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It will be the Swedish Polar artwork they will use for Honey Honey. That’s the whole purpose of these. The only exception in this series (beginning with Arrival in 2016) was Lay All Your Love on Me, as it wasn’t released as a single by Polar.

And it will be 70s artwork as, again, that’s the whole point. The Danish artwork for Waterloo would seem to be the most likely as it was also Polar, but we’ll see what they do. I really hope it’s not two company sleeves.

The 2004 issue was ugly, I agree. They were still using the original West German artwork (as with the 1999 CD singles box). The Polar artwork may look a bit dated, but it’s better than what most other countries came up with.

Until we get something concrete about anything else, then yes. Keep hopes and expectations low and then can’t really be disappointed!

It does seem hard to believe though. ABBA not doing anything (well, all four of them at the same time, at least) and nothing new being released. It would seem mad to let such a big anniversary pass with so little fanfare.

Is it this post you refer to, HOMETIME?

Shine (update)

(www.fridabeyondabba.com)

40 years ago today, in 1984, the first recording sessions took place in Paris for Frida's follow-up to her international solo debut album Something's Going On under the working title The Face. Steve Lillywhite, one of the hottest young producers at the time, who, after his previous work with bands like Ultravox or Peter Gabriel, was producing big acts such as U2, Simple Minds and Big Country, was responsible for the production.

Prior to the recording sessions for the album, Frida had tenaciously persisted in writing as much of her own music as possible, as Phil Collins, who had produced her first international album, had encouraged her to do. As a result, she had recorded several demos of her own compositions at the Polar Music Studios during the previous year. “I don’t have enough distance from them. That’s why I’ll be recording them in the studio,” she said in an interview at the time, “to hear if they hold up and to see if other people like them as well.”

The first self-written demos that were recorded by Frida were ‘My Dearest Friend’ and ‘I Don't Wanna Be Alone’, on April 18, 1983, together with Rendez-Vous, a relatively unknown young band founded three years earlier by her son Hans, Benny Andersson’s son Peter Grönvall and two of their friends. Although both were strong compositions in their own different ways, only the latter would ultimately be recorded in 1984, that is, by her son Hans and Johanna Lundberg for a yet-to-be-formed band called FX.

The fate of the ballad that Frida wrote that spring, on the other hand, would be more favourable in that respect. The title, ‘Don't Do It’, had come about quite spontaneously and she had completed the composition in just over a month. A demo was recorded for the song on June 18, produced by Rutger Gunnarsson. Paris Edvinsson, the sound engineer present, still has vivid memories of recording Frida’s vocals for her demos. “It was amazing how incredibly fast and confident Frida was when she sang lead vocals, backing vocals and choruses,” he says. ”She did great first takes and no retakes at all as I remember it.”

Apart from unknown work by Frida and Polar Music sound engineer Leif Mases during a third afternoon/evening recording session on September 27 in studio B, of these sessions only ‘Don't Do It’ would make it onto the new album, which would eventually be called Shine.

If you like to learn more about Frida’s 1983 recording sessions, the book Frida Beyond ABBA or to place an order, please visit fridabeyondabba.com

The photo on the left (from Mark Brzezicki’s personal collection) was taken during the recording sessions for Shine in Paris and is exclusive for Frida Beyond ABBA.

The various love songs-themed albums released on CD. Have I missed any?

From ABBA with Love, with the rare single edits of To Turn The Stone and Wrap Your Arms Around Me.



ABBA Love Songs. Again, single edit of Agnetha’s song but no sign of anything from Frida.



I Love ABBA. Another compilation but again with both solo single edits.



ABBA The Love Songs. Cheapo UK compilation from Pickwick, from a time when UK licensee CBS was sub-licensing ABBA out to anyone that was interested. It followed three “The Hits” compilations. As with the 1983 UK collection, Should I Laugh Or Cry is present but no solo hits.



Love Stories as already discussed in this thread.



And for completeness, Thank You For The Music. Never released on CD, which is a bit of a pity as the cross-fades or segues are unique to this compilation.

Quoting this from another thread as it relates to your post, ed. “Love Stories” was a more modern take on the love songs theme that had already been explored in the 1980s on several different European compilations.

The UK one, which lamont describes here, features 11 of the tracks that were later included on Love Stories. However, Fernando was the Spanish version for some reason (perhaps to make it more enticing to fans as Gracias Por La Musica had a somewhat limited UK release). There was also one b-side, Should I Laugh Or Cry.

The tracklisting was: Side 1 - My Love My Life, I Wonder, Happy New Year, Slipping Through My Fingers, Fernando (Spanish version), One Man One Woman, Eagle. Side 2 - I Have A Dream, Our Last Summer, The Day Before You Came, Chiquitita, Should I Laugh Or Cry, The Way Old Friends Do, Thank You For The Music.

A single, Thank You For The Music/Our Last Summer, was used to promote the album and was issued in an unusual shaped picture disc and a poster sleeve as well as a regular picture sleeve.

Happy New Year, Should I Laugh Or Cry and Thank You For The Music were the only three tracks that did not later appear on Love Stories.

Several similar compilations were released in Europe, so I can only assume the licensees were given the option of releasing such a collection as no new album was in sight. One version even included solo hits by Agnetha and Frida. Thankfully the UK issue spared us that!

I think that in all these cases, it would have been better to promote them as ballad compilations rather than as love songs as some of the choices aren’t truly the latter. The Love Songs theme has since been used for albums by many acts. I liked Madonna’s Something To Remember from 1995 as that did specify “ballads” rather than love songs.

I saw Voyage for the second time last Sunday. My first time was in May 2022 and I had forgotten some of it.

This time, we were standing. I would have been happy with being seated but my partner insisted on a different experience. And I’m pleased to say, he was right! We were stood right at the front so it was almost possible to forget there was much of an audience there. It felt like the show was being performed just for us! We were stood just to the right of the centre of the stage, so Benny was directly in front of us most of the time.

Seeing it at close range was amazing. It really did feel like they were really there. It was hard to believe it was a flat screen. The first time, it flew. This time it didn’t, though I would say that it seemed like they were in their first set of costumes for longer than any of the others. I had wondered if it might be too close but thankfully they’re “stood” well back from the front of the stage.

Stood right at the front meant that three tracks - Waterloo and two others - were more difficult to see as the images were projected onto the curtain which was too close to us. Waterloo was no loss as I had seen the footage so many times. For the other two tracks, the ABBATars were still there and my eyes were focussed on them, but I’d rather the (see-through) curtain not have been there. Minor quibbles though.

I’d still say that this wasn’t like seeing the real thing. Agnetha moved far too well in this that I couldn’t pretend it was her back in the day. Also, I would still argue that it’s a close approximation of them but not exact. Glassy-eyed in places and likenesses better at some points (it seemed to vary by costume) than others. I’d say Björn is the least life-like and perhaps Benny the best, with Frida a close second. As I say though, it does vary by costume. Both Agnetha and Björn looked better at some points than they did others.

Was Eagle the 1979 live version? It sounded a bit like it. I’m still not really too fussed with the cartoon segments or the band performance. Sorry, but that’s not what I came to see. Highlights for me were The Visitors, Hole in Your Soul, When All is Said and Done and possibly Lay All Your Love On Me, though I do wish they hadn’t removed the last verse of that.

I was impressed with the “outdoor” shop. That wasn’t there the first time. And the indoor one was an improvement on how it was before.

All in all, I was blown away by it. Much better than the first time - I enjoyed it then but not as much as I’d expected, which is probably why it’s taken 20 months to go back!

Not sure if you’ve been following this and other topics, but as things stand right now, not a lot! ABBA themselves apparently won’t be doing anything (or at least not all four of them together) and there is also - allegedly - no new or previously unreleased music to be unveiled. They are leading us to believe it’s going to be a bit of a damp squib. For “damp” I would read soaking wet.

Apparently “A section from the beginning of the song was later re-used for the 1982 track "I Am the City". Do we know which bit of I Am The City it is? I’ve never heard Funky Feet.

Interesting to hear that, jchanabbafan. The version of Ring Ring that was a hit in Australia (though not until 1976) was the remix, whereas in Europe (not the UK) it was the original version.

On the subject of compilations, I didn’t know until a few years ago that the Australian “The Best of ABBA” was identical to the European one other than the artwork. The Australian one wins hands-down in terms of the latter - it would seem their cover inspired the international one for Greatest Hits, complete with the black border and panel. They even use the same font as on the Waterloo album.

The West German one, whilst having an interesting photo, has the garish artwork that their single releases were known for.

The European version later added Fernando as the opening track (as on the example depicted in this post). The Australian one never did, so they included it on Arrival instead.

The official Greatest Hits included all 12 tracks from The Best of (not in the same order) adding He Is Your Brother and Another Town, Another Train. Fernando was added as an opening track on some Polar versions, but as the closing track on international ones. The US version oddly excluded Hasta Mañana - did they think people might be put off in case they thought the whole track was in Spanish??

Well, you’ll only need to wait about 15 months for the half-speed remaster of the ABBA album, that’s pretty much a dead-cert for next year! I can feel the anticipation building for that one already, particularly as we now don’t have any distracting new music to concern ourselves with. 😅

I’ve always liked Tropical Loveland too.

His words were “every little snippet we ever recorded has been released” which, I’m afraid, is a lie. There’s Just Like That for starters, plus loads of other stuff. A “snippet” really is reducing it to a small piece of music, not even a full track. It’s a very odd thing for him to say when plenty of stuff is out there.

If ABBA had never had anything leaked - ever - other than what’s been officially released then he could legitimately get away with pulling the wool over our eyes. Just Like That is, of course, the holy grail. There are three different versions of it out there, which is more than we have for most of the officially released tracks. More than a “snippet” so yes, it’s a complete and utter lie what he said, as things stand at present.

Clutching at very tiny straws but…

We know he can get forgetful. He’s said it himself. What if…

He’s talking about it from his perspective. They’ve just finished work on a huge Anthology release that will be entirely made up of unreleased recordings, due out this year. And now there really is nothing left. Not even any little snippet. It must be seriously huge!

He just forgot that we don’t know this yet, let alone heard it. He’s just blabbed it out but because we don’t understand it, we’re assuming the opposite. Or maybe it’s deliberate. He’s just told us without actually telling us.

As we have two similar threads going on and posts about the apparent lack of new songs being released, I have amended both topic titles and moved a couple of posts.

Anything about the “new songs” that Björn has appeared to confirm will not be happening can go here:
abbachat.boards.net/thread/1623/more-new-songs-voyage-sessions

Anything else relating to the anniversary can go in this thread. Just removes confusion and duplicate-ish posts / not knowing which one to post in.