Abba - the history of creation and creativity. Abba - Magnificent Four

29.06.2020

History of the character myth of ancient Greece Dedal and Icar read

Heroes of antique myths Characters of Greek mythology

Online reading book myths of classical antiquity book eighth

ABBA.

Bright juicy and memorable melodies made this quartet unique phenomenon in the musical world. The story of "ABBA" is counting from June 1966, when the participant of the Folk Group "Hootenanny Singers" Bjorn Ulvelus met (r. April 25, 1945) and the keyboard player popular in those years of the Swedish team "The Hep Stars" Benny Anderssson (r. 16 December 1946). The guys wrote his first joint composition in December, and by the end of the 60s they had a durable creative tandem. By this time, Benny left "Hep Stars", and "Hootenanny Singers" were engaged only by studio work. The last group released its discs on "Polar Music", whose owner of Stig Andersson was subsequently by the ABBA manager and wrote texts for their many hits. In the spring of 1969, Benny and Bjorn brought their girlfriends who have already tried the taste of solo career. Ulvelus chose Agnetu Feltskog (r. April 5, 1950), and in July 1971 they got married. Andersson and Anni Freds Lingstad (r. November 15, 1945) we looked at their relationship only in 1978, although they lived together before that time. Both pairs have collaborated from the very beginning and helped each other, but the idea of \u200b\u200bsinging in four of them did not visit them immediately.

The first attempt of the quartet failed, however, in 1972, the musicians recorded the single "People Need Love", who had a good success in Sweden. The ensemble was then called "Bjorn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid", and soon with the filing of Sting, this unobed-handed name has been reduced to Abba abbreviation. In 1973, the group spoke at the Eurovision Contest, where Ring Ring was third place with the Babblel number. The single-name single and the combined elements of GLEM Rock and Europourina album headed Swedish charts, and also received recognition in a number of other European countries.

The following year, the quartet again participated in Eurovision and this time won a unconditional victory with the composition "Waterloo". Shortly after this triumph, the song was headed by all European charts and even landed the top ten. The Disc-Giant Disclosure headed Swedish lists of popularity for 12 weeks, and in England he took the 28th place, and all the same as the group was only as a one-day-winner of the competition. "ABBA" forced to change the current opinion by the release of a third album containing such hits as "S.S." And "Mamma Mia". The last of these songs landed right in the first place in the British charts, where eight more songs of the group came acouted. The same "Abbamania" began in Australia, who seized this country for several years. In 1976, ABBA finally consolidated the status of a supergroup worldwide. Singles "Fernando" and "Dancing Queen" have become international hits, and the latter managed to climb to the top of conservative American charts.

By the end of the year, the new album "Arrival" with militants "Money, Money, Money" and "Knowing Me, Knowing You" arrived. The plaque assigned global charts, and the ensemble, in the meantime, rolled out a grand tour started in Europe and ended in Australia. Based on the final tour, a film was filmed about the group, the premiere of which was held simultaneously with the output of the "The Album" disk. This work introduced the team in a new, crowned and several Americanized Sound, where the former Babbles gave way to more thoughtful arrangements.

In the spring of 1978, "ABBA" took a serious attack on the United States, the result of which was the third place of the single "Take a Chance On Me" and the "The Album" hit in the village top 20. Found in April 1979 more dance than the predecessor "Voulez- Vous "was again full of hits, but the reputation of a happy quartet turned out to be a little subjected to the divorce of Bjorn and the string. However, the married gap has not yet meant the end of creative cooperation, and soon the whole world enjoyed the hit "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)", and fans from North America and Europe could see the team. In November 1980, the Super Truper drive came out, who returned the team from the experiments with Disco to a more familiar mainstream ass. Tradition album headed the charts of many countries, and still it went to the sunset. Japanese tour of the same year turned out to be the last, and in February 1981 they declared their divorce of Benny and Frida. Finally, the Four issued sadly and due to complicated arrangements going beyond the lightweight Pops album "The Visitors", after which the ABBA activity was suspended.

Benny and Bjorn took up the musical "chess", and their former halves resumed the solo career. Although the expected reunion did not take place, the fans continued to accumulate all sorts of "Best of" multi-million editions. The last time the musicians all appeared together in the public in 1986, performed at the Swedish TV acoustic version of the first song of Sting Anderssson "TivedShambo". In the same year, the first range of "ABBA" appeared on sale, compiled from the records of the end of the 70s. The second living album went out after many years and, unlike the fragmented predecessor, included a whole concert held at Wiembli Stadium in November 1979. In 2010, the names of the musicians of the legendary Swedish quartet were listed in the "Rock and Roll Fame Hall".

Last Update 14.07.18

Ola Brunkert (Ola Brunkert), National Radio (HP) of the country reported on Monday.

The Swedish vocal-instrumental ensemble ABBA (ABBA) was one of the most successful teams in the history of pop music and the most popular group created in Scandinavia.

The ensemble was created in 1972 and is named according to the first letters of the names of the performers. The Quartet included the Agnet Faltskog (vocals), Bjørn Ulvelus (vocals, guitar), Benny Anderssson (keyboards, vocals) and Anni Fred Lingstad (vocals).

The first success in his homeland came to them in 1972 after the recording of the song "People Need Love" (PEOPLE NEED LOVE). In June 1972, the song was released in the single, and this was the "point of reference". In March 1973, the first long-playing album appeared under the name "Call me, Call" (Ring Ring). The song of the same name fell to the top of the Swedish hit parade.

The beginning of the international take-off quartet is considered to be victory at Eurovision competition in England in April 1974 with the song "Waterloo" (Waterloo). From the moment of release in 1975, S.O.s., the group of the group undilly occupied the top lines of the English charts.

They became the first in Europe who won the first places in the charts of all English-speaking countries (United States, England, Canada, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand). It can be said that the 1970s were the time of Abba.

Each appearance of Abba in the public became an event, and each new group entry - Megahit: "Mamma Mia" (Mamma Mia), "Dancing Queen" (Dancing Queen), "Money, money, money" (Money Money Money). The last two songs entered the Album "Arrival" (Arrival, 1976), which broke the Records of the Sales of the Quartet not only in Sweden, but also around the world. Plates of the group were also produced in Czechoslovakia, GDR, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Poland and Bulgaria. In the Soviet Union, the company "Melody" produced 4 long-playing records.

1977 became peak in the career of the ensemble, when the beginning of the year was marked by a world tour. In December, the film "Abba - Cinema" was released in Australia (Abba - The Movie) and the Abba-Album album (Abba - The Album). After that, the band continued to produce the records that occupied the first lines of hit parades: "Do you want to" (voulez-vous, 1979), a collection "Abba Best Songs - Collection 2" (Abba Greatest Hits Vol.2).

In the fall of 1982, the release of a double collection (Abba The Singles The First Ten Years), as well as performances in TV England, Germany and Sweden, the musicians celebrated the decade of Abba, after which each of them engaged in the recording of solo plates.

After the collapse of the Agneta Faltskug group released several discs, in 1996 her autobiography was released, and two years later - a music album with the best songs. She tried to create a family with a physician Thomas Sonnenfeld, but was divided into 1993. Now the soloist of the famous ensemble retired at her villa on Ececo Island in the suburb of Stockholm. There, it is indulging in the system of yogis, enjoying astrology, contains several tricks in their own stable and performs long-term riding and walking in the morning.

Frida in a car accident died daughter Liz-Lott. After a long illness, her second husband Duzzo Ruiszo Reus von Playen died. Frieda herself became an active environment for protecting the environment.

Of course, the life of Bjorn and Benny has developed. Both were married again, got children. Found the company and in every way contribute to young talents. Now the former participants of the Abba are considered the most wealthy people in the musical world of the country. It was in 1989 by the Anglica, producer Judi Cramemer, who was born the idea of \u200b\u200bcreating a performance based on songs on the basis of the group's songs was requested to cooperation. Premiere "Mom Mia!" It took place on May 6, 1999 in the 25th anniversary of the Swedish "Victory" at the "Waterloo" and became the prologue of the incredible success of the musical.

Material prepared on the basis of open sources information

Ola Brunkert (Ola Brunkert), National Radio (HP) of the country reported on Monday.

The Swedish vocal-instrumental ensemble ABBA (ABBA) was one of the most successful teams in the history of pop music and the most popular group created in Scandinavia.

Frida in a car accident died daughter Liz-Lott. After a long illness, her second husband Duzzo Ruiszo Reus von Playen died. Frieda herself became an active environment for protecting the environment.

Material prepared on the basis of open sources information

The ABVA group was founded by Benni Anderson and Bjorn Ulvelus, musicians, authors and songs of songs. They met in 1966, on one of the summer parties and then they decided to continue working together. At that time, Benny was a member of the HEP Stars group (Sweden) as a keyboard player, and Bjorn consisted of "Hootenanny Singers" - he was a guitarist and a singer. During one of the concerts in Malmo, Benny Anderson met Annie Freds Lingstad, a singer who sang from the 13th age as part of different groups. She even performed at the festivals of songs in Venezuela and Japan. At about the same time, Bjorn on TV saw the performance of another singer - the Feltskog agneti, who performed his own song. He decided that by all means to get to know her.

The legendary quartet first met in full-time in Stockholm, during the recording of the TV program, and already in 1970 they began to sing together. Almost at one time with their common debut, the output of the album "Lycka" Benny and Bjorn. These were songs performed in Swedish, and frida and agneties were backing with back-vocalists. Already in 1971, talented Benni and Bjorn took POLAR producers to the company. It was associated with a random coincidence - the previous producer of the company B. Bernhag, a close friend of Stig Anderson, head of POLAR. The vacant place station invited Bjorn Ulveus, however, he agreed on condition that he would work with his co-author Benny Anderssson. They even divided the salary one for two at first.

The Commission of the famous Eurovision contest rejected the group's candidacy with the song "Ring Ring", and in 1973, February, they recorded this song in German, Swedish, English and Spanish. The new hit very quickly gained popularity and headed the charts in Belgium, Holland, Austria, Sweden and even South Africa. And in March of the same year, the first album was published under the similar name "Ring Ring". In 1974, on Eurovision in Brighton (England), the group of ABVE with his song "Waterloo" won an absolute victory (with a translate 20 K 1). This song has become the beginning of the sequence of unprecedented super hits - 18 in a row of hits in the best tent of Britain. Eight quartet hits ranked first places. In 1976, these were the compositions Mamma Mia, Dancing Queen, Fernando, in 1977 - Knowing Me, Knowing You, as well as The Name of The Game, in 1978 it was hit by Take a Chance on Me, and in 1980 - Songs Super Trouper and The Winner Takes IT All. The leaders were the albums of the group, the beginning put the collection "Greatest Hits", which in 1975 was released in Sweden. The overseas achievements of ABVA were somewhat modest - in April 1977, Hit Dancing Queen was headed by local charts for a week. Three albums of the group in the US became "golden", until the "platinum" retained only "The Album", 1977 of the release.

His song Dancing Queen for the first time quartet performed for the Swedish king, on the eve of the wedding in the royal family in 1976. They committed its first tour of Britain in 1977, then at the performance of the popular four in Albert Hall, which accommodates 11 thousand people, received more than 3 million applications. We ended with the tour in Australia, in March the month of the same year. Here they were removed the material for the film about the group called "AVVA". It was in Australia on December 15 was the premiere of this film. In his homeland, a film about himself Avva introduced in 1977, on the Christmas evening. In 1979, on January 9, the ABVA Group participated in the organized UNICEF charitable action in the city of New York, all revenues from his single chiquitita they handed over to the organizers. The first speech of the group in North America was held in Canada, in Edmonton, it was 1979, September 13th. This tour continued until mid-November and ended in Europe.

In 1981-1982, the Group significantly reduced its activity. In December 1982, the Group released the last single, recorded in full. It was the "Under Attack", but the last single group is the song "Thank You for The Music".

The popularity of the group was revived in 1992, however, as all of the music in the style of Disco. All hits of the popular quartet were published on two CDs by Polydor. Even the Caver version of the hits of the group were published, Erasure published a mini-album "Avva- Esque". At about the same period, the Bjorn Again group from Australia has become popular, using style and image, as well as the sound manner and playback of the ABVA group.

The media leaked in the media that in 2000 the Abbus group refused to offer speeches around the world "the old composition." For the round-the-world tour they were offered $ 1 billion.

ABBA - Swedish Music Quartet, existed in 1970-1982 and named according to the first letters of names of the performers. It is one of the most successful teams in the history of pop music. The most popular group created in Scandinavia. Quartet held the first places in world charts from the mid-1970s before the early 1980s. They remained in the playlists of radio stations and continue to sell albums. Judging by rumors, the band sold more than 370 million records. Only, Beatles, Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra and sold more albums than Abba. They were the first in continental Europe who won the first places in the charts of all English-speaking countries (United States, England, Canada, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand).

Structure

Agneta Faltskug (Swedegneha Ase Fältskog) - vocals (r. April 5, 1950, Jonchoping, Sweden);

Björn Ulvelus (Swede Björn Kristian Ulvaeus) - vocals, guitar (r. April 25, 1945, Gothenburg, Sweden);

Benny Anderssson (Swede Benny Bror Göran Andersson) - Keyboard, vocals (r. December 16, 1946, Stockholm, Sweden);

Anni Fried Lyungstad (Frida) (Swede Anni-Frida Synni Lyngstad (FRIDA)) - vocals (r. November 15, 1945, Balchergen / Narvik, Norway).

Brief history of the group before the beginning of the XXI century

The founders of the group were musicians, singers and the authors of the songs Bjørn Ulvelus and Benny Anderssson. For the first time they met at the party in the Vastevik in the summer of 1966, where they decided that they should compose songs together. Benny was at that moment the keyboard player popular in Sweden "HEP STARS", Bjørn singer and guitarist in the ensemble "Hootenanny Singers". At the concert in Malmo, Bennie met with the singer Anni Fried Lyungstad, who from thirteen years sang with different groups and even performed on the songs of festivals in Japan and Venezuela. At the same time, Björn heard on the radio, as his own song "I WAS SO In Love" Agnet Faltskug, and decided to invite it to the group.

Continued below

For the first time, the whole four gathered to record the TV program in Stockholm, and began to sing together from November 1970. Simultaneously with the debut of the quartet, in one of the restaurants of Gothenburg (previously everyone did a solo career), at the end of the year, Björn and Benni recorded their own album, in which the Agneta and Frida participated as a back vocalist. "Polar" published a Disk "Lycka" with songs in Swedish, and the single "People Need Love" was published in the USA at Playboy Records.

In 1971, Benny and Björn went to work at POLAR already as producers. Tragic leaving Bengta Bernhaga - the nearest friend and comrades of the head of "Polar" Stig Anderson, brought the place of producer Björna Ulveus on the liberance. Stig offered this position to the young author, but Björna did not quite arrange. He agreed on condition that his co-author - Benny Anderssson will be taken to work. There were no salaries for two from the company's head, and the beginning authors had to work on Pol.

In February 1973, the song of the Quartet "Ring Ring", rejected by the Eurovision Contest Commission, was recorded in Swedish, German, Spanish and English and headed Charts in Sweden, Austria, Holland, Belgium and South Africa. In March 1973, the first quarter-playing album of the quartet called "Ring Ring" was released. On April 6, 1974, the song Abba "Waterloo" with an absolute advantage (20 to 1) won the Eurovision Contest in the English city of Brighton. "Waterloo" laid the beginning of an unprecedented sequence of eighteen hits in a row in the British Tent. Eight of them reached the vertices: "Mamma Mia" (1976), "Fernando" (1976), "Dancing Queen" (1976), "Knowing Me", "Knowing You" (1977), "The Name of the Game" ( 1977), "Take a Chance On Me" (1978), "The Winner Takes IT All" (1980), "Super Truper" (1980). The top line of charts also occupied eight group albums, ranging from the Greatest Hits team, published in Sweden at the end of 1975.

Achievements of the fourth of the ocean were much more modest: only "Dancing Queen" in April 1977 held a week on top of the list. Three albums of steel in the states "Golden" and only ABBA - "The Album" (1977) became "platinum". On June 18, 1976, ABBA opposed the King of Sweden on the eve of the royal wedding, presenting the audience a very new song "Dancing Queen". In February 1977, they made the first British tour (for two concerts in the Royal Albert Hall (11 thousand places) received 3.5 million applications). The final part in March took place in Australia, where most of the material for the film "Abba" was removed.

On December 15, the world premiere of the film also took place. At the home of the quartet, the film premiere was held in the Christmas evening of 1977. On January 9, 1979, the quartet took part in the charity shares of UNICEF in New York and transferred the organization all incomes from the single "Chiquitita". On September 13, 1979, the concert in Edmontone (Canada) ABBA opened his first North American tour. Tours ended in mid-November in Europe.

From winter 1981/1982, the group's activity was noticeably declining. In December 1982, the latest recorded Single ABBA "Under Attack" came out, although their last hit was "Thank You for The Music".

The new increase in the popularity of ABBA, like all the music of the times of disco-boom, began in 1992. The company "POLYDOR" reprinted all the hits of the group on two CDs. "Erasure" made a mini-album with modern camver songs of a group called Abba-esque, and the Australian group "Bjorn Again" has achieved fast success with precisely reproduced and well recognizable image and the sound of the ABBA group.

According to mass media, in 2000, Abba abandoned the contract for a round-the-world series of performances by the "old good" composition worth almost 1 billion US dollars.

1972-1973

Benny Anderssson was the keyboard player popular in the second half of the 1960s of the Swedish pop group "HEP STARS". They performed remake of international hits. The strength of the group was their live performances with spectacular show. Their fans were mostly young girls. With their full right, they were called Swedish Beatles, although they are rather a scenic image of Dorse.

Andersson played on a synthesizer and gradually began writing the original compositions for the group, many of which became hits. Bjørn Ulveus was a soloist of the popular folk group "Hootenanny Singers". He and Anderssson sometimes met and agreed on the joint record.

Stig Anderson, Manager "Hootenanny Singers" and the founder of the record company Polar Music saw great potential in the joint work of Anderssson and Ulveus and in every way supported any of their undertakes. He, like no other, believed that someday they will be glorifying the whole world. Ultimately, the duet recorded the album "Lycka" ("Happiness"), in which they included their own compositions.

On some songs, female voices were clearly heard of their girlfriends - agneti and frida. Agneta Faltskug - the youngest participant of the group. When she was 17 years old, the song in its performance was number 1 in Sweden. Many critics believed that she was a talented composer, most of her songs were written in the style of popular music. Together with the writing of his own songs, she also recorded a cover version of foreign hits and performed them at the competitions of Swedish amateur. As a result, it became the most popular pop singer of the time.

In 1969, the Agneta met with Frieda on TV show, several months later she met with the beer at the concert. At the shooting TV show in 1969, they met again, met and got married in 1971. In 1972, the Agneta received the role of Mary Magdalene in the Swedish formulation of the Musical Music "Isus Christ - Superstar". Criticism highly appreciated her work in this project.

Annie Fried Lyunstad sang with different dance style groups with various groups. Later passed into a jazz team. In 1969 she won the national talent competition. Her Professional Career began with the signing of a contract with the Swedish branch of the company "EMI" in 1967. At the same time, singles began to go out with songs in her performance, but a full-fired long-playing album was born only in 1971.

In 1969, she participated in Melodifestivalen and her song "Härlig Är Vår Jord" ranked 4th. She met Benni Anderson on TV Studios. A few weeks later, on a concert tour in South Sweden, the second meeting took place. Soon they begin to live together.

Benny Andersson attracts Frido and Agneta as backing vocalists to record the album "Lycka". From now on, he began to produce a solo career Frida. Despite the growing popularity of the ABBA quartet, at the end of 1975 Frida finished work on his Swedish-speaking solo album. It is noteworthy that the world-famous song "Fernando" opened this record, but in Swedish. Fearing the affiliation of the Communion, Director of the Stig Group Anderson insisted on the continuation of the joint creativity of the ensemble. The subsequent solo album of the dark-haired soloist ABBA saw the light only in 1982.

In the early 1970s, although Björn and Agnus were married, and Benny and Frida lived together, they continued to make their own, independent of each other, musical careers in Sweden.

Stig Anderson wanted to break out the international music market. He is a feat of Benny and Bjorne to writing a song for Eurovision 1972, which Lena Anderson should have been performed. The song "Say IT WITH A SONG" ranked 3rd at the competition, which confirmed the opinion of Sting that he was on the right track. Benny and Björn experimented in writing songs with new sound and vocal arrangements. One of their songs was "People Need Love" with the voices of girls, which gave a very good effect. Stig released this song as a single, under the authorship of "Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid". The song reached 17 places in Swedish charts.

This single has also become the first song, which fell into the charts in the United States, where it reached 14 places in the charts for singles "Cashbox" and 17 places in the Charter "Record World's". Later, the single was released on "Playboy Records". Although, according to Sting, the song was to become a much big hit in the United States, but the small recording company "Playboy Records" did not have the necessary resources to distribute recording among sellers and radio stations.

Next year, they made an attempt to break through "Melodifestivalen" with the song "Ring Ring". The studio treatment was engaged in Michael of thirds, which experimented with the "Wall of Sound" technology, which began to be applied in the ABBA records. Stig orders the translation of poems by Nile Sedak (Neil Sedaka) and Phil Cody (Phil Cody) into English. They intend to win first place, but become only third. However, the promotional group releases the album "Ring Ring" under the same uncomfortable name "Björn, Benny, Agnetha & Frida". The album spun well, and the song "Ring Ring" became a hit in many European countries, but stig felt that the breakthrough could be only if the song would become a British or American hit.

Name Abba

In the spring of 1973, Stig, tired of the uncomfortable name of the group, began to call it privately and publicly like Abba. It was at first there was a joke, as Abba was the name of the company widely known in Sweden for fish recycling. According to the memories of the string, " When we decided to name A-B-Bh, we had to get permission from this company. There we were answered: "I agree, just see that we were not ashamed for you."»

The first time the Abba name was found on the paper during recording at the Studio "Metronome Studio" in Stockholm on October 16, 1973. The first single, released under the name Abba, was "Waterloo".

ABBA - an acronym formed from the first letters of the names of each member of the group: Agnetha, Bjorn, Benny and Anni-Frida (FRIDA). The first b in the name of the group became turned over in 1976, becoming a registered trademark.

1974-1977

In 1972 and 1973, Björn, Benny and the Stig Manager believed in the possibility of "Melodifestivalen" and Eurovision. Later, in 1973, composers were invited to write a new song for the 1974 contests. Choosing between several new songs, they unexpectedly stopped at the "Waterloo" - because the group was impressed by the growth of Glam Roca in England.

"Waterloo" was unconditional Glam Rock Pop Single, recorded by Michael B. Tretow using the "Sound Wall" technology. Abba won the hearts in his homeland and in their 3 attempts were more prepared for international competitions. The song was presented on the show in Brighton Dome in England, took the first place and made them widely known in England and also ascended on the top of the chait of parades throughout Europe. "Waterloo" was the first song Abba, which became number 1 in England.

In America, she reached 6 places in the Billboard Hot 100 Chart, making the way for their first album there, although the album rose only at the 145 position of the Billboard 200 Chart albums. The next single Single "So Long" entered the TOP 10 in Sweden and Germany, but did not get into the charts of England. But the next release "Honey, Honey" managed to break through the 30th place in the Billboard Hot 100 Chart in the USA.

In November 1974, Abba went to their first international tour to Germany, Denmark and Austria. The tour was not so successful as the group hoped, because many tickets were not sold, and due to the lack of demand. Abba was even forced to cancel several concerts, including a pre-planned concert in Switzerland.

The second part of the tour, which Abba was taken in Scandinavia in January 1975, completely different from the first: they collected the full halls and, finally, received the reception that was expected. Within 3 weeks in the summer of 1975, Abba was compensated during the tour in Sweden what was last summer. They gave 16 outdoor concerts in Sweden and Finland attracting huge crowds of the people. Their show in Stockholm in the moon Park "Gröna Lund" viewed 19,000 people. The release of their 3 album ABBA and 3 single "SOS" fell in the top 10 and the album reached 13 places. The group was no longer treated as a single-honest group.

Success in Britain was confirmed when Mamma Mia became number 1 in January 1976. In the US "SOS" hit the first ten Record World of the best songs and became 15 in the Billboard Hot 100, and also received the BMI Award award as the most commonly broadcast on the radio song in 1975.

Despite this, the success of Abba in the States was inconsistent. Although they managed to break through to the singles market, until 1976 they had 4 songs included in the TOP 30, the album market turned out to be too strong a nuts that they could not conquer. Abba's album reached less than 3 singles, rising only 165th place in the chart of the albums "Cashbox" and 174 in the Billboard 200 Charter. It was such that in the United States the reason was the same very bad advertising company (see ABBA in the USA).

In November 1975, the Group releases the collection "Greatest Hits". It includes 6 songs that came to the top 40 in the UK and the United States. He becomes the first album who has reached the first place in England, and includes the song "Fernando" (which was originally written in Swedish for Frida and entered her solo album of 1975).

One of the Abba all-well-known and very popular tracks "Fernando" did not appear on the Swedish or Australian releases of the album "Greatest Hits". In Sweden, the song was waiting until 1982 and appeared on the album of The Singles-The First Ten Years. In Australia, the track came out on the 1976 album "Arrival". "Greatest Hits" raised a group in the top 50 in the United States in the list of the best albums, which made it possible to sell more than 1 million copies in the United States. In the US, the song "Fernando" reached the top 10 Cashbox TOP 100 best songs and became 13 in the Billboard Hot 100. The single also became the first in the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, this is the first Single of Abba, which reached the top of any American chart. In Australia, 2006, hit Fernando holds a record, as the longer than all in the first place (15 weeks) (along with Bittles "Hey Jude".)

The next album "Arrival" has achieved a higher stage both in the level of lyrics and the quality of studio work. He received magnificent feedback from English music weeks of type "Melody Maker" and "New Musical Express", as well as very good feedback from American critics. In fact, several hits from this disk: "Money, Money, Money", "Knowing Me, Knowing You" and the strongest hit "Dancing Queen".

In 1977, the Album "Arrival" was nominated for the Brit Award Prize in the category "Best International Album of the Year." At this time, Abba was very popular in England, most of Eastern Europe and Australia. However, their popularity in the United States was at a much smaller level and "Dancing Queen" was only number 1 Billboard Hot 100. Anyway "Arrival" became breakthrough for ABBA in the United States, where he took the 20th position in the Billboard Album Chart.

In January 1977, Abba went to tour in Europe. At this time, the status of the group is radically changed, and they become superstar. Abba is starting their long-awaited journey to Oslo in Norway and show the show in which the scenes of their self-permanent mini operetta are included. This concert attracted a lot of media attention from Europe and Australia. Abba continued tour in Europe and finished it with two concerts in London in the Royal Albert Hole. Tickets for these concerts were available only to order through the mail, and, as it turned out, the mail received more than three and a half million ticket orders. However, there were complaints about the "sterile and united" show.

After the European part of the tour in March 1977, Abba gave 11 concerts in Australia. The tour was accompanied by a massive hysterium and the huge attention of the press, which is well shown in the full-length film "Abba: The Movie", shot by the Lasse Hallström clipmaker.

Tour in Australia and a film based on this contain funny details. The Agneta in the group performed the role of a good looking blonde and "girls from the postcard", the role against which she rebelled. Throughout the tour, she went onto the stage in the leather white a very dense jumpsuit, which gave the cause of one newspaper Write the headline of the Ass Agnet Show.

In December 1977 in Sweden (in many countries - in January 1978), the album "The Album" was released. Although the disk was taken critics worse than others, however, he contained several hits: "The Name of The Game" and "Take a Chance On Me" both of which reached the first places in England and 12 and 3, respectively in Billboard Hot 100 in USA. The album also included the song "Thank You for the Music", which was later released in England as a single, and was also the opposite side on the record with the song "Eagle" in places where this song was produced as a single.

1978-1979

In 1978, Abba was superpopular. They redid the old cinema in the record studio "Polar Music" in Stockholm, where other very well-known groups later were recorded. For example, "LED Zeppelin" (Album "In Through the Out Door") and "Genesis".

The single "Summer Night City" recorded in 1978 became the last of the first place in the Swedish hit parade. He pressed the next disc-giant "voulez-vous", published in April 1979. Two songs for this album were recorded at the Criteria Studios family studio in Miami using the legendary sound engineer Tom Dowda. The album occupies the first places in Europe and Japan, in the top ten in Canada and Australia and in the first twenty with the United States.

Interestingly, none of the songs of the album reached the first place in the charts of England, but "Chiquitita", "Does Your Mother Mother Know", "Voulez-Vous" and "I Have A Dream" did not go down at least 4 places. In Canada, "I Have a Dream" becomes the second song number 1 in RPM Adult Contemporary Chart, the first song was "Fernando". In January 1979, the group performed the song "Chiquitita" at the Concert "Music for UNICEF" during the UN Assembly. Abba donated all revenues from this World Hit to UNICEF Foundation.

Later in the same year, the group released the second Prefab Album "Greatest Hits Vol. 2", on which there was a new track "GIMME! GIMME! GIMME!" (A man After Midnight), their most famous disco-hit in Europe. On September 13, 1979, Abba began their first and only North American tour in Canadian Edmonton with the full hall, accommodating 14,000 people. Over the next four weeks, they gave 17 concerts, 13 in the USA and 4 in Canada. The last planned concert in the United States in Washington was canceled due to the emotional breakdown of the string, which she received during the flight from New York to Boston, when a private plane in which she was located in extreme weather conditions and could not land for a long time.

The tour ended the show in Toronto in Canada in front of about 18,000 spectators. This performance caused a flow of complaints from the group fans, who said that Abba is still more studio, than a living, show group. On October 19, the tour continued in Western Europe, where the musicians gave 23 concerts, including six evenings in the London Wembley Arena.

1980: Tour in Japan and "Super Truper"

In March 1980, Abba went to Japan on tour. When they flew to the airport, they were attacked by hundreds of their fans. The group gave 11 concerts, collecting the full halls, including 6 performances in Tokyo Budokan. This tour turned out to be the last in the quarter career.

In November 1980, they saw the light of their new album "Super Truper", which reflected some change in the style of a group of greater use of synthesizers and personal lyrics. More than 1 million orders were obtained for this album before its release, which was a record.

The main favorite of this album was considered the Single "The Winner Takes IT All", which reached the eighth place in the charts of England. In the US, he reached 8 places in Billboard Hot 100. The song was written as if the family problems agnenet and Bjern. The next SUPER TROUPER song also became a hit number 1 in England, but even the top 40 could not be achieved in the United States. Another track from the album "Super Truper", "Lay All Your Love On Me", released by limited edition in some countries reached The top of the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play Chart and 7 places in the English Charter Singles.

Also in June 1980, Abba produces a prefablished album of his hits in Spanish "Gracias Por La Música". It was released in Hispanic countries, as well as in Japan and Australia. The album became very successful, and together with the Hispanic-speaking version of "Chiquitita", became a breakthrough for their success in South America.

1981: Benny and Frida divorce, Album "The Visitors"

In January 1981, Biern marries Lena Calerso, and the manager of the Stig Anderson group celebrates his 50th birthday party, which was present many people. By this event, Abba prepared a gift to him, writing the song "Hovas Vittne", devoted to him and released by the circulation of only 200 copies on the plates of red vinyl. The whole circulation was distributed to the guests present at the party. This single is now the most desirable thing for collectors.

In mid-February, Veni and Frida reported that they were going to divorce. Later it became known that their marriage experienced problems for quite a long time and Benny had already met another woman - Nora Norklit, where he married the same year. Biern and Benny were engaged in writing songs for the new album All early 1981 and began work in the studio above the record in mid-March.

At the end of April, the group took part in the TV program in the United States. The album record was in the middle when the studio bought a new digital 32 travel tape recorder instead of the 16 track analog. The album record was continued throughout the autumn in order to release it to Christmas.

1982: Collapse of the Group

Abba has never officially announced the end of the activity, but the group has already been considered broken for a long time.

On January 1, 1982, Abba gave his last concert in Stockholm. Their last speech as a group was on the air of the British TV program "The Late, Late Breakfast Show" (live from Stockholm) on December 11, 1982.

In January 1983, the Agnet began to record a solo album, while Frida has already released his own album "Something's Going On" a few months before. The album was very successful. Bjorn and Benny began writing songs for the musical chess and their new project "Gemini". A group of Abba was "put on the shelf."

Bjorn and Benny denied the decay of the group in their interviews (" Who are we without our girls?! Initials brigade bardo?"). Frida and the Agnet said several times that Abba will certainly be gather again to record a new album in 1983 or in 1984. However, among the members of the Group, there were no longer the relationship of working together. In addition, and with Stig, Anderson relationships went to a dead end. Since then, the Swedish four has not appeared in public in full (with the exception of January 1986) until July 4, 2008, when the Swedish premiere of the Momma Mia Miaus film film premiere was held.

Fate of participants after decay

Frida in a car accident died daughter Liz-Lott. After a long illness, her second husband Duzzo Ruiszo Reus von Playen died. Frieda herself became an active environment for protecting the environment.

2006-2008: Mamma Mia!

During the premier of the musical in different countries, the group participants have repeatedly appeared before the public. In October 2006, three participants of the famous Swedish Quartet Frida Ryudss, Bjorn Ulvelus and Benni Anderssson arrived in Moscow. Agnus Feltskog wrote in writing for the invitation, but chose to remain.

At the premiere of Mamma Mia! In Stockholm in 2008 for the first time in almost 20 years, all four participants in the group gathered simultaneously in one place. Cameras recorded them on the balcony of cinema ahead with performers of major roles in the film. Take a picture of the whole fourth separately from other artists failed.

An association?

In an interview with the newspaper "Sunday Telegraph", which followed this premiere, Bjorn Ulvelus and Benny Anderssson confirmed that they would no longer gather on stage together. " We will never appear on the stage together"Said Ulvelus. " There is nothing that could make us unite. Money is not such a factor that has a value in this matter for us. We would like people to always remember us as we were: young, bright, full of energies and ambitions. I remember how Robert Plant said once about Led Zeppelin, that they are a camp-group, because everything they do, there are cavities on themselves, on their own past works. And, in my opinion, this is a very correct definition.».

However, in 2010, Lingstad stated that it was met with Agneta Faltskog - and for the first time since the collapse of the group in 1983 discussed the possibility of joint speeches.

Abba - the history of creation and creativity. Abba - Magnificent Four

Read also

ABBA.