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Post by gary on Mar 7, 2018 1:19:06 GMT
I think I brought this up a while back. My question then was: the first Mamma Mia started in theatre and became a film, whereas the second Mamma Mia is starting as a film, so will it move to theatre? Why is Mamma Mia 2 not starting in the theatre?
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Post by gary on Mar 7, 2018 1:14:01 GMT
undertheappletree - although it’s true that ABBA do not have one standout massive seller, I think one of the most impressive things about ABBA’s singles sales, at least in the UK, is their consistency. Every single from Mamma Mia to One Of Us (barring a 12-inch only single) sold enough to warrant at least a silver disc, and about 10 of those sold enough to warrant a gold disc. There are very few other artists that can compare with that - possibly only the Beatles.
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Post by gary on Mar 7, 2018 1:01:11 GMT
Yet more errors - and they’re not even unknown ones!
Colin - I would be interested in knowing any sales statistics about The Name Of The Game. Its absence from your previous posts make it stand out like a sore thumb. I know we in the UK might think of it as one of ABBA’s biggest hits because it had four weeks at number one and is their sixth (?) biggest seller overall, but of course it was a relative flop in some other markets. How did it do on the Eurochart? And on the worldwide charts you mention?
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Post by gary on Mar 6, 2018 16:26:16 GMT
Forty years! I feel so old!
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Post by gary on Mar 6, 2018 1:54:53 GMT
I’m pretty sure ABBA’s biggest selling single is Dancing Queen, followed by Fernando and Waterloo. However, I have seen it claimed that Fernando is top. I am sure Colin (onlyabba4me) will be able to tell you for certain.
Dancing Queen is definitely top in the UK, followed (I think) by Knowing Me Knowing You, Fernando and Super Trouper.
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Post by gary on Mar 6, 2018 1:53:59 GMT
I’m pretty sure ABBA’s biggest selling single is Dancing Queen, followed by Fernando and Waterloo. However, I have seen it claimed that Fernando is top. I am sure Colin (onlyabba4me) will be able to tell you for certain.
Dancing Queen is definitely top in the UK, followed (I think) by Knowing Me Knowing You, Fernando and Super Trouper.
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Post by gary on Mar 5, 2018 9:47:10 GMT
^ Must say I agree with you about If I Can’t Have You. It’s a nice enough song, although hardly in the league of How Deep Is Your Love, Stayin’ Alive and Night Fever, but I’m glad that ABBA stuck to their guns about only releasing self-penned material.
I think if ABBA were going to release four singles from Voulez-Vous, the best ones (in order) would have been Chiquitita, If It Wasn’t For The Nights, Kisses Of Fire (or possibly As Good As New) and I Have A Dream. They’re all good single material, although the last isn’t a personal favourite. But I agree that nothing they had available in 1979 quite matches the heights of SOS to Take A Chance On Me - the absolute pinnacle of pop creativity by ABBA or anyone.
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Post by gary on Mar 4, 2018 19:30:04 GMT
I Have A Dream certainly doesn’t have a great reputation among ABBA fans. I remember asking an extremely devout ABBA fan whether there were any ABBA songs he didn’t like, and he immediately said I Have A Dream!
It’s not one of my favourites either, but I think it is slightly underrated. I remember both my grandmothers liked it a lot! There’s quite a few ABBA songs I would rate worse.
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Post by gary on Mar 4, 2018 14:45:25 GMT
Colin - interesting stuff. It’s a shame that the ‘true’ facts are not a matter of record.
Just a thought - I wonder if it was ever the intention that KMKY be released before MMM? The video for KMKY is certainly a bit Christmassy (or at least a bit snowy).
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Post by gary on Mar 4, 2018 9:35:05 GMT
I still love Summer Night City too. I have never understood Benny and Bjorn's apparent dislike for the song. I think it's one of ABBA's very best, particularly WITH the beautiful cut introduction. It certainly deserved better than its lowly number five placing in the UK chart. And it should have been on ABBA Gold.
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Post by gary on Mar 4, 2018 9:28:07 GMT
Colin - I take your point about it being easier for Knowing Me Knowing You to get to number one. And your point about Money Money Money not competing on a level playing field with the Johnny Mathis and Showaddywaddy singles.
MMM must have been very important in keeping Arrival near the top of the UK album charts over Christmas 1976 (Arrival was mostly number two in the album chart at the time). And of course Knowing Me Knowing You was crucial in Arrival spending nine weeks in a row at number one later on.
Yes, it's a pity about the Pink Floyd single. It would have been nice if I Have A Dream could have managed one place higher.
(BTW, you accidentally say that IHAD spent four weeks at number one.)
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Post by gary on Mar 4, 2018 9:02:16 GMT
ABBA only released two singles in the UK in each of 1977, 1978, 1980 and 1981. I expect they were concerned about overexposure/saturation, but it was a real missed opportunity. Three singles a year, say, would not have been excessive. There were enough great songs on their albums.
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Post by gary on Mar 3, 2018 23:08:01 GMT
The closest ABBA came to having a UK Christmas number one was with I Have A Dream, which was number two in the charts for four weeks over the 'festive' period. It may not be a fan favourite, but it does have a bit of a Christmassy feel, both musically and lyrically. It was a good choice of single at that time of year, and proved it by being a big seller.
I am sure Money Money Money would have been a UK number one had it not been released into the Christmas market. ABBA were at their peak then (the previous three singles and the next three singles all got to number one), it is a superb song and it was number one in many other countries. I'm not sure I completely agree that it was disadvantaged by being on a big-selling album. If so, how come Knowing Me Knowing You was number one for five weeks?
Good to hear that MMM's sales were far higher than 310,000.
While Happy New Year would undoubtedly have been a hit if it was released as a single, its sales would not have lasted very long. Few people would have been buying a 'New Year' song after about the first week in January.
I too doubt that ABBA will ever have another top ten single. Even if a member of ABBA died, they are not household names like John Lennon or George Harrison.
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Post by gary on Mar 3, 2018 22:43:06 GMT
I've Been Waiting For You, Kisses Of Fire, The Visitors, definitely. Cassandra, maybe.
Should I Laugh Or Cry and Elaine are great songs, but not better songs than their respective A-sides.
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Post by gary on Mar 2, 2018 10:52:15 GMT
I think a new ABBA compilation has the greatest chance of commercial success. We all know that the original studio albums are never going to sell in any quantity again, unfortunately. ABBA Gold has already sold so many copies that the market for that is limited, though consistent. Tweaking More ABBA Gold might work, but why not simply release a 'soundtrack' of the new film featuring all the ABBA originals?
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Post by gary on Feb 26, 2018 8:31:25 GMT
That’s a great selection of songs!
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Post by gary on Feb 15, 2018 23:12:24 GMT
Perhaps Pierce Brosnan could release an album of his versions of all the songs in Mamma Mia 2? It would be a dead cert number one!
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Post by gary on Feb 11, 2018 22:11:37 GMT
I can do that. There’s 10 tracks on Arrival and 11 tracks on Ziggy Stardust, so I’ll add Fernando to Arrival (like the Australian version of Arrival).
When I Kissed The Teacher v Five Years - Bowie wins just Dancing Queen v Soul Love - ABBA wins My Love My Life v Moonage Daydream - Bowie wins Dum Dum Diddle v Starman - Bowie wins Knowing Me Knowing You v It Ain’t Easy - ABBA wins Money Money Money v Lady Stardust - Bowie wins That’s Me v Star - ABBA wins Why Did It Have To Be Me v Hang On To Yourself - ABBA wins Fernando v Ziggy Stardust - ABBA wins Tiger v Suffragette City - ABBA wins Arrival v Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide - Bowie wins
Arrival 6, Ziggy Stardust 5. Bit surprised at that, as I reckon Ziggy is the better album. But it’s effectively a tie, as Fernando isn’t really an Arrival track.
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Post by gary on Feb 10, 2018 13:17:57 GMT
Their names escape me (Absolute Bowie?) but there are some excellent Bowie tribute acts around, and let's face it we are never going to see the real thing again. Luckily, I did see the real thing several times back in the 1970s-1990s.
Anyway, I'll do the same comparison. It's not quite fair, as Ziggy Stardust is my favourite Bowie album, and The Visitors is nowhere near my favourite ABBA album (that would be Arrival).
The Visitors v Five Years - Bowie win Head Over Heels v Soul Love - Bowie win easily When All Is Said And Done v Moonage Daydream - Bowie win Soldiers v Starman - Bowie win I Let The Music Speak v It Ain't Easy - ABBA win easily One Of Us v Lady Stardust - ugh, the best track on BOTH albums, ABBA win Two For The Price Of One v Star - Bowie win easily Slipping Through My Fingers v Hang On To Yourself - ABBA win Like An Angel Passing Through My Room v Ziggy Stardust - Bowie win The Day Before You Came v Suffragette City - Bowie win Under Attack v Rock 'n' Roll Suicide - Bowie win easily
The Visitors 3, Ziggy 8!
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Post by gary on Feb 8, 2018 10:57:36 GMT
^ I've seen you express your dislike of Does Your Mother Know before. It's your least favourite ABBA song, I believe? Is there any particular reason? Lead vocals by Bjorn, perhaps? It's not a great favourite of mine either, and I remember at the time thinking that it was the first ABBA single since I became a fan (SOS) that I didn't love. But DYMK is still quite a catchy song, and I would rate it as middling ABBA. With vocals by Frida, say, it would certainly have been better!
Anyway, apart from ABBA and Bowie, my other favourite artist is Bruce Springsteen. Conveniently, his 'classic' period, in my opinion, lasts for eight albums. Let's see how those eight albums compare with ABBA's eight.
Ring Ring v Greetings From Asbury Park - Bruce wins Waterloo v The Wild, The Innocent and The E Street Shuffle - Bruce wins ABBA v Born To Run - Bruce wins by miles Arrival v Darkness On The Edge Of Town - Bruce wins The Album v The River - close, ABBA win just Voulez-Vous v Nebraska - ABBA win easily Super Trouper v Born In The USA - ABBA win The Visitors v Tunnel Of Love - Bruce wins
ABBA 3, Bruce 5. But ABBA would win against any other period of Bruce.
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Post by gary on Feb 7, 2018 19:12:06 GMT
I’m gay myself, but I’ve never quite understood the ABBA/gay connection. I mean, Agnetha and Frida, how could a straight man resist? :-)
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Post by gary on Feb 7, 2018 15:44:32 GMT
Yes, a gay reference, I think.
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Post by gary on Feb 7, 2018 11:14:40 GMT
Not big news, and not sure if this has been mentioned before, but Chiquitita makes an unexpected appearance on the soundtrack of the current film Three Billboards in Ebbing, Missouri. I have a feeling it might be making a suggestion about the sexuality of one of the characters. Anyway, it's a thoroughly entertaining film.
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Post by gary on Feb 1, 2018 22:18:21 GMT
^ Exactly the same as my list (see above). What good taste you have!
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Post by gary on Jan 29, 2018 19:03:56 GMT
I do wish that the trailers weren’t full of Dancing Queen, Mamma Mia and Waterloo. It does give the (false) impression that the second film has the same songs as the first.
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Post by gary on Jan 27, 2018 10:00:52 GMT
Be My Wife didn’t trouble the UK charts (!), so it’s a bit obscure.
I really like the Space Oddity album too. There’s not really a weak track on it. But I couldn’t let Station To Station drop off the other end - it’s one of Bowie’s half-dozen or so perfect albums.
Glad to hear you love the Diamond Dogs album. It’s in my top three too, along with the more obvious Hunky and Ziggy. I love the Diamond Dogs concept feel - it’s like a good sci-fi novel!
There’s not much post-Let’s Dance that I really like. Suddenly his talent evaporated. The odd track is OK, and Blackstar is a nice swan song. Perhaps it’s an age thing (mine, not Bowie’s).
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Post by gary on Jan 27, 2018 5:32:49 GMT
Let’s see if I can compare ABBA albums with Bowie albums. There’s only eight proper ABBA albums, whereas there are at least three times that many from Bowie, ranging from the sublime to the horrible. What are Bowie’s best eight consecutive albums? I think I would go with The Man Who Sold The World to Station To Station, but a very good case could be made for Hunky Dory to Low. So here goes:
Ring Ring v The Man Who Sold The World - Bowie win Waterloo v Hunky Dory - there aren’t enough light years, Bowie win ABBA v Ziggy Stardust - ditto, Bowie win Arrival v Aladdin Sane - ABBA win, just The Album v Pin-Ups - ABBA win by light years Voulez-Vous v Diamond Dogs - Bowie win Super Trouper v Young Americans - ABBA win The Visitors v Station To Station - Bowie win
Bowie wins, 5-3. (Bear in mind that ABBA would win against almost any other artist. And if you chose Bowie’s eight consecutive worst albums, I think ABBA would sweep the board.)
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Post by gary on Jan 27, 2018 5:14:43 GMT
Summer Night City v Diamond Dogs - ABBA win, but love them both Chiquitita v Young Americans - Bowie win, but love them both Does Your Mother Know v Fame - ABBA win (not overly keen on DYMK but I really don’t like Fame) Angeleyes/Voulez-Vous v Golden Years - difficult to compare two with one but AE > GY > VV, so I guess ABBA win Gimme Gimme Gimme v TVC15 - Bowie win by a mile I Have A Dream v Sound And Vision - Bowie win by light years The Winner Takes It All v Heroes - Bowie win, but again love them both Super Trouper v Beauty And The Beast - ABBA win
(Pedant corner: you missed out Be My Wife.)
And that’s a tie, 4-4!
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Post by gary on Jan 26, 2018 0:54:10 GMT
Great to hear there are Bowie fans on this forum. Bowie is one of only two songwriters that I rate more highly than B&B. (The other is Springsteen, since you ask.) And he’s easily the greatest British songwriter ever, IMHO, though Elton John and John Lennon give him some competition.
Anyway, I will play the game and see how the best ABBA singles period matches up with Bowie’s.
First set (including Sorrow):
SOS v Starman - ABBA win, fairly easily Mamma Mia v John I’m Only Dancing - Bowie win Fernando v Jean Genie - ABBA win by a mile Dancing Queen v Drive-In Saturday - ABBA win Money Money Money v Life On Mars? - Bowie win by a mile Knowing Me Knowing You v Sorrow - ABBA win by a mile The Name Of The Game v Rebel Rebel - ABBA win by a mile Take A Chance On Me v Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide - ABBA win
That’s 6-2 in ABBA’s favour.
Second set (without Sorrow):
SOS v Changes - ABBA win Mamma Mia v Starman - Bowie win Fernando v John I’m Only Dancing - ABBA win by a mile Dancing Queen v Jean Genie - ABBA win by a mile Money Money Money v Drive-In Saturday - Bowie win by a mile Knowing Me Knowing You v Life On Mars? - ugh, two of the best songs ever, ABBA win The Name Of The Game v Rebel Rebel - ABBA win by a mile Take A Chance On Me v Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide - ABBA win
And ABBA win again by 6-2.
I hope there’s no inconsistencies there!
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Post by gary on Jan 25, 2018 11:09:42 GMT
Well, I don’t think that B&B peaked with Chess (that happened from 1975 to 1978 - that is, from SOS to Take A Chance On Me - the best run of singles by anyone ever) but I do think that Chess is a fantastic piece of work, particularly musically. The story isn’t so great, although Tim Rice does his usual excellent job, but there are more good songs in it than any other musical (with the possible exceptions of Evita and The Sound Of Music). But I have a pretty low tolerance for musicals in general.
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