About the fate of the members of the legendary group Avva. Abba: the success story of the group and the fate of its members. information Abba group broke up
The ABBA group was founded by Benny Anderson and Bjorn Ulvaeus, musicians, authors and performers of songs. They met in 1966, at one of the summer parties, and even then they decided that it was worth continuing to work together. At that time, Benny was a member of the group Hep Stars (Sweden) as a keyboard player, and Bjorn was in the Hootenanny Singers - he was a guitarist and singer. During one of the concerts in Malmö, Benny Anderson met Anni-Frid Lyngstad, a singer who had been singing since the age of 13 in various groups. She even performed at song festivals in Venezuela and Japan. Around the same time, Bjorn saw on TV a performance by another singer, Agnetha Fältskog, who performed her own song. He decided that he would meet her no matter what.
The legendary quartet first met in full in Stockholm, during the recording of a television program, and already in 1970 they began singing together. Almost at the same time as their common debut, the album “Lycka” by Benny and Bjorn was released. These were songs performed in Swedish, and Frida and Agnetha were backing vocalists during the recording of the songs. Already in 1971, the talented Benny and Bjorn were hired by Polar as producers. This was due to a coincidence - the previous producer of the company, B. Bernhag, a close friend of Stig Anderson, the head of Polar, died. Stig invited Bjorn Ulvaeus to fill the vacant position, however, he agreed on the condition that he would work with his co-author Benny Andersson. At first, they even split their salaries.
The commission of the famous Eurovision Song 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 quickly gained popularity and topped the charts in Belgium, Holland, Austria, Sweden and even South Africa. And already in March of the same year, the first album under the same name “Ring Ring” was released. In 1974, at the Eurovision Song Contest in Brighton (England), the ABBA group won an absolute victory with their song “Waterloo” (by a margin of 20 to 1). This song began a sequence of unprecedented super hits - 18 consecutive hits in the top ten in Britain. Eight hits of the quartet took first place. 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 the hit Take A Chance On Me, and in 1980 - songs Super Trouper and The Winner Takes It All. The group's albums also led the way, starting with the collection "Greatest Hits", which was released in Sweden in 1975. ABBA's overseas achievements were somewhat more modest - in April 1977, the hit Dancing Queen topped the local charts for only a week. Three of the group’s albums went gold in the United States; only “The Album,” released in 1977, reached platinum.
The quartet performed their song Dancing Queen for the first time for the Swedish King, on the eve of his wedding in the royal family in 1976. They made their first tour of Britain in 1977, then more than 3 million applications were received for the performance of the popular foursome at the Albert Hall, which seats 11 thousand people. The tour ended in Australia in March of the same year. Material for a film about a group called “ABBA” was also filmed here. It was in Australia on December 15 that the film premiered. In its homeland, ABBA presented a film about itself in 1977, on Christmas evening. In 1979, on January 9, the ABBA group took part in a charity event organized by UNICEF in New York City, and they donated all the proceeds from their single Chiquitita to the organizers. The group's first performance in North America took place in Canada, in the city of Edmonton, it was 1979, on September 13. This tour continued until mid-November and ended in Europe.
In 1981-1982 the group noticeably reduced its activity. In December 1982, the group released their last single, recorded with the full lineup. It was "Under Attack", but the band's last single was the song "Thank You For The Music".
The group's popularity was revived in 1992, as well as all disco music. All the hits of the popular quartet were released on two CDs by Polydor. Even cover versions of the group's hits were published; Erasure published a mini-album "ABBA-esque". Around the same period, the group Bjorn again from Australia became popular, using the style and image, as well as the style of sound and playback of the ABBA group.
Information leaked to the media that in 2000 ABBA refused the offer of performances around the world with the “old lineup”. They were offered $1 billion for a round-the-world tour.
ABBA is one of the most successful bands in the history of pop music and the most popular group created in Scandinavia. Agneta Fältskog (vocals), Björn Ulvaeus (vocals, guitar), Benny Andersson (keyboards, vocals) and Anni-Frid Lyngstad (vocals) took the music world by storm, breaking into the charts across the planet in the 1970s.
ABBA became the first group in Europe to achieve leading positions in the charts of all English-speaking countries. The 70s even began to be called the “ABBA” decade. Every appearance of the quartet in public was an event, and a new recording was a hit. In the fall of 1982, with the release of the collection “The First Ten Years,” the musicians celebrated the tenth anniversary of the group, after which each of them began a solo career. AiF.ru tells how life turned out for the members of the legendary quartet after the collapse of the group.
Agnetha Fältskog
Agnetha's remarkable music career began when she was just 15 years old. Long before the creation of the ABBA group, the singer managed to appear in many musical groups and become popular in Sweden.
On July 6, 1971, Agnetha married Bjorn Ulvaeus. A romantic relationship with him arose during filming on Swedish television in May 1969. They had two children: daughter Linda Elin was born on February 23, 1973 and son Christian on December 4, 1977. Agnetha and Bjorn separated at the end of 1978, and Agnetha left their shared home on Christmas night. At the same time, they decided that their troubles in family life should not in any way affect their work together in the group. Agnetha was later married again, to the surgeon Thomas Sonnenfeld.
The singer currently lives in a small estate on the island of Helgo, one of the 14 islands on which Stockholm is located. Together with his grandchildren, he often sings the popular hits of his youth.
After the collapse of the legendary four, Fältskog recorded several solo discs in Swedish and English, and then disappeared from the world of music for a long time. The girl admitted more than once that she was tired of singing and was even afraid to approach the microphone. It took her several years to recover from a busy touring schedule and pressure from the press.
In 1996, the singer broke her silence and released an autobiography, and two years later, a music album with her best songs. In 2004, Agnetha recorded the collection “My Coloring Book”, composed of cover versions of hits of the 60s, which was especially warmly received by music critics and immediately entered the top 10 in many European countries. In 2013, the Swedish star finished work on the album “A”, which included only new compositions. After the record was released, fans of the Swedish four-piece became interested in Agnetha again, and the BBC television company made a documentary film “Agnetha: ABBA and Beyond...” dedicated to the singer’s life.
Currently, the former soloist of the popular quartet continues to engage in musical creativity. Lives in the suburbs of Stockholm, enjoys yoga, astrology, horse riding and often sings popular hits of his youth with his grandchildren.
Bjorn Ulvaeus
10 years before the appearance of ABBA, Björn Ulvaeus began performing on stage and had already worked with many successful Swedish groups. In addition to music, Björn has always been interested in foreign languages. It is interesting that at the time of the global popularity of the Swedish four, he was the only one of them who spoke English.
After his divorce from Agnetha, Ulvaeus married Lena Calercio, who worked as a music journalist. They got married on January 6, 1981. This marriage produced two daughters: Emma in 1982 and Anna in 1986.
Bjorn and Lena now live in Stockholm, although they lived in England from 1984 to 1990.
Björn Ulvaeus and his bandmate Benny Andersson are an example of true friendship: having started their creative work together long before ABBA, they still collaborate successfully. Former soloists worked on the project of the group “Gemini” in the late 80s, writing several compositions for the group. And in 1989, it was they who were approached by producer Judy Kramer, who came up with the idea of creating the musical “Mamma Mia!” based on the band's songs.
Today, Bjorn and Benny are considered one of the wealthiest people in show business in their country: they founded their own companies and are involved in producing. However, now Ulvaeus has begun to pay less attention to music, and devotes himself more to social activities.
Benny Andersson
Benny Andersson is known to the world not only as the former lead singer of ABBA, but also as a composer, producer, and arranger. He first appeared on stage at the age of eight and still remains true to his talent.
Benny lived with Frida Lyngstad for 12 years, 3 of which were officially married from October 1978 to 1981.
He then married Swedish television presenter Mona Norklit in November 1981. In January 1982 their son Ludwig was born. Ludwig followed in his father's footsteps and created his own group, Ella Rouge.
In addition, Benny also has a son, Peter, and a daughter, born in the sixties during his relationship with Christina Grönwall. Son Peter Grönval is a talented composer and performer. In the mid-80s, he created his own musical group, Sound of Music, which later changed its name to One More Time.
Benny is excellent at creating both individual works and music for feature films. His first attempt at working with the big screen took place in the early 70s, when he wrote the composition for the Swedish film “The Seduction Of Inga”, which was never released. However, Benny's soundtrack was released in Japan and became a top ten hit. After the breakup of ABBA, Andersson wrote the music for the film Mio in the Land of Faraway, based on Astrid Lindgren's famous book Mio, My Mio, and in 1992, a popular theme song for the European Football Championship in Sweden.
Currently, the former lead singer of ABBA continues to write music for films and leads the Benny Andersson Orchestra, which is very popular in Sweden.
Anni-Frid Lyngstad
On April 3, 1963, at the age of 17, Frida married salesman and musician Ragnar Fredriksson. They had two children: Hans Ragnar Fredriksson (born January 26, 1963) and Anne Lisa-Lotte Fredriksson (February 25, 1967 – January 13, 1998). Frida and Ragnar separated shortly after the birth of their daughter and officially divorced on May 19, 1970. On the same day, Frida's grandmother Agnew died; she was 71 years old.
In May 1969, Frida met Benny Andersson. Since 1971, they began to live together, but officially formalized their relationship only on October 6, 1978, when ABBA was at the peak of its popularity. Their official marriage lasted only 3 years; they divorced in 1981.
In 1982 she left Sweden and moved to London. Throughout 1984, her album “Shine” was recorded in Paris. Then in 1986 she moved to Switzerland, where she still lives.
On August 26, 1992, Frida married her longtime friend, Prince Heinrich Ruzzo Reuss von Plauen (May 24, 1950 - October 29, 1999). Since then, she has been officially known as Her Serene Highness Princess Anni-Fried Reuss von Plauen. Prince Henry died of cancer in 1999, and a year earlier, on January 13, 1998, her daughter Lisa-Lotte died in a car accident in Livonia, near Detroit (USA).
Because her husband attended the same school as the current King of Sweden, Princess Reuss became a close friend of the Swedish Royal Family.
After the breakup of the group, the singer released several solo albums, but now she is only involved in charity work, is an honorary member of various public organizations, finances a fund to help orphans and sponsors a music festival in Switzerland.
In an interview, the Swedish star states that she does not miss ABBA, as she has a new life that brings a lot of joy.
"ABBA" is a group that conquered the whole world in the 1970-1980s. The songs performed by the Swedish quartet do not lose their relevance even today. Want to know how it all started? Who was part of the team?
History of creation
In 1972, a musical group called ABBA was created in Sweden. The group was a quartet - two girls and two guys. All of them had excellent external and vocal abilities.
The name of the group was not chosen by chance. ABBA is an acronym formed from the first letters of the members' names (Agneta, Bjorn, Benny and Anni-Frid). Not everyone knows about this.
The ABBA group experienced its first success after recording the song People Need Love. In June 1972 it was presented to the general public. European listeners liked this composition.
The band's debut album (Ring Ring) went on sale in March 1973. Within a few days, the entire circulation was sold out by fans. After this, the quartet's career took off.
ABBA group: participants
Agnetha Fältskog
Born on April 5, 1950 in the Swedish city of Jonkoping. From an early age she showed interest in music. Before joining the ABBA team, the blond beauty built a solo career, wrote songs and music. In 1971, she married her bandmate, Bjorn Ulvaeus. This marriage produced two children - son Christian and daughter Linda Elin. In 1978, Bjorn and Agnetha officially divorced. The blonde's second husband was surgeon Thomas Sonnenfeld. But the relationship with him did not work out either.
Anni-Frid Lyngstad
The brunette from the ABBA group was born on November 15, 1945 in Ballangen (Norway). Later she and her mother moved to Sweden. Our heroine began her musical career at the age of 13. Frida performed solo. Then she was invited to a jazz band. How did Anni-Frid’s personal life turn out? She got married at the age of 17. She and musician Ragnar Fredrikson had two children - a son and a daughter. In 1968, this marriage broke up. A few months later, the girl met Since 1971, they performed together in the ABBA group. The group brought them even closer together. In 1978, Benny and Frida got married. Their marriage lasted 7 years.
Bjorn Ulvaeus
He was born in the Swedish town of Gothenburg in 1945. I have been interested in music since childhood. At the age of 22 he created his own group. He was married to his colleague in the ABBA group, Agneta. They have two children together. Bjorn has lived with his current wife, Lena Calercio, for more than 35 years. This marriage produced two daughters: Anna and Emma.
Benny Andersson
He was born in 1946 in the capital of Sweden - Stockholm. He has studied at a music school and performed in various ensembles. In 1971 he became a member of the ABBA team. The group gained worldwide fame. Andersson could not even dream about this.
He formalized the relationship three times. Our hero lived with Frida for 12 years, 3 of which were legally married.
Achievements
The Swedish group ABBA is recognized as one of the most successful projects in the history of pop music. In total, 8 studio albums and 11 collections were released. The total circulation of records exceeded 350 million pieces. And all this was bought up by the band's fans.
The popular quartet toured most European countries. And everywhere they were greeted with a bang.
Finally
"ABBA" is a group that has made a significant contribution to the development of the global music industry. Now you know the history of the creation of the team. The names, surnames and biographies of its participants were also announced in the article.
Ola Brunkert, the country's National Radio (NR) reported on Monday.
The Swedish vocal and instrumental ensemble ABBA was one of the most successful groups in the history of pop music and the most popular group created in Scandinavia.
The ensemble was created in 1972 and named after the first letters of the performers' names. The quartet consisted of Agneta Fältskog (vocals), Björn Ulvaeus (vocals, guitar), Benny Andersson (keyboards, vocals) and Anni-Frid Lyngstad (vocals).
Their first success in their homeland came in 1972 after recording the song “People Need Love”. In June 1972, the song was released as a single, and this became the "reference point" of the group. In March 1973, the first long-playing album appeared, entitled “Call Me, Call” (Ring Ring). The song of the same name reached the top of the Swedish hit parade.
The victory at the Eurovision Song Contest in England in April 1974 with the song “Waterloo” is considered to be the beginning of the quartet’s international rise. Since the release of “S.O.S.” in 1975, the group’s tunes have reigned supreme on the English charts.
They became the first in Europe to reach number one on the charts in all English-speaking countries (United States, England, Canada, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand). You could say that the 1970s were ABBA's time.
Every appearance of ABBA in public became an event, and every new recording of the group became a megahit: “Mamma Mia”, “Dancing Queen”, “Money Money Money”. The last two songs were included in the album “Arrival” (Arrival, 1976), which broke sales records for the quartet not only in Sweden, but throughout the world. The group's records were also released in Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Poland and Bulgaria. In the Soviet Union, the Melodiya company released 4 long-playing records.
1977 became the peak year in the ensemble's career, when the beginning of the year was marked by a world tour. In December, the film ABBA - The Movie, shot in Australia, and the album ABBA - The Album were released. After this, the group continued to release records that occupied the first lines of the charts: “Wouldn’t you like it” (Voulez-Vous, 1979), the collection “ABBA Greatest Hits Vol.2”.
In the fall of 1982, the musicians celebrated the tenth anniversary of ABBA with the release of a double collection (ABBA The Singles The First Ten Years), as well as performances on TV in England, Germany and Sweden, after which each of them began recording solo records.
After the breakup of the group, Agnetha Fältskog released several discs; in 1996, her autobiography was published, and two years later, a music album with the best songs. She tried to start a family with doctor Thomas Sonnenfeld, but separated from him in 1993. Now the lead singer of the famous ensemble has retired to her villa on Ekero Island in the suburbs of Stockholm. There she devotes herself to yoga classes, is interested in astrology, keeps several trotters in her own stable, and takes long horseback and foot walks in the mornings.
Frida's daughter Liz-Lott died in a car accident. After a long illness, her second husband, Prince Ruzzo Reus von Plauen, died. Frida herself became an active fighter for environmental protection.
The lives of Bjorn and Benny were much more successful. Both married again and had children. They founded companies and promote young talents in every possible way. Now former ABBA members are considered the wealthiest people in the country's music world. It was to them that they were approached with a request for cooperation back in 1989 by an Englishwoman, producer Judy Cramer, who came up with the idea of creating a performance based on the group’s songs. Premiere of "Mamma Mia!" took place on May 6, 1999, on the 25th anniversary of the Swedish “victory” at Waterloo and became the prologue to the incredible success of the musical.
The material was prepared based on information from open sources
They were the first continental Europeans to top the charts in all the major English-speaking countries (United States, England, Canada, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand).
Compound
Björn Ulvaeus (Swedish: Björn Kristian Ulvaeus) - vocals, guitar (b. April 25, 1945, Gothenburg, Sweden).
Benny Andersson (Swedish: Benny Bror Göran Andersson) - keyboards, vocals (b. December 16, 1946, Stockholm, Sweden).
Anni-Frid Synni Lyngstad (Frida) - vocals (b. November 15, 1945, Ballangen/Narvik, Norway).
History of the group
The founders of the group were musicians, singers and songwriters Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson. They first met at a party in Vastervik in the summer of 1966, where they decided that they should write songs together. At that time, Benny was the keyboard player of the popular Swedish band Hep Stars, Björn was a singer and guitarist in the Hootenanny Singers ensemble. At a concert in Malmö, Benny met singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad, who, from the age of thirteen, sang with various groups and even performed at song festivals in Japan and Venezuela. At the same time, Björn heard on the radio how Agnetha Fältskog was singing her own song “I Was So In Love”, and decided to invite her to the group.
For the first time, the whole four gathered to record a television program in Stockholm, and began singing together in November 1970. Simultaneously with the quartet's debut, in one of the restaurants in Gothenburg (each had previously pursued a solo career), at the end of the year Björn and Benny recorded their own album, in which Agnetha and Frida participated as backing vocalists. The company Polar published the disc Lycka with songs in Swedish, and the single People Need Love was released in the USA on Playboy Records. In 1971, Benny and Björn joined Polar as producers. The tragic death of Bengt Bernhag, the closest friend and associate of Polar head Stig Anderson, brought producer Björn Ulvaeus to the vacant position. Stig offered the young author this position, but Björn was not entirely happy with it. He agreed on the condition that his co-author, Benny Andersson, would also be hired. The head of the company did not have a salary for two, and the aspiring authors had to work part-time.
In February 1973, the quartet's song Ring Ring, rejected by the Eurovision Song Contest committee, was recorded in Swedish, German, Spanish and English and topped the charts in Sweden, Austria, Holland, Belgium and South Africa. In March 1973, the quartet's first long-playing album, Ring Ring, was released. On April 6, 1974, ABBA's song Waterloo won the Eurovision Song Contest in the English city of Brighton by an absolute margin (20 to 1). Waterloo began an unprecedented sequence of eighteen consecutive UK top ten hits. Eight of them reached the top: 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 Trouper (1980). Eight of the band's albums also topped the charts, starting with the Greatest Hits compilation album, released in Sweden at the end of 1975. The achievements of the four overseas were much more modest: only Dancing Queen stayed at the top of the list for a week in April 1977. Three albums went gold in the States, and only ABBA - The Album (1977) went platinum.
Best of the day
On June 18, 1976, ABBA performed for the King of Sweden on the eve of the royal wedding, presenting to the public a completely new song, Dancing Queen. In February 1977, they made their first British tour (two concerts at the Royal Albert Hall (11 thousand seats) received 3.5 million applications). The final part in March took place in Australia, where most of the material for the film ABBA was filmed. On December 15, the world premiere of the film took place there. In the quartet's homeland, the film premiered on Christmas evening in 1977. On January 9, 1979, the quartet took part in a UNICEF charity event in New York and donated all proceeds from the Chiquitita single to the organization. On September 13, 1979, ABBA opened its first North American tour with a concert in Edmonton, Canada. The tour ended in mid-November in Europe.
Since the winter of 1981/1982, the group's activity has noticeably declined. ABBA's last single, Under Attack, was released in December 1982, although their last hit was Thank You For The Music.
A new growth in the popularity of ABBA, as well as all music of the disco boom, began in 1992. Polydor has reissued all of the band's hits on two CDs. Erasure did an EP with modern ABBA-esque covers of the group's songs, and Australian band Bjorn again achieved quick success with a faithfully reproduced and highly recognizable ABBA image and sound.
According to media reports, in 2000 ABBA refused a contract for a round-the-world series of performances with the “good old” line-up worth almost $1 billion.
1972-1973
Benny Andersson was the keyboard player of the Swedish pop group Hep Stars, popular in the second half of the 1960s. They performed remakes of international hits. The strength of the group was their live performances with spectacular shows. Their fans were mostly young girls. They were rightfully called the Swedish Beatles. Andersson played the synthesizer and gradually began writing original compositions for the group, many of which became hits.
Björn Ulvaeus was the lead singer of the popular folk group Hootenanny Singers. He and Andersson sometimes met and agreed to record together. Stig Anderson, manager of the Hootenanny Singers and founder of the record label Polar Music, saw great potential in the collaboration between Andersson and Ulvaeus and strongly supported any of their endeavors. He, like no one else, believed that someday they would become famous throughout the world. The duo eventually recorded the album Lycka ("Happiness"), in which they included their own compositions. On some songs, the female voices of their friends, Agneta and Frida, were clearly heard.
Agnetha Fältskog is the youngest member of the group. When she was 17 years old, her song became 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. Along with writing her own songs, she also recorded cover versions of foreign hits and performed them at Swedish amateur competitions. As a result, she became the most popular pop singer of the time. In 1969, Agnetha met Frida on a TV show, and a few months later she met Björn at a concert. On the set of a TV show in 1969, she and Björn met again, became acquainted and married in 1971. In 1972, Agnetha received the role of Mary Magdalene in the Swedish production of the musical Jesus Christ Superstar. Critics praised her work in this project.
Anni-Frid Lyngstad has been singing with various dance groups since she was 13 years old. Later she joined a jazz band. In 1969, she won a national talent competition. Her professional career began with signing a contract with the Swedish branch of EMI in 1967. At the same time, singles with songs performed by her began to be released, but a full-fledged long-playing album was released only in 1971. In 1969 she participated in Melodifestivalen and her song Härlig är vår jord took 4th place. She met Benny Andersson at a TV studio. A few weeks later, on a concert tour in southern Sweden, a second meeting took place. Soon they begin to live together. Benny Andersson recruits Frida and Agnetha as backing vocalists for the Lycka album. From that time on, he began producing Frida's solo career. Despite ABBA's growing popularity, Frida completed work on her Swedish-language solo album at the end of 1975. It is noteworthy that this record opened with the world famous song Fernando, but in Swedish. Fearing idle speculation, band director Stig Anderson insisted on continuing the ensemble's joint work. The subsequent solo album of the dark-haired lead singer of ABBA was released only in 1982.
1972-1973
In the early 1970s, although Björn and Agnetha were married and Benny and Frida were living together, they continued to pursue their own independent musical careers in Sweden. Stig Anderson wanted to break into the international music market. He, like no one else, believed that they would succeed, and they would be able to compose a song that would become famous throughout the world. He inspired Benny and Björn to write a song for the 1972 Eurovision Song Contest, which was to be performed by Lena Anderson. The song Say It With a Song took 3rd place in the competition, which confirmed Stig's opinion that he was on the right track.
Benny and Björn experimented in songwriting with new sound and vocal arrangements. One of their songs was People Need Love with girls' voices to great effect. Stig released this song as a single, written by Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid. The song reached number 17 in the Swedish charts, which convinced them that they were moving in the right direction. The single also became the song's first to chart in the United States, where it peaked at number 14 on the Cashbox singles chart and number 17 on the Record World's chart. The single was later released by Playboy Records. Although, in Stig's opinion, the song should have become a much bigger hit in the United States, the small record company Playboy Records did not have the necessary resources to distribute the record to retailers and radio stations.
The following year they made an attempt to make it to Melodifestivalen with the song Ring Ring. The studio production was handled by Michael Tretov, who experimented with the “wall of sound” technology that had become a fixture on ABBA recordings. Stig commissions Neil Sedaka and Phil Cody to translate the lyrics into English. They intend to win first place, but only end up third. However, the promotional group releases the album Ring Ring under the same awkward title Björn, Benny, Agnetha & Frida. The album sold well and the song "Ring Ring" became a hit in many European countries, but Stig felt that a breakthrough could only happen if the song became a British or American hit.
Name ABBA
In the spring of 1973, Stig, tired of the group's awkward name, began calling it privately and publicly as ABBA. This was initially a joke, as Abba was the name of a well-known fish processing company in Sweden. According to Agneta’s recollections, “When we decided to call ourselves A-B-B-A, we had to get permission from this company. There they answered us: “We agree, just make sure that we don’t feel ashamed of you.” I don't think they should be ashamed of the group.
The very first time ABBA's name was found written on paper was during a recording session at Metronome Studio in Stockholm on October 16, 1973. The first single released under the ABBA name was Waterloo.
ABBA is an acronym formed from the first letters of each member's name: Agnetha, Bjorn, Benny and Anni-Frid (Frida). The first B in the group's name became inverted in 1976, and formed the corporate logo.
1974-1977
In 1972 and 1973, Björn, Benny and manager Stig believed in the possibilities of Melodifestivalen and Eurovision. Later, in 1973, composers were invited to write a new song for the 1974 competitions. Choosing between several new songs, they unexpectedly settled on Waterloo - because the band was impressed by the growth of glam rock in England. Waterloo was an undeniable glam rock pop single, recorded by Michael B. Tretow using wall of sound technology. ABBA won hearts in their homeland and in their 3rd attempt they were more prepared for international competitions. The song was presented at a show at the Brighton Dome in England, took first place and made them widely known in England, and also rose to the top of the charts throughout Europe.
Waterloo was ABBA's first number 1 song in England. In America, it peaked at number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, paving the way for their first album there, although the album only peaked at number 145 on the Billboard 200 albums chart.
Their next single, So Long, reached the top 10 in Sweden and Germany, but failed to chart in England. But the next release, Honey, Honey, managed to break through to number 30 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the US.
In November 1974, ABBA embarked on their first international tour to Germany, Denmark and Austria. The tour did not turn out to be as successful as the band had hoped, because many tickets did not sell, and due to lack of demand, ABBA were even forced to cancel several concerts, including a previously planned concert in Switzerland. The second leg of the tour, which ABBA undertook in Scandinavia in January 1975, was completely different from the first: they sold out houses and finally received the reception they had expected. For 3 weeks in the summer of 1975, ABBA made up for what they had done the previous summer on a tour of Sweden. They performed 16 outdoor concerts in Sweden and Finland, attracting huge crowds. Their show in Stockholm at the Gröna Lund amusement park was watched by 19,000 people.
The release of their 3rd ABBA album and 3rd single SOS entered the top 10, and the album peaked at number 13. The band was no longer treated as a one-hit wonder.
Success in Britain was confirmed when Mamma Mia reached number 1 in January 1976. In the United States, SOS was a Record World top 100 hit, number 15 on the Billboard Hot 100, and received a BMI Award for the most played song of 1975.
Despite this, ABBA's success in the States was inconsistent. Although they were able to break into the singles market, having already had four songs in the top 30 before 1976, the album market was too tough a nut to crack. ABBA's album achieved fewer than 3 singles, peaking at only #165 on the Cashbox album chart and #174 on the Billboard 200. In the US, the consensus was that it was due to the same very poor promotional campaign (see ABBA in the US).
In November 1975, the group released the Greatest Hits collection. It includes 6 songs that reached the Top 40 in the UK and US. It becomes the first album to reach number one in England and includes the song Fernando (which was originally written in Swedish for Frida and appeared on her 1975 solo album). One of ABBA's well-known and very popular tracks, Fernando, did not appear on the Swedish or Australian releases of the Greatest Hits album. In Sweden, the song waited until 1982 and appeared on the compilation album The Singles-The First Ten Years. In Australia, the track was released on the 1976 album Arrival. Greatest Hits catapulted the band into the top 50 in the US on the best albums list, selling over 1 million copies in the US.
In the US, "Fernando" reached the top 10 of the Cashbox Top 100 and reached number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100. The single also reached number one on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, ABBA's first single to reach the top of any US chart. In Australia, Fernando's 2006 hit holds the record for the longest stay at number one (15 weeks) (tied with the Beatles' Hey Jude.)
The next album, Arrival, reached a higher level both in the level of lyrics and the quality of studio work. It received excellent reviews from English music weeklies such as Melody Maker and New Musical Express, as well as very good reviews from American critics. In fact, several hits from this disc: Money, Money, Money, Knowing Me, Knowing You and the strongest hit Dancing Queen. In 1977, the album Arrival was nominated for a BRIT Award in the category "Best International Album of the Year". At this time ABBA were very popular in England, much of Eastern Europe and Australia.
However, their popularity in the US was at a much lower level, and Dancing Queen only reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. However, Arrival was ABBA's breakthrough in the US, where it peaked at number 20 on the Billboard album chart.
In January 1977, ABBA went on tour in Europe. At this time, the group's status changes radically, and they become superstars. ABBA begin their long-awaited trip to Oslo, Norway with a show that includes scenes from their self-composed mini-operetta. This concert attracted a lot of media attention from Europe and Australia. ABBA continued their tour of Europe and ended with two concerts in London at the Royal Albert Hall. Tickets for these concerts were only available for ordering through the mail, and, as it turned out later, the mail received more than three and a half million orders for tickets. However, there were complaints that the show was too "sterile and slick."
After the European leg of the tour in March 1977, ABBA played 11 concerts in Australia. The tour was accompanied by mass hysteria and enormous press attention, which is well illustrated in the full-length film ABBA: The Movie, directed by the band's music video director Lasse Hallström.
The Australian tour and the movie based on it contain some fun details. Agnetha played the role of the good-looking blonde and "postcard girl" in the group, a role she rebelled against. Throughout the tour, she appeared on stage in a leather, white, very tight jumpsuit, which gave rise to one newspaper to write the headline “Agnetha’s Ass Show.”
In December 1977 in Sweden (in many countries - in January 1978) the album The Album was released. Although the disc was less critically received than the others, it did contain several hits: The Name of the Game and Take A Chance On Me, both of which reached number one in England and number 12 and number 3 respectively on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US. The album also included the song "Thank You for the Music", which was later released as a single in England, and was also featured on the LP's "Eagle" in places where the song was released as a single.
1978-1979
ABBA were super popular in 1978. They converted an old cinema into the Polar Music recording studio in Stockholm, where other very famous bands later recorded. For example, Led Zeppelin (album In Through the Out Door) and Genesis.
Recorded in 1978, the single Summer Night City became the last single to reach number one in the Swedish charts. It preceded the next giant disc, Voulez-Vous, released in April 1979. Two songs on this album were recorded at the family's Criteria Studios in Miami with the help of legendary engineer Tom Dowd. The album ranks first in Europe and Japan, in the top ten in Canada and Australia, and in the top twenty in the United States. Interestingly, none of the album's songs reached number one in the UK charts, but Chiquitita, Does Your Mother Know, Voulez-Vous and I Have A Dream all did not go below number 4. In Canada, I Have A Dream becomes the second No. 1 song on the RPM Adult Contemporary chart, the first being Fernando.
In January 1979, the group performed the song Chiquitita at the "music for UNICEF" concert during the UN assembly. ABBA donated all proceeds from this worldwide hit to UNICEF.
Later that year, the group released their second compilation album, Greatest Hits Vol. 2, which featured the 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 Edmonton, Canada, to a full house of 14,000 people. Over the next four weeks they performed 17 shows, 13 in the US and 4 in Canada.
The last planned concert in the United States in Washington was canceled due to Agnetha's emotional breakdown, which she suffered during a flight from New York to Boston, when the private plane she was on encountered extreme weather conditions and could not land for a long time. The tour ended with a show in Toronto in Canada in front of approximately 18,000 spectators. This performance caused a flood of complaints from the group's fans, who said that ABBA was still more of a studio than a live show group.
On October 19, the tour continued in Western Europe, where the musicians performed 23 concerts, including six nights at London's Wembley Arena.
1980: Japan Tour and Super Trouper
In March 1980, ABBA went on tour to Japan. When they arrived at the airport, they were attacked by hundreds of their fans. The group performed 11 sold out concerts, including 6 performances at the Tokyo Budokan. This tour turned out to be the last in the quartet's career.
In November 1980, their new album Super Trouper was released, which reflected some change in the band's style, greater use of synthesizers and more personal lyrics. The album received over 1 million orders even before its release, which was a record. The main favorite of this album was the single The Winner Takes It All, which reached number eight in the UK charts. In the US, it reached number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was written as if about the marital problems of Agnetha and Björn. The follow-up song, Super Trouper, also hit #1 in England, but failed to reach the top 40 in the US. Another track from Super Trouper, Lay All Your Love on Me, which had a limited release in some countries, reached the top of Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart and 7th place in the English singles chart.
Also in June 1980, ABBA released a compilation album of his hits in Spanish, Gracias Por La Música. It was released in Spanish-speaking countries as well as Japan and Australia. The album became very successful, and together with the Spanish-language version of Chiquitita, became a breakthrough for their success in South America.
1981: Benny and Frida's divorce, album “The Visitors”
In January 1981, Björn married Lena Calerso, and the band's manager, Stig Anderson, celebrated his 50th birthday with a party attended by many people. For this event, ABBA prepared a gift for him by recording the song "Hovas Vittne", dedicated to him and released in only 200 copies on red vinyl records. The entire circulation was distributed to the guests present at the party. This single is now the most coveted item among collectors.
In mid-February, Benny and Frida announced that they were going to divorce. It later became known that their marriage had been in trouble for quite some time, and Benny had already met another woman, Mona Norklit, whom he married in November of that year.
Björn and Benny were writing songs for the new album throughout the beginning of 1981 and began working in the studio on recording in mid-March. At the end of April, the group took part in the Dick Cavett Meets ABBA TV program, where they performed 9 songs. This became their last live performance in front of an audience. The recording of the new album was halfway through when the studio bought a new digital 32-track tape recorder to replace the 16-track analog one. Recording of the album continued throughout the fall in order to release it in time for Christmas.
