnât platinum plaques or Grammy trophies that Barry measured himself against â it was the ghostly standard set by Roy Orbison.
Meeting the Phantom of His Dreams
Though they crossed paths over the years, Gibb says he never lost his awe of Orbison.
âHe was gentle, polite, almost shy,â Barry remembered. âAnd then he stepped up to a microphone and â bang â he became a giant. Watching him was like witnessing a man transform before your eyes.â
Industry legend and longtime collaborator Linda Perry echoed that sentiment. In a phone interview, she revealed:
âEvery singer alive knows Roy Orbison was untouchable. And for Barry to admit he judged himself against Roy â that tells you everything about the kind of artist Barry really is. Itâs about truth, not ego.â
Haunted in the Studio
Even today, Gibb admits he cannot escape Orbisonâs shadow.
âEvery time I walk into a studio, I hear this little voice in my head: Would Roy believe this? Would he think itâs real? Because Roy never faked a thing,â Barry said. âThatâs the gift he left me â and the burden.â
His words leave a chilling image: a man who has conquered everything the music world could offer, yet still bows before a voice that echoes like a ghost through time.
And so, as Barry Gibb continues to perform â carrying not only the memory of his brothers but also the relentless standard of Roy Orbison â one truth becomes clear: even legends are haunted by the voices of the past.
Could it be that the last Bee Gee, despite his towering legacy, still feels like the student, forever chasing the unattainable?