The Bee Gees' perfect harmonies and humor charmed Johnny Carson in acoustic performance

Some of The Bee Gees’ most incredible live moments took place on television, with their songs stripped back to only sparse acoustic guitars and those radiant vocal harmonies. One such intimate performance took place during a March 1973 appearance onThe Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, with the Gibb brothers dusting off their first No. 1 U.K. hit, the folky 1967 psych-pop anthem "Massachusetts."

This particular Carson episode gave The Bee Gees a massive showcase, totaling 19 minutes between their songs and interview. And that screen time was a valuable commodity for the trio in 1973: Their most recent LP, Life in a Tin Can, was a relative flop (only reaching No. 69 on the Billboard 200), and they were still a few years off from their monster disco era via the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. Carson introduced them with enthusiasm, telling the audience, “My next guests have had quite a career, most successful as singers and songwriters, as well as their own hit recordings. Their compositions have been recorded by people like Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, Andy Williams, Glen Campbell, Tom Jones, hundreds of others."

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The Gibbs took full advantage of the spotlight, opening their segment with two full-band singles in the symphonic pop vein: the soon-to-be-released ballad "Wouldn’t I Be Someone" and Tin Can’s more grandiose "Saw a New Morning." (The promotion, in hindsight, did little good: The former reached an underwhelming No. 42 on the Billboard Easy Listening Charts, and the latter peaked at No. 94 on the Hot 100.)

The most interesting moments happen after the artists took a seat on Carson’s swanky '70s chairs. In their chat, they talk about their writing process, the early musical growth of their then-teenage brother Andy, and the awkwardness of playing large arenas. "The biggest thing is that you get a stadium of about 15,000 people, and you get about 3,000 really listening and the rest are out of touch because they’re not really in communication with you," says Robin.

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Then the trio pull out an acoustic guitar for their desk-side take on "Massachusetts." Maurice is entertaining for more than one reason, poking fun at the long gaps between his vocal harmonies by yawning, fake-sleeping, crossing his arms, wiping his eyes, smiling to an off-screen Carson, and even checking his wristwatch. The silliness brings another layer to this lovely little serenade, which highlights those signature harmonies on the phrase "down in Massachusetts." The performance leaves Carson with a chuckle, bantering with Maurice, "Those short naps are wonderful when you have to lay out, aren’t they?"

The Bee Gees were the masters of the talk-show acoustic performance. Later in 1973, the group played a stark medley of five early-era Beatles songs ("If I Fell," "I Need You," "I’ll Be Back," "This Boy," and "She Loves You") on The Midnight Special; and 25 years later, during a now-classic spot on British variety series Des O’Connor Tonight, they performed a gorgeous a cappella version of "How Deep Is Your Love" that might even top the original.

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