Name that ABBA song

The first moments of After The Love Has Gone also remind me of the start to I Have A Dream. TWTIA makes an appearance too; at 0:07 you can hear the familiar chord transition.

Even the video direction for Last Thing On My Mind references ABBA, with its front and side profile headshots.

According to its Wiki entry, Ooh, Yes I do 'uses a melody inspired by the flute theme of ABBA's Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)'. I can't identify that melody myself, where is it? Of course, the borrowed 'flute theme' is clear, at 1:09 for example. But it's actually a major arpeggio, whereas the GGG riff is minor, so GGG isn't being copied structurally. It seems more of a  nod towards ABBA, like an in-joke. As a result, I'm hearing similar gestures where they may not actually be intended, like the 'dum-dum (diddle) darling' and the SOS-style keyboard work from 0:52.

Thanks for introducing me to Luv' I spent a happy hour or so checking them out on YouTube last night. Some of it came across as hurriedly produced Eurofare-by-numbers, but I'm impressed with Ann-Maria. Given the brief of composing a perfect hybrid of Fernando and Chiquitita without attracting the attention of ABBA's lawyers, it's difficult to imagine a better shot at it. The chorus vocals are really strong and almost sound like another POYWS has been discovered in the ABBA archives. I'd sooner listen to Luv' than Brotherhood of Man anyway.

The woman on the right in the Luv' line-up even has a Frida Super Trouper era perm! She's even wearing a white dress! Squint your eyes and it could almost be her.

I wonder what the members of ABBA think of imitations like this? Flattered, I suppose.

Maybe 'Tiger'? (especially the chorus). And also perhaps the verse melody of 'Angeleyes'.

Jose Hoebee; if Carlsberg made ABBA tribute bands, she would be Frida. After Luv' split up (and before they got back together again!), she was one half of Bonnie & Jose, a duo formed specifically to record a very good album of ABBA covers with Dutch language lyrics. Commendably, the track listing contains very few obvious choices, as if it was a labour of love rather than a cheap attempt to cash in. The whole album is on YouTube, just paste this into a search: s65qsprhy_o

Or search for Bonnie & Jose. Lots of their tv performances of ABBA songs are on YouTube.

Regarding what ABBA thought of this kind of thing (admittedly a proper cover version rather than an imitation), Bonnie & Jose did a tv special in Sweden, during which Bjorn gave them the thumbs up:




 

That's interesting, because neither do they seem to be simply repeating the previous line, which is what they would have done if they were just translating the whole thing into the target language.

Do we have a Dutch speaker in the house? diehardagnetha maybe?

Here's a link to the correct point in the video, so that Erwin wouldn't have to wade through it all. We're wondering what's the translation for the 'dance beneath the moon' and the 'sub luna saltamus' passages, because they sound different but 'should' be the same. Also, is there a linguistic/cultural reason for why they wouldn't have just sung it in Latin like the original?

Piper link

I'll see if he's on diehardagnetha

Here's the original Dutch lyrics :

De flierefluiter

Als het laatste licht
aan de rand van het woud verdwijnt
Dan luister naar dit
want pas op als de flierefluiter verschijnt

Meisjes, luister niet
naar zijn vreemde lied

Luister nimmer naar die ene melodie
die de flierefluiter fluit
want als je stiekem luistert,
ja, dan wil je je kamertje uit

Doe de luiken stevig voor de ruit
Als ie fluit, en het licht van de kandelaar uit
en het licht van de kandelaar uit

Meisjes, luister niet
naar zijn vreemde lied

Ze was blij als de zon
maar in 't afscheidslicht van de maan
toen het fluiten begon
is ze stiekem naar buiten gegaan

Meisjes, luister niet
naar zijn vreemde lied

Luister nimmer naar die ene melodie
die de flierefluiter fluit
want als je stiekem luistert,
ja, dan wil je je kamertje uit

Doe de luiken stevig voor de ruit
Als ie fluit, en het licht van de kandelaar uit
en het licht van de kandelaar uit

Meisjes, luister niet
naar zijn vreemde lied

Ik was gisteren jong
zong een stokoude vrouw op het plein
Maar in het lied dat ze zong
klonk opnieuw weer het vreemde refrein

Meisjes, luister niet
naar zijn vreemde lied

Luister nimmer naar die ene melodie
die de flierefluiter fluit
want als je stiekem luistert,
ja, dan wil je je kamertje uit

Doe de luiken stevig voor de ruit
Als ie fluit, en het licht van de kandelaar uit
en het licht van de kandelaar uit


And here's the translation :

The Pied piper

When the last light
dissapears at the edge of the woods
Then listen to this
but watch out when the pied piper appears

Girls don’t listen
to his strange song

Never listen to that one melody
that the piped piper whistles
because if you listen secretly
yes, then you want to leave your room

Put the blinds firmly on your window
When he whistles the light of the candlestick goes out
the light of the candlestick goes out

Girls don’t listen
to his strange song

She was as glad as the sun
but in the farewell light of the moon
when the whistling begun
she secretly went outside

Girls don’t listen
to his strange song

Never listen to that one melody
that the piped piper whistles
because if you listen secretly
yes, then you want to leave your room

Put the blinds firmly on your window
When he whistles, the light of the candlestick goes out
the light of the candlestick goes out

Girls don’t listen
to his strange song

I was young yesterday
an old woman sang on the square
But in the song that she sang
you could hear the strange chorus again

Girls don’t listen
to his strange song

Never listen to that one melody
that the piped piper whistles
because if you listen secretly
yes, then you want to leave your room

Put the blinds firmly on your window
When he whistles the light of the candlestick goes out
the light of the candlestick goes out

More Dutch lyrics here : obscurebutnotlost.webs.com/bonniejose.htm

You're welcome ... well it is a straight translation ... no rhymes and stuff  ;-)

Do you need help, Fafner ?

I started this thread with an ABBA track that appears to borrow from an earlier song by another artist. The contrary examples of ABBA imitators are of course welcome; keep them coming! However, here the finger of suspicion returns to B & B. I think that they may have listened a few times to this 1973 international smash hit, before working on a particular ABBA song. Which one do I have in mind?

Or My Mama Said? Suzy Hang Around?