“More Than a Woman” by Tavares
As this song (“More Than a Woman”) progresses, its lyrics become increasingly, shall we say convoluted. But the song was written by the Bee Gees, who are generally considered to be amongst the greatest authors in music industry history. And as such the point being relayed, as indicative of the track’s title, is that the singer is thoroughly smitten by his sweetheart, that being the addressee. The way he goes about illustrating that point is apparently by utilizing the most poetic metaphors and allegories he can think of.
But unlike the usual case of a guy emitting overly-fancy lyrics about the woman he adores, it isn’t as if he’s now trying to pick her up. Instead, what is revealed is that this is an established relationship, though one in which the vocalist obviously considers himself fortunate for scoring such a fine partner.
And as far as him proclaiming her as “more than a woman”, that analogy is in part rationalized due to the fact that, as implied from the onset, the addressee is someone he’s known for a while and may have even witnessed grow into womanhood. Indeed, in days prior, she was but a girl in his eyes. But now, he’s come to admire her more as a peer, in a way he “never really” did “before”.
So it’s like this song is a combination of romantic celebration intermixed with pickup lines, if you will. This relationship may be ongoing, but it also reads such that it is still quite new. And being that the vocalist is in fact smitten, at this stage, as stated, he can’t imagine living life without this woman he loves.
Tavares
Tavares is a R&B group from the Northeastern United States. The band is still technically active to this day but experienced their most-pertinent musical years during the 1970s. For example, their signature song is generally considered to be 1976’s “Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel”, and they really didn’t have any major hits before or after said decade.
Facts about “More Than a Woman”
As some readers would already know, “More Than a Woman” is a track that was actually written by the Bee Gees, i.e. Barry Gibbs alongside his now-deceased younger siblings:
- Robin (1949-2012)
- Maurice (1949-2003)
The song was included on the highly-successful soundtrack to John Travolta’s Saturday Night Fever (1977). This was an album which the brothers Gibb spearheaded.
However, what is not as common knowledge is that there are actually two versions of this song present on said album (as well as appearing in the film itself), one by Tavares and the other by the Bee Gees. And of further interesting note is that both renditions were released as singles.
Tavares’ own came out first, on 15 November 1977. It fared better in the United States and UK. This was because the Bee Gees version was not issued as a single in those two countries. So it was Tavares’ interpretation which appeared on the Billboard Hot 100 and UK Singles Chart and in the latter case reached an impressive seventh place.
Beyond that showing, it can also be said, as with many other songs found on Saturday Night Fever, that this tune is an established disco classic.
This track was also subsequently featured on an album Tavares dropped in 1978 titled “Future Bound”.
The labels behind its original issuance were Capitol Records, Polydor Records and the since-defunct EMI and RSO Records.
Tavares’ “More Than a Woman” was produced by the late Freddie Perren (1943-2004), who himself was a member of the legendary songwriting/production team known as The Corporation.
Something Noteworthy
These are some other iconic Bee Gees songs appearing on Saturday Night Fever‘s soundtrack album:
