For many people, the music of Abba all blurs into one another. It isn't helped by the plethora of compilations that seems to come out on a regular basis. But delve into Abba's discography and you'll realise that there is a whole world of difference between their first album ("Ring Ring") and their final album ("The Visitors") released ten years apart.
Abba, like most artists, took care with what they what put out. They searched for a sound that would challenge them musically and creatively whilst still keeping the formula that won the hearts and minds of so many people. For the die-hard Abbamaniac the album "Arrival" is usually the one presented as their finest achievement- and it's hard to disagree. It contains the megahits "Money, Money, Money" and "Dancing Queen" (plus it was also the sessions for that album that yielded "Fernando"). In many ways, Abba was a major contributor to the surge of disco music and 1979's "Voulez-Vous" album was their tilt at that market. In almost every respect they landed a perfect blow. Utilising the recording techniques that had made them famous they hit the discofloor hard with an album of immensely hummable tunes- a number of which are considered "Abba classics".
For an album of disco music to begin with a string section chugging out the main tune by itself is a remarkably bold statement- yet it is exactly the way that the album opens before the band launch into "As Good As New". The title track was a massive chart topper and it's insistent grooves and pulsating rhythm make it hard to not tap your feet along to. The chant of "uh-huh" in the chorus is everything that disco epitomised.
Of course, it wouldn't be Abba without a couple ballads on the album (even a disco one) and "I Have A Dream" was their first attempt at an audience singalong song (something they would repeat on their subsequent albums). The masterstroke is using a children's chorus to sing the final section of the piece (something that led to countless young kids in 1979 getting the opportunity to sing with their idols on stage). "Angeleyes" is another mid-tempo number that carefully balances synths with guitars and uses both to remarkable effect- it's a real strong number for Agnetha who takes the lead for this one. Frida then then helps bring side one to a close with "The King Has Lost His Crown"- her smooth alto voice bringing out the simmering anger of the lyric.
Side two opens the second major hit for this album- the Bjorn-led "Does Your Mother Know?". it's hard to imagine but when Abba first started Bjorn was seen as the lead singer but as the girls grew in popularity Bjorn was happy to contribute only one vocal per album and just stick to guitar and composing. This one is a major highpoint of the album and not only utilises the vocal strengths of Bjorn but the ability of the girls to be the best backing singers in the world. "If It Wasn't For The Nights" follows and it has its sights set firmly back on the dancefloor with some tremendous singing and really good underscoring of strings (paired with the piano). The second ballad of the album (another Abba classic) comes next- "Chiquitita". I really love Benny's piano playing in this one. It's not the most virtuosic playing he has ever done but really brings out the flavour of this number and his little fills throughout the song shift it to another level along with the haunting vocals of Frida. A couple of more dancefloor oriented numbers finish off the album- "Lovers Live A Little Longer" and "Kisses Of Fire" which again make good use of the string section as well as the ability of the girls to convey the message of the song.
The remastered album also contains one of my absolute favourite numbers- "Summer Night City". This track is absolutely blazing hot. The drumming throughout this song is nothing short of amazing along with everything else. "Lovelight" is another track from those sessions and it too is a great use of the girls and keyboards.
Producer Michael Tretow and the boys from Abba have utilised their musical space well throughout. Absolutely nothing is unimportant and by this time their craft was finely honed. It was to be Abba's last major success album-wise. It's an album that captures the vibe and feel of the late 70's perfectly.
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