ABBA (Swedish pop group)

~ Group

Annotation

Swedish group. Most of the songs were written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, and sometimes Stig Anderson.

There have been 7 known masters of the original studio recordings:

  1. Original releases (1974-1981)
  2. CD releases (1982-1992)
  3. ABBA Gold and Thank You For the Music Box Set (1992-1994), remastered by Michael B. Tretow
  4. Remastered releases (1997), remastered by Jon Astley and Tim Young.
  5. Remastered releases (2001), when Jon Astley revisited his earlier remasters, and fixed some errors.
  6. Remastered releases (2005), made by Henrik Jonsson. Featured on "The Complete Studio Recordings" and "The Albums" box sets.
  7. Remastered releases (2005-), feature on the Deluxe albums. Some of these albums use the same remasters as the previous two box sets, some are completely new remasters (Voulez-Vous, Super Trouper, The Visitors, ABBA).
Annotation last modified on 2012-11-21 22:07 UTC.

Wikipedia

ABBA ( AB, Swedish: [ˈâbːa]; formerly named Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid or Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida) were a Swedish pop supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The group's name is an acronym of the first letters of their first names arranged as a palindrome. They are one of the most popular and successful musical groups of all time, and are one of the best-selling music acts in the history of popular music, topping the charts worldwide from 1974 to 1982, and again from 2016 to 2022 following their brief reunion.

In 1974, ABBA were Sweden's first winner of the Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Waterloo", which in 2005 was chosen as the best song in the competition's history as part of the 50th anniversary celebration of the contest. During the band's main active years, it consisted of two married couples: Fältskog and Ulvaeus, and Lyngstad and Andersson. With the increase of their popularity, their personal lives suffered, which eventually resulted in the collapse of both marriages. The relationship changes were reflected in the group's music, with later songs featuring darker and more introspective lyrics. After ABBA disbanded in December 1982, Andersson and Ulvaeus continued their success writing music for multiple audiences including stage, musicals and movies, while Fältskog and Lyngstad pursued solo careers.

Ten years after the group broke up, a compilation, ABBA Gold, was released becoming a worldwide best-seller. In 1999, ABBA's music was adapted into Mamma Mia!, a stage musical that toured worldwide and, as of April 2022, is still in the top-ten longest running productions on both Broadway (closed in 2015) and the West End (still running). A film of the same title, released in 2008, became the highest-grossing film in the United Kingdom that year. A sequel, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, was released in 2018.

In 2016, the group reunited and started working on a digital avatar concert tour. Newly recorded songs were announced in 2018. Voyage, their first new album in 40 years, was released on 5 November 2021 to positive critical reviews and strong sales in numerous countries. ABBA Voyage, a concert residency featuring ABBA as virtual avatars, opened in May 2022 in London.

ABBA are among the best-selling music artists in history, with record sales estimated to be between 150 million to 385 million sold worldwide and the group were ranked 3rd best-selling singles artists in the United Kingdom with a total of 11.3 million singles sold by 3 November 2012. In May 2023 ABBA were awarded the BRIT Billion Award which celebrates those who have surpassed the milestone of one billion UK streams in their career. ABBA were the first group from a non-English-speaking country to achieve consistent success in the charts of English-speaking countries, including the United Kingdom, Australia, United States, Republic of Ireland, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa. They are the best-selling Swedish band of all time and the best-selling band originating in continental Europe. ABBA had eight consecutive number-one albums in the UK. The group also enjoyed significant success in Latin America and recorded a collection of their hit songs in Spanish. ABBA were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2002. The group were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010, the first recording artists to receive this honour from outside an Anglophonic country. In 2015, their song "Dancing Queen" was inducted into the Recording Academy's Grammy Hall of Fame.

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Discography

Album

YearTitleArtistRatingReleases
1973Ring RingBjörn, Benny & Agnetha, Frida3.2522
1974WaterlooABBA (Björn, Benny, Agnetha & Frida)323
1975ABBAABBA3.4524
1976ArrivalABBA3.431
1977The AlbumABBA3.524
1979Voulez‐vousABBA3.6526
1980Super TrouperABBA3.6525
1981The VisitorsABBA2.8523
2021VoyageABBA3.6516

Album + Compilation

YearTitleArtistRatingReleases
1975Greatest HitsABBA415
1975ABBA / RubettesABBA / Rubettes1
1975The Best of ABBAABBA2
1976All About ABBAABBA2
1976ABBA / The Hollies / The RubettesABBA / The Hollies / The Rubettes1
1976Golden Double AlbumABBA1
1977ABBA’s Greatest Hits 24ABBA1
1977Top FourABBA / The Hollies / The Rubettes / The Spotnicks1
1979Greatest Hits, Volume 2ABBA59
1980Gracias por la músicaABBA55
1980A Wie ABBA: Die größten Erfolge von »Waterloo« bis »Super Trouper«ABBA1
1980The Magic of ABBAABBA1
1982Disco Special‐1ABBA1
1982Disco Special-2ABBA1
1982Love Sounds SpecialABBA1
1982Dancing SpecialABBA1
1982The Singles: The First Ten YearsABBA510
1983InternationalABBA51
1983Thank You for the MusicABBA1
1984From ABBA With LoveABBA1
1984I Love ABBAABBA1
1986The HitsABBA52
1987The CollectionABBA3
1988ABBA: The Collection, Volume 2ABBA52
1988Absolute ABBAABBA1
1988The Hits, Volume 3ABBA51
1988The Hits, Volume 2ABBA41
1988The Best of ABBAABBA1
1989The Love SongsABBA1
1991StoryABBA1
1992ABBA Gold: Greatest HitsABBA1
1992Gold: Greatest HitsABBA4.2544
1992Die StoryABBA1
1992KaraokeABBA1
1992Oro: grandes éxitosABBA6
1992The ABBA CollectionABBA2
1992The Hits BoxABBA1
1993More ABBA Gold: More ABBA HitsABBA4.68
1993Mas OroABBA1
1994På svenskaABBA2
1994Thank You for the MusicABBA55
1995Gold: BalladsABBA1
1996The Music Still Goes OnABBA5
1996ABBAABBA2
1996Forever GoldABBA43
1996Golden Stars InternationalABBA51
1997The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Plays the Hits of ABBAABBA & Royal Philharmonic Orchestra1
1998The CollectionABBA1
1998Love StoriesABBA33
1998Ring RingABBA1
199925 jaar na ‘Waterloo’: De grootste hits in NederlandABBA1
199925 jaar na ‘Waterloo’: De grootste hits in Nederland, deel 2ABBA1
1999The Complete Singles CollectionABBA52
1999Panpipes Play AbbaABBA1
1999The CollectionABBA1
2000Millennium EditionABBA1
2000The Complete Gold CollectionABBA1
200020th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: The Best of ABBAABBA2
2000ClassicABBA2
2000Golden Collection 2000ABBA1
2001S.O.S. The Best of ABBAABBA1
2001The Definitive CollectionABBA410
2001The Name of The GameABBA1
2002More More GoldABBA1
2002The Name of the GameABBA41
2003On and OnABBA1
2004The ABBA StoryABBA2
2004ABBA (compilation)ABBA1
2004Todo ABBA: sus grandes éxitosABBA1
2005The Best of ABBAABBA1
200518 HitsABBA54
2005The Complete Studio RecordingsABBA2
2005La nostra storia: 20 grandi successiABBA1
200518 Hits: PopklassikerABBA1
2005Classic ABBAABBA2
2006Number OnesABBA35
2008The AlbumsABBA1
2008Bonus TracksABBA1
2009The Best of ABBAABBA1
2010IconABBA1
20104 Original AlbumsABBA1
2010The Vinyl CollectionABBA1
2011ABBA / ArrivalABBA1
2011CollectedABBA1
2012The Essential CollectionABBA2
2013Before ABBAABBA1
201440/40 The Best SelectionABBA1
2014ABBA – The CollectionABBA1
2014The Best of ABBAABBA1
2016DMC Classic Mixes I Love ABBA Volume 1 (2016)ABBA1
2022CD Album Box SetABBA1

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