The Bee Gees are rightly remembered, first and foremost, for dominating the disco era. Their work on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack is unimpeachable, from the sidewalk-strutting "Stayin’ Alive" to the tender balladry of "How Deep Is Your Love." But for fans unfamiliar with their earlier work, it’s often shocking to learn about the brother-trio’s other musical phases, including psychedelic-pop and folky soft-rock.
One excellent showcase of that range dates back to August 10, 1973, when they played a stripped-down acoustic medley of five Beatles classics on late-night show The Midnight Special. It was an interesting (and perhaps savvy) promotional choice: The band’s 11th and most recent LP, that year’s Life in a Tin Can, earned middling reviews and below-average sales, only reaching No. 69 on the Billboard 200. Perhaps looking back to The Fab Four—who’d broken up in 1970—was a safer bet than their single "Saw a New Morning," which petered out at No. 94 on the Hot 100.
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Reasoning aside, the performance is stunning, highlighting the Bee Gees’ tight vocal harmonies and clever arrangements that flow gracefully between major and minor keys. Only utilizing their voices and a pair of gently strummed acoustic guitars, the group (Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb) work through some of their favorites from the early Beatles catalog: "If I Fell," "I Need You," "I’ll Be Back," "This Boy," and "She Loves You," earning the biggest applause for the latter staple.
This was a unique time in the band’s career, predating Saturday Night Fever’s commercial explosion by four years. But The Beatles' influence played a major factor in what happened after that blockbuster album—and not in an ideal way: In 1978, The Bee Gees starred in a musical based on that band’s 1967 masterpiece, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, and the film was a major box-office bomb (However, the soundtrack—which featured the Bee Gees covering a handful of Beatles songs—fared much better, peaking at No. 5 on the Billboard 200).
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The two bands were friendly over the years—for proof, just consult this Reddit thread rounding up photos of their various members together. Robin Gibb even talked about nerding out about Beatles songs backstage with Paul McCartney one year at the Grammys. "He invited me to the dressing room 'cause we’d met, and once again you just find yourself wanting to talk about songs," he told interviewer Tim Roxborogh. "I just kept saying, 'If I Fell,' 'If I Fell,' Paul!' [Laughs.]…He’s very kind and very gentle and respectful."
In that same interview, Gibb mentioned that McCartney even recorded a Bee Gees cover—though, as of this writing, it appears to remain unreleased. "He recorded [1978’s] ’Too Much Heaven,'" he said. "It never went out, but he wants to send me the master so I can look at it and see if we can really enhance it, but Robin got him to do 'Too Much Heaven' in England…He’s always been one of my heroes, and just knowing the man is inspiring." McCartney seems to feel the same way: When Gibb received a Kennedy Center Honor in 2023, the Beatle appeared in a video promo, enthusing, "Barry Gibb is one of the greats!"
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Ketel Marte was brought to tears during an MLB game after facing a shameful fan taunt.
Baseball manager's poignant support for a player brought to tears after shameful fan taunt
Whether they’re expecting perfection from their favorite players or, worse, behaving callously toward opposing teams, sports fans often forget that athletes are human beings. But athletic competition has the ability to unify and uplift, even amid such painful and unpleasant encounters. Take, for example, a major-league baseball game held June 24, 2025 between the home team Chicago White Sox and visiting Arizona Diamondbacks.
A shameful low point occurred when Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte was at bat in the seventh inning. Per ESPN, a fan reportedly yelled out a comment regarding Marte’s late mother, Elpidia Valdez, who died in a 2017 car accident in the Dominican Republic. Team personnel, including manager Torey Lovullo, then requested the 22-year-old fan be ejected. (Though he was remorseful and admitted his actions were inappropriate, according to an ESPN source, he was nonetheless banned indefinitely from all MLB ballparks.) "We commend the White Sox for taking immediate action in removing the fan," the MLB said in a statement. Marte reportedly declined to comment.
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While the fan’s behavior is inexcusable, it did spark a powerful and inspiring moment. After hearing the comment, Marte was visibly upset, prompting Lovullo to walk on the field, put his arm around him, and offer some words of encouragement. "[I said,] 'I love you, and I’m with you, and we’re all together, and you’re not alone,'" Lovullo said in a post-game interview, as documented by The Rich Eisen Show. "'No matter what happens, no matter what was said or what you’re heard, that guy is an idiot.’"
According to Arizona Republic, Lovullo heard the fan’s comment but didn’t want to repeat it. “I looked right at [Marte] when I heard,” he said. “I looked right at him, and he looked at the person, as well. He put his head down and I could tell it had an immediate impact on him, for sure."
Elsewhere in the post-game interview, the manager called the moment "terrible" and reflected on why he stood up for Marte. "Fans are nasty, and fans go too far sometimes," he said. "I love my players, and I’m gonna protect them…I’ve known Ketel for nine years. He’s had some unbelievably great moments and some hardships as well and some really tough moments in his life. I know those. At the end of the day, we’re human beings, and we have emotions. I saw him hurting, and I wanted to protect him."
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The following day, the Chicago White Sox X account sent out a message in support of Marte, writing, "We’re with you" and "Baseball is family." On The Rich Eisen Show, the show's host addressed the need to eradicate this kind of toxic athlete-fan interaction: "I was hearing [people saying], 'There’s no place for this in major league baseball.' There isn’t. There’s no place for this in our society. I understand that people are saying the MLB has got to do something about this. Fans have a right to heckle players—this is something that has happened forever…But there is a line."
In another recent, depressing sports moment with a beautiful coda, let’s look to Game 7 of the NBA Finals between the Indiana Pacers and the eventual champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder. During the first quarter, Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton tore his right Achilles tendon—a devastating injury that could potentially sideline him for most of the 2025-2026 season. Following the game, in a lovely display of sportsmanship, Thunder point-guard and league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander went to the Pacers locker room to check on his competitor. In a press conference, he said, "You just hate to see it, in sports in general. But in this moment, my heart dropped for him. I can't imagine playing the biggest game of my life and something like that happening. It’s so unfortunate."
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