Cliff Richard - Sir Cliff Richard And Sir Tim Rice Offer Tributes To Tragic Gibb

Sad Richard insists the Bee Gees star is "gone too soon", but leaves behind a "stunningly good" back catalogue of hits, while revered lyricist Rice calls the singer "a charming man".

Rice says, "I saw him only a couple of weeks ago. He wasn't at all well but was putting up a marvellous fight. It's a terrible loss for the music industry."

Gibb had been battling multiple illnesses in recent months, including colon and liver cancer and intestinal issues. He fell into a coma last month (Apr12) after contracting pneumonia, but appeared to be on his way to recovery.

Sir Cliff adds, "We are a fraternity of people who sing pop and rock and Robin is another one of us who's gone too soon, too early. So the legacy will be what the Bee Gees did, which was stunning, stunningly good stuff - right on a par with the Beatles."

Former Beatle Ringo Starr also offered his thoughts about Gibb's passing, telling the Bbc: "Robin will be remembered as a musician and as a singer and part of The Bee Gees. The legacy they'll leave behind is Stayin' Alive, the harmonies and the songs that they've written."

And Dionne Warwick, who scored a hit with Bee Gees tune Heartbreaker, remembers Robin Gibb as "a wonderful jokester," adding, "He had an incredibly witty sense of humour and was fun to be around. All three of them (Gibb brothers) were sensational gentlemen first, just fun-loving guys."

Meanwhile, John Travolta, who starred in Saturday Night Fever - the film that propelled the Bee Gees to disco superstardom in the 1970s thanks to their soundtrack work, has released a statement on Gibb's death, calling the singer "one of the most wonderful people." He adds, "(He was) gifted, generous, and a real friend to everyone he knew. And we'll miss him."