March 1, 2014

To honor Andy in his birth month of March, I will be posting stories received that show just how much he is loved. Andy’s talent, charm, gentleness and sensitivity will never be forgotten. This first story is from someone who grew up loving Andy with her Mom, who was also a huge fan of his.

Chelsea

Richmond

My Mom loved the Beatles when she was a little girl; they were her heroes. That changed when she got older and she had me. I was born when she was 19, and we sort of grew up together. When I was nine, my Mom introduced me to Andy Gibb after she heard his song “I Just Want To Be Your Everything” on the radio for the first time. She went out and bought the record and fan magazines with Andy’s picture inside. She had seen him on a Midnight Special in 1977, and she told me he was wearing a blue and white satin jacket, like an athletic kind of jacket and that he was “special”. She said he was going to be a big star. When I saw his picture for the first time, I fell in love. I know it was my first crush on anyone famous. I remember thinking he was the most beautiful boy I had ever seen, and that was the start of Andy being my one and only for eleven years. I decided I would marry him some day, and I started a scrapbook of pictures and collected articles about him and wrote him fan letters. When I was in middle school I wrote him a letter and asked him if he would take me to the 6th grade dance. My Mom mailed it, but she said he was very, very busy singing and making records and he probably wouldn’t be able to make it to Richmond. She was right, but I still loved him anyway. I watched him on TV whenever he made a guest appearance, and I think Mom loved him as much as I did. My favorite show was the Olivia Newton John Special with Andy and Abba. He was dressed all in red, and he was perfect, with that amazing hair and wonderful smile. For some reason I remember the part of the show where they all sat around singing old rock and roll songs, and he looked so normal, wearing jeans and a white shirt, very much the boy I wanted to love. I dreamed he would sit with me on the sofa watching TV, holding the bowl of popcorn and putting his head on my shoulder. All through middle school and high school I was loyal to him, and I had my wall in bedroom covered with his pictures: Andy in jeans, Andy in white sweats, Andy in tennis shorts, Andy in yellow spandex. There wasn’t an outfit that he wore that I didn’t love, because he could do no wrong. Mom and I played his records and sang with him. We knew every single song by heart. I was 20-years-old when he passed away, and I cried for weeks. So did my Mom. I still cry sometimes even now, but I always remember that he was the most important boy in my life for a very long time, and I loved everything about him. Andy had a voice like his personality, gentle and sweet, and he will always be my first love.