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Abba
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learn_more wrote: »If anyone asked me what was the first song you ever liked if you can remember back that far to your younger years then I can honestly say it was Super Trooper. That song came out in 1980 according to wiki and back then I wasn't even a teenager. Back then we had no music playing devices at home and I would play in 2 or 3 times in a row on a jukebox that was in my dads favourite watering house. 10p a go or 20p to play 3 songs, and I would use 20p to play it 3 times in a row much to the annoyance of the drunken farmer patrons that were pissing it up after 12 o clock mass on a Sunday in that particular venue. : D
I have 4 brothers and 2 sisters, and back then in 1980 my sister would plaster her bedroom wall with pop posters she got from some pop magazine. Some very big ones she would order or get free with the mag. I got my hands on a poster of ABBA but instead of putting it on the bedroom wall I stuck in on the inside of the wardrobe door in an attempt to somewhat hide it.
I got nothing but abuse from my siblings as they knew I liked Super Trouper and they would take the piss. One day someone ripped my poster deliberately and I had to throw it away. At the time my sis was into Adam Ant and other lase 70's/early 80's artists that were forgotten over time. So I got a lot of flack for what I liked, as a child.
Decades later ABBA is still talked about in the media/documentaries with great love and affection. I don't really hear much about Adam Ant or the music/bands/artists my siblings liked. I feel I've been vindicated over the years.
Super Trouper is a flawless song so no shame there! At least you can say you were a fan of the second best selling band of all time
sure where's Adam Ant now?! 
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Join Date:Posts: 25734
SecretsOfEarth wrote: »So jealous that you got to see them in the RDS. That was their last ever tour concert in Europe! What was it like?Stanley Rough Roadblock wrote: »What was their concert like in 1979? RDS wasn't it?
Me being 28 means I wasn't there
I was there with my equally uncool pal from school. We were both in 6th year and everyone else was into Pink Floyd etc., but we cared not.
The first thing was the price of tickets. I saw Carole King (fairly big at that time) for a ticket price of £1.20 and Abba tickets were £8.50, an incredible amount of money in those days. None of the Ticketmaster nonsense either, you went in and queued up in Duke Street - was it Golden Discs or Dolphin Discs? I can't remember, but I remember it was Duke Street.
I was so excited for the concert, I wish I'd taken the time to take it all in. I do remember being very surprised at how 'big' the sound was. It wasn't exactly like the records, you knew they were singing live (and they had a lot of backing singers) but the sound was very 'full' - whether they used some backing tracks i don't know. I remember Benny started off with a version of 'Danny Boy' which went down very well. There is a site here, that people might find of interest. It has the list of songs etc. I remember when Tomas Ledin sang a song I just wanted him to get off and let Abba on. It was the night of Frida's 34th birthday and we sang Happy Birthday to her. There was a choir of kids from East Wall that sang with 'I Have a dream'.
We were very impressed with the lighty up Abba sign behind the stage, but they were simpler times. We had no idea this was going to be the one and only chance to see them here. I know of one fan who was about 14 at the time, whose parents went without him as they said he was too young and they would bring him the next time they played. i don't think he has forgiven his parents yet.
SecretsOfEarth wrote: »Speaking of naff things, that Mamma Mia Party! thing in Stockholm is a bit rubbish, but it gave us a picture of the four together again so I'll let it slide :cool:
Edit: Have you been to ABBAWORLD/ABBA The Museum? I went to ABBAWORLD in Earl's Court a few years back, dying to go to the actual museum though, busy planning Stockholm trips in my head!
I didn't mind the Mamma Mia the Party thing, though it is expensive, even by Stockholm standards.
I was at Abbaworld in Earls Court and also a few times to the Museum in Stockholm - most recently for an Abba fan club day in April, when Benny came and played for us. Spit on me Benny! I took quite a nice photo of him there and sent it to Mono Music later in the summer with return postage and he signed it for me. They are good like that.
I always considered Benny Andersson the musical talent in Abba. Yes, Bjorn could write lyrics, which got a lot better as his English improved, but Benny wrote bloody good tunes and that (in my opinion) is what has allowed them attract new audiences almost 50 years on. That and the really complicated arrangements. If you listen to some of the basslines in Abba for example, they are really complicated. All elements came together in a perfect storm in Abba, and the two women's voices, while not really great voices alone, together were something special.
I would love to go see a Benny Andersson Orchestra performance. They are supposed to be great fun. Like a big gang of oul' lads jamming. The older he gets, the more he goes back to his roots of Swedish folk music.0 -
I was there with my equally uncool pal from school. We were both in 6th year and everyone else was into Pink Floyd etc., but we cared not.
The first thing was the price of tickets. I saw Carole King (fairly big at that time) for a ticket price of £1.20 and Abba tickets were £8.50, an incredible amount of money in those days. None of the Ticketmaster nonsense either, you went in and queued up in Duke Street - was it Golden Discs or Dolphin Discs? I can't remember, but I remember it was Duke Street.
I was so excited for the concert, I wish I'd taken the time to take it all in. I do remember being very surprised at how 'big' the sound was. It wasn't exactly like the records, you knew they were singing live (and they had a lot of backing singers) but the sound was very 'full' - whether they used some backing tracks i don't know. I remember Benny started off with a version of 'Danny Boy' which went down very well. There is a site here, that people might find of interest. It has the list of songs etc. I remember when Tomas Ledin sang a song I just wanted him to get off and let Abba on. It was the night of Frida's 34th birthday and we sang Happy Birthday to her. There was a choir of kids from East Wall that sang with 'I Have a dream'.
We were very impressed with the lighty up Abba sign behind the stage, but they were simpler times. We had no idea this was going to be the one and only chance to see them here. I know of one fan who was about 14 at the time, whose parents went without him as they said he was too young and they would bring him the next time they played. i don't think he has forgiven his parents yet.
I didn't mind the Mamma Mia the Party thing, though it is expensive, even by Stockholm standards.
I was at Abbaworld in Earls Court and also a few times to the Museum in Stockholm - most recently for an Abba fan club day in April, when Benny came and played for us. Spit on me Benny! I took quite a nice photo of him there and sent it to Mono Music later in the summer with return postage and he signed it for me. They are good like that.
I always considered Benny Andersson the musical talent in Abba. Yes, Bjorn could write lyrics, which got a lot better as his English improved, but Benny wrote bloody good tunes and that (in my opinion) is what has allowed them attract new audiences almost 50 years on. That and the really complicated arrangements. If you listen to some of the basslines in Abba for example, they are really complicated. All elements came together in a perfect storm in Abba, and the two women's voices, while not really great voices alone, together were something special.
I would love to go see a Benny Andersson Orchestra performance. They are supposed to be great fun. Like a big gang of oul' lads jamming. The older he gets, the more he goes back to his roots of Swedish folk music.
That sounds amazing - someone said that Frida wore a Dublin/Irish jersey at the show during Why Did It Have To Be Me?, did that happen? I'm beyond jealous of your experience, and the light-up ABBA sign will always be cool!
I'm dying to go to the museum itself, I filled a potential shopping cart in the online store and let's just say that they'd be happy to see me coming :rolleyes:
I've heard that about Benny and co. alright, they seem to just have great fun on stage. I haven't really explored their music but I loved Story Of A Heart from a few years back, sounded like an ABBA track in many ways!0 -
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If you do get to Stockholm, take the ferry from the Museum over to Mono Music on Skeppsholmen. If Benny's there and not busy, he will come chat/take photos etc. He has really mellowed in his older years.
Bjorn owns the hotel the Museum is in, so he's often seen pottering about too. Frida drops in to sign things for fans when she is in Stockholm. The only one who rarely gets to Mono Music is Agnetha, which is fair enough, she was never into the 'fame' side of things (and had a few unfortunate experiences with fans). I don't think she signs anymore either.
Wrote to her a few years ago. Don't ask why.
But, got a letter back recently, with her signature and a signed photo of ABBA (obviously not from recent times)
My story must have related to her 0 -
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Sorry, just saw this. Yes she did. In every city they played, she wore a local sports shirt.
A friend of mine didn't have a ticket, but had heard they were staying in the Gresham, so went and stood outside for hours, hoping to catch them on their way to the RDS.
Eventually, they came out, swept past the awaiting clump of fans and into their cars and off they drove. My friend took chase along O'Connell Street and caught up with them at lights, waving frantically into the car. Off they went again and again at the next lights he caught up with them, still waving madly, at which stage, Frida leaned forward, looked out the window, smiled and waved at him. His day was worth it.
He was/is quite a lanky lad, so he must have looked quite funny lolloping along the footpath between the lights, face getting redder all the time.
No problem. Pity she had to wear a Dubs jersey, the green and gold of the Kingdom would've suited much better
I can imagine hordes of people sprinting after a car in O'Connell Street! God, ABBA were (and are) such a force to be reckoned with. It annoys me no end when they're discredited as just some "pop act" when they have one of the most solid, well crafted and perfected discographies of all time. Especially from Arrival on, they became the gold standard for pop music. Without them, we wouldn't have had many of the trends that followed. For example, the Swedish producer Max Martin cites ABBA's music as one of his main reasons for forging a career in the industry. He has produced some of the biggest hits in the world, including countless smashes for Britney, NSYNC, Katy Perry, Taylor Swift and Ariana Grande.
My one gripe is that they never truly "broke" America in their active period. Yes, Dancing Queen went #1 and they had some other moderate successes there, but it pains me that they didn't get the chance to completely dominate the globe simultaneously.
Oh well, still the second best selling band of all time, and legends.0 -
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