Colin Petersen talks Best of The Bee Gees tribute tour, legacy, and one ‘magical moment’
Before The Best of The Bee Gees starts its tribute tour in Mackay, original Bee Gees drummer Colin Petersen shares a rare ‘magical’ memory from his days with the iconic Aussie band.
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The Bee Gees original drummer has joined a national tribute tour kicking off in Mackay, sharing his memories of the time he spent in the iconic Australian band.
Colin Petersen was just a kid when he met Barry, Maurice, and Robin Gibbs at school in Redcliffe, and just 20 when the band began to make it big.
Now the 76-year-old is telling the stories of his famous youth through the Best of the Bee Gees at the MECC on Saturday, February 4.
Speaking to The Daily Mercury, Mr Petersen shared one “very rarely touched on” memory of a “magical moment” in 1967.
“This was our triumphant return to The Saville Theatre (in London),” Mr Petersen said.
“First time, by the way, that we played with an orchestra on stage, another aspect of The Bee Gees which is very, very poignant.
“We go back to the dressing room and there was this feeling with us, ‘Hey, we’re gonna be big stars’.”
He recalled there were about 500 fans screaming in the lane as the band took turns waving from the dressing room window.
“(Guitarist Vince Melouney) and I, we’re very proud of our Australian background,” he said.
“So Vince and I waved to the crowd.
“And then, I'll never forget this, the kids started to sing Waltzing Matilda.
“I turned to Vince and there were tears rolling down (his) cheeks.
“That really was an extraordinary moment.”
Though Petersen and the Gibbs brothers met at Humpybong Primary School, they all struggled as young musicians in Australia before getting together in the UK.
Petersen revelled in the “supernova” that was 60s boy band fame, but it wasn’t his first experience in the spotlight.
He was a child actor from nine years old, starring in Australian films like The Scamp (1958), The Cry from the Streets (1958), and the popular Smiley(1956).
“Though a child, Smiley was a true Aussie battler,” Petersen said of his title character’s quest to buy a bicycle.
“That’s part of the Australian ethos and that’s why that character resonated with the Australian public.”
When he got the role, Petersen said his mother impressed on him to have discipline, respect, and humility.
“So she was my mentor at that age and she kept me well grounded,” he said.
“Reminding me that, ‘You may be talented son, but remember that this is a job’.
“She taught me to hold onto the fact that my … stardom was different from my personal persona.
“She put it in simple terms, like, ‘Don’t get carried away with this, boy’.
“And that carried on with The Bee Gees.
“I did have the ability, thanks to my mother, to keep it in some perspective and have some identity away from it.”
The Bee Gees had signed a contract with producer Robert Stigwood, who also managed Cream, at the suggestion of The Beatles manager Brian Epstein.
Stigwood’s contracts let him control his artists’ albums, soundtracks, and publishing rights, with his obituary describing him in his heyday as “the entertainment industry’s most powerful tycoon”.
This control ultimately led to Petersen leaving The Bee Gees in 1969 and, later suing Stigwood after raising concerns about a perceived conflict of interest as their effective employer.
“My argument was how can this man negotiate on our behalf with himself?”
“I was a bit of a trailblazer here because (the Gibbs) sued him for exactly the same thing in (1981).
“Those years that that litigation went on for, I think I learned a lot about the legalities behind the scenes.”
Despite the drama surrounding the band’s breakdown, he said that the Bee Gees’ greatest legacy was as “legendary songwriters”.
“Like The Beach Boys and The Everly Brothers … there is such a thing as a blend of voices amongst kin,” Petersen said.
“The extent of their songwriting repertoire (and) the way they embraced different styles.
“(Seeing) oldies like me (and) 20-year-olds singing the songs word for word, it’s extraordinary.
“The songs have lived on.”
Now returning to the stage after the Covid pause, all of Petersen’s experiences are on show for Mackay audiences.
With all the hits from the 1960s and through the disco era, The Best of the Bee Gees also features archival footage illustrating Petersen’s first-hand memories of the time.
“Not only is it musically near-perfect, it is so true to the original recordings,” he said.
“And then you’ve got that added dimension of an original member giving that background of the next song.
“It’s not just another gig.
“There is something very special about this.”
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