ABBA is back! And they have a new album!

In ABBA's heyday, I was a self-proclaimed musical snob, and refused to listen to any music that wasn't classical. They were probably at their peak in the USA when I was 27, in 1977. My car had AM radio, so I heard the songs, but I didn't wax poetic over them. Of course, the sound quality of car AM radios back then wasn't the greatest. It wasn't until I was in my fifties (!) that I got off my high horse and started to listen to their music and appreciate it. Being of Swedish heritage, I discovered a newfound sense of pride that this group, of my nationality, was so beloved. 

Fast-forward to the dark Muriel's Wedding, with its hilarious Waterloo scene, to the release of the two Mamma Mia movies, which I found priceless--all I could think was "What on earth was I doing when this group was so popular? I love them!" I bought all their albums and have been a fan ever since. Now, as I connect with my cousins in Sweden, we're all rejoicing over the appearance of Voyage, just released this past Friday. Here's a picture of them - they are MY generation (!) - followed by my comments on the recording.

                                                     

                    Agnetha                 Bjorn

Benny                  Frida

My take on ABBA'S new album, VOYAGE:

 

1. My 3 Favorites:

      -- I Still Have Faith In You

      -- Ode to Freedom

      -- Bumblebee

2. Comments on tracks:

--  I Still Have Faith in You: Beautiful, perfect! My favorite.

--  When You Danced With Me: Great melody and rhythm--love it!

--  Little Things: Lovely melody, perhaps I would enjoy it more at Christmas. Instrumentation is a bit birdlike and twee. If that's a children's chorus at the end, I don't like that. My least favorite.

 --Don't Shut Me Down: Great song, love it, wish the ending weren't so abrupt.

 --Just a Notion--Nothing to critique. Love rhythm and harmonies. Very ABBA!

 --I Can Be That Woman: Sweet, poignant;  I  love the lyrics, love the song!

 --Keep an Eye on Dan: Good song, I love chorus,  people say ending is reminiscent of SOS - I'll have to listen to SOS again to hear that.

  --Bumblebee: Enya-esque, beautiful melody-- a favorite! I hear a little bit of "Fernando" in the intro.

  --No Doubt About It: Starts out "country" but I don't think of it as a country song. Love it, but ending is too abrupt.

  --Ode to Freedom: Beautiful, a favorite--and even if the chorus is augmented in production, I love the song!

3. Overall opinion: Great album! Thank you for the music, ABBA!