''Secret Agent'' is the third solo album by British singer

Robin Gibb Robin Hugh Gibb (22 December 1949 – 20 May 2012) was a British singer and songwriter. He gained worldwide fame as a member of the Bee Gees pop group with elder brother Barry and fraternal twin brother Maurice. Robin Gibb also had his o ...

, released in 1984. The album enjoyed limited success, mostly in Europe and Australia. The lead single " Boys Do Fall in Love" made the Top 10 in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

and

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...

Background

The album followed on from '' How Old Are You?'' the previous year with Robin's twin brother Maurice again co-writing and playing keyboards. Three songs were written by all three Bee Gees, including oldest brother

Barry Barry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Barry (name), including lists of people with the given name, nickname or surname, as well as fictional characters with the given name * Dancing Barry, stage name of Barry Richards (born c. 195 ...

. The album is heavily electronic, relying mostly on multi-layered keyboards with bass and drums played on synthesizers. Recording took place at

Criteria Studios Criteria Studios is a recording studio in North Miami, Florida, founded in 1958 by musician Mack Emerman. Hundreds of gold, platinum, and diamond singles and albums have been recorded, mixed or mastered at Criteria, for many notable artists and ...

as Barry Gibb was occupying the Bee Gees' own Middle Ear studio at the time, recording his solo debut '' Now Voyager''. Robin and Maurice continued the Bee Gees tradition of "making it up" in the recording studio. Assistant engineer Richard Achor recalled the years when Robin and Maurice would come in with only ideas for songs. Robin wrote lyrics with Maurice, and sometimes they set up drum and synthesizer grooves first, in which a song would work out from that. Maurice played synthesizer and keyboard, but played relatively little on the finished tracks in favor of Rob Kilgore's expertise. Robin had long been interested in the electronic sound and Maurice was a willing accomplice. The concept was to carry on the sound of the big

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hit by Shannon, her 1983 song " Let the Music Play", which is why Robin brought in the same producers, Mark Liggett and Chris Barbosa, and musicians Rob Kilgore and Jim Tunnell to work on the album. Robin asked Barbosa and Liggett to produce this album. As Barbosa explained: "Robin really wanted a dance hit, he specifically wanted to avoid a Bee Gees sound-alike record." "The Gibb project was different for us in that way", Liggett added. "We're not usually working with mega budgets, and its better that way. All the money comes out of your pockets anyway." ''

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'' called "In Your Diary" a "a pleasing piece which suffers slightly from its formula quality, but benefits strongly from the familiar strength of the Gibb’s reliable performance, production and styling."

Track listing

Personnel

Main artist *

–

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

harmony In music, harmony is the process by which individual sounds are joined together or composed into whole units or compositions. Often, the term harmony refers to simultaneously occurring frequencies, pitches ( tones, notes), or chords. Howeve ...

and

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are ...

Musicians and production *

Evan Rogers Carl Sturken and Evan Rogers are New York–based songwriters and record producers. They have produced hits for Ruben Studdard, Wild Orchid, Christina Aguilera and Evelyn Champagne King and helped build the career of Rihanna. In addition to ...

, Cindy Mizelle, Audrey Wheeler, Arlene Gold,

Lari White Lari Michele White Cannon (, ; May 13, 1965 – January 23, 2018) was an American country music singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. She made her debut in 1988 after winning ''You Can Be a Star'', a televised talent competition ...

, Lori Ellsworth – backing vocals * Rob Kilgore – keyboards, synthesizers, guitars * Maurice Gibb – keyboards, synthesizers, backing vocals * Jim Tunnell – guitars, backing vocals * Chris Barbosa – sequencers

Chart positions

References

{{Authority control 1984 albums Robin Gibb albums Polydor Records albums New wave albums by English artists Synth-pop albums by English artists Albums produced by Robin Gibb Albums produced by Maurice Gibb