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Post by josef on May 10, 2020 8:46:50 GMT
Heres the video for it from last night's online UNICEF event:
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Post by josef on May 1, 2020 8:32:59 GMT
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Post by josef on May 1, 2020 8:29:17 GMT
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Post by josef on Apr 30, 2020 9:04:30 GMT
What a fantastic interview. Thank you for posting it, gazman.
It really was great. I got a proper idea of what Björn is like as a person. Never knew he'd had problems with alcohol, like Benny. We need more of this kind of interview. Excellent pictures, too.
Other ABBA fans! Please read this interview with Björn.
I noticed one mistake. A picture of Agnetha and Björn on stage in 1977 is claimed to be from 1979. Silly error.
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Post by josef on Apr 28, 2020 17:11:02 GMT
I'm not counting the chickens until they're hatched.
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Post by josef on Apr 19, 2020 9:05:39 GMT
I'm allergic to the American way of pronouncing the word, too. I'm not saying I'm right or they're wrong - it simply makes me wince. The first time I heard it was on a tv show when Donny Osmond mentioned the group. How I cringed. In his defense, he's clearly a fan.
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Post by josef on Apr 18, 2020 13:23:33 GMT
Here's Björn recently talking about being on lockdown during this pandemic. Actually he doesn't really say much of any interest but it's still worth a watch as it's him. Can't believe the interviewer didn't ask him about the new songs! http://instagram.com/p/B_E9EC7pID_
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Post by josef on Apr 18, 2020 9:48:34 GMT
I'm not really fussed anymore tbh
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Post by josef on Apr 17, 2020 9:28:42 GMT
I think it's important not to jump the gun. We don't know for sure there's a new album in the offing. It certainly looks that way and I hope it is but we've had no official, definitive confirmation yet.
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Post by josef on Apr 11, 2020 20:23:33 GMT
No, it hasn't changed. I still think it's a nice song with lovely verses, sweetly sung. BUT it isn't the masterpiece some think it is - not because it couldn't have been, but because it's cobbled together and parts of it have been used in other songs and it's even had different lyrics with a different singer. Now, if Under Attack hadn't been written and WTWROTTS.. if Just Like That had been given undivided attention.....we might have a different story.
I rarely listen to it but when it comes on randomly I pray it's the na na version. I can't stomach the sax version- it absolutely drowns the song.
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Post by josef on Apr 10, 2020 18:25:51 GMT
I still like physical releases such as vinyl and DVD. I would love a decent Agnetha dvd featuring A For Agnetha, the interviews around MCB, etc. I know things are on YouTube but they're often of such poor quality.
Yep. A DVD would be the icing on the cake.
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Post by josef on Apr 8, 2020 21:36:50 GMT
Anyway...my choices are...
I'm A Marionette
Lovers (Live A Little Longer)
I'm struggling with that final batch as I love them all apart from Waterloo and Mamma Mia (the latter of which I like but I'm not mad about).
Ok..it has to be Dancing Queen. As great as all the others are, equally, DQ deserves its unique place.
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Post by josef on Apr 8, 2020 21:28:58 GMT
You Owe Me One? Seriously? That's a joke, right?
I'm seriously confused now.
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Post by josef on Apr 8, 2020 13:12:41 GMT
I doubt if they'll release the songs early although of course it would be a nice lift for all of their fans in these uncertain times. To me, it makes perfect sense to release them now- these are exceptional circumstances but I just can't see BennyBjörn giving it the go ahead somehow. Disappointing, but not surprising. Ultimately, it's their right/choice to do whatever they see fit but to my mind it would be the right thing to do from a purely altruistic point of view.
Ah, well. Que sera sera.
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Post by josef on Apr 7, 2020 13:48:39 GMT
Various reasons. The advent of electronic groups and the New Romantic movement helped to put the nail in ABBA's coffin. We had Soft Cell and The Human League and X Ray Spex and so much more. I embraced all the new music. A lot of blame can be placed upon Agnetha and Frida's perms and overnight mumsy look. The fact that Björn grinned like the Cheshire Cat in every picture didn't help. ABBA just weren't cool. They couldn't pretend to be edgy or grungy. They couldn't hope to be. They HAD been, I hasten to add. Arguably, during the 1977 tour they were at the height of their prowess and beauty. But they aged and became old hat once the 1980's began. They had a few more triumphs musically, of course. But they'd run out of steam as a unit. That's just the way it goes. They needed to disappear for a while for the world to grasp once again how truly amazing and timeless the music was/is. Even the fashion was forgiven and embraced. Now, ABBA are beyond such labels. They have become that corny line -"living legends". They can do no wrong. It doesn't matter now about the fashion horrors or the horrendous haircuts. And, to be fair, there are many many photographs where the group look classy and sophisticated. No one gets it right ALL the time. Now, we find we're actually fond of those clumsy outfits and dance routines. It's part of the charm.
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Post by josef on Apr 7, 2020 13:35:05 GMT
The Day Before You Came
The Visitors
Lovers (Live A Little Longer)
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Post by josef on Mar 27, 2020 23:00:10 GMT
But I thought it was the backing track to Dancing Queen that so moved Frida? That in itself, though, tells a lot about the compelling appeal of the song. Yes, the backing track, where the melody would already have been evident. I thought that was implicit in my post.
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Post by josef on Mar 27, 2020 19:25:33 GMT
Richard. It isn't just the sound of Agnetha and Frida singing together on Dancing Queen that makes it exceptional. It's the melody. Surely you've heard how Frida started to cry the first time she heard it because it was "so beautiful"? I agree with her. Listen to the orchestral version of the song (Muriel's Wedding)- its astonishing in its simplicity and beauty. Still, I hear you- many, many ABBA songs have exquisite melodies- Angeleyes and Happy New Year being amongst them. I mean. ..we are seriously SPOILED!
Seeing songs like The Visitors and Angeleyes here remind me of how impossible a task it is to choose- I have LOTS of 'favourites'.
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Post by josef on Mar 27, 2020 10:14:44 GMT
This is where I get confused (not difficult for me). I thought we were supposed to post our rankings in a private message to The Rubber Ball Man?
Anyway, I'm inclined to agree about Dancing Queen. Despite its omnipresence, this doesn't alter the fact that (in my opinion at least) it really IS the greatest pop song ever. It's eternal. It's the ULTIMATE. Nothing can touch it. Sadly, it means that other ABBA songs don't get quite as much acknowledgement. Knowing Me, Knowing You is a behemoth -incredible vocal, lyrics...everything. One of Us is achingly beautiful and doesn't get nearly the amount of credit it deserves. In many ways, it's ABBA's last hurrah. And what of The Day Before You Came? I could go on...and will. I think the problem is simply down to favourites. If your particular favourite(s) don't make the top spot then it can be tempting to deny the power and worth of those that do. But there's a reason that songs like The Winner Takes It All consistently tops polls and that's because it's bloody brilliant. It moves so many people! People can relate to it. Watch a react video (a good one) and you can see the emotion it elicits in someone- its REAL and relatable. It's churlish to deny this. Same with Dancing Queen. Millions of people aren't wrong. It might not be your cup of tea but that doesn't mean it's lousy. It's like Bohemian Rhapsody. I'm not a huge fan but I can't slate it because I can see it's power and effect. I get why people love it even if I don't.
But how I'd love ABBA's lesser known songs to get an airing/appreciation. I suppose some have, to a degree (Slipping Through My Fingers being a prime example due, I grudgingly concede, to Mamma Mia!).
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Post by josef on Mar 26, 2020 20:04:19 GMT
I guess if Dancing Queen or The Winner Takes It All romps home then it's because they are both fantastic tracks.
Which would you prefer, orf? Oops. Don't answer that!
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Post by josef on Mar 26, 2020 13:34:27 GMT
Oh yes. That's how I feel about Story of a Heart. Catchy, melodic ditty but someone please kill the pan pipes. I've always been allergic to them. There must be a place for them. Aren't they in Benny's 'Skallgång'? I can cope with them in that. They fit right in. Hmmmm. Actually, on second thoughts, I think its a flute- silly me. I actually adore that song (and the album it comes from - November 1989).
I don't expect Agnetha to be hitting the heights of The Winner Takes It All or Frida to achieve the sass of Lovers (Live A Little Longer) but I do think intricate harmonies are possible. I guess what I'm hoping for are meaningful, poignant lyrics. That, and to have them sung with real human emotion. And we already know how more than capable Agnetha and Frida are of that!
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Post by josef on Mar 26, 2020 13:19:39 GMT
Ok, well it's still rather unclear to me but I've chosen 3 out of that list. An almost impossible task!
I'm concerned that others aren't bothering, though.
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Post by josef on Mar 25, 2020 18:09:55 GMT
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Post by josef on Mar 25, 2020 18:06:27 GMT
Nice one for thinking this up, RBM. I'd like to have a crack at it but I'm not great at things like this- I tend to get muddled and post songs from the wrong album and things like that. I've had it pointed out to me before. It's not that I don't know which songs are from which album (I should do after all these years of being a fan) it's just that I make errors and it looks like I'm just hopeless. I think I'm more the "other side of the brain"? I am rubbish at maths - I see it as somehow linked to that.
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Post by josef on Mar 24, 2020 22:18:39 GMT
Before and after beside one another gives you the best idea of what a cracking job ot can do on occasion.
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Remini
Mar 24, 2020 22:15:21 GMT
Post by josef on Mar 24, 2020 22:15:21 GMT
Yes, it can work wonders.
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Post by josef on Mar 24, 2020 21:20:14 GMT
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Post by josef on Mar 24, 2020 21:05:54 GMT
I love that. So apt. Stealing.
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Post by josef on Mar 24, 2020 13:10:53 GMT
I don't think I'll be disappointed by the new songs but never say never. Just the sound of Agnetha and Frida singing together is enough to lift my spirits so I think that'll be enough. After this truly horrendous start to 2020 a little light in the darkness is what is needed. ABBA's songs, if released this year, would provide this.
I'm actually rather surprised we haven't heard from Björn and/or Benny? A little video upload? Still, I imagine they're self-isolating, understandably.
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Post by josef on Mar 23, 2020 18:39:26 GMT
Ok, I'll give it a bash.
1.Another Town, Another Train.
2.Hasta Manana.
3.SOS.
4.When I Kissed The Teacher.
5.Eagle.
6.Chiquitita.
7.The Winner Takes It All.
8.The Visitors.
Bonus tracks: The Day Before You Came/Lovelight.
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