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Post by HOMETIME on May 1, 2024 10:49:59 GMT
My first thought when I heard No Doubt About It was Elaine.
I agree that, overall, Voyage probably comes closest to the feel and eclecticism of Super Trouper. Little Things and Bumblebee have the folk/classical hybrid feel that seems to appear on BAO albums. Keep An Eye On Dan feels like a sibling of Nobody's Side from Chess. Don't Shut Me Down feels like it belongs with the 1982 recordings - Just Like That in particular.
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Post by HOMETIME on May 1, 2024 10:36:01 GMT
This video popped up on my YouTube feed this morning. Someone has extracted the lead vocal from When All Is Said And Done and married it to Benny's piano track from the version he recorded with Victoria Tolstoy. Slowing the vocal track slightly has made some of Frida's delivery sound a little like Bette Midler in parts. Maybe it's the slower vibrato? The bit where the harmonies come in at the end is really lovely.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 28, 2024 13:09:16 GMT
There's absolutely no excuse for this lack of imagination when it comes to vinyl colour choices. A cursory look at Amazon shows how vast the available colour palette is. The anal-retentive approach to sleeves has been this set's other undoing. Two company sleeves in a supposedly "deluxe" set is just plain lazy. True, the obvious picture sleeve is hardly earth-shattering, but it was a bad decision to ditch it. The "ABBA"-related singles box probably won't be any more exciting. What's the betting on the colours? Clear for So Long; red for I Dox5; yellow for SOS; white for Mamma Mia? Grr.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 28, 2024 12:55:02 GMT
I liked that it focused so squarely on the music - none of the kitsch, costumes, money or divorce tabloidism. The talking heads were great. There were surprisingly few ABBA songs, though?
Has anyone noticed that The Visitors (song) has crept into the more recent documentaries? It could be the Voyage show, of course, but I'd like to think that there is a growing willingness amongst TV producers to dip into the catalogue beyond the Gold tracklist.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 26, 2024 9:36:42 GMT
I've just heard the new BAO single. A duet between Tommy and Helen. It might just be me, but there are a couple of moments in the verse melody that remind me of Ode To Freedom. It's not the most immediate of songs, but it's pretty.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 26, 2024 9:21:17 GMT
Good point. I've no doubt there was some petty attempt at point-scoring in the voting amongst some die-hards. It's a bit cringey when you think about it. But, where the general public was simply voting for songs that meant something to them, it's interesting to see how much the Mamma Mia! franchise and the Voyage show seem to have had an impact. For all that some of us tend to roll our eyes at the ubiquity of Mamma Mia!, it really has brought some otherwise hidden gems to the surface. Given how far this poll strays from Gold, it'd be nice to think that a new compilation could delve deeper into the catalogue and still be a huge hit.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 21, 2024 9:21:23 GMT
I agree with Alan that we should carefully manage our expectations now. What Team ABBA seem to rate as "fun" is at odds with what fans reasonably expected after a lot of teasing. And Marnix makes great points too. BUT I reckon that Eurovision could actually be useful. So here is my thinking (make sure you're near some cushions in case you fall asleep). So an ABBA moment or theme is highly likely for the interval. An obvious, uninspired but reasonably cost-effective option would be to round up a bunch of previous Swedish winners and get them to sing an ABBA medley. Something like the sing-off in the Eurovision movie. Throw in some platform boots; a feather boa or two. A few face-on/side profile camera angles. Plenty of blue eyeshadow. Job done. Maybe Bjorn could deliver the votes of the Swedish jury in his Waterloo outfit. All nice and tidy. No focus pulled from the contestants or the eventual winner.
BUT! What if.... *whirly harp music and wibbly visual effect*- Everyone recognizes that programming/creating an ABBAtar performance costs a fortune. If Waterloo wasn't one of the original captured performances (and why did we not think of this before), it would need our heroes to at least lip-synch the song for the fancy cameras. For the sake of argument, let's imagine that the body doubles can follow some choreography so that mo-cap suits are not needed this time. If ABBA and the Eurovision team split the costs, they have (a) a terrific one-song interval act, and (b) an improved moment for the Voyage show. And let's assume they spent 8-10 months on this task.
- If the process could be used to debut a new song, it could tie in with Catherine Tate's quickly-scrubbed gaffe.... That would be an amazing launch for a new single. It would also be the de facto video, and might even slot easily into the Voyage show (the costuming would let us know where, roughly).
- Apart from what we've read in interviews, I think it's reasonably fair to say that none of us really knows how difficult it might be to create a one-off performance in another venue. Maybe technology has advanced enough to make something possible. Maybe cost-sharing could help it further?
- While I take Marnix's point, I don't completely subscribe to the who'd-watch-a-video argument. True, it would be a lot less exciting for the people in the venue, but to TV viewers worldwide it would be a seamless part of the show. If the clip was bookended by appearances by ABBA themselves - whether in person or by video link, it could raise the mood further.
- Even if this was all achievable, it still only accounts for about 5 minutes of that section. The ABBAtars could appear before or after that winners' medley for fill the rest of the time.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 20, 2024 18:29:13 GMT
That looks great.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 20, 2024 10:03:47 GMT
I don't have the A+ vinyl: is it colourless/transparent like Under Attack, or glass-clear (the Discogs images are not very helpful on this front)? I can't remember which album it was, but a friend showed me a disc that was like pale blue glass. The run-out area between the last track and the label was clear enough to read through.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 20, 2024 9:45:36 GMT
I love really clear vinyl too! It's great that so many audiophile coloured and clear vinyl is available these days. I'd love to see more of the ABBA and solo catalogue given truly luxurious reissues on clear vinyl that recognises that the Pantone chart includes more than blue, red, yellow and white.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 19, 2024 23:34:26 GMT
Alan, are there any images of the inner sleeve and the vinyl itself? Given the sleeve design - the photo, the typography - I wonder if the label feels that the box set is the CD version of Singlar och andra sidor?
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 19, 2024 18:08:08 GMT
[...] It’s a bit like the “Frida” album. It’s had a vinyl re-release but no CD. I know all the tracks were on that yellow 1967-72 CD but that’s long out of print. We seem to be heading for a time when if you want something physically, it’s vinyl or nothing. I got the RSD release of "Frida" (the sound is incredible - as good as any of the half-speed masters) but I'm not sure how readily available it is now. It did get a digital release (I found it on iTunes/Apple), but a proper CD release is way overdue. Ideally, it should be expanded - but Frida seems to follow Benny's reluctant stance when it comes to unreleased material. Grrr. But great to read your information about a possible release, Michal !
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 19, 2024 18:01:50 GMT
Saturday 27 April on Channel 4, "ABBA: 50 Years of Pop." Looks like it's about half an hour.
The Missing 40 Years is on YouTube for those who can't get Channel 5. It was way better than I expected.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 19, 2024 8:22:24 GMT
What other songs were done in capture motion? I seem to recall some titles being mentioned, but can’t remember what they were. The dismissal of Money Money Money was done without much explanation by Benny, other that it wouldn’t work (no reason given as to why not). Also it was left ambiguous as to whether the 24 songs included the ones already in the show that don’t have ABBATar performances (as we know, only 16 of the current 20 do). We speculated the bejaysus out of this in earlier discussions. I thought Ludvig mentioned/semi-confirmed that Money Money Money, Super Trouper, and Take A Chance On Me were captured? The question is whether the remaining tracks might be the missing representatives from Gold - The Name Of The Game, I Have A Dream, One Of Us? All a bit on the slow side. I wish they had the balls to include The Day Before You Came, Angeleyes, and If It Wasn't For The Nights. But would the great unwashed welcome them?
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 19, 2024 8:14:57 GMT
I have that CD, Alan, and I have to say that it sounds pretty good. I think that whoever is producing these things has access to mastering software, as the sound levels don't take a dip after track 10. Having the 12" of The Last Time and the Bright Remix of Let It Shine made this a worthwhile purchase for me. It never occurred to me that the Wurzel Gummidge bob might be a wig. I'm no coiffeur, but I reckon the styling technique just added a lot of volume to her hair. The styling in the image on the back looks way better to my inexpert eyes (it's just the same pose with a different hairdo). The photo on the back of the sleeve is beautiful and (IMO) would have made a better front cover.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 18, 2024 15:33:54 GMT
Totally agree: this show is so popular that keeping it running makes great business sense. It's highly possible that I could have misread something, but I thought that the lifespan of the Pudding Lane location was at the mercy of the local council; that the land was earmarked for housing? January 2025 is still a year ahead of the 2026 end-date loosely mentioned when the project was unveiled, so maybe they're trying to ensure that all currently available dates are close to being sold out before they release new dates. I wonder if sales have started to slow a bit, now that so many people have seen the show?
If the ABBAtars somehow make an appearance at Eurovision, it should give sales a huge boost.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 18, 2024 13:21:09 GMT
I think that one cartoon might work well for an overture before the ABBAtars take to the stage. While, thematically, a cartoon could work for a song like Eagle, I didn't feel that the live execution of the track was particularly fantastic. Voulez-Vous needs a zesty performance - the song really got the crowd going the night I was there.
Expanding the setlist would be a great move. If they wanted to inject, say, Hit By A Train into the set, then doing it along with three of their biggest and most iconic hits would greatly boost the overall energy of the show. Creating an ABBAtar video for the new song would help improve the recognition factor. And if (as some people seem to be excitedly theorising) the ABBAtars performed it at Eurovision, the second anniversary would be the ideal moment to unleash the updated show.
On the other hand, the London residency might be approaching its end? No tickets available beyond 5 January. So will they keep all the new bells and whistles as a lure for the new location(s)? As much as I loved the show, I'm not sure I'd have the wherewithal to haul ass to Vegas for a couple of new numbers...
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 18, 2024 12:55:09 GMT
[...] Warners seem to be happy to collaborate with Universal or Sony on compilations (That’s Me, My Very Best) but don’t seem to be interested in reissuing their two albums. Did I read somewhere that they’d misplaced the I Stand Alone master tapes or is that a myth? Or perhaps it only relates to the different mixes and Spanish versions. I hadn't heard that particular myth. But someone I know in the industry - whose job was re-issue projects - told me (about 3 years ago) that he was hopeful he'd be able to start work on expanding and reissuing ISA. He didn't mention any issues with missing tapes but indicated that there were myriad legal and technical issues to navigate. Surprisingly, it seems these projects take an average of about five years? He has since moved to another record company, so gawd knows what the status of that project is now. Infuriating.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 18, 2024 8:02:23 GMT
A handsome release!
I understand the urge to treat ABBA, Agnetha, Frida, Benny (incl. BAO), and Benny/Bjorn as distinctly separate entities. But I wish Universal, Polar, Mono, and ABBA themselves would realise that the fans who snap up reissues, coloured vinyl and picture discs would love some properly curated solo reissues too. The SGO box and the commissioned remixes were fantastic, so I don't understand why the idea had to stop there. Whether it's 40-year anniversaries or landmark birthdays, there's definitely a market for the more glamorous reissues. And, yes, the solo releases all sold less than the ABBA albums but that's beside the point. Many heritage releases on specialist vinyl or multi-disc CD sets are being released by acts with significantly smaller fanbases. It seems that slapping the label "limited edition" on anything makes it instantly more desirable and permissibly expensive. Certainly many of us here have fallen for that particular marketing ruse. I know that there are different labels involved, and no two seem to have the same level of interest or commitment, but I don't think there'd be any difficulty selling 3,000 units of a box set for any of the solo projects internationally. Maybe the strategy is for the artists' agents to pitch the re-releases and special editions to the labels?
In the meantime, Universal could still do matching boxes for Shine and Agnetha's WYAAM and EOAW albums. Chess needs a vinyl reissue too. Maybe fans should engage in some pester power with Warners for Agnetha's other albums?
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 15, 2024 20:12:47 GMT
A Wiwiblogs interview with Eurovision host, Petra Mede seems to let a small cat out of the bag....
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 15, 2024 12:07:13 GMT
I've just listened to that, bjorenny, and I loved it. It wouldn't have taken too much effort, I think, to add visuals to that for a TV broadcast. It's so refreshing to have something respectful that focuses on the music.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 13, 2024 23:39:36 GMT
Interesting that you have the picture disc studio albums available in shops, HOMETIME . If I saw them in HMV or Rough Trade or whatever, and at that price, I might be tempted. At least the odd one or two anyway. For sure. Sometimes I wish I was more patient: if they were reliable about stocking these things, it'd be a cheaper way of collecting.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 13, 2024 23:33:26 GMT
Interesting that you'd mention your least favourites first. What would your favourites be?
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 13, 2024 11:39:14 GMT
After many years away, HMV returned to Dublin a few months ago and they have some of the studio albums on CD and vinyl. We've had Tower Records here for decades now - just in Dublin, I think - and they have most of the studio albums on CD and vinyl. The coloured album box set was available there, too. They have all of the picture disc albums on sale for about €27 each, which compares well with online outlets (in that there's no P&P to add on).
Our homegrown record shop, Golden Discs, has been enjoying a revival in fortunes in recent years. They have fewer of the studio albums on CD and vinyl, but they do have some of the picture disc singles (mostly those from The Visitors set, ranging from €13-€16 each), the odd picture disc album and even the Ring Ring singles box at a reduced price.
This year would provide a good opportunity to reissue new masters of the studio albums across the formats. Ideally, the jewel case editions would be phased out in favour of more eco-friendly digipacks. (I know, I know - they're less durable). If everything is being remixed for Dolby Atmos, does that mean they have to be issued as BluRay (he asked, ignorant of technical doohickery)?
The random compilations continue to confuse me. I know they still sell, but I would have thought it made more sense not to renew the licences when they fall due. That would mean that the casually interested would be forced towards the official catalogue for their listening pleasure. Those impressed by Gold could satisfy their curiosity with More Gold (in dire need of a vinyl edition) and/or the studio albums. Given that I never seek them out, I could be wrong - but there don't seem to be random budget-friendly compilations for The Beatles, Queen, David Bowie, etc. Time to make the ABBA brand a little more exclusive, IMO.
The whole CD/vinyl thing is wild. Although I have renewed my love affair with vinyl, I can't agree with the current "vinyl sounds better" assertion, because that comes with too many conditions. Vinyl does sound great if you have a great turntable and amp. But even cheap CD players offer great sound. CD sound is not compromised by the added ambience a turntable brings: pops, crackles, static, needle-on-vinyl surface noise. CDs are not as vulnerable to scratches as vinyl records. I saved up for a decent system and, yes, vinyl does sound amazing on it. But so do the CDs, because the amp and the player are as decent. But my old record player was a sonic disaster, meaning the CD versions were lightyears ahead in terms of sound quality. Vinyl is enjoying a massive marketing moment, but it's much more expensive to produce. I wonder how the profit margins might look...
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 12, 2024 18:56:31 GMT
I wasn't expecting to see ten ABBA singles on the physical chart. Pretty cool - albeit for small numbers of units. The appearance of Waterloo and Voyage on the physical album chart, alongside Gold, is nice too.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 10, 2024 19:45:07 GMT
Bobby's Brother reporting that the entire back catalogue is being remixed in Dolby Atmos.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 10, 2024 10:24:10 GMT
Superb review, iiwftn ! Did you have a favourite moment? (And/or a least fave?)
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 9, 2024 12:32:07 GMT
Regarding the Honey Honey single, well the Box is limited to 2800 pieces, how many boxes will count for UK? And the Honey Honey picture disc is (at least for my taste) one of the least well looking ones from the whole "Albums-The Singles" boxes. I didn't order it. Agreed: the singles/picture discs for the Waterloo set are the least inspired so far. But I think there are enough completists out there to push them into the vinyl chart for a week (maybe lower positions than previous sets?) I think we hyped ourselves into great expectations that nothing so far has met. I took a brief look at the links that Tinneke/Henry posted but I'll have to wait for the English language edition next month. From what everyone is saying, it looks like the interesting aspects of the ABBA story are the human/personal biographies, with the band career being more mundane. As things stand, the members themselves are choosing not to lay bare their personal lives for entertainment (and who could blame them?). So that limits the potential of documentaries to deliver interesting results. If only they'd do a music-focussed analysis - maybe album by album. Talk about the songs, how they were written, the challenges, the feelings they have for some of the songs. Someone like Pete Paphides or Bob Stanley would be great to draw information out of them in interviews, and keep things on track. I have to say that, based on what has come so far this year, CMP's book delivers far more than I expected. It covers the whole "ABBA in Britain" angle far more eloquently than the documentary - which even had input from the same personnel as the TV show. CMP has had a sniffy reaction here and there, but he's the winner so far IMO. I wonder if anyone from Universal/Team ABBA ever swings by to see what we think? If so, can they pull something decent from the bag to make this year a bit more celebratory?
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 8, 2024 17:17:54 GMT
Meh. So much for my theory that the celebratory stuff might boost Gold's fortunes. I guess everything was a smidgen less than we anticipated? Still looking forward to ABBA Against The Odds - hopefully that elevates things a bit.
Do the midweeks give us a glimpse at the vinyl charts, or just the main charts? I'm expecting Honey, Honey to finally be a UK chart single on the vinyl chart.
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Post by HOMETIME on Apr 7, 2024 10:53:33 GMT
As expected, we non-UK types can't vote. Gosh, sob, etc. Really? Is it linked to BBC iPlayer or something? [...] No idea. I followed the link and it asked me to do the usual registration thingy, then confirm my email etc. It was only then that the system said "Brits only." I should have known, because the Sounds app and the iPlayer won't work here in Ireland any more. I had to tune in online to waste a morning with Gary Davies. Maybe it has something to do with the broadcast licence? That said, we receive BBC TV stations 1, 2, and 4.
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