"Hi, my name is Dave, and I like Abba".

That was the opening line of an article on Abba by David Jefferson in the Wall Street ]ournal twoyears ago. Titled "The First Step to Recovery", the article notes that the Swe¬dish pop group is hipper than ever "because the in-crowd has dubbed the 1970s its nostal¬gia decade... and selected Abba as the band that best epitomized the aural accomplish¬ments of the time". Not bad for a band that disbanded more than a decade ago.

The four members of Abba were all pro¬fessional singers in their own right before they formed the quartet that has ben called "the biggest selling quartet in the history of recorded music", selling more records than even the Beatles and more than Michael Jackson and Madonna combined.
It all started in 1966 with a chance meeting. One day, at a crossroads in Sweden, the Hootenany Singers (schoolboys who sang like the Kingston Trio, but in Swedish) bumped into the Hep Stars (rockers heavily influenced by Bill Haley, Buddy Holly, Elvis Presley and the Rolling Stones). A few hours later, Björn Ulvaeus from the first group and Benny Andersson from the second group had written their first song together. It was called Isn't It Easy To Say.

That song did not make big waves but Bjöm and Benny continued their collabo¬ration and eventually started working with their publisher Stickan Andersson in his office where they "were expected to write hit songs". In the process Björn met singer Agnetha Fältskog and Benny teamed up with vocalist Anni-frid Lyngstad. The romance between Bjbrn and Agnetha and Benny and Anni-frid respectively slowly bloomed into a professional relationship.

At first the girls provided the do-da-do-da background to Björn and Benny's Swedish top-of-the-pops creations.

"Then we had a crushing desire to try our songs in pop-style in English."

What the Abba historians consider to be the first real Abba song was made in 1972. She's My Kind 0, f Girl went unnoticed in Sweden but was a big success in Japan for "Bj6m and Benny and the Swedish girls" as Playboy records had labeled the disc.

It was Stickan Andersson who came up with the name Abba because he was tired of having to write "Agnetha, Bibm, Benny and Anni-frid" on every contract. Abba was already an established name in Sweden at that time - for a herring product. But it did not seem to matter much to the group. The general sense seemed to be that this pop¬group would not be too long-lived.

But then came the Eurovision Song Festi¬val with Abba representing Sweden. April 6, 1974 at 10.18pm in the English town of Brighton - this was the start of Abba's international fame. The group won the Eurovision Song Festival with Waterloo. By the time the group disbanded eleven years later - professionally and romantically - it had sold over 250 million discs.

Abba put Sweden more or less in the middle of the world map of popular music, especially in Australia where Abba had its biggest success. In 1977 Abba's record company Polar showed a profit of 40 million Swedish kronor, making it Sweden's most profitable company. In the same year, Abba beat the record of most sold discs, which was until then held by the Beatles.

When Polygram's "ABBA GOLD" with the group's greatest hits was released three years ago, it quickly achieved triple, double and single platinum status in 10 countries, not to mention all the golds.

Abba historians are now watching with interest how the Abba revival is develop¬ing in the US, which is the only market that the Abba members consider to have been a disappointment (despite a number one song, three other top 10 hits and nine additional singles that made the top 30).

Just about everyone has a favourite Abba song. Dancing Queen, Take a Chance on Me, S.O.S., Lay all Your Love On Me and The Visitors have become dance/club standards world-wide and are but a few of the songs that have been performed by many other artists. Erasure leads the pack with its hugely successful Abba-esque E.P. which topped the charts all over Europe and included the hit single and video Take A Chance On Me. An English studio band, Abbacadabra has done an entire album of Abba dance covers titled appropriately Abba-Salute. The Munich Philharmonic Orchestra has released an album of Abba classics and in Pakistan sisters Sainta and Sabina sing Abba favourites in Hindi.

The popular Australian Abba-clone live act, Björn Again, has been playing to packed audiences all over Europe and last year carried out a successful U.S. and Canadian tour. Bj6rn Again is cashing in on Abba's signature harmonies, melodies and 70's fashion as it camps it up on stage with a little comedy and very corny Swedish accents.

U2 played an acoustic version of Dancing Queen on its Zoo T.V. tour. Abba's Björn and Benny appeared with the group for this song when it performed in Stockholm to ecstatic applause.
ABBA The Movie, which opened internationally in 1978 is being shown in theatres around the world again. ABBAcadabra, a play of Abba music has been staged in Sweden. Abba's Frida climbed on stage for a finale and sang the closing number Thank You For The Music with the cast. Abba karaoke bars are popping up all over Europe. Abba bootlegs are flooding the underground market once again. And at Oxford University there is even a group of followers calling themselves ABBAholics Anonymous - addicts of the 70's Swedish legends. Presently Abba is the background music in the new hit Australian movie Muriel's Wedding by P. J. Hogan.

The Abba revival has taken the old band members by surprise. Agnetha, who made solo albums after the 1982 break-up of Abba, did make a film debut (with Gunnar Hellström in Raskenstam). Apart from this she has completely withdrawn from public life.

Björn and Benny, who have both remarried, are busy producing Wilhelm Moberg's epic novel The Emigrants as a musical. Called Kristina from Duvemåla, it will open in Malmö on October 5 and will possibly tour North America next summer when Swedes

celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Swedish mass emigration to the United States.

In 1986 Bjöm and Benny premiered the musical Chess that they wrote together with Tim Rice of Jesus Christ Superstar and Evita fame. They wrote the score with the help of conductor Anders Eljas as neither Bj6m nor Benny can write notes themselves.

Benny, who played the accordion at age 6 in a trio with his father and grandfather, has also searched for his musical roots and made a couple of albums with other accordionists. He is also producing a new Swedish popstar called Josefin.

Anni-frid who nowadays goes under the name of Frida is married to German-Swedish prince Russo Reuss and lives in Switzerland. She still performs for environmental causes and made an appearance at a gala celebrating the Swedish Queen Silvia's 50th birthday. She sang Dancing Queen which Abba had performed 18 years ago when the king and queen got married.

Asked a few years ago if she had a musical dream, Frida replied "Yes, it would be fun to make a record with Abba again. As we have been away from each other for so long and we have each had so many new experiences, the result could be exciting. It is actually a dream."

"I never saw Abba in concert but I think Björn Again is probably better than Abba ever was," said one fan after a recent concert. Bj6m Again is one of the most successful "tribute bands" that has, mimicked and sung Abba classics in more than 20 countries.

Last November the Australian band toured Canada and the US and Bjöm Volvoeus, Agnetha Falstart, Frida Longstokin and Benny Andervear will probably be back this fall. What makes Bj6m Again so popular are the unforgettable tunes, the costumes (flares, platform shoes, sequined satins and glitter), and most importantly the hysterical audience reaction. See everybody copy the dancenteps, sing along at the tops of their voices, wave sparklers or lighters in Fernando, throw chocolate money in Money, Money, Money and sway along in 1 Do, I Do, I Do. Witness Frida chastise Benny and see Bj6m remind Agnetha not to flirt with the men in the front row.

Björn Again was started by four professional musicians in Australia where Abba was more popular than anywhere else in the world. Two of the founders bore an uncanny resemblance to Björn and Benny and after auditioning about 100 women they found a blond and a brunette for the roles of Agnetha and Frida. The band members studied Abba tapes and videos and copied everything from platform shoes to sequins to arrive at something that can only be described as camp.

Abba aren't Björn Again's sole target. The group also croons through Nirvana's grunge classic Smells Like the Spirit and dismember Simon and Garfunkel's Cecilia, but it soon returns to subverting Abba's unique popfroth with hilarious solemnity. The mournful The Winner Takes It All is a saccharine masterpiece. There is even a performance of Abba's unreleased track Just Like That on Bj6m Again's debut album.

The band stays in character even during interviews mimicking the Swedish stars: "ja, vee acknowledge Chuck Berry and oompah bands among our musical influences".

"I am flattered by everything except the accents," said the real Björn Ulvaeus in an interview "I hope my accent isn't as lousy as this one!"

Ironically Björn Again's first international concert outside Australian was in Sweden in 1990. Björn Again's popularity does not seem to be waning. They are the closest fans can get to the real thing just as Abba's manager Stickan Andersson said: "Abba will not get back together - it is impossible. You will have to see Björn Again!"

Scandinavian Press, Issue 2, 1995