Revisiting Abba as if for the first time

I became an Abba fan some time in 1979 when I heard Arrival and Abba the Album on a cassette tape. The final blow was to see the music video of Gimme Gimme Gimme on television and to see the group apparently (pretending, as I found out later) recording their new song in the studio. Between 1979-1982 I experienced the sensation of hearing each Abba album and each Abba song for the first time. During the 46 year that followed I listened to all the Abba songs tens of times, maybe hundreds of times, but the feeling of hearing an Abba song for the first time was obviously never felt again, not even in 2021 when the new 10 Abba songs were revealed. 

Recently I have come across several videos of people, usually American, hearing Abba songs for the first time. It has been a revelation to see the reactions of heavy fans, proggers or classical musicians discover the songs I knew through and through for the first time with mostly awe and surprise. 

This has given me new approach to these songs and also eagerness to go these songs through again and try to listen to them as I heard them for the first time. Not as background music in the car or at home while reading or working or doing household chores. But to really sit down, stop everything and listen trying to immerse myself into everything that is included in these recordings. 

A couple of years ago I ranked all 110 Abba songs from worst to best (in finnish. Read it here). It was not an easy task and if I did the ranking today it might look very different. I will use this ranking as the basis of this blog. I will listen to the songs one by one in this order and try to find a fresh approach to these recordings not as songs I know all too well but as if I hadn't hear them before. In the end I will rank the songs again and see what has changed. I will also add several "bonus" songs, recordings that strictly speaking don't belong to the Abba canon, but that include all four Abba members performing songs written by one or two Abba members. 

There are several factors in Abba songs and recordings that make them to me uniquely Abba. Most, if not all, Abba songs include some or all of these unique characteristics that distinguish Abba from other pop music from the era. 

• Vocals and vocal harmonies: As we know the female members are exceptionally talented singers both as solo singers but also singing in harmony or in the background. What is less talked about is the importance of the male vocals in the overall harmonies of Abba. I will not point out all the songs that have good vocals or harmonies (as all the Abba recordings are well sung) but I will give special mention to songs where the vocals are in my opinion above those of an average Abba song.
• Arrangements: Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus are masters in creating multi layered instrumental and vocal arrangements that make the songs interesting to listen every time. Credit must also be given to Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad who had a major role in creating the vocal arrangements. Sven-Olof Waldoff, Anders Eljas and particularly Rutger Gunnarsson were responsible for the orchestral arrangements that are on the same level of excellence as the arrangements by Andersson/Ulvaeus. 
• Abba was always surrounded with top notch studio players, which can be heard if you listen separately to any instrument on their records. 
• Surprises: Listening to Abba songs gave you the opportunity to be surprised by unorthodox chord changes (between major and minor) and by evolving arrangements from one verse to another or one chorus to another. Sometimes a song might catch you off guard by making a u-turn, changing into something else complete and then, equally surprisingly, returning to the beginning. Listening to an Abba album for the first time was always an adventure.
• What became an Abba trade mark was the way they would strip some part of the song (usually the chorus) of its lush arrangement and play that part with only vocals and few selected instruments. The first example of this was the chorus of Mamma Mia, and after that this effect would be sprinkled in selected songs in their catalogue. 
• Relatable, down to earth lyrics: Björn Ulvaeus developed leaps and bounds as a lyricist from being an apprentice to the veteran wordsmith Stig Anderson to being a masterful storyteller with strong emotions woven in. Only recently has he been given credit for his unique way of creating lyrical masterpieces. When I became an Abba fan I didn't know English, so it has been only recently that I've understood that the lyrics of Abba songs are not just any old pop lyric.
• Overall quality: Even songs that may not have been considered their best are crafted with professional care and finesse. Nothing is left half done. That is evident when you dive into the deeper cuts in Abba's catalogue. There are no throwaway recordings made just to fill the space on a vinyl album or a single b-side.

While listening to these songs I will try to dive deep and find the special things that make them so special and point them out for you, my readers, to find and cherish. As many of you might agree there is not really a bad Abba recording but 110 songs ranging from OK to unbelievably astounding.  Join the joyride (sorry for the Roxette reference), I let the music speak and add my personal views to the discussion.