Was just looking for a clip of Summer Night City (not my favourite ABBA track [and, even....a bit disco!!], but I quite like it.... - anyway, found this by Therion (a band i wasn't aware of but may have to check out) [hope it uploads].
Gonna go back in the thread in a minute to re-read and 'like' Womble's comments - possibly the most 'deep and meaningful' (without irony!) comments I've yet seen on this site [I'm new!].
If we're distinguishing between rock and pop (Beatles and Stones are rock?; ABBA are pop) [not totally sure about the distinctions really - think Beatles were, certainly at first, a pop band, as were the Stones], then there isn't a pop band to touch ABBA. And I have to disagree with an earlier comment along the lines of don't look to ABBA for melancholy; listen a bit deeper to the lyrics - plenty of heartbreak and loneliness stuff - some of their lyrics are a bit naff but some, combined with the melodies and singing, go quite deep. I think there's a side to ABBA that often gets overlooked.
My top five are (from a personal 'Best of' with 25 tracks on it!) probably:
Dancing Queen (Feel the beat from the tambourine!!)
Knowing Me, Knowing You (In these old familiar rooms children would play / Now there's only emptiness, nothing to say)
SOS (You seem so far away, though you are standing near)
The Name of the Game (If I trust in you, would you let me down? / Would you laugh at me, if I said I care for you?)
The Winner Takes it All (But tell me does she kiss / Like I used to kiss you?)
The videos helped* (I was in my teens....); the director, Lars Sven "Lasse" Hallström, went on to direct My Life as a Dog [great, if a little weird, 'coming of age' film] and What's Eating Gilbert Grape (Johnny Depp, Juliette Lewis) [also good, I think].
* - not true really; heard all their songs on the radio.
Regarding some of the comments earlier in this thread, about ABBA being pop, not rock, and about disco, etc.; I'd just like to say that I think it's good that the 'sites' owners / moderators are cosmopolitan enough to 'allow' content that may not be defined 'classic rock' (as well as all the more obvious 'rock' stuff (older or newer)):
classic - serving as a standard of excellence : of recognized value
rock (music) - popular music usually played on electronically amplified instruments and characterized by a persistent heavily accented beat, repetition of simple phrases, and often country, folk, and blues elements
I'd say I prefer 'rock' music ('heavy metal back in the day), but there's loads of other stuff; pop, naff pop!, punk, etc., that I'm just as happy to whitter on about!
I think maybe there's an honesty to their lyrics / songs - like they wrote their whole personal relationships into their art (yes, art). It's kind of glossed over, covered up as pop, but it's totally there.
I haven't read the full thread yet s apologies if I am repeating what others have said. ABBA were a phenomenal band and my favourite of all time. The songwriting on Ulvaeus and Anderson was incomparable, better than anyone IMO. in fact, one of the reasons I like Judas Priest so much (my fave metal band) is because they seemed to approach songwriting with ABBA's ear for melody.
Then Anderson - the real genius of the two - took the band to the next level with his production values and arrangements - requiring technology to be advanced just so he can lay down all the tracks he heard in his head (in songs like Take a Chance On Me, where an instrument is heard only once in a verse and for a split second, you understand, as crazy as it sounds, how the song would suffer without it. He didn't just add things for the sake of it). He also wasn't a slave to technology - he could distill the brilliance and melody of those mega-layered tracks into a single piano piece and they slay you, shining with class, as effortlessly as a Dave Gilmour solo. Quick examples would be the little piano motif at the end of One Man, One Woman just after the electronic violins kick in. Another would be the piano demo of Slipping Through My Fingers.
Finally, throw in the singers who, despite "only" singing what was written for them, had fantastic range and timbre and individuality - complementing each other just as brilliantly as Dave Murray and Adrian Smith from Iron Maiden.
The thing that really stands out is the melodious wonder of the songs. Before I got into them, I dismissed them as just like the stage-managed pop puppets I grew up with: easy songs, simple melodies, time-honoured chord progressions, playing it safe. Unfortunately, I have read many comments in this thread that echo the same but how wrong I was! They spanned genres - kickstarting more than a few - and spanned keys and chord progressions, and intricate & complex melodies/vocals without batting an eyelid. And despite all this - they still sounded phenomenally catchy. And that was when their brilliance started to dawn on me - that they could write such contrasting, experimental, musically-challenging stuff and yet make it so infectious that it sounded simple. In fact, the main reason for my command of music theory today is ABBA. They were eye-opening and brain-melting at the same time.
Sure, the lyrics weren't great on their first few albums but they were foreigners and they still don't suck as bad as some bands who speak English as a native language, but it's always about the music with me. Eg: YMCA is a great song no matter how frivolous the lyrics. It does it's job perfectly. Music snobs and Dylan fans (not attacking Dylan, BTW) may turn their nose up but music is about melody. Deep, introspective lyrics alone mean nothing (and all too many are just descents into pretentiousness). Yet they still wrote some deeply eloquent and moving lyrics: Knowing Me, Knowing You, My Love, My Life, Dance While the Music Still Goes On, I've Been Waiting For You, The Winner Takes It All.
Speaking of their first few albums, for those who dismiss ABBA as "naff" and "pop", you'll hear rock-based tracks like So Long, Watch Out and Hey Helen. And wwhilst not giving Motorhead any nightmares, to be on a pop album in the mid 70s, it's damn edgy! In fact, there's a lot of rock guitar underpinning their music - Knowing Me, Knowing You is a great example. Then there's the Bach-esque S.O.S which somehow turns a dark, classical verse into an upbeat pop song. Also throw Benny's piano piece Intermezzo No. 1. Or how about the Beach Boys surf-pop of When I Kissed the Teacher?
They went from standard pop to country, to rock, to big band, to Spanish-flavoured themes, to blues, to country-rock, to disco, to new wave. You can't define ABBA by a sound or a genre. For every genteel and inoffensive Hasta Manana and Dum Dum Diddle that your gran will love there's an in-yer-face, sexy rock drive of Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A man after midnight) (the live '70 version rocks!) and Get On (the Carousel). And for every rocker like that is a dark, brooding track like I'm a Marionette and The Piper (which was a warning against allowing the likes of Hitler to rise again). Throw in the frivolous disco of Voulez Vous, the 50s vibe of Ricky Rockarolla and the totally kickarse mindfuck and misleading intro of [IbSummer Nights City[/b] which did the "we'll start slowly and then surprise everyone by bursting in with driving rock" shtick a good ten years before the thrash bands of the 80s and you have an extremely diverse band. And this is without breaking down their songs to showcase the stunning and varied structures and arrangements. They even re-genred their own music - such as the disco and piano ballad versions of When All Is Said and Done. And I'll never cease to be amazed at Benny effortessly fusing 15th medieval-esque riffery with driving rock as he did with Gimme!
And if nothing else, there's the impossibly gorgeous Agnetha (and her luscious backside).
To listen to ABBA is a journey into music itself - all genres, all styles. Male vocals, female, dual vocals. Light and frothy to dark and mysterious. Simple structure (Why Did it Have To Be Me) to dizzyingly complex (Take A Chance On Me). And to truly appreciate them you have to listen to them on headphones. Only then can you begin to hear the majesty of the production. In fact, it's a crime to listen to them without headphones as you don't get the 3D effect, can't hear the placing of the instrumentation in the mix, and will miss out on so much. There's no direct rock comparison that is so intricate but Appetite for Destruction springs to mind in that only via headphones o you clearly hear two distinct and completely different guitar tracks for each song and it's amazing how these two guitar pieces that sound nothing like the song you know come together to form the brilliant melody that you do recognise.
You also get to see ABBA reinvent themselves - usually with gutsy, blues-driven rock - as they did with the live versions of Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!, Hole in Your Soul, Tiger and Does Your Mother Know.
To finish I will suggest a couple of IMP stunning tracks that rarely get a mention that I hope, I hope, will open the eyes and ears for the rockers here who are yet to be convinced (and welcome treats for those who are).
DANCE (WHILE THE MUSIC STILL GOES ON)
Not only do I love the ever changing, rolling chorus but the modulation towards the end, along with the ever-increasing orchestration and vocals (sounding like a 100-strong choir) just continuously pushes the song into the stratosphere. It's also notable for it's very adult and poignant lyrics regarding a breakup. Not your usual "I miss you, baby" or "I hate you, baby"
I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU
I wanted to post the outstanding live '77 version but all the good versions are just too short. Such a heartfelt and passionate ballad that is catchy yet sweeping and epic in its scale. Would make a dazzling hard rock cover. Probably by Queensryche
SLIPPING THROUGH MY FINGERS (INSTRUMENTAL DEMO)
Words can't say anymore. Just listen tot he majesty of the arrangement and melody - even though it's mainly just Benny on his organ (fnarr, fnarr).
Bit late to this thread (and haven't looked at what's come after this post from womble) but, felt i had to comment on your brilliant and heartfelt discussion of ABBA's music - said what i feel in much more depth and 'authority' (sounds like you 'know your shit') - ABBA are incomparable in my mind. The catchy and simple 'pop' songs hide so much depth - that 'making it sound simple and easy' is a mark of real talent. Really liked the way you related their music to other heavier acts - I'll check out Judas Priest again (who i never got into, beyond the singles [likewise Iron Maiden]). I know 'Dance (while the music still goes on') and would echo your sentiments about it - I'll check out (the less well known?) I've been waiting for you. Thank you.
Going back to a couple of earlier posts (from years ago) - don't think there was any kind of 'sell out' in relation to ABBA (group or individuals) - there's no way their music could be termed sell-out. Maybe different from what they started out doing (folky type stuff) - but the music they came up with can't be termed 'sell-out' because, in its own way, it transcends all that came before (not better than, or replacing, all that came before - their music was incomparably good, well-crafted. 'pop music') - their music was more than good enough to stand on its own merit - how can it be considered a sell out (just because it sold millions)?
Getting to number one, and/or selling millions, isn't necessarily a good indicator of the 'quality' of the music (check out the Velvet Underground's sales figures; even Bob Dylan's); but with ABBA it's almost the reverse - they sold shed-loads of product, but there's a depth and quality to their music which possibly isn't even reflected in those sales figures (or their recognition, or lack of, at the time) - which is why we're still talking about them now.... Weren't The Beatles dissed by 'figures of [musical] authority' when they started out? Whilst ABBA didn't go nearly as 'far out' as The Beatles (and, arguably, weren't so innovative) (fewer drugs involved!), their music was as well-crafted and brilliant pop music as that of The Beatles [maybe!].
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
