An Evening with ABBA & Co. | New Year’s Special from Bobby’s Brother

Highlights from ABBA & Bobby’s Brother.

In this special video, I bring together some of our highlights from the channel. I will guide you through personal favorites of mine. Let’s celebrate New Year’s Eve – An evening with ABBA and company. Sit back and enjoy.

0:00 Intro
0:27 ABBA – The Reunion
3:57 ABBA Voyage – London 2022
14:00 Voyage Experience – My First Impressions
19:29 ABBA’s Concert Tour 1975
40:51 ABBA Location Videos – Bang-A-Boomerang & Summer Night City
52:46 The ABBA Telephone
56:32 Bobby’s Bears
59:26 ABBA – The Comics
1:02:49 Agnetha Fältskog – Person & Artist
1:06:25 Björn’s Instagram Channel
1:09:27 ABBA’s Forgotten Musical – ABBAcadabra 1983
1:18:19 Björn & Hootenanny Singers
1:28:03 Agnetha – Berlin, Germany
1:33:34 ABBA’s Glenstudio 1974
1:38:32 ABBA’s Final Performance 1982
1:43:55 Mr. Bean – Filming Locations London
1:49:49 ABBA – My Story
2:03:00 ABBA In 2023
2:12:02 Outro

———

Written, narrated, recorded & edited by Bobby’s Brother.

Music by Europaweite Aussichten: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzyTl24T9CA

Bobby’s Brother on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bobbysbrother72/

#abba #voyage #newyear

Hello and welcome to this very special video.  I want to bring together some of our highlights   from the channel. I will guide you through some  of my personal favorite videos and episodes,   celebrating New Year’s Eve. An evening with  ABBA and company. So sit back and enjoy.

Let’s begin with one of our most recent  highlights, the amazing new reunion picture   of ABBA. For many of you, this is already  one of your absolute favorite photographs. For Benny’s birthday on Saturday, the ABBA  Voyage social networks released this brand  

New photo of ABBA, previously unreleased, unseen,  and newly published for the first time. It was   taken on the 26 May 2022 behind-the-scenes  at the world premiere of “ABBA Voyage” in   London. This was the final time to date, that  all four members came together in public.

This photo goes straight to my heart. Agnetha and  Frida are the only ones looking to the camera,   straight towards us. Björn looks in  awe at his band, and Benny looks like:   “Is this really happening?”. Generally,  all four of them look happy, relaxed,  

And just beautiful together. This is a  moment that brings us right back to those   gorgeous photos from back in the day,  of ABBA side by side, and arm in arm. But we have so much more context  to this brand new photograph. First of all, this photo is  actually quite unique from that day.

Because, apart from ABBA’s appearance at the  red carpet and on stage after the show, we   don’t have too many photographs of all four ABBA  members together from that day at the ABBA Arena. The only other two I can think of is this  black and white photo of ABBA backstage,  

Together with people from Universal,   and this picture in front of the ABBA  Arena at night, the only one in colour. This one was obviously taken towards the  end of the evening, after the show happened,   and just before ABBA would leave the Arena.  This moment was actually captured on film,  

On a beautiful video from VOYTOPIA on YouTube. But now, it would be interesting to know when   exactly the two pictures in  black and white were taken. First off, what makes it all a bit more  harder is the fact that when the show was  

Over in the evening, it was still quite bright  outside. So let’s look at the clues we have. When ABBA arrived at the Arena for the red  carpet, Agnetha and Frida are wearing white   cloaks over their dresses. They don’t  wear them on stage when they bow out.

On this photo from inside the backstage building,  Agnetha is wearing the cloak over her white dress,   but Frida doesn’t. The lights in the room are  lit, and the background looks like it is dark   outside. It’s always a bit harder to tell with  black and white photos. Generally speaking,  

On this photo inside, ABBA look more serious,  maybe more tensed. Was this taken before the show,   when ABBA arrived, or was it taken  in the evening, before ABBA left? On the new photo, it obviously looks very  bright. They all look joyful and relaxed,  

And – like on stage after the  show – both Agnetha and Frida   are not wearing their cloaks. Was  this taken right after the show? Finally, we have the most fascinating context  to this very moment. At the end of last year,  

The social networks of ABBA Voyage posted a video  montage of highlight clips from 2022. And there   was one brief moment we hadn’t seen before.  A moment that we spotted and talked about:   ABBA walking together arm in arm. This  is exactly that moment from backstage,  

The moment from this new,  beautiful reunion photo of ABBA. I love how we have all these bits and  pieces of moments and evidence spread out,   that we can collect and piece together like a big  puzzle. Who knows if more surprises are coming up.

If you ask me, this is one of the best photos  of ABBA together. It gives me so much joy. When I started with this channel, it was  long before we had any idea that ABBA was   actually ready with an entire new album. I  released my very first video in early 2021,  

On 27 May. If that date sounds familiar to  you, it is a complete coincidence. Because   it was only one year later, exactly to the  date, that I would find myself in London,   in front of a newly built arena, by ABBA, for  ABBA. I was lucky to be at the world-premiere  

Of ABBA’s brand new “Voyage” show.  It just so happened that this was   the very same date when I released my first  video one year before. How strange is that?  The trip to London was one of my greatest  highlights. I could feel all of your emotions,  

Too. Let’s go back in time to  experience it all over again. I think I’m in the right place. Oh yes I am. They’re everywhere. This is  like an ABBA fairy world. I’m on my way to the hotel now, and then  I’m going to check out the ABBA Arena.

Folks, I’m going to an ABBA  concert tomorrow evening. So this building over there is  where Björn and Benny stood,   when they announced the new  ABBA album and this concert. Oh my god, this is so big in person. It  doesn’t look so big on photos or videos,  

But if you are standing in front of the arena  – it is huge. It’s incredible. It really is. 1 day, 21 hours, until the first performance. But  tomorrow is the big world premiere. See you then. Hej hej, so! I am standing in front of the ABBA Arena in London.

Today is the big day. It’s 26 May 2022. I have to go in very soon. Take care. Today is the day. This is where it all began. And now this. I just saw this behind me,  and I wonder: could it be…?

So it is not ABBA sitting behind me, but Svana Gisla. And we thank her forever! And somewhere in this crowd there’s  ABBA. So close, but yet so far away,   too. The show is going to start soon. Goodbye! Hej hej, so!

Last night was full of dignity, elegance, it  was classy and it was full of tenderness. And   now I really know what magic is. These first  impressions will be spoiler-free. I will not   go into details about songs or anything. That  will follow later, and i’m sure if you want to  

You can look it up anywhere else. I will give you  my overall general feeling of last night. So when   you enter the Arena, it really is like stepping  into another dimension. There are Polar lights,   it’s wintery with snowflakes. You have  soothing music. And I was front row,  

Directly in front of the stage. And one of the  most remarkable things about last night was   the atmosphere. It was unbelievable, you wouldn’t  believe. These people were already full of energy,   even long before the concert show started. And I  was also impressed by the variety of people there.  

There were older people, younger people, like  myself, and even younger people, boys and girls,   and they were screaming their heart out. Even  before the concert started. And when it started,   the opening of this show, it gave me goosebumps  from head to toe, something in this extent I never  

Experienced. Oh my god. And the show in general  is purely ABBA. And what I mean by that is it’s   not a typical ABBA concert. It really isn’t. The  avatars are avatars, they are not real people,   of course. But very often I had to look several  times, because I was so stunned. Benny’s piano,  

Björn’s guitar, they looked so real. The  hair and the costumes, their movements,   very often looked real. It is dimensional,  it really is. And there were dialogues   individually and beautifully, emotionally, and  also amongst the four of them. They recorded new  

Vocals for these dialogues. And that was very  moving, too. In this tour program, they wrote   that this is “a little strange, but hopefully  enjoyable concert experience”, signed by ABBA. And that’s what it really is. It is strange, but  in the most positive way. It’s like so typical  

ABBA, and typically Swedish. Because there are  things that you can’t really explain. You don’t   really know the meaning of them, but they are  there, and you wouldn’t expect them to be there,   and there is so much variation  in this show. So not one song,  

Not one performance is like the other.  And there are things you don’t expect,   and all of that combined, that’s magical. I’ve  never experienced a show like that. As I said,   you cannot compare this with a real concert. This  is something else, something very special and…

You know, I just thought, we are not worthy of  experiencing such beauty and so much love that   they give us. And I realized all of this is  a fairy tale. And now, ABBA has a happy end.  

That was my first my first impression last night.  And I couldn’t be more thrilled to see this show   a second time tonight. And all of my gratitude  goes out to Volker. You are in my heart really  

For this gesture of kindness. And I will keep  you updated. As I said, there might be a more   detailed review coming soon. But there will also  be a little travel documentary of this trip coming  

Very soon. Some of you were not here last night,  but I could really feel you there. I really could.   From those lovely comments that you gave me. I  want to thank you. Be blessed. See you very soon. One of my biggest favorite videos is a  20-minute trip back to 1975, when ABBA  

Went on their first European concert tour. There  is something really special about that time. When ABBA won the Eurovision Song Contest in  1974 with “Waterloo”, they would be known in   all of Europe. So it was time to tour  through all of Europe. Or was it? Well,  

They did anyway, and they cancelled  all their scheduled Folkpark concerts   for that. It wasn’t a charming move in  the eyes of Swedish folkpark managers,   and on top of that, this European tour would be  shaped by contrasting reactions in many ways.  

Let’s explore this fascinating chapter in ABBA’s  story, the first tour under their new name ABBA. Hej hej. So! Today we are going back in time again, and we  are actually looking at two concert tours, Europe   in Winter 1974 and ’75, and ABBA’s return to  Swedish folkparks in the Summer of 1975. We will  

Be talking about the fascinating song selections,  also in context with ABBA’s following tours, about   some magical memories from behind-the-scenes,  and how the reception would shape ABBA’s future.   Both tours really have the same concept in style  and songs, and our main focus will be on ABBA’s  

Experience in Europe, before we conclude our  episode with a look at ABBA’s final Folkpark   experience. The European tour started on the 17th  of November 1974, and for the next two weeks it   would bring them through Denmark, Austria, and no  less than 7 concerts in Germany. The tour would  

Then continue for two more weeks in January  1975 through Scandinavian countries – Norway,   Sweden, Denmark and Finland. There were actually  plans to also do concerts in 9 other countries:   the UK, the Netherlands, Belgium, France,  Turkey, Israel, Greece, Yugoslavia and Spain,  

But those ideas were abandoned, and ABBA would  never be doing live concerts in five of those   countries. It was remarkable enough that they  would do concerts outside of Scandinavia, and   here’s the simply reason: at that time, ABBA had  only released one more single after “Waterloo”,  

Which was “Honey, Honey”. But they did have two  albums, from which they could choose songs for   their concerts, and they already recorded  two thirds of their upcoming third album,   which would be ready for release in April  1975. And with the start of the tour,  

They released their next single, from that  upcoming album, “So Long”, with the b-side   “I’ve Been Waiting For You”. All of these songs  were part of the concert, along with many more. However, once again, we actually don’t have  an official setlist for this European tour,  

But we do have a bootleg fan recording of one of  the Folkpark concerts from the following summer.   This bootleg recording is an amazing documentation  from those early years, and the only opportunity   for us to hear many of ABBA’s early songs as  live versions. Some of these songs were not  

Even performed on TV or anywhere else. There  may have been some alterations and other songs   on the European tour, but it is very likely that  the setlist was more or less the same. So before   we take a look into the sequence based on this  bootleg recording, let’s do it chronologically  

And go through ABBA’s first three albums to  see which songs they picked for the concerts. From “Ring Ring”, they chose the title track,  which is not included in the bootleg recording,   but which was advertised on posters and  mentioned in reviews. They also performed  

“He Is Your Brother” and “Rock’n Roll Band”. This  was the last time they would choose any song from   their first album for a concert tour, except for  “He Is Your Brother”, which was retained for their  

1977 tour through Europe and Australia, and which  even made it as far as 1979, not for that year’s   concert tour, but when they performed the song as  part of the Concert for Unicef with other artists.   From their second album “Waterloo”, they chose  7 songs: the first four tracks from the album,  

As well as “Honey, Honey”, “Watch Out”, and “Gonna  Sing You My Lovesong”. Only two of those would   make it to 1977, and “Waterloo” was the only song  from ABBA’s first two albums to make it as far as  

Their 1979 concert tour. And finally, if you had  been in the audience in one of those concerts,   you would not only have been treated with the  A- and B-side of ABBA’s most recent single,   but three band new songs, which were never  heard before at all: “Hey, Hey Helen”,  

“Rock Me”, and “Intermezzo no 1”. All of  these songs would be released on ABBA’s   upcoming self-titled third album, and they would  all be performed in 1977 as well, except for “Hey,   Hey Helen”. Curiously, the only other two songs  ready by that time – already recorded in the  

Studio – were “SOS” and “Man In The Middle”,  but those would first be released in April 1975   on the album and as a single. “SOS” was then  added for their folkpark tour in the summer,  

Along with their then latest single “I Do, I  Do, I Do, I Do, I Do”. These two songs were  also included in their 1977  concerts, but in 1979 and 1980, from ABBA’s third album, only “SOS” made it  into the setlist, along with the lesser known  

Tracks “Rock Me” and “Intermezzo no 1”, which,  in my opinion, both work so well in concert. If we take a look into the  bootleg recording again,   we get an idea of the sequence of all of  those songs. The opening song was “Hey,  

Hey Helen”, an amazing first track with a  long drum introduction lasting for almost   one minute. We do get an idea of how they visually  performed this song, when we take a look into the   one and only TV performance of “Hey, Hey Helen”  from “Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert” in America,  

Where they even performed in their  original tour costumes. For the concerts,   judging from our bootleg recording, we also have  Frida on lead vocals for “Rock’n Roll Band”,   which is an amazing live performance full of  energy. Frida and the band give it their all,  

And in my very own opinion, they finally  make this song work as good as possible. In 1972, they did something similar for their live performance of “Santa Rosa” at  a festival in Japan, when they changed the lead  

Vocals from Björn and Benny to Agnetha and Björn.  And for the performance of “SOS” on these folkpark   tours, at least on this very bootleg recording,  Frida sings lead vocals on the second verse. And with this song selection, these concerts  really reflect the variety of their first  

Three albums, and the variety of styles that ABBA  was exploring during this period. First of all,   these concert have quite a glam rock vibe, a tone  that is already set up wit the opening song “Hey,   Hey Helen” and continues with songs like “Rock  Me”, “King Kong Song”,  “Rock’n Roll Band”,

“Watch Out”, and “So Long”, and to some degree,  it’s also reflected in ABBA’s costumes. This   orientation in style doesn’t come out of nowhere.  The UK charts at the time were full of glam rock   artists, ranging from David Bowie with his Ziggy  Stardust concerts from 1973 to Roxy Music. But  

With ABBA’s concerts, it certainly wasn’t all  about glam rock, on the contrary. It’s purely ABBA   when we also have sweet pop music with songs like  “Honey, Honey” and “I’ve Been Waiting For You”,   as well as schlager-type songs like “Hasta  Mañana”, “I Do, I Do, I Do” and wistful ballads  

Like “Gonna Sing You My Lovesong”. This variety  in style was recognized in reviews from the time,   and some of them noticed even back then,  that there was something special about ABBA: “What ABBA delivers must be – in terms of German  groups of the same kind – classified to be of some  

Higher levels, while this group mixes rock,  soul and even homemade music together well.” And this variety in style really seems to have   its justification in the purest  form. On a very recent comment,   Marike Andresen had a wonderful observation that  fits so well to this evolution in ABBA’s story:

“What never seizes to amaze me is how the musical  backgrounds of each individual member couldn’t   have been further away from each other –  think about it: Agnetha came from Swedish   schlager-pop as a singer-songwriter, Frida  was performing and recording jazz standards,  

Björn came from his own folk boygroup with The  Hootenanny Singers and Benny was in ‘Sweden’s   answer to The Beatles’ with his band The Hep  Stars. When you put these four musical genres   next to each other, I don’t think anyone could  have guessed back in the day that these four,  

Who were so successful in their own  right in such vastly different styles,   would mesh so beautifully to create one  glorious, unique foursome, called ABBA…!”. A most wonderful observation,  which only goes to show that it’s all a natural progression.  And to make it even more complete,  

There couldn’t have been any other musicians to  join ABBA on this tour than a band called The   Beat Makers. And they were not only  ABBA’s backing band for this tour. For the one and only time in ABBA’s concert  history, they actually had an opening act.  

The Beat Makers was a 6-piece band  of Swedish and Polish musicians,   and their opening part was described as rock music  with some jazz elements. On reviews at the time,   they were sometimes named on par with ABBA,  which seems a bit odd, but we should remember  

That ABBA really was a brand new group as well,  especially for the international audience. Now, before we go deeper into those fascinating  reviews for ABBA’s European tour, let’s take   a look into a very special perspective. For  that, we need to travel to early November 1974,  

Into the auditorium of a school in Sollentuna,  outside of Stockholm, where some magical stories   happened. Here, ABBA rented the auditorium  to rehearse for two weeks for their tour   of Europe. Just this setting alone gives us an  idea of how grounded and approachable they were.

One day, they were standing in the cafeteria  line amongst the students of the school. ABBA   was “famous, but not near the super star status  they would achieve later on. The Swedish media   couldn’t care less what they were doing, and  they didn’t need any security or fences.”

And there was one lucky boy whose father  happened to be the principal of that school,   so this boy got to witness ABBA’s  rehearsals every single day: “Every day after school I took the  bus to my father’s school. He would   let me in to the projector room in  the back of the auditorium. There,  

In the dark (so I wouldn’t get noticed), I  sat for hours watching my idols rehearsing.” Just imagine folks, watching ABBA during live  rehearsals, every day after school for hours,   for two whole weeks. That must be the  most unforgettable time of your life.  

The excitement alone every day in school, awaiting  for that school-day to end, so you get to see ABBA   again. Wow. This boy also must have been one  of the very first people ever outside of ABBA  

And their band who got to hear brand new songs  like “Hey, Hey Helen” and “I’ve Been Waiting For   You”. And one day, when he saw Agnetha going  into the restrooms outside of the auditorium,  

He waited for her to come out. When she came out,  he asked her for an autograph, and she was very   sweet and asked him if he would like to meet the  others as well. So, this lucky boy got to enter  

The auditorium rehearsal hall to talk to ABBA.  Björn and Benny seemed a little annoyed, he says,   since they were actually working, but he got all  of their autographs. And speaking of upset ABBA   members and arguments, this young fan also reports  that there were many arguments during rehearsals,  

With Frida storming out after disagreeing with  Benny, Agnetha singing out of key and getting   bad looks from Björn and so forth. And all of this  is the fascinating stuff that we usually don’t get   to see or hear from, and it only shows the hard  work behind these shows and the music to make  

Us happy in the end. And beside this lucky son of  the school’s principle, at the end of rehearsals,   an entire group of students was lucky when  ABBA gave a free concert. Our hero of this   story was sneaked in through the stage-door  by his father and ended up in the first row,  

Centimeters away from the performance. And after  the concert, Benny and Agnetha were still around,   and again, the principle of the school  knocked on the stage door so his son got   to talk to Agnetha and Benny one last time.  Agnetha asked him which songs he liked best,  

And Benny have him sheet music for the “Waterloo”  album, which they used during the concert. We would think that this rehearsal  concert gives us an idea of the   general audience of ABBA’s actual  concerts. However, this time the

Crowd was much more mixed and higher in age. There  were mothers, fathers and people between 25 and 30   years of age. ABBA performed in small to average  concert venues, music halls or convention centers,   with varying capacities between 1000 to 3000  people. Only the concert in Gothenborg had  

A capacity for 7.000 people, and it was in fact  completely sold out. But that was a big exception. Because as the fairly new group that ABBA was,  with just a handful of international singles,   not one concert was sold out,  and some were even cancelled,  

With official explanations ranging from technical  problems to TV duties, when it really was due to   low ticket sales. This pertains to every concert  outside of Scandinavia. The concerts in Denmark,   Norway, Sweden and Finland were mostly  or always completely sold out. And this  

Contrast in ticket sales is also reflected  in the variety of reviews for these concerts. Very often, those reviews were quite cynical.  First of all, the sound of these concerts   must have been very loud, and it was one of  the things that is very often mentioned and  

Criticized in reviews, and that even lead to  complaints. Already during school rehearsals,   the teachers were measuring the sound, and it  was 114 decibel. It was so loud that the teachers   reported them and made a complaint to the health  administration board. The concert in Gothenburg  

Was measured by the Health Department and it was  100 decibels. Approved levels were between 80 and   90 decibels. And just to have an idea, the sound  of 120 decibels is described as unbearably loud,   as the absolute threshold of pain, and as very  dangerous. The table for Maximum Exposure Time  

Shows us how long it is safe for someone to  be exposed to different noise levels. For 100   decibels, it is 15 minutes, but going further  up to 115 decibels, it’s merely 28 seconds. Oh,   what would we give to be at one of those  concerts. However, extreme noise levels  

Are not really uncommon for rock and pop  concerts, and are also found in discothèques. But of course, for the cynical critics,  this was just what they’ve been waiting for,   and the loud sound often seems to be the main  focus of those reviews. It was described as being  

The “sole surprise” of these concerts, and that  after all, success wasn’t just about loudness. The   concerts were criticized for the bad and too loud  setup of the amplifiers and the awkward acoustics. If they ever were mentioning the music, it  was described as heartfelt entertaining music,  

But also as unambitious, as music  that fits best for harvest festivals   and that it was a bit too poor for  a concert. “It is difficult to tell   whether whistles at such a concert  express enthusiasm or displeasure.” I’m not sure if these reviews are really accurate  of what those concerts were like. In fact,  

The cynicism in those words is  quite obvious, if not blatant. In actuality, ABBA’s PA system  was high-tech and expensive,   and their lighting equipment was  exclusively imported from West Germany,   which all made it “the most ambitious tour  anyone from Sweden had ever attempted”.

And when we take a look at other reviews,  something that is often praised is the   perfection of those shows. It is described as a  tempo filled, super professional stage show. It   was praised for the visual execution of songs and  hits, for how everything was tightly calculated,  

Including movements and dance choreography.  In fact, Agnetha and Frida rehearsed their   choreography two hours every day for two  months with choreographer Graham Tainton,   which, again, gives an idea of just how  hard and professionell they were working. And there was also praise for for the solo  spots that was given for each group member.

In Denmark, the concert was  described as a huge success for ABBA,   and that they were taking the audience by  storm with an international class show. The shows were generally described as  light-hearted, funny, and colorful,   as a cute bubble world, which is already reflected  in the visual presentation. There were soap  

Bubbles floating through the air, and ABBA’s  wardrobe was praised as “fairy-tale costumes”,   which then turn into sexy clothes, when even  Björn and Benny went topless in the second half   of the concerts. It was described as pure fun,  as a convincing concert, in which the two female  

Singers of the group were a class of their own.  It’s fascinating to see that with all the cynics,   there were some people who already recognized  what it comes down to with ABBA. They described   it as a concentrated friendly and peaceful  arts and crafts, and that saying anything bad  

Is not possible. And here is one review that  really nails what, for me, ABBA is all about. “The show was really swinging.  The stage was full of action,   sex, professional entertainment, that  makes you happy and your heart beating.   I really feel alive. This is what music  should always be. It gives me energy.”

There was a very recent Spanish comment  on one of my videos from Sofia Tejo,   and again, it fits so well with these thoughts: “ABBA was a space of freedom for my imagination as  a child. My country was under a dark dictatorship  

And of the few things I could see on TV,  these smiling people with colorful clothes,   with sounds that I could immerse myself in,  helped me a lot to trust in a better life.   Fortunately my parents bought me their records.  From Chile with love and gratitude, a big hug.”

This is really beautiful,  thank you so much for this. And it really goes back to those 1975  concerts, this colorful, fun world of ABBA,   and it makes me wish even more: if only we  had a documentation of this period. Well,  

We haven’t, but we almost got one.  And this brings us to the final   chapter of this story, ABBA’s return to  Swedish folkparks in the Summer of 1975. As I said in the beginning, these concerts  seemed to have been more or less identical  

To the European tour. In June and July, they did  14 concerts over the course of two weeks. This   is very different to their Folkpark tour from two  years before, where they had 80 concerts in three   months. Now they needed time to focus even more  on songwriting and studio recordings, as well as  

Doing promotion on television around the world.  And one of those TV programmes almost could have   been a documentary of this Folkpark tour. Swedish  TV was actually proposed to tape the shows for a   documentary. But they declined. We don’t really  know why, and there isn’t too much information  

About this, but I can think of two reasons.  First of all, the cultural climate in Sweden   at the time, in regards to ABBA, was actually  quite averse, if not even hostile. Swedish people   were generally fond of ABBA, but there was a  dominant musical movement in Sweden called Progg,  

Which means progressivism – the progress to  improve civilization – and it was anti-commercial   and political, the complete opposite of ABBA. And  this movement really coloured the perception of   many institutions, and Swedish radio and TV was  one of them. When ABBA won the Eurovision Song  

Contest in 1974 and brought the show to Sweden  in the following year, it actually led to riots   and protests, and in 1976, Sweden didn’t even  participate in Eurovision because of that. So   why should they spend even more time, effort and  money for a tour documentary on a group that was  

Already commercial, and successful on top of that.  And secondly, I mentioned it in the beginning,   when ABBA cancelled all of their scheduled  Folkpark concerts through Sweden in 1974,   again because of Eurovision and ABBA’s strive to  go international, I think that didn’t make things  

Any better. It is actually quite a wonder  that we got wonderful Swedish programmes   like “ABBA-dabba-dooo!!” in 1976 and the “ABBA In  Concert” TV special, but a documentary of ABBA’s   folkpark tours in 1975 was just completely out of  any realm of possibilities. However, a few months  

After the tour, we actually got a documentary  that showed ABBA in the studio recording “Dancing   Queen”. This program was about their manager  Stig Andersson, and it was full of cynicism. Around this time, across the globe in Down  Under, ABBA’s brand new music video for  

“Mamma Mia” was shown, and something happened  that no one expected. The following year,   ABBA had no choice but to visit Australia  in person to appease hunger of the massive   amount of new fans. And another year later,  they returned to Australia for their very  

First world tour. And this time, we got  a documentary alright, full of euphoria. On this channel, we’ve gone on trips to many ABBA  locations in and around Stockholm. Just this year,   we have been to the famous bark bench from  “Greatest Hits”. We have also visited the car  

And hotel from ABBA’s third album, as well  as the helicopter airfield from “Arrival”,   and filming locations for ABBA’s music  videos, including “Head Over Heels”. Now,   I want to go back to see the filming locations  of “Summer Night City”, and “Bang-A-Boomerang”.

The year 1975 is an important milestone in  ABBA’s history of their international quest,   of becoming leading pioneers in music. One  year after their breakthrough on Eurovision   with “Waterloo”, ABBA was ready with their  third studio album, “Abba”. On this channel,   we explored 1975 extensively. The artwork and  locations for their third album, the artwork  

For “Greatest Hits” with the surrealistic  painting of ABBA as glam monsters, and – just   recently – the artwork for the same “Greatest  Hits” album, with the park bench photograph. Today, we will explore one specific  song, “Bang-A-Boomerang”, from ABBA’s   third album. And the filming of  the music video. Paradoxically,  

“Bang-A-Boomerang” is not one of ABBA’s  big smash hits, but this song – and the   video – seems to be quite important for  the historic progress of ABBA as artists. “Bang-A-Boomerang” is a tremendous example  of ABBA’s iconic visual appearance,   and even more so, of their hard  work in the recording studio.

As inconspicuous but significant  as the recording itself,   so is the music video that  was created for the song. For the first time in any of ABBA’s music videos  to that point, ABBA was extensively seen outside:   on the streets of Stockholm,  in the park, and at a shore.

So right next to this school,  here we are on the shore,   on which many scenes were  filmed for “Bang-A-Boomerang”. It was a windy Spring day in Stockholm.  As described on abbaontv.com, the video   “is full of hair blowing in  the wind […], of wonderful,  

Happy smiles, which makes it probably  ABBA’s most joyous promo film.” Taken from various perspectives,   ABBA was standing in different ways at the  shore with the skylines in the background. You can also recognise this meadow right  at the shore, on which ABBA was standing.

Adding to that sense of carefree, almost juvenile  joy, also caused by the lyrics and title,   the video contains comic inserts of  Superman, and so-called onomatopoeia,   the use of sounds as words as  we know it from comic strips. On top of the extensive outdoor scenes,  

This video is also special because it makes  heavy use of some of ABBA’s visual trademarks:   very fast editing, extreme close-ups,  and the iconic face-to-face shots. Some of the close-up shots are so close,  that again, it’s impossible to identify other  

Locations. As in our recent location tour for  “Summer Night City”, the scenes in the streets   are virtually unidentifiable, because we don’t get  to see much of the surroundings. If anyone knows   where the street scenes took place in Stockholm,  please let us know in the comments below.

“Bang-A-Boomerang” was one of four videos  that were filmed to promote the “Abba”   album. The other songs are “Mamma  Mia”, “SOS”, and “I Do, I Do, I Do,   I Do, I Do”. All videos feature ABBA’s iconic  visual trademarks, and it was those videos,  

Which were seen by Australia, and in turn,  caught the attention of the UK. From then on,   everything was set in motion. A  domino effect, that is still rolling. All four videos were filmed in 2 days.  That means that ABBA and their loyal   video director Lasse Hallström were  working as efficiently as possible.

The fast editing and extreme close-up shots  are certainly a way to obscure some of the   cheap and fast movie making to  some extend. But even more so,   this technique is just so effective. It literally  brings us close to the people, close to ABBA.  

Take a look at the final shot of the video. It  is so expressive: ABBA walking down a street,   in the middle of a crowd of pedestrians. ABBA  literally being people just like anyone else.   “Bang-A-Boomerang” captures that sense of  the artists being humble and approachable.

So here we are at the shore, and maybe one day,   you too will be standing here, and  enjoying the view that ABBA once had. Here we are at Nybroviken, which is a small  bay in central Stockholm. As so often,  

This area has changed since then, but  as far as I can tell, this is where   ABBA entered or left Benny’s then-new boat  in 1978 for the filming of scenes of their   newest music video “Summer Night City”. The  filming took place at the end of August 1978.

Before we go on that boat trip with Agnetha  and Frida, let’s explore the street scenes. The scene of Frida and Benny was filmed right  across this bay. We just have to turn around.  That’s the street where Frida  and Benny came walking down.

In the video, it looks slightly different.  Especially that building in the background   is much bigger. It definitely is the same  building, so I was quite irritated to see   how far away it actually is. I can only explain  it by distortion of camera angles and set ups. I  

Was looking through every possible street  and corner in this area, and this is the   only spot that really matches the rest of the  scenery, with the railing, and with Frida and   Benny approaching it by walking down the street.  This location is also mentioned in every source,  

Including the ABBA Guide to Stockholm. So unless  I got something completely wrong, this is it. Unfortunately, with the rest  of the street locations,   it doesn’t get easier. In another scene,  Frida and Benny are walking down a street,   which could virtually be any street. The  camera angle is obscured to the left side,  

And we don’t really see any surroundings. There  is one photograph that may have been taken around   that moment. We see the boat and the Nordic Museum  in the background. According to the ABBA Guide,   this picture was taken at Strandvägen. However,  wherever you are in that street, you don’t see  

The Museum from this side. So this scene may still  have been filmed from somewhere around the bay.   Because this is – to my knowledge – the only side  from which you see the Museum exactly like that   on the photograph. But once again, the Museum  in the background on the photo is much bigger.

Here we are at Strandvägen. Because this is also  where Agnetha and Björn were walking past the   boats. As I said, it doesn’t get easier with  identifying exact spots of the streets. Once   again, we don’t really see any surroundings in  this scene, and the street itself is 1 kilometre  

Long. So this spot here is just an approximation,  where Agnetha and Björn could have been filmed.   It would have been somewhere like this, in that  long street, with the boats to the left side. We have more precision with some of  the scenes filmed on Benny’s boat.

Most of them were filmed in this harbour  with the Royal Palace in the background. In one scene, we see houses and chimneys  in the background. According to raffem.com,   some boat scenes were filmed outside the  islands Kastellholmen and Skeppsholmen.   I’m standing at the shore of Benny’s  actual studio from today. One of the  

Boat scenes could have been filmed somewhere here. The disco nightclub scenes were  actually filmed in a studio,   at a re-creation at Europa Film Studios in  Stockholm. This studio does not exist anymore. “Summer Night City” was ABBA’s  tribute and love letter to Stockholm,  

And it brings us right back to  the city, to that final scene. I was always impressed by the  fact that the camera moves and lingers on this scenery, even though the music  has long faded out. We see Stockholm’s Palace,  

The Parliament House, and the Royal Swedish  Opera. I have no idea how they managed to have   this area so deserted of people and cars, even  if it was filmed late at night, or in the early   morning hours. This place is always busy to some  extent. But it happened nearly half a century ago.  

This is the same sequence, uninterrupted,  and not quite as empty, 45 years later. And this is our tribute to “Summer Night  City”, the song and the music video. This phone is legendary. We  already talked to Björn, Benny,   Frida, and Agnetha on this phone. Or did we? (Frida): “Hello?” Hello, this is Bobby’s Brother.

(Frida). “Hello, brother.” So we wish you, dear Frida, a very Happy Birthday. (Frida): “Oh, is that already? Oh  my God, I forget them nowadays.” It is, and we’re celebrating it today,  and also that ABBA breaks all records   with “Voyage”. And we will be talking about  Frida’s new interview. Take care, Frida.

(Frida): “Bye bye.” I just need to type it in  for the title of my video,   so if you could please give me the number again. (Benny): “Jesus Christ, 75.” 75 years? (Benny): “Yes.” Thank you, Benny. (Benny). “Yeah, fine.” All right, take care.

So Agnetha, I know you don’t like  my food, but it’s your birthday. (Agnetha): “I like your food.” Okay, I will send you my cake, and  I wish you a very Happy Birthday. (Agnetha): “Thank you, Love.” Okay, I will give her that call now. (Agnetha): “Hello, this Agnetha of ABBA.”

Hello Agnetha, this is Bobby’s Brother. Oh well, I guess I’m 50 years too late. Please leave your message after the tone. (Frida): “Hello, this is Frida. I  have to send my love, my kisses,   my hugs, my everything. God bless  you all. Be kissed. Bye bye.” Oh, no!

So, I got busted, and you people noticed  that I was doing my shenanigans – every   “phone call” was just a little joke  of mine. But the next one was actually   real. ABBA released a phone number on  their social networks, which you could  

Call to leave a message. And that’s what we  did. We called ABBA, and left our message. (Benny): “Hello, this is Benny Andersson, the ABBA phone. Please leave a message.” Hello Benny, hello dear ABBA, I am calling you to leave my gratitude. And I think I’m speaking for a lot of people.

The meaning you have for so many of us – with your music, and with everything you share – we carry you with us, through all our lives. I’m almost 30 years old, and some of us – I know that – are 50 years, even 80

Years and older, and we’ve been loving you since we’re little kids. So when the news came, that you are returning – with new music – that was the best news we’ve had in…40 years? You mean so much to so many people. This is from Bobby’s Brother, and all of the fans.

You are so loved. Every now and then, we had some cute  visitors on the channel. They left   greetings or wanted to clarify  once and for all if ABBA would   reunite again. And more than once, the  situation got somewhat out of control. Previously on Bobby’s Bears. (Interviewer): “Now that you’ve seen the 

Reaction though, do you  think there could be more?” (Benny): “We’re doing something after 40 years, we make an album, we make this, we build an arena, and you have: ‘will there be more’? No.” (Frida): “How sad.” But in April, the actual Björn Ulvaeus spoke out.

(Björn): “‘Voyage’, the album, was the last you’ll ever hear from us.” (Benny): “If they twist my arm, I might change my mind.” (Frida Bear): “You bad boy.” The ladies came to the rescue. Benny’s arms were twisted. But will he ever be able to compose new music again?

(Björn bear): “Hello! I’m the  first B. My first name is the   same as the famous Tennis player Björn Borg.” (Agnetha bear): “Hello,   I’m Agnetha. You can say Agnetha or you  can say Anna. And here’s the next B.” (Agnetha bear): “Benny…Benny!!” (Benny bear): “Well,  I don’t want to.”

(Benny bear): “Seriously no. No way. And if I  don’t want to, it’s the same for all four of us.” (Frida bear): “Hello. My name is Anni-Frid,   the last A in ABBA. It’s quite  easy to keep the group together.” (Benny bear): “No!”

So, even to send me a greeting for 15,000  subscribers, there seems to be a slight   difference of opinion. But that’s  what we have our female warriors for. Long before ABBA would take the shape of  bears, or avatars, their life and music was  

Captured in very special comic strips. Here  is our episode about “ABBA – The Comics”. In our journey today, let’s  explore ABBA’s life in comics. Hej hej. So! In 1977, ABBA came alive as comic characters.  The Swedish newspaper “Expressen” released a  

Comic strip series in 21 parts. “ABBA story”  tells the story of ABBA in comic strips. We see   how Frida meets Benny, we witness Agnetha’s  beginning and Björn and Benny’s friendship,   and, of course, it also tells the story of  ABBA’s music and their first songs and hits,  

And even the incredible first meeting  of Frida and her long lost father. This comic strip series was written by  Peter Himmelstrand, and illustrated by   Swedish comic artist Kjell Ekeberg. He actually  received a phone call from Peter Himmelstrand,   if he would be interested in collaborating  with him. Peter Himmelstrand, who wrote these  

Comic stories, had been very involved with  the ABBA members. He actually wrote songs   together with Björn and Benny, and songs for  Frida, and he was working as a journalist for   the Swedish newspaper “Expressen”. The comic  strips were also published in Dutch language  

In 1978 as part of a strip album. Today, the  first page of this comic strip story is part   of the Museum of Modern Art in Stockholm.  Wouldn’t it be nice if they would re-release   this series and sell it at the Voyage store  in London or at the ABBA Museum in Stockholm,  

So we could all enjoy it all over  again, or for the very first time. And this was only the beginning  of ABBA’s comic universe. Starting in March 1977, and running  for one year until March 1978,   the UK children’s magazine Look-In featured  comic stories of ABBA in the magazine’s  

Famous picture strips. The cover of this  magazine also featured paintings of artists,   and ABBA was frequently featured over  the years. These paintings were done   by Italian artist Arnaldo Putzu, who also  designed posters for movies in the 1960s. In 1978, the Swedish version of Mad magazine  

Also featured a comic strip  with ABBA in hilarious style. And finally, in 1980, the official  ABBA Magazine printed several parts   of a comic strip called “ABBA The Story”.  It seems to me that these were reprints   of the comic strip from the “Look-In”  magazine, but I’m not quite sure about  

That. One of the pages was also printed  in 1994 for the booklet of ABBA’s box set   “Thank You For The Music”. The official ABBA  magazine was issued between 1977 and 1981. The biggest highlight to me came this year.  It was an invitation to visit Agnetha’s friend  

And producer Jörgen Elofsson. The result  was a 30-minute video on this channel.   I want to show you some of my favorite  moments from this wonderful conversation. How would you describe Agnetha as a person? For me she’s dignified. Sort of  quiet. Doesn’t speak too much.

Warm, caring. Very family-oriented person.  And also, again, very musical. So, yeah. How would you describe Agnetha’s singing voice? Agnetha sounds just like she was a young kid  coming out with a record today. It sounds perfect.   So I don’t understand what that is. Maybe it’s  because we’ve heard Agnetha’s voice for so long,  

That it’s part of our DNA almost. And so,  wherever that voice comes in, it feels right.   Like it’s one of those original pop voices  that just makes it work. She has matured,   like a great wine. Not being rotten, if you  know what I mean, but really matured into  

This fantastic “Wow”. It’s just amazing. And  it’s a little lower, it’s a little warmer. But   it’s so heartfelt and she can really tell a story.  She’s actually, I think, the artist that I think   is the best of telling a story when she sings.  She’s telling the story because that’s how you  

Follow her in the music. Every word is like an  actor playing a different scene. Here she’s sad,   here she’s happy, you can really hear that in  the voice. And it’s just getting better actually. ABBA’s sound engineer Michael B. Tretow  said something similar about Agnetha and  

Frida. That they are one of the few, or  the only artists, that he worked with,   who can be technically brilliant, but  at the same time emotionally convincing. Yes. Yeah, I think he was right. You experienced the same thing with Agnetha?

Yeah I do. I do, I do. And she’s…the talent  she has, it’s still there. The raw material   of her absolute musicality, it’s still  there. That’s why it sounds so wonderful,   even though she doesn’t do it that often. But  when she does it, it’s really good. And I’d  

Rather have it very few times and being really  great, than not being so good and too much. Every 10 years? Yeah, every 10 years! I think  that’s what she would like. Between “A” and “A+”, it has been 10 years,  and Agnetha returned in music with “Voyage”  

And ABBA. What would you say has changed in her as  a person, and as an artist with that experience? I think she’s more relaxed maybe. Yeah, more  relaxed, more content with the whole thing. I   feel the process was easier this time. It’s  more calm and more tight and not so spread  

Out. Otherwise I think she’s the same. It’s  like me. I’m kind of the same, but different. This year also saw Björn opening his very own,   personal Instagram channel. Let’s go  through some of Björn’s highlights. Last week, we talked about Björn’s brand new official Instagram channel, the one and only.

And by now, I realize that he is keeping us informed about all kind of activities almost on a daily basis. So much so, that we can really put together a diary chronicle. So let’s see what Björn was up to since last week. On Tuesday and Wednesday, he was in Cologne, Germany.

Already last week, I suspected that it might be Björn’s partner who initiated his brand new Instagram, and who is giving us these exclusive insights. I now learnt from an article that Björn’s surprise appearance in Cologne, Germany, after the cinema screening of “ABBA: The Movie”,  was actually the idea of  his partner Christina Sas.

We also got the one and only footage of Björn together with George Clooney at Digital X in Cologne. On Thursday last week, Björn was in London, for a gala performance of “Mamma Mia! The Party”. He was introducing new cast member Antony Costa, doing TV promotion with him, and even

Surprising two long-time ABBA fans for a special backstage meeting. On Sunday, Björn had the day off, and enjoyed a beautiful kayak trip on what he called the “Last days of summer”. And this week, we got another insight into Björn’s activities of his private life.

He was pictured in nature again, this time picking mushrooms. I must say, I really love these brand new insights and all of the variety. I think for the first time ever, we get an even better understanding of how Björn lives his days. He was back to business yesterday, and returned to “Mamma Mia!

The Party”, this time for a press event in Stockholm, to announce that the show will come back to Stockholm in Spring next year. Earlier this month, he was seen shopping,  holding an apple, creating a gingerbread   house, and having dinner. Look at  that picture right behind Björn.

On Christmas day, he sent us his very own video  montage on his personal Instagram channel. “A Merry Christmas to all of you from  Björn (who is happy but not in Hawaii)”. The video shows Björn enjoying  his time on an island far off,  

Riding a bicycle on the beach, kayaking on the  crystal clear water, and diving to meet the fish. Hello? ABBA? Hello! Well. It’s a very bad timing right now. In 1983, long before “Mamma Mia!”, a musical was  released for Christmas time, celebrating the music  

Of ABBA. Even Frida was part of it. Although  this is somewhat historic within ABBA’s legacy,   40 years later, it seems to me that this project  hasn’t survived in too many memories. Today,   I want to explore “ABBAcadabra” – what is it,  and why did it fail to leave more significance? Hej hej. So!

As a lover of ABBA, and as a lover of  fairytales, “ABBAcadabra” should be   very exciting to me. But is it? Let’s  have a look at the history and legacy. In 1982, ABBA recorded their final music  together for the next 35 years. Just one  

Year later, in 1983, a musical  was released, using ABBA’s music,   and even involving Björn & Benny, and Frida  herself. The musical was called “ABBAcadabra”,   a fairytale adventure bringing  together several classic fairytales. Historically, there are fascinating  connections to ABBA before and after.

It was written in French language by  Daniel Boublil and none other than   Alain Boublil. He wrote the French lyrics  for ABBA’s French version of “Waterloo”,   and he was also involved in the French-language  version of “The Winner Takes It All”,   which was recorded by Mireille Mathieu,  and which had backing vocals by Frida,  

Björn and Benny. It seems to be a coincidence,  or not, that three years later, those three ABBA   members were also involved in this very  special musical project, “ABBAcadabra”. This musical can be seen – to some extend – as  kind of an early incarnation, a prototype of  

What would be done again in the 1990s with “Mamma  Mia!”. But it was created by a different team,   and one of the big differences is that Björn  and Benny were certainly much more involved   in “Mamma Mia!”. On top of that, “ABBAcadabra” was  unmistakably and completely aimed at children. The  

Biggest difference is certainly that all of ABBA’s  original lyrics were completely gone: after all,   the musical was written in French, and received  entirely new lyrics to tell a specific story. The music was released as a cast album, and  the song selection is really intriguing. It  

Certainly has some of ABBA’s big hits, like  “Take A Chance On Me” and “Dancing Queen”,   but it also has many of their lesser  known deep cuts. “The Visitors”,   “I Let The Music Speak”, “The Piper”,  “I’m A Marionette” and many others. Frida participated by recording a  French-language version of ABBA’s  

Choral song “Arrival”. This version was called  “Belle”, and was a duet with Daniel Balavoine. “ABBAcadabra” started life as a film for French  television. It was filmed in the summer of 1983,   with Frida in the cast. She played  the Princess herself, La Belle,  

Sleeping Beauty, and more than fittingly, it  was filmed at the historic French castle Ussé.   This castle was the inspiration for the  story of “Sleeping Beauty” by the French   author Charles Perrault. His tales laid  the foundation for the fairytale genre. The French musical was broadcast in  December 1983 for Christmas Season.

Around the same time, “ABBAcadabra” was also  released in English, adopted for the actual   musical stage. This musical involved Frida  again, as well as Björn and Benny. It was a   limited show for the Christmas Season 1983,  and ran for eight weeks at London’s Lyric  

Theatre. The poster says: “Christmas this  year at the Lyric means a brand new musical,   ideal for all the family. ABBAcadabra –  A musical Adventure with music by ABBA.” For this stage adaption, ABBA’s songs  were re-written again with new lyrics,  

This time in English. But for this English musical  version, no cast album was recorded. However,   to promote the musical, four songs were  recorded and released on two singles. Frida   recorded “Time” with B.A. Robertson,  the English equivalent to “Belle”,   and ABBA’s “Arrival”. The B-side has the  wonderful, and mythical song “I Am The Seeker”,  

Recorded by B.A. Robertson. This song was written  by Björn and Benny, and was actually an abandoned   recording from ABBA. They recorded a demo  version in 1981 during early sessions for   “The Visitors”. The song was resurrected by Björn  and Benny as their contribution for “ABBAcadabra”.

The second single contains “Like An Image  Passing By”, new lyrics written by Björn   to the music of ABBA’s song “My Love, My  Life”, and performed by Elaine Paige. The   B-side was “When Dreamers Close Their Eyes”, the  musical version for ABBA’s “Like An Angel Passing  

Through My Room”. I must say, the selection  of songs, especially for these singles,   is really intriguing. I really enjoy these  recordings. And for me, these four recordings   and Frida’s “Belle” are certainly the highlight  of the “ABBAcadabra” project. The two English  

Singles were produced and arranged by Mike  Batt, who wrote the music for the beautiful   animated film “Watership Down”, including the  song “Bright Eyes”, recorded by Art Garfunkel. Elaine Paige also played in the English stage  adaption of “ABBAcadabra”. It just so happens  

That she would become one of the stars  of Björn and Benny’s own musical “Chess”,   which was in development around the same time.  In fact, all of the artists from those two   English singles played in the actual musical  “ABBAcadabra” at the London Lyric Theatre,  

Except for Frida. But Frida attended  the premiere in December 1983. The following year, she made another final  contribution to the project. On a second cast   album in French, Frida recorded some beautiful  operatic backing vocals for one of the original  

Songs. Her backing vocals remind me a bit of  her dramatic vocals in “Money, Money, Money”. Frida also made music videos for  the songs “Belle” and “Time”,   and she appeared on French and UK television  with performances and interviews. “ABBAcadabra”   basically gave us some of those rare moments  when three ABBA members reunited after 1982,  

When Björn and Benny promoted their musical  “Chess”, and happened to be on the same show with   Frida. They would cross paths again when Frida  recorded and promoted her solo album “Shine”. The final life of “ABBAcadabra” came in 1985,  when it was adopted for two more TV films,  

In the Netherlands and in Portugal. Both  productions also received cast albums in   their specific language. Amongst the cast  of the Dutch film and album were the two   singers Bonnie St. Claire and José Hoebee. They  kind of have a cult following within ABBA fan  

Circles. Because in the same year, Bonnie & José  recorded and released an entire album with ABBA   songs in Dutch language. And again, most of these  recordings are based on ABBA’s lesser known songs. So with all my love for ABBA and fairytales,  

And with all the foreshadowing for the  much more successful musical “Mamma Mia!”,   why did “ABBAcadabra” fail to make more  impact, and is almost forgotten today? Firstly, I don’t think this project was conceived  to be a smash hit in the first place. It was done  

In celebration of and tribute to ABBA’s 10  year career at the time. And it was aimed   at children. ABBA’s popularity with the masses  was fading in the 1980s, and someone wrote that   the public was just not ready for this kind  of nostalgic celebration of ABBA’s music.

Furthermore, “ABBAcadabra” was not widely  published for an international market in   English language, but only for a limited number  of countries. The English stage adaption was a   limited run and the only production that  did not receive a full-length album. Most crucially, I think, is the fact  that it doesn’t have ABBA’s lyrics,  

Which are such an important  part of their music after all. On top of that, being a TV production and  aimed at children, the production value is   very low-key. In my estimation, that also goes  for the production of the actual music. It’s  

Simply done for the eyes and ears of children,  and – without wanting to talk it down – that’s   just how it looks and sounds. I really like the  idea of mixing ABBA’s music with fairytales. The   concept is great. I just personally wished it was  done with a more high quality production, more  

Elegant and timeless. I think the concept would  also even work terrifically as an animated film. These days, we’re celebrating the  40th anniversary of “ABBAcadabra”. It was a curious and interesting  exploration for me, to bring together   the gist of this almost forgotten chapter,  and I hope you enjoyed this video as well.

One of my favorite episodes  came this year in the Autumn,   but not too many people have seen  it. I want to give it another chance,   because this brings us back to Björn’s  time before ABBA, celebrating 60 years   of Sweden’s Hootenanny Singers. It also makes us  understand even more the natural road to ABBA.

It’s 30 September 1963. Exactly  60 years ago today, a very young,   18-year old Björn Ulvaeus entered the stage  with the newly christened Hootenanny Singers. By that time, and in subsequent years,  even the Swedish music scene was gradually   coloured by the British pop invasion, and rock  bands. However, the Hootenanny Singers kept  

Up the tradition of Swedish folk music, and  became massively successful. In this episode,   we will learn just how important they were  for Björn as an artist and individual,   but especially for a group called  ABBA. I am thrilled to finally,   on this channel, talk about and celebrate  the legacy of the Hootenanny Singers.

Hej hej. So! As a young teenager, Björn had a great  interest in poetry and writing poems,   as well as playing music – all kind of genres,  as long as he could play music. Already early on,   he developed a passion for creating musical  arrangements, developing the structure of songs,  

And layers of harmony parts. Two people were very  important for setting the foundation for Björn to   actually enter the music business. His best friend  Tony Rooth got the chance to be in a Skiffle band,  

But he would only do it under one condition: if  his friend Björn was to join as well. And so,   both of them became part of a group that would  evolve into the Hootenanny Singers. The second   important person was Björn’s mother. She actually  encouraged them to take part in a radio contest.

The loyalty of Björn’s friend Tony Rooth,  and the encouragement of his mother,   eventually brought Björn to that stage.  The newly christened Hootenanny Singers   performed the beautiful folk song  “500 Miles”, 60 years ago today. Around that time, they were finally signed for a  record deal at a newly established music label.  

That label was called Polar Music, and the  Hootenanny Singers became their very first   act. Björn and his friends actually had the chance  to be with the RCA label, but they were attracted   to Polar and their manager Stig Anderson for two  reasons: the label was small, making it focus on  

The group, and they felt that Stig Anderson was  approachable. He even visited the boys before,   to talk about the business, and encourage them:  “We really believe in you” were his words. Their first single reached the top 10. Their folk  music and the image of nice boys was an important  

Contrast to the invasion of The Beatles  and the craze of pop music. The Hootenanny   Singers became one of the most successful  groups in Sweden and the Nordic countries. In their first year 1964, they played more than  150 concerts, as they would every year, filled  

With radio and TV appearances, and they even  participated in their first feature film comedy. In subsequent years, the Hootenanny Singers  had many big hits. But more intriguingly,   their studio albums got more intricate and more  ambitious. They would even develop their sound   with orchestral arrangements, and celebrate  traditional Swedish poets and composers. Their  

Fourth studio album in 1965 became their first  record to contain own compositions written by   Björn. “No Time” and “Time To Move Along” are  – in my opinion – amazing folk rock songs.   There is also a German version of “Time To Move  Along”, “Nimm dein Banjo dir zur Hand” and I get  

Goosebumps when, on those songs, their harmonies  open up, singing about existential themes. A subsequent composition “Baby Those  Are The Rules” became the Hootenanny   Singers’ biggest pop hit and reached number  2. Today, Björn is celebrated for his lyrics,   but on many of these early compositions,  he composed the music, and listening  

To those pure compositions proofs that  he was a marvellous composer of music. Björn not only became more and  more ambitious as a songwriter,   but as co-producer already on their next album.  By that time, there was also a strong creative  

Bond of unity within the Hootenanny Singers.  That bond would peak on their album from 1973. With all this experience, it is  fascinating how their path crossed   with three other individual artists from Sweden,   who would later come together with Björn as one  of the best loved groups in pop history, ABBA.

On that fateful stage appearance 60 years ago,  another ambitious 17-year old singer took part in   the contest. Her name was Anni-Frid Lyngstad, and  she even shared the stage with Björn at the end   of the show when prizes and flowers were given.  They don’t remember to have seen each other yet.

A few years later, a young Agnetha Fältskog  was in the audience on one of the Hootenanny   Singers’ concerts. She laid eyes on Björn,  as did all of her girlfriends. This is   the single that Agnetha asked Björn to send  her as a signed copy. Which he happily did.

Some time later, Björn listened to the radio,   and suddenly heard a beautiful female voice.  He fell in love with it without knowing that   it was that girl from the concert,  one of his fans: Agnetha Fältskog. Even more crucial for the artistic evolution and  success of ABBA were other factors in the story  

Of the Hootenanny Singers. They were only  really successful in the Nordic countries,   but Stig Anderson always tried to break  through, and had great ambitions to make   it international with the Hootenanny Singers.  All those many lessons learned, the experience,   especially within the European market,  payed off a decade later with ABBA.

It’s also important to remember that the  foundation of Polar Music was the success of   the Hootenanny Singers. And many of their albums  during the late 60s were engineered by none other   than Michael B. Tretow. That ingenious record  producer who would later nail the sound of ABBA.

But above all, the work with the Hootenanny  Singers eventually brought Björn together   with Benny Andersson, when they crossed  paths during a concert tour. Benny with   his rock band the Hep Stars, was ironically  always keen on playing folk music. Björn,   who played folk music with his  band, was always keen on pop.

So it seemed to be the perfect match.  If we take a look at the one and only   solo album of Björn and Benny from 1970, it  has this beautiful blend of folk and pop. The Hootenanny Singers released 16 studio albums,  the final two in 1979 and 1982, both without  

Björn. Over the years, there were some beautiful  reunion moments. In 1989 on a television show,   in 2005 for a stage performance, and at some  point with a snowy landscape in the background. Johan Karlberg had died in 1992, Hans Schwarz  in 2013. Today, the only surviving member of  

The Hootenanny Singers next to Björn is his  loyal childhood friend Tony Rooth. In 2013,   they actually got together on stage for  a beautiful mini-concert in tribute to   the Hootenanny Singers and Hansi Schwarz.  This was also the first time since ABBA’s   final concert in 1980, that Björn  did a full-on live concert on stage,  

And it was amazing to see him back  singing folk songs and playing the guitar. Last summer, Björn and Tony were together  again in their hometown Västervik,   where they were honoured with  a plaque for the Hootenanny   Singers. Tony Rooth will celebrate his  80th Birthday this year in November.

A few years ago, all of their albums  were finally made available on digital   platforms, even though many were  actually never released on CD. On YouTube, you will find some official uploads of  beautiful treasures of vintage TV performances. A   brand new 15-minute program from Holland in 1965  was uploaded on the official YouTube channel  

TopPop, and a Swedish half-hour special from 1966  is available on the great channel inomadi100. I think it is long overdue for a comprehensive  CD box set bringing together all of their music,   and honouring the legacy of the  Hootenanny Singers. In my opinion,   there is an incredible magic in  their harmonies, and pure musicality.

We can only hope for that CD box set, or  even a comprehensive book at some point,   documenting the story of the Hootenanny Singers. For now, I hope you enjoyed this video,   a general overview celebrating 60  years of the Hootenanny Singers.

Did you know that we also took a trip  to Berlin, to explore Agnetha’s time in   Germany in the 1960s? Here are some  of my highlights from that video. And now it’s time to go where Agnetha  once was. Let’s visit the place where  

She recorded all of her German songs,  the Hansa Studios. This recording   studio is very famous for another reason. This is the street where you can find the   studio. This is where Agnetha went to record  16 songs in German between 1968 and 1972. Those  

Songs were produced by Dieter Zimmermann, with  whom she was also engaged. She was living in   Berlin for some time, and apparently also  had quite a few apartments. Unfortunately,   we don’t have many information on this period,  and I have no idea where these apartments were,  

Where she and Dieter Zimmermann lived  together. If someone knows anything about this,   please let us know in the comments below.  What we certainly know is that this is   the building in which Agnetha recorded  those German songs, the Hansa Studios. A look inside the entrance area.  This is where she came and went.

What happens to music, when it leaves the  studio? It is played in discotheques, and it gets   promoted. Let’s take the Berlin subway. I want  to go to another place where Agnetha once was. So this is the address, this is the street,  in which Agnetha visited a discotheque in  

1969. She took photographs for her second  German single here. That discotheque was   called “Cheetah”. It was a futuristic place  with a very distinguished entrance area,   which you can see on these old photographs. You entered the space through a tunnel,  like a cave, and the architecture inside  

Was equally fascinating, with  several levels and platforms,   complemented by futuristic furniture. And this  furniture is what you can recognize on these   photographs with Agnetha. If anyone watching was  actually inside this discotheque at one point,   please let us know in the comments below, because  those memories are all we got. This place closed  

Down a long time ago. But we have the address,  and I also found this photograph from 2010,   showing what is left. So I was really intrigued  to go there, to see this iconic entrance area.   And look at what we got! Nothing reminds us that  this is where the Cheetah once was. Today, there  

Is a restaurant and apartments. But this is the  place. We know that because the disco was located   across a place called “Neue Welt”, and when we  turn around, we can see that building over there. When we turn back we are at number 13.

It’s always fascinating for me  to see locations then and now,   and sometimes it’s even more intriguing if  almost nothing looks the same. We can also   recognize this three-shaped silver door next  to the entrance area of the apartment building. I know this is not the most obvious  ABBA-related location that you could  

Visit. It’s quite strange to be honest. But  Agnetha was here, when she was in Berlin,   and it gets us a little closer to that period  in her life, from which we don’t have too many   information. One month later, in March 1969, she  performed her next German single here in Berlin,  

On one of the biggest shows on German TV from  that year. Apparently, this performance is   still slumbering in the archives, and it’s a  shame that we have never seen it so far. She   did a few more TV appearances with her German  songs, none of them are available for us to  

See. And there were even plans for Agnetha to  do a concert tour through Germany. However,   the relationship with Dieter Zimmermann didn’t  last, and her German recordings were never really   successful. I have to say that I really love  those songs, especially the tender ballads.  

And even Agnetha herself said in an interview  in 2013, that she found those songs not bad. This was a beautiful trip to Berlin for me. These days, we are exploring the location  of ABBA’s recording studios on the channel.  

One of my favorite trips was to visit and  explore ABBA’s time at Glenstudio in 1974. Here we are in Stocksund, an upper  class suburb in Stockholm. This area   here was an important location for  Sweden’s film industry in the early   20th century. And it was also an  important part in ABBA’s legacy.

In 1974, ABBA recorded the majority of their  third self-titled album “Abba” at Glenstudio,   which opened 2 years earlier. The studio was  located in the basement of a private house,   and there are some marvellous stories of  their time at this special family place.

Here we are at the house which used to be  Glenstudio. This is where ABBA came and   went to record their songs in the mid-70s. I  want you to know that this is a private place,   so we’re not lingering too much here, and  respect the privacy of the new owners.

The house and studio used  to belong to Bruno Glenmark,   and his wife Ann-Louise Hanson. In 1974,  Michael B. Tretow left Metronome Studio,   and became sound engineer of  Glenstudio for the next two years. The advantage for ABBA was that this studio could  

Be booked for longer periods, and they  would come pretty much as they pleased. The studio in the basement was very small, and was  described as “cramped”, with space for only 4-5   musicians. The studio was also right below the  bedrooms. Sometimes, ABBA worked late into the  

Nights, and the sound was so loud, that the kids  of the family started to complain. At one point,   the house was shaking to the extent that  bottles fell from the bathroom cabinet. Despite the small space, Glenstudio was  a professional recording studio with good  

Equipment, good sound, and especially Michael  B. Tretow knew how to make use of it. One day,   they discovered the swimming pool in the house,  and this big hall was eventually used as an echo   chamber to record Janne Schaffer’s guitar.  Bruno Glenmark’s mother-in-law hadn’t been  

Warned about this procedure, and apparently  almost had a heart attack from the explosion   of sound. You can hear this on ABBA’s “So Long”,  and you can also notice these dazzling sounds   on songs like “Bang-A-Boomerang”, “Hey, Hey  Helen”, and the outtake “Rikky Rock’n Roller”.

But, despite almost having a heart  attack from ABBA’s explosive sound,   Bruno’s mother-in-law continued to spoil ABBA  with delicious, freshly baked cinnamon rolls,   filled with butter and sugar. Every day  when ABBA came to the studio, the first   thing they asked was: ‘Are there any rolls?!’  It was somewhat counterproductive for Björn,  

Who wanted to loose weight at that time. To  him, the cinnamon rolls were irresistible. Glenstudio and ABBA’s time at this place is  described as having a “homely atmosphere”.   This is also the place where one of the most  curious projects was created at the end of 1975,  

On which all four ABBA members were  heavily featured. Michael B. Tretow   explored the studio after hours and  started to work on songs that would   become his 1976 album “Let’s Boogie”. The  shimmer of ABBA is all over this album,   and put into a hilarious juxtaposition with  Tretow’s singing, and parodies of different  

Musical genres. We still need to talk about  this album in-depth, and hopefully very soon. Here we are, not far away from the  house where Glenstudio used to be.   I wanted to bring you here, to  enjoy the view at the shore,   and to conclude the story of Glenstudio  with some beautiful connections.

Bruno Glenmark had a niece and nephew,  and those were none other than Karin and   Anders Glenmark. In the 1980s, they became  part of Björn and Benny’s musical “Chess”,   and from then on, they formed the Swedish duo  Gemini, and recorded two amazing albums written  

And produced by Björn and Benny. Anders Glenmark  also worked on solo albums from Agnetha and Frida,   and in 1996, he produced and co-wrote Frida’s  final album to date. 20 years before, back to   1976, Anders Glenmark recorded the prominent  lead guitar for ABBA’s “Money, Money, Money”.

The final ABBA session at Glenstudio was  for the basic track of “Dancing Queen”.   This is another turning point in  their ambition to perfect their   recordings. They continued to work on  this song for several weeks. Remember,   the vocals for “Dancing Queen” were eventually  recorded – and filmed – back at Metronome Studio.

ABBA’s fourth album “Arrival” became one  of their most successful studio albums,   and brought them back to Metronome Studio. But already in 1974, around  their time at Glenstudio,   Björn, Benny and Michael B. Tretow had early  fantasies about building their own recording  

Studio. That would still take a few more years  until this landmark history would happen. Last year, it has been 40 years since ABBA’s  final television performance in front of a   live audience. Here is our tribute video  to one of ABBA’s most beloved performances. Hej hej. So!

On Friday I was reminded that it had been 40  years to the date, that ABBA had their final   TV performance – and just to be clear, there would  be two more performances a few weeks afterwards,   but this was their final performance in front  of a live audience. And if that’s not enough  

Historic magnitude, this performance is often  regarded as one of their most beloved ones,   an absolute highlight. For me, it’s a masterful  climax to their long road on television. Let’s   explore this, let’s take a look into the many  things that are so special about this performance.

It was an atmospheric Thursday evening, the  11th of November 1982, when ABBA appeared on   a TV program in Germany called “Show Express”.  And it was atmospheric for several reasons. Not   only was it ABBA’s final performance in front of  a live audience – which no one knew at the time,  

Of course – but it was the show’s final episode  ever, the grand finale of a production that   started 2 years earlier. It was a live broadcast  lasting for 90 minutes, and ABBA appeared at the   very end, in the last 15 minutes. They really  knew how to build suspense. But that bittersweet  

Sense of farewell, which might have been in the  air, was also in a fascinating juxtaposition   with something like a “welcome back”. Finally,  ABBA was on TV again. Their real “comeback”,   if you would call it so, was 5 days earlier, at  “The Late, Late Breakfast Show” in London, where  

They did an interview and a small live performance  of “Thank You For The Music”. But apart from that,   they haven’t really been together on TV for the  majority of that year, except for one interview   in Spain in early 1982. Already the year before,  they didn’t do too much either, apart from a few  

Interviews and greetings. The biggest highlight  in 1981, and really the only one, was their own   TV special “Dick Cavett Meets ABBA”, which also  happened to be their final live concert ever. So ABBA have gradually slipped away from  television screens over those last two years.

But now they were back, for what turned out to  be a grand finale, in the show, and in ABBA’s TV   history. They performed their final three songs  from 1982 chronologically as they were released.   “The Day Before You Came”, “Cassandra”, and “Under  Attack”. And that’s another unique thing to this  

Performance. They never performed the first  two songs anywhere else. We have a stunning   music video for “The Day Before You Came”, but  this is the only TV performance of this song,   and of its B-side “Cassandra”. And to make it  even more unique, they changed the ending of  

All three songs so they wouldn’t fade-out,  like on the singles, but have cold endings.   And these endings really add to the mood of this  entire appearance: to the live feeling, but also to the atmosphere in the studio. This entire  performance from start to finish is truly  

Masterful. That started with the fact that they  appeared at the very end of this final show,   that they build the suspense as long as  possible – to finally see ABBA perform on   TV again after such a long time. But how could  you increase that suspense even more? Well,  

By not showing them immediately. We see their logo  in big letters on a wall. The wall falls down,   and ABBA’s logo is now shimmering in  the background, but we only see Agnetha,   all by herself on that stage. She performs  “The Day Before You Came”. And we only see  

Her for almost a third of the song, for over  one minute. Remarkably, this entire sequence   is one continuous camera movement. She has  stepped forward, and gradually, the stage   in the background slowly turns, and out of the  fog, one by one is revealed: Benny on keyboards,  

Björn on guitar and Frida sitting on Benny’s  piano, as well as an entire backing band around   them. ABBA is back! Frida seems to be moved by  the audience’s reaction, they are going wild. For the next song, lead vocals change, and we get  beautiful close-ups of Frida during “Cassandra”,  

As we’ve had of Agnetha before. And  she delivers a soulful performance.   Björn raises his guitar while playing it,  all of this is marvelously choreographed. This is followed by a wonderful little  exchange between Björn and the host, after  

He was presenting Agnetha and Frida with flowers.  There are many charming moments, the host seems so   excited and thrilled to be in their presence. And  when they actually announce a third song, a brand   new song called “Under Attack”, the audience  loses it. What a dynamic, what an energy, they  

Are absolutely fabulous, and surely one of the  most enthusiastic crowd of fans I have ever seen. They had their heroes back after so long,  with new styles, new music, not knowing that  they witnessed ABBA’s grand finale. They had  them back for one more time. And to have them  

Back in such an epic style, joyful and dramatic,  couldn’t be any better. This is unforgettable. And I wasn’t there, I wasn’t even born, but I  can feel all that energy of this historic moment. This channel is all about ABBA, but every  now and then, I slip in some other personal  

Favorites. One of my highlights was to visit  the filming locations for “Mr. Bean”. That   video from London has actually become quite  successful. Here are some of my favorite moments. Here we are at Marsh Farm Road. This is where,  in Episode 2, Mr. Bean dances to the saxophone.

It looks pretty much identical. You  can recognize the hole in the wall. Mr. Bean enters from the left. What is not there  any longer is the graffiti which says “Phut!”. He walks to the right, the camera moves  with him, until it stops in front of the  

Underpass. That underpass actually has a sign  now, “Diagon Alley”, which wasn’t there in 1989. Mr. Bean wants to give some money to the busker,   but he doesn’t have coins. So, he simply  busks, too, in the shape of a little dance.

What’s always so fascinating for me with  these locations is not only to see how it   looks then and now, but to get an  expanded look at the surroundings.   So let’s turn around to see this underpass in  context. This is where they filmed “Mr. Bean”. It’s so calm here, really quite remote.

So to imagine there would be a saxophone  busker here, of all places, is quite hilarious. (train announcement): “This train is for:  Shepperton. The next station is: Teddington.” That’s right, here we are at Mr. Bean’s dentist.  This is the exterior, the house  that was used for the scene.

Mr. Bean was standing here with the meter  maid, and this is what you see in real life. This the best look at the house in the series,   and the facade is still pretty  much identical nowadays. The gate and sign number  20 are also still the same.

Of course that sign is not here today, it  might have been a prop in the series already. The interior scenes were probably shot  at a sound stage at Teddington Studios,   which were not too far away from here. (Mr. Bean): “Oh, Teddy!”

So this is what I really wanted to see  in real life. This is Mr. Bean’s house. It’s like a little dream for me, standing here,   in front of the exterior for the  house that was used for “Mr. Bean”. It really hasn’t changed too much.  And we know from our other location  

Tours that these locations can change drastically. As always, this is a privat property,  so we are respectful. But let’s get a   little closer. In one of the episodes,  Mr. Bean was coming out of the door   and walking this way leading to and  from the house. In another episode,  

He was running down the pavement, to  get to his appointment at the dentist. He was getting into the car, but  then he went back to take a brick, to put it on the gas pedal, so he can change  while driving the car. This is one of the  

Few major changes I can recognize here, the brick  wall in front of the property got a little bigger. “Mr. Bean” is very special to me.  It made me a fan of Rowan Atkinson. And it brought me some very precious memories,   when the whole family was  together and just laughing.

This year, I received a very special  request. Our friend Víctor Hugo asked:   “How did you become the big ABBA fan you are now?”  That got me very excited, and here is my story. “Where does music come from?” That was once asked by Björn Ulvaeus.

So I wonder: where does ABBA come  from? How did they enter my life?   And how exactly did my life cross paths with ABBA? Today’s video is a little different,  and I’m going to narrate that story:   how did I become the big ABBA fan I am now?

The year was 2004. I was 11 years old. And I  was watching the music channel on television,   as I always did. Suddenly, a new video came  on. An elevator opened, and it said “Stockholm   1974”. The video was from a band called ABBA,  and they called it “Our Last Video Ever!”.

It was the story of a man,  who auditioned with his band.  That band turned out to be four puppets. So  this was more than a simple music video. It   was a short story. That was different. And they  sang several songs. When the first song came on,  

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.  The song was “Take A Chance On Me”.   The second song was “Dancing Queen”, and  the final one they sang was “Waterloo”. I asked myself: where does this music come from?  Why is it so good, and who are these puppets?

Far away, I had this distant memory. I somewhat  recognized that name, ABBA. I had a friendship   book, and of course you would also have your  family to write in it. My uncle and even my father   wrote for favorite music: ABBA. Nothing else. They  even wrote it in capital letters. And seeing that,  

I felt that there was always something slightly  special about that name. It felt different. And now I had this video in front  of me, but ABBA were puppets!? What was equally intriguing were all  these different aspects surrounding   it. That elevator opening, with the  words “Stockholm 1974”. That’s got  

To have an importance. There were also  these strange dialogues from actors in   between – as I found out later, of course,  all bits and pieces of various ABBA lyrics. And why would this record producer in  the end diabolically reject this band,  

Who sang these terrific songs? And who was  that band, these puppets, and that music? The music channel, MTV, offered the question: “Why  have ABBA done a new video after all these years?”  You could send an SMS to receive an answer. It  was the most important SMS I ever received. It  

Didn’t say too much. It said: “Director Calle  Åstrand really wanted to do a video with ABBA.   Since the band doesn’t exist any longer, he  decided to use puppets. More? Answer ‘OK’.” I didn’t answer ‘ok’. I went to my father, and I  said: “Please, bring me a CD of this band ABBA”.  

And he got me “ABBA. The Definitive Collection”.  His choice couldn’t have been more perfect. 35   songs from this band, all at once, across 2 CDs,  and all in chronological order. This way, I could   get to know all of the songs that I realized  were beloved and familiar all over the world.

This also happens to be the very first time I  ever saw ABBA, and my only picture for quite a   while. Look at this gorgeous photograph, the pure  beauty of these four people. I was so enchanted. For quite some time, I was more hooked with CD 1,  

The early songs until 1979. On CD  2, there were these melancholic,   heavier songs. That took more time, but  when I got it, I was completely captivated. There were also these 2 remixes as  bonus tracks, and I just thought:   they don’t sound very different? At that time,  

I had a completely different understanding  of what a remix was. And apparently,   I had a completely different understanding,  or lack thereof, of music, and artists. Before “Our Last Video Ever!”, I was listening to  all kinds of songs, tracks that simply were in the  

Charts, videos that were shown on these music  channels on TV. Nothing special, no particular   artist, there was no conscious curiosity about a  single band or singer, no focus on anyone really,   or even on the art itself. What would I  know about the existence of producers,  

Or songwriters? There were bands who wrote  and produced all of their songs on their own? For sure, I always liked music. But suddenly, I  found something that I wasn’t even consciously   looking for. I fell in love with ABBA,  madly in love, and I fell in love with  

Music. I knew that this band, and all of their  work, would forever be my greatest passion. So I went to my father again, and I said:  “Please, bring me another CD of ABBA.” He didn’t bring me one. He brought  me two! And this time, he even got me  

Original studio albums. “Waterloo”, and “Super  Trouper”. What a terrific choice in hindsight,   the second album from the early years, and the  second to last album from their final years. And my dear friends and listeners, once again,  I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. One  

Terrific song after another. It’s possible  that I checked again to see if these were   really studio albums, or if they were  collections with their greatest hits. That sound, those voices. The words they were  singing. And that variety of styles and sounds,  

Within the albums, and certainly from one album to  the other. I was so proud of this music. One day,   when the family was visiting, I  summoned my aunt into my room,   and I played her these two albums I got. For sure,  this was the most precious thing I ever had. And I  

Still remember she was so charmed with the song  “Sitting in the Palmtree”. And I was thrilled. It was also around this time, when the  documentary “Super Troupers” came out,   giving me an idea of the myth that was  ABBA. And seeing “ABBA In Concert” on TV  

Was simply mind-blowing. The energy, the  setlist, experiencing ABBA live on stage. All those many moments of glory, of pure bliss.  Seeing an ABBA video for the very first time,   listening to yet another new song,  or even some of their rare outtakes.

Of course, I started to add all other studio  albums as soon as my pocket money would allow   me to to buy one. I remember those days vividly,  going to the store, and looking which ABBA album   they would have next for me. I was in awe,  looking at each artwork, the tracklist,  

Song names, and even bonus tracks. I never forget  the excitement, when in 2006, I was holding the   Deluxe Edition for “Arrival” in my hands all the  way home, looking at the tracklist of that DVD.  

It said “Dum Dum Diddle” and “Why Did It Have  To Be Me” live – what a thrill. Live versions,   for a TV special, and especially of two  songs that were generally lesser known. But there was something else, that made me realize  that there was something very special when it  

Comes to ABBA. Something that really shaped  my dedication more and more. I realized the   incredible amount of commitment that others had  for ABBA. A website listing all of their songs,   recordings, versions, and much more. ABBAomnibus.  A website devoted to their entire story,  

Collecting all of their photo sessions  and video shoots, and diving deeply into   their solo careers as well. Raffem. And an  incredible, mind-blowing website listing every   TV appearance by ABBA and its members from  the early 60s until this very day. ABBAonTV.

That was exactly what I was looking for, and  what I sometimes tried to find for other artists   before or since. I never found anything that  comes even close to this incredible devotion. Almost a decade after I have seen these puppets  for the first time on TV, in 2013, ABBA would  

Open their Museum. I had to be there, and it  was the first time that I went to Stockholm.   So that was special in and of itself. I would get  to discover the city of ABBA, and all the places  

They once were. But you would not believe what  the first thing was that I saw when I arrived at   the airport. Look at that. This is what greeted  me, what bid me welcome. Isn’t that fascinating? But there have always been some strange moments  with ABBA, where coincidence seem to be swapped,  

With something else. Fate maybe, destiny.  You can find it throughout their tale,   or even in dates and numbers. I posted  my very first video on this channel,   on 27 May 2021. No one knew at that time what  would come, no one knew about “Voyage”. But  

Exactly one year later, to the date, ABBA’s  new concert opened to the public. Strange,   these incidents, almost as if there’s  something slightly higher involved. So to see my puppets on that very first  arrival in Stockholm was such a curious moment.

These puppets have such an important meaning  to me. This was the first time I saw ABBA,   albeit in some strange shape and  form. I fell in love with them,   and seeing them nowadays has  an incredible nostalgic factor,  

And always a feeling of great importance. And  it was the first time I heard their music. It was in fact at the opening for ABBA The  Museum, when Björn asked that question:   “Where does music come from?”. He  was actually quoting Ingmar Bergman.

And to think that it all started with  these puppets for me, the most lifeless   things. But music, that’s what gave  them life, that’s what made me aware,   what made my heart and soul  connect, and really come alive.

Music. It’s possibly the strangest, most wondrous  thing we have in this life, on this curious planet   Earth. Miraculous, a prodigious marvel,  unexplainable in the end. Music is such a   divine thing, it’s got to exist some place else,  beyond life on Earth. I’d like to believe that.

One of the greatest virtues that  I learnt from ABBA was hope. Ironically, there wasn’t too much of it  really. The only slight hope that I ever had,   a deepest inner wish – maybe – was to  see them one more time, side-by-side,  

For a final photograph or something. But even  that seemed so far away. And without any doubt,   there was an incredible certainty, that I  would never hear anything new from ABBA,   to have them back in music. For me personally,  that couldn’t have been more definite. After all, when they entered my life,  

They already let me know that this was  it, this is their “Last Video Ever!”. They fooled me alright. Never give up hope. It was even there when that elevator opened,  when all of a sudden, I got sucked into a  

Wondrous world of sights and sounds, something  that finally gave true meaning to it all. That wondrous magic of four  incredible individuals,   who did the very, very best  with the talent that they had. That’s how it started for me. With music,  that has blessed my life. The music of ABBA.

We’ve almost reached the end of the show. I hope   you enjoyed this gathering of some of  my personal highlights from the channel. To conclude the evening, let’s look back at 2023,   and all the activities and new  music from the members of ABBA.

This year was 2 years after ABBA’s legendary  comeback album “Voyage”, and one year after   the “Voyage” show opened to the world. Let’s see  what the members of ABBA have been up to in 2023,   their on-going celebrations, happenings,  and all the music they released this year. Hej hej. So!

Early on this year, we celebrated  a milestone in ABBA’s history. 50 years of ABBA’s debut album. Half a century  ago, their very first album was released,   and they didn’t even know if this  would be their only album together.

For this historic celebration, half of ABBA came  together, in a telephone sketch on ABBA’s social   networks, a humorous and emotional conversation  between Björn and Frida, about the making of their   first album 50 years ago. Frida even blessed us by  singing a few lines of the title song a cappella.

On this channel, we explored the creation  and history of “Ring Ring” in a 2-part   series. ABBA’s label Universal released  the obligatory vinyl re-issues of the   album and singles from the time, but even  more exciting – for me personally – was  

The release of ABBA’s first music video  “Ring Ring” in glorious 4K high definition. ABBA’s milestone celebrations continued,  from their first work together over to   their most recent project. The “Voyage” show  turned 1 year old, but even before that,  

They already celebrated their 1 millionths  visitor. In May this year, we got the closest to   another ABBA reunion since the opening of “Voyage”  in 2022. For the first anniversary of the show,   three members of ABBA came together in London to  see their own concert again with all those lucky  

Fans. Björn, Benny and Frida were photographed  together in beautiful pictures. Frida mingled   emotionally with fans, and she made us even  more emotional with her interactions with Benny. Over on this channel, we continued our quest  in celebrating and exploring “Voyage”, the  

Creation of ABBA’s ninth album. We put together a  chronology of the recording sessions of the album,   with all the information that we have right  now. On top of that, we even received new   details about ABBA’s first reunion photo  together as part of the “Voyage” project,  

The mysterious photograph of ABBA  in helmets around Benny’s piano. This channel also saw some exciting explorations  through ABBA’s classic legacy. We brought together   just about everything that’s out there about  ABBA’s very first concert on their holiday   in Cyprus in 1970. In Spring this year, fitting  for the 50th anniversary, we received a beautiful  

First-time revelation of ABBA’s concert setlist  from their first real concert tour in 1973. And   we’ve also gone through some of ABBA’s landmark  recordings and songs, including “Chiquitita”,   as well as ABBA’s incredible outtakes “Put  On Your White Sombrero”, “Just A Notion”,  

And “I Am The City”. In May, we celebrated 10  years of Agnetha’s most recent solo album “A”,   and in September, we celebrated 60  years of Björn’s first band before ABBA,   the Hootenanny Singers, with a  beautiful tribute on the channel. We’re now going to explore ABBA’s exciting  activities this year. But first of all,  

I want to take a moment to say that not only  did we celebrate 15,000 subscribers to this   channel, but we actually reached 20,000  subscribers not long afterwards. Well,   some of you may know that I’m not really looking  at numbers. But what I care for is the fact that  

The format of this channel seems to work for  so many people: it doesn’t make me happy to   see 20,000 subscribers as a number per se, but  it makes me happy to realize that 20,000 people   seem to care about this kind of content.  Narration and videos with a normal pace,  

With thoughtful conversations and  details. For that, I’m really grateful. In the summer of this year, “ABBA: The Movie”  was back in cinemas around Europe. It was   also around that time, that Björn – as the  first member of ABBA – opened his very own,   personal channel on Instagram. He’s  been generously sharing his activities,  

And gets us a little closer to his lifestyle with  beautiful photographs from throughout the year,   and videos documenting his trips and experiences. The year also brought some heartbreaking news of  the passing of people who worked with ABBA. We   bid farewell to ABBA’s saxophonist Ulf Andersson.  To ABBA’s longtime key guitarist Lasse Wellander,  

Who also played on ABBA’s “Voyage” album.  To Rafael, from the amazing ABBA website   raffem.com. To the Swedish musician Lasse  Berghagen, who worked with Frida and Benny.   And to Ola Lager, one of ABBA’s most important  photographers. He passed away just this week.

In 2023, the members of ABBA treated and gifted us  with new music all year round. Earlier this year,   Benny and his band, Benny Anderssons Orkester,  was the house band for Sweden’s popular TV game   show “On The Trail”. They performed several  songs in four shows, sometimes on their own,  

Sometimes with guest singers, as well as several  tunes and jingles written by Benny. On icethesite,   Benny said that he had a lot of fun, and  that it was a really great experience to him. In the Spring, Benny started to  write and record new songs with  

His Orkester. The new music is due  to be released in Spring next year. Benny also took part in two concerts.  In March, he performed songs from the   historic Swedish composer Evert Taube  in a church in Gothenburg, and in May,  

Benny was part of a concert in Stockholm, to  support the Swedish composer Stefan Nilsson. In the summer, Björn wrote lyrics for two  songs. One for a beautiful ballad of Swedish   musician Benjamin Ingrosso, and another one  for 16-year old newcomer Kiana Blanckert,  

A new song that was added to a second edition of  Björn’s musical soundtrack “Pippi at the Cirkus”. In the Autumn this year, out of nowhere, we  were hooked with the feeling and prediction   that Agnetha Fältskog might return for a solo  comeback. And indeed, Agnetha came back with  

A brand new song, “Where Do We Go From Here?”.  This was part of her celebration for the 10th   anniversary of her solo album “A”. All  songs from the album were re-recorded   with new backing tracks and arrangements,  and released as “A+”. For this channel,  

I got one of the most exciting jobs, to visit  Agnetha’s friend and producer in his home-studio,   and talk with him about all-things Agnetha. And  even more so, for that I received some of the   most beautiful and heartfelt feedback from all of  you. Thank you so much. It was a blessing and joy.

The Autumn also brought us a brand new composition  from Björn and Benny for the 50th celebration of   Sweden’s King Carl Gustaf. And just these days,  Benny released his instrumental version of the   song, which for me personally has been an  absolute highlight, and is played here in a  

Continuous loop. The medieval, fantasy-folk-style  and climbing melody lines, it’s just beautiful. And finally, for all of their hard work  and achievements, ABBA received several   new awards this year. They became one of the  first artists to receive the BRIT Billion,  

Which is given to celebrate a total of one billion  streams in the UK. For ABBA’s 20 new lyric videos,   they won at the Music Week Awards 2023  for best “Catalogue Marketing Campaign”. For their “Voyage” show, the technical  team ILM received the Visual Effects  

Society Award for Outstanding Visual  Effects in a Special Venue Project. And last but not least, the woman  behind ABBA’s Polar Music label,   manager Mia Segolsson, was celebrated  on Billboards List of Women of the Year,   in the category Music Publishing. On that  occasion, she confirmed that they do have plans  

For ABBA’s upcoming 50th anniversary next year,  when ABBA won the Eurovision Song Contest in 1974. And with that being said, this is what  we’re now lobut hoking forward to. To   ABBA’s big anniversary year in 2024, with  many highlights and surprises coming up.

One of the first things is just around the corner:  on icethesite, we can look out for a fascinating   exclusive new interview with Bernard Löhr, Benny’s  colleague and engineer of ABBA’s “Voyage” album. That sounds like a promising start into the New  Year. I can’t wait to celebrate it all with you,  

And I have some beautiful  surprises myself ready to go. Thank you for your faith and loyalty.  And once again, thank you for showing   me that there are still so many people out  there who care for profound conversations,   for details and thoughtfulness, and proof  to me that attention is still alive.

Thank you to all of you, and I wish you  all the Best, and a Happy New Year 2024.