‘Stayin' Alive’ is a song written and performed by the Bee Gees from the Saturday Night Fever motion picture soundtrack. The song was released in December 1977 by RSO Records as the second single from the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. The band wrote the song and co-produced it with Albhy Galuten and Karl Richardson. It is one of the Bee Gees' signature songs. In 2021, ‘Stayin' Alive’ was placed at No. 99 by Rolling Stone on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. In 2004, it ranked No. 9 on AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs survey of top tunes in American cinema. In a UK television poll on ITV in December 2011 it was voted fifth in The Nation's Favourite Bee Gees Song.
On its release, ‘Stayin' Alive"’ climbed the charts to hit the number one spot on the US Billboard Hot 100 the week of 4 February 1978, remaining there for four consecutive weeks. Consequently, it became one of the band's most recognisable tunes, partly because it appeared in the opening credits of Saturday Night Fever. In the United States, it would become the second of six consecutive number-one singles, tying the record with the Beatles for most consecutive number ones in the United States at the time (a record broken by Whitney Houston who achieved seven consecutive number-ones). In 1979, at the 21st Annual Grammy Awards, ‘Stayin' Alive’ won the award for Grammy Award for Best Vocal Arrangement for Two or More Voices, alongside 3 other wins at that ceremony, including Album of The Year.
The executive producer of the Saturday Night Fever motion picture soundtrack and Bee Gees manager Robert Stigwood asked the band to write a few songs for the soundtrack. At this point, the film was in early stages and it did not have a title; in fact, all Stigwood had to go on was a New York cover story about discomania. They wrote "Stayin' Alive" over the course of a few days while sprawled on the staircase at the Château d'Hérouville studio near Paris. As with many other artists during the 1970s, the Bee Gees recorded most of the soundtrack in France for tax reasons.
Several words from Robin Gibb's Concorde ticket inspired the Gibbs to write the lyrics for ‘Stayin' Alive’. Robin recalls, "The subject matter of 'Stayin' Alive' is actually quite a serious one; It's about survival in the streets of New York, and the lyrics actually say that". Barry Gibb also recalls, "People crying out for help. Desperate songs. Those are the ones that become giants. The minute you capture that on record, it's gold. 'Stayin' Alive' is the epitome of that. Everybody struggles against the world, fighting all the bullshit and things that can drag you down. And it really is a victory just to survive. But when you climb back on top and win bigger than ever before, well that's something everybody reacts to everybody". "We'd also written a song called 'Saturday Night'", Maurice explains, "But there were so many songs called 'Saturday Night' even one by the Bay City Rollers, so when we rewrote it for the movie, we called it 'Stayin' Alive'.
The song was not initially scheduled for release, with ‘How Deep Is Your Love’ selected as lead single, but fans called radio stations and RSO Records requesting the song immediately after seeing trailers for Saturday Night Fever, featuring the track over the aforementioned introductory scene. The single was eventually released in mid-December, a month after the album, and moved to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States in February, where it stayed for four weeks. Soon after, it slid to number two, near the third hit from the album, ‘Night Fever’. In the United Kingdom, ‘Stayin' Alive’ was not as popular as it was in the United States, but was still a hit, reaching number four.
Label – RSO
Songwriters – Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, Maurice Gibb
Producers – Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten, Karl Richardson
SONG LYRICS
[Verse 1]Well, you can tell by the way I use my walk
I'm a woman's man, no time to talk
The music loud and the women warm
I've been kicked around since I was born
[Pre-Chorus]
And now it's alright, it's okay
And you may look the other way
But we can try to understand
The New York Times' effect on man
[Chorus]
Whether you're a brother or whether you're a mother
You're stayin' alive, stayin' alive
Feel the city breakin' and everybody shakin'
And we're stayin' alive, stayin' alive
Ah, ah, ah, ah
Stayin' alive, stayin' alive
Ah, ah, ah, ah
Stayin' alive
Oh, when you walk
[Verse 2]
Well now, I get low and I get high
And if I can't get either, I really try
Got the wings of Heaven on my shoes
I'm a dancin' man and I just can't lose
[Pre-Chorus]
You know it's alright, it's okay
I'll live to see another day
But we can try to understand
The New York Times' effect on man
[Chorus]
Whether you're a brother or whether you're a mother
You're stayin' alive, stayin' alive
Feel the city breakin' and everybody shakin'
And we're stayin' alive, stayin' alive
Ah, ah, ah, ah
Stayin' alive, stayin' alive
Ah, ah, ah, ah
Stayin' alive
(Hey, yeah)
[Bridge]
Life goin' nowhere
Somebody help me
Somebody help me, yeah
Life goin' nowhere
Somebody help me, yeah
I'm stayin' alive
[Verse 1]
Well, you can tell by the way I use my walk
I'm a woman's man, no time to talk
The music loud and the women warm
I've been kicked around since I was born
[Pre-Chorus]
And now it's alright, it's okay
And you may look the other way
But we can try to understand
The New York Times' effect on man
[Chorus]
Whether you're a brother or whether you're a mother
You're stayin' alive, stayin' alive
Feel the city breakin' and everybody shakin'
And we're stayin' alive, stayin' alive
Ah, ah, ah, ah
Stayin' alive, stayin' alive
Ah, ah, ah, ah
Stayin' alive
(Hey, yeah)
[Outro]
Life goin' nowhere
Somebody help me
Somebody help me, yeah
Life goin' nowhere
Somebody help me, yeah
I'm stayin' alive
Life goin' nowhere
Somebody help me
Somebody help me, yeah
Life goin' nowhere
Somebody help me, yeah
I'm stayin' alive
Life goin' nowhere
Somebody help me
Somebody help me, yeah
Life goin' nowhere
Somebody help me, yeah
I'm stayin' alive
Life goin' nowhere
Somebody help me
Somebody help me, yeah
Life goin' nowhere
Somebody help me, yeah
I'm stayin' alive