Revisiting Abba

  Like Santa Rosa , Rock'n Roll Band is essentially a  Björn & Benny track rather than a proper Abba recording. It was recorded by the duo for the Japanese market and was brought into the lineup Abba's first album when, after the success of Ring Ring in the Swedish selection for Eurovision Song Contest, they needed enough songs to fill the album of the same name. The vocals by the group were re-recorded for the Abba version, but the result is still very Björn Ulvaeus -heavy with the female backing vocals almost inaudible. The song is not generally liked by Abba fans for this reason, it really doesn't sound like an Abba song. I have always had a soft spot for this song as the final track of Ring Ring album, which is very close to my heart. But in my ranking it is still quite low, as I don't love it as I love the bulk of the "real" Abba catalogue.  First thing that must be said about this song is that it is a song about Rock'n'roll band rather tha...

  In some way,  Santa Rosa should not be in my Abba ranking. In 1972 the group (that would not be given its name until 1973) was a side project of two solo artists and two songwriters and record producers. Santa Rosa was a song Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus wrote and recorded for the Japanese market as a follow-up to their song She's My Kind Of Girl that had become a surprise hit in Japan earlier the same year. Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad did not appear on this recording, but because it was released on the B-side of the second single of the group, it is included in my ranking and therefore in this blog.  I heard this song for the first time as late as 1994, when it was included on the rarities disc on Thank You For the Music four-CD compilation. It was exciting to hear a "new Abba track" that I didn't know even existed and I've been fond of it ever since in spite of the female half of the group not appearing on the song and the male half not...

  I Have a Dream is another single release from the  Voulez-Vous album that is ranked low in my list. It was a major hit for Abba when it was released, but currently it is more frowned upon by fans. Partly because it does not sit well on the album among up-tempo and high-energy dance tracks and partly because of the infamous use of children's choir in the latter part of the song. I've always been quite indifferent towards I Have a Dream. I don't hate it but I don't recall ever liking it terribly much either. Let's listen to it and find out what I think about it now. I Have a Dream is a totally inoffensive track, that stands out awkwardly on the a-side of Voulez-Vous between the title track and Angeleyes . The lyrics about "believing in angels" and the "final destination" sound strange coming from the lyricist Björn Ulvaeus , who has during the last decades been an outspoken atheist. The melody is simple and not too challenging. So on the surfac...

  Voulez-Vous is a difficult Abba album for me. It was a huge success, of course, and five songs from it were released as equally successful singles. However, to me, the five songs that were not released as singles are all better than the five songs that were. In general the songs selected to promote the album don't make anything move inside me. They are professionally crafted, arguably catchy and radio-friendly songs, but the others were more interesting and appealing.  Angeleyes is the weakest of the bunch. It reached number 3 in the UK charts, so at least the British record-buying public disagreed with me. I haven't listened to this song a lot so it is interesting to see if a new listen with an open mind will change my mind. The song starts promisingly. The layered "a-ha-ha" vocals and the intricate instrumentation behind it create an interesting wall of sound that is characteristic to Abba recordings of that era. However, the promise turns into confusion when th...