On a musical note - one of my favorite Google Current reads is Flavorpill. Mindless facts on all things entertainment. A recent one was titled ABBA Gold ranked from Gleeful to Glum. I think I sort of soured on the whole ABBA craze with the advent of Mamma Mia which turned their entire catalog into a juke box heresy. But I remember during my teen years how cool they were and how much of their music I owned on vinyl.
So I perused the article with a bit of apprehension. In hindsight, they really were a dynasty of pop music in the 70s & 80s. Of course there was the output of classic Top 40 material. But looking at this time capsule they were video pioneers, fashion mavens, talented musicians and icons. A bit of Liberace Vegas with the safety of Lawence Welk standards. Agnetha & Anni could sing the hell out of a lyric and had such a perfect blend that it is hard to tell them apart unless watching them on video. Benny & Bjorn could craft catchy pop with a hook. Their albums had range from musical theater to disco. You can see it in the videos which each have a sense of concept to them. Yes there are the hooks of Dancing Queen & Mamma Mia - but also mini dramas like Fernando and Thank You For the Music. They didn't have the tabloid drama of Fleetwood Mac, but with the double marriages in the group; looking at the later ballads like "One Of Us" and "The Winner takes It All" make the downfall seem inevitable. It is not surprising to me that they went on to write scores for the stage.
They are back in the news in light of the Eurovision contest which launched their careers and continues now 40 years later. But also a museum opening in Stockholm in their honor. Below is a link to the whole article which features 19 of their chart toppers in complete video form.
Flavorwire - ABBA Gold
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