Sunday, 8 February 2015

Abba Date - 9th February 1985

On the 9th February 1985 The duet "I Know Him So Well" from Chess with Elaine Paige and Barbara Dickson reached the number 1 spot on the UK singles chart.

The single stayed at the top of the charts for 4 weeks and was the second biggest selling single of 1985 in the UK (the top spot being Jennifer Rush's "The Power Of Love") and would go on to become the biggest selling female duet ever.

The single was also number in Ireland as well as reaching the top 10 in South Africa, Switzerland and New Zealand as shown in the table below -

 

More Pictures From The Dancing Queen Collection

Here are a few more pictures from "The Dancing Queen" which I posted earlier today...

 

Saturday, 7 February 2015

Abba - The Dancing Queen Collection

The images below are of a box set titled "Abba The Dancing Queen Collection" which I think I received as a Christmas gift a few years ago which includes the following -

  • A DVD review of Abba's "Arrival" album
  • A book which looks at each track from each of Abba's albums
  • Two DVD's which look at Abba's career the first from 1973 - 1976 and the second from 1977 - 1982

 

Chess Update From International Abba Magazine

This is a scan of the page from the last issue of the International Abba Magazine which provided an update on the "Chess" musical...

 

International Abba Magazine Agnetha Poster

The final issue of the International Abba Magazine included this poster of Agnetha...

 

Friday, 6 February 2015

International Abba Magazine #24

The 24th (and last !) issue of the International Abba Magazine was published in November 1983 and to commemorate the end of the magazine a mini re-print of the very first Abba Magazine was included inside.

The magazine started with news of the "Abbacadabra" musical confirming that it would be staged at the Lyric Theatre in Hammersmith London and that Benny had written a new track called "The Beast".

The next section included reviews of Agnetha's album "Wrap Your Arms Around Me" from the magazine's readers which covered a range of opinions from replacing "The Heat Is On" with "I'm Still Alive" to another reviewer saying their favourite was "Stand By My Side".

There was also a copy of a telex from Marie Ledin from the Polar Office dated September 1983 which confirmed the chart positions of the singles "The Heat Is On" and "Wrap Your Arms Around Me" and the album itself.

The last article provided an update on the "Chess" musical ; Bjorn, Benny and Tim Rice were looking for performers for the album which would be recorded mostly in Sweden other than the orchestra which would be recorded in London.

I remember picking up this issue (which I had to order from a local newsagent) and being sad that this was the last issue although not surprised as at that point Abba had become "uncool" in the UK as you could tell from the chart positions of the last few Abba / Frida / Agnetha singles.

Although of course for those of us who kept the faith during the quiet years Abba (and recently Agnetha) would be back bigger and more popular than ever…. 

 

I Love Abba Album

This afternoon I have been listening to an Abba compilation titled "I Love Abba" which was released by Atlantic Records in America in 1984. The sticker on the album cover mentions the inclusion of "Cassandra" and "Should I Laugh Of Cry" as they were not included on previous Abba albums. The full track list is as follows -

Side One

  • Cassandra
  • The Name Of The Game
  • Should I Laugh Or Cry
  • Our Last Summer
  • I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do
  • Chiquitita
  • Andante, Andante

Side Two

  • I Have A Dream
  • My Love, My Life
  • I Wonder (Departure)
  • One Man, One Woman
  • Slipping Through My Fingers
  • Fernando
  • Eagle