"Marley Purt Drive" is a song recorded by the Bee Gees, It was written by

Barry, Robin & Maurice Gibb The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio were especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in the disco music era in ...

and released in March 1969 on the album '' Odessa''. It was released in stereo in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

in January and its mono version was released in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

in March. The remastered version of this song was released on 27 February 2009 on Reprise Records. Originally titled "Marley Purt Drive (Area Code 213)", the song is about a married man in poverty with fifteen children who takes a drive out to

Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. ...

one Sunday to get some relief from the situation only to return and find he now has twenty more children to look after, thus creating "An orphanage

ith The Ith () is a ridge in Germany's Central Uplands which is up to 439 m high. It lies about 40 km southwest of Hanover and, at 22 kilometres, is the longest line of crags in North Germany. Geography Location The Ith is immediatel ...

35 kids.

Recording and structure

For the recording of the song, the basic instrumental line-up of Barry and Maurice Gibb, Vince Melouney and Colin Petersen were joined by bluegrass musician Bill Keith on banjo. This song was recorded in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

Atlantic Studios Atlantic Studios was the recording studio of Atlantic Records. Although this recording studio was located at 1841 Broadway (at the corner of 60th Street), in New York City, Atlantic Recording Studios was initially located at 234 West 56th Street fr ...

. Two recordings are available, the earlier of these was recorded on August 15 and later appeared on ''Sketches for Odessa'' in 2006. The version released on the album was finished at

IBC Studios The IBC Recording Studios were independent recording studios located at 35 Portland Place in London, England. In the 1960s and 1970s, the studios become internationally famous after being used by recording artists like the Kinks, the Who, Bee Gee ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in November with the orchestra. Barry later explained the recording of "Marley Purt Drive" in a 24 March 2001 interview with '' Billboard'', " Marley Purt Drive'had a

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while ...

violinist and banjo player on it because we were listening to American country music at that time". It was released as a single in South Africa in July 1969, backed with "

Melody Fair A melody (from Greek μελῳδία, ''melōidía'', "singing, chanting"), also tune, voice or line, is a linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most literal sense, a melody is a combinati ...

". The song's demo is entitled Alternate Mix on ''Sketches for Odessa'' and begins with a false start followed by one count but then goes into an almost identical intro. The mix is not really different, and lyrics are the same.

Release

This song, owing something to The Band's 1968 hit "

The Weight "The Weight" is a song by the Canadian-American group the Band that was released as a single in 1968 and on the group's debut album '' Music from Big Pink''. It was their first release under this name, after their previous releases as Canadian ...

", later appeared on the charity compilation album called ''

No One's Gonna Change Our World ''No One's Gonna Change Our World'' is a charity album released in the United Kingdom on 12 December 1969 for the benefit of the World Wildlife Fund. The compilation, assembled by comedian Spike Milligan, includes two tracks from Milligan and on ...

'' released on December 12, 1969. On 6 November 1974, they performed the song in

Sapporo ( ain, サッ・ポロ・ペッ, Satporopet, lit=Dry, Great River) is a city in Japan. It is the largest city north of Tokyo and the largest city on Hokkaido, the northernmost main island of the country. It ranks as the fifth most populous cit ...

, Japan during their '' Mr. Natural'' tour. In 2009, Barry Gibb performed the song for the rehearsal for the ''Love and Hope Ball''.

Personnel

Barry Gibb Sir Barry Alan Crompton Gibb (born 1 September 1946) is a British musician, singer-songwriter and record producer. He rose to worldwide fame as a member of the Bee Gees, one of the most commercially successful groups in the history of popula ...

– lead vocals, guitar *

Vince Melouney Vincent Melouney (Maloney) (born 18 August 1945) is an Australian musician, singer and songwriter best known as an official member of The Bee Gees from 1967 to 1969 during the group’s initial period of worldwide success. Prior to joining Be ...

– guitar *

Maurice Gibb Maurice Ernest Gibb (; 22 December 1949 – 12 January 2003) was a British musician. He achieved fame as a member of the pop group Bee Gees. Although his elder brother Barry Gibb and fraternal twin brother Robin Gibb were the group's main lea ...

– bass guitar, backing vocals * Bill Keith – banjo *

Colin Petersen Frederick Colin Petersen (born 24 March 1946) is an Australian drummer, record producer and former child actor. He played as a member of the bands Steve and the Board, the Bee Gees and Humpy Bong. In August 1969, he left the Bee Gees and he wa ...

– drums * Robin Gibb – backing vocals

Cover versions

* Puerto Rican singer

José Feliciano José Montserrate Feliciano García (born September 10, 1945) () is a Puerto Rican musician, singer and composer. He recorded many international hits, including his rendition of the Doors' "Light My Fire" and his self-penned Christmas song " F ...

recorded perhaps the best known cover of "Marley Purt Drive". His version was released as a single in the US and Germany on July 19, 1969 on

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

. and around the world. The single charted in many countries including the US, Canada, Australia, Brazil and Malaysia where it was a top ten hit * Bonnie St. Claire released this song as a single in 1969 on

Philips Records Philips Records is a record label founded by the Dutch electronics company Philips. It was founded as Philips Phonographische Industrie in 1950. In 1946, Philips acquired the company which pressed records for British Decca's Dutch outlet in ...

. The B-side was "Let Me Come Back Home, Mama", a non-Gibb song. Their version was included on ''The Best Of Bonnie St. Claire'' (1970). *

Victor Scott Victor Ramone Scott (born June 1, 1962) is a former American football defensive back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at the University of Colorado. Early years Scott attended East St. Lo ...

covered this song under the title "Fifteen Kids" backed with "Love is All I Have" on Decca Records in 1970. This record was only released in Germany. *

David Frizzell David Frizzell (born September 26, 1941) is an American country music singer. He is the younger brother of country musician, Lefty Frizzell. His career started in the late 1950s, but his biggest success came in the 1980s. Biography Frizzell wa ...

brought out a version on the B-side of "Little Toy Trains" in 1969 on Columbia Records. * Equipe 84 covered this song under the title "Pomeriggio Ore 6", but only released in Italy on Ricordi Records. *

Lulu Lulu may refer to: Companies * LuLu, an early automobile manufacturer * Lulu.com, an online e-books and print self-publishing platform, distributor, and retailer * Lulu Hypermarket, a retail chain in Asia * Lululemon Athletica or simply Lulu, ...

released a cover as the first track on her 1970 album '' New Routes''. Her version features guitar work by

Duane Allman Howard Duane Allman (November 20, 1946 – October 29, 1971) was an American rock guitarist, session musician, and the founder and original leader of the Allman Brothers Band, for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame i ...

. She was married to Maurice Gibb at the time. * Jean Bouchéty's version appeared on his 1971 album ''The Rhythms Sounds And Melodies Of Jean Bouchéty'' (1971). * Nash Chase's version was released on his self-titled album in 1970.
July Paul
covered this song in 2021 o
Goshawk 66 Records
His version was released as a single in 2021, on the album Best Summer Of My Life in 2013 and also on the albu
Summer Feeling
in 2016.

References

* {{authority control 1969 songs Bee Gees songs Songs written by Barry Gibb Songs written by Robin Gibb Songs written by Maurice Gibb Song recordings produced by Barry Gibb Song recordings produced by Robin Gibb Song recordings produced by Maurice Gibb Song recordings produced by Robert Stigwood 1969 singles Polydor Records singles José Feliciano songs RCA Records singles Barry Gibb songs hu:Bee Gees Marley Purt Drive Promo hu:Marley Purt Drive / Sound of Love