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Post by Deleted on Sept 28, 2019 15:41:30 GMT
What are your thoughts and views about " I Am The City " ? For me it is a quirky ( bordering along the lines of experimental electro-pop ) number . Great vocals from Frida and Agnetha throughout and a punchy chorus. As with my previous comments re " Just Like That " there is still something incomplete whilst listening to " I Am The City " and I can't place what it is. Maybe it doesn't grab me 99% as with other ABBA songs although I do like it. Maybe I don't play it as much.
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Post by Michal on Sept 29, 2019 8:27:20 GMT
One of my favourite tracks, definitely my my Top 20 ABBA song. I see it as a sort of coming back to the roots after the "dark" album and TDBYC "experiment" - shared lead vocals again (the way Agnetha and Frida trade the lines of the verses is an immense pleasure to hear and the best is yet to come when they join forces in the chorus). Another highlight for me is the bridge with the small variation in its last repetition. Great song from start to end.
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Post by josef on Sept 29, 2019 9:29:56 GMT
I haven't listened to it in a long, long time. I remember I wasn't mightily impressed with it at first when I did. I mean, it's ABBA and so of course I was pleased to hear a new song. I like the title and the premise behind it: the idea of the city as a living entity. It's clever and witty. Reading the lyrics, I'm struck by Björn's inventiveness. I must give it a listen a little later.
Overall, not a bad little hidden gem, but not one that grabs my heart. It's refreshing and chugs along nicely, though. What it lacks for me is perhaps the grandeur and harmonies in a song like Cassandra.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2019 11:37:23 GMT
Thanks to Michal and Josef. It is very interesting to read your thoughts on " I Am The City ". I think it was intended for inclusion on their shelved studio album " Opus 10 " and didn't see the light of day until it was featured as one of twenty tracks within " More Gold ".
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Post by richard on Sept 29, 2019 11:48:20 GMT
I probably like this one most of their last few recorded songs, especially for it's energy and the wonderful ending with Frida and Agnetha's voices cascading over each other.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 30, 2019 8:19:03 GMT
Not keen, I'm afraid. TBH the thing I like most about it is the title. It's nicely performed and put together, of course, but to my ears it sounds like a determined, all too deliberate attempt to come up with something catchy, 'current' and less moody/morose than most of ABBA's material at this time, but falling quite a bit short. I very rarely listen to it but when I do the words 'Bucks Fizz b-side' involuntarily pop into my head. I suppose that's because it has a bit of a 'My Camera Never Lies'-lite feel.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 30, 2019 17:31:07 GMT
That's fine with me. Always interesting to read views and thoughts expressed by us ABBA fans. One thing that irks me is that sometimes ABBA are incorrectly and misguidedly labelled as " Euro-pop " by critics. This is not the case as they are a very talented band and have recorded and produced a multitude of perfectly crafted and very diverse songs.
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Post by Michal on Sept 30, 2019 17:45:04 GMT
Reading the lyrics, I'm struck by Björn's inventiveness. Speaking of the lyrics, there is one little part that I don't really understand. Maybe it is a stupid question but what is the phrase "you let me be" supposed to mean? I've never seen it used this way anywhere else... Would some native speaker be so kind and explain? Thank you very much! |
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Post by HOMETIME on Sept 30, 2019 18:10:10 GMT
That's not a stupid question at all. It's saying "I am the kind of city that you allow me to be," saying that it's the people who shape the city - from architecture, to culture, to atmosphere etc. Does that make any sense? I'm not sure I've explained it very clearly....  I like the song but agree with thisboycries' assessment of it as a Bucks Fizz B-side. My Camera Never Lies was Andy Hill at the peak of his writing and production skills. Camera has a great acoustic guitar line driving the pace of the track, supported by some brilliantly OTT drumming. And to be fair to the group, their vocal energy was spot on too. I think that, had that shelved studio album eventually emerged, I Am The City might not have been more than an album track. I like it, but the treatment of the vocals sounds a bit Pink & Perky at times. I wonder if they might have increased the tempo after recording the vocals, like they did with Just Like That? |
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Post by Michal on Sept 30, 2019 19:37:54 GMT
HOMETIME, thank you, it does make perfect sense. I thought it would be something like that. Still I'm at a loss how to properly translate it into my language… but that's not something you can help me with ;-) I will have to find out how to put it into right words. Thank you again!
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Post by gamleman on Jun 1, 2020 13:41:30 GMT
When "I Am The City" was released on "More Gold", I was disappointed. My feeling was that it is of the same ilk as "You Owe Me One", verging on bubble-gum Pop, and a backward step for ABBA. For me, it also takes the sharp vocals of the ABBA sound to an extreme and there is something unnatural about it, like their vocals were going through some kind of electronic voice processing. I would have preferred "Dreamworld", "Put On Your White Sombrero" or, ultimately, "Just Like That" as the bonus track for "More Gold". Sorry to those who are fans of this song.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 1, 2020 15:55:36 GMT
That's fine, our own likes and dislikes are what makes discussion more interesting. Much as I like the song there is something missing compared to the ABBA songs that we regard as outstanding.
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