Latest news with #ABBA
Wales Online
10 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
I'm a huge Oasis fan and this is the setlist I want to hear and it's missing one massive tune
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info A certain Manchester band is making something of a comeback this week - the first time they will have performed on stage together in 16 years. As if you didn't know.... Oasis shocked music fans all over the world last August when they announced a reunion tour which was expected to generate quite a large demand for tickets. The exact level of that demand cannot have been predicted by anyone, however, perhaps not even the Gallagher brothers themselves. Fans across the UK and indeed the globe seemed to spend the whole of August 30 (pre-sale) and August 31 last year glued to their phones or stuck to their desks as an unprecedented quest for concert tickets in Cardiff, Manchester, London, Edinburgh and Dublin got underway. The band also announced further dates in cities across the world. From superstar gigs to cosy pubs, find out What's On in Wales by signing up to our newsletter here, reports Wales Online. Fans both elated at getting tickets and devastated at missing out got on with their lives as Oasis Live '25 seemed like an age away. Well not anymore, it's now just around the corner and the biggest and most anticipated comeback in rock or pop history (sorry ABBA fans, the band has to actually be at the concerts for it to count) will kick-off at Cardiff's Principality Stadium on July 4 and 5. I've been an Oasis fan since I overheard (What's the Story) Morning Glory? making its way from my sister's bedroom in 1995. For the 12-year-old me, all of a sudden Michael Jackson and Wet Wet Wet cassettes were abandoned to the back of the cupboard and I had a new hobby. After wearing out the 'Morning Glory' tape by constantly rewinding tracks three and four, a pocket-money frugal teenage me then bought Definitely Maybe on CD (fancy!). I was hooked. Be Here Now followed in 1997, and although things were never quite the same after that, those first three or four years of being obsessed with indie music and guitars are etched within my soul forever. Now, thirty years after first hearing those distorted tones across the landing, Oasis are back, and attention turns to exactly what songs the band are actually going to sing during their upcoming epic tour. It's important to stress at this point that as music is probably the most subjective of all the arts, everyone is entitled to their opinion, including me (yes, I'm talking to you in the comments section/on Facebook). (Image: PA) As all Oasis fans will agree, the band simply have too many good and popular songs for it to be possible for them to please everyone, and they can't sing non-stop for three hours each night. With that in mind I've whittled things down to 21 songs (they played 22 the last time they were at the Principality - then Millennium - Stadium in 2009). They could of course mix things up as the tour goes along, but as the band has not written or recorded any new material despite the hype surrounding them pretty much guaranteeing that even the most formulaic of new offerings would be a smash hit, we can comfortably assume that the lads are planning on playing things a bit safe. So what I have done below is devised MY dream setlist. This is not the setlist I think it will be, but the setlist I would personally pick were I to win a competition and Noel and Liam said 'you pick'. The first point which is likely to make people click off this article faster than a cannonball is my omission of Supersonic, which everybody loves and both Gallagher brothers have claimed is among their favourite ever Oasis songs. Again, this is my list, and I never really took to Supersonic. 'She done it with a doctor on a helicopter' - meh. As for other considerations, the opening track is going to be a big deal for fans paying hundreds of pounds (some even more that!) to see their favourite '90s band. Again, without wishing to be a contrarian, I do not want to hear Rock 'n' Roll Star as the opener in Cardiff. Why? It's undoubtedly a great song, but I've seen Oasis several times over the years and they more often than not opened with Rock 'n' Roll Star, including when they last played in Cardiff back in 2009. I've also seen Liam Gallagher performing solo in recent years and he always tends to start with it. It's a fine song, and undeniably deserves its spot in the setlist, but Oasis have a plethora of fast-paced 'bangers' capable of making the crowd go mad for it from the off in a vast stadium: Morning Glory, Cigarettes & Alcohol, Shock of the Lightning, Hello....... The latter would make lyrical sense as it contains the words 'it's good to be back'. However, given that disgraced former rock star and paedophile Gary Glitter has a writing credit on it because the song borrowed that phrase and a section of melody from his 1973 hit Hello Hello I'm Back Again, it's probably best to leave that particular Oasis song in 1995, although Liam did hint in a post on X earlier this year that Hello would be played. We shall see...... The first song of the 2000 album Standing on the Shoulder of Giants, F***** in the Bushes, has to be the walk-on music in my opinion. It's iconic, short, sharp, and whips everyone into a frenzy because it's become symbolic of who is about to walk out on stage. Elsewhere, it's important for me to make sure that different eras and albums are at least partly represented, otherwise Liam, Noel, 'Bonehead' and the rest might as well play Definitely Maybe and (What's the Story) Morning Glory? back-to-back and then exit stage right. Oasis competition Win tickets to see Oasis at Wembley Having said that, I'm not holding out much hope for live performances of any songs from 1997's Be Here Now, even though it's probably (maybe) my favourite Oasis album. That opinion - shared by nobody else on earth it seems - may well have its roots in nostalgia rather than quality songwriting and production values, but it would be nice to hear something from a record that, despite Noel publicly dismissing it several times, was ultimately the biggest selling UK album of 1997, one which shifted more than eight million copies all around the world. There are a couple of other notable exceptions: I love Up in the Sky but I'm not sure Liam can reach those high notes like it's 1994, especially with a busy summer ahead, and Whatever, with its brilliance largely stemming from a string section Oasis are unlikely to deploy in a stadium containing around 80,000 people. Anyway, here is my dream setlist of 21 songs for Oasis's comeback concerts at Cardiff's Principality Stadium on July 4 and 5. Bring it on (down)...... (Walk on) F***** in the Bushes 1. Morning Glory 2. Some Might Say 3. Lyla 4. Acquiesce 5. Cigarettes and Alcohol 6. Stand By Me 7. Stop Crying Your Heart Out 8. Wonderwall (Noel Gallagher vocal section) 9. Don't Look Back in Anger 10. Masterplan 11. Half the World Away 12. The Importance of Being Idle (Liam Gallagher returns) 13. D'You Know What I Mean? 14. My Big Mouth 15. Roll It Over 16. Slide Away 17. Champagne Supernova (Encore) 18. Shock of the Lightning 19. Stay Young 20. Live Forever 21. Rock 'n' Roll Star With now less than a month to go, you can find all the details about the Principality Stadium gigs here. For all the latest information about tickets, including resale sites, click here.
Forbes
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
ABBA Charts A New Hit Album As Several Huge Singles Debut
ABBA charts three albums and four singles on multiple U.K. rankings, with ABBA – The Singles ... More debuting on several tallies thanks to a special re-release. COPENHAGEN, DENMARK: Pop group Abba pose for a group shot, (L-R) Benny Andersson, Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Agnetha Fältskog (Agnetha Faltskog) (front) and Björn Ulvaeus (Bjorn Ulvaeus), in May 1975 in Copenhagen, Denmark. (Photo by Jorgen Angel/Redferns) In the United Kingdom, it's not unusual for more than one project dedicated to ABBA's biggest singles to find space on the albums chart. While it's common for artists with older hits to keep a compilation on weekly rankings, earning several such titles charting at once is rare. Typically, one such collection of smash singles is enough, as the public continues to head to platforms like Spotify and Apple Music to hear the tunes it loves from a musical act. ABBA stands out in this regard. It's not uncommon for the Swedish pop band to secure multiple placements at once with decades-old albums and newer compilations, and this week, the musicians do it again as they score another charting win. ABBA – The Singles Debuts on Multiple Charts ABBA – The Singles debuts on two tallies in the U.K. The compilation opens at No. 48 on the Official Physical Albums chart and No. 59 on the Official Albums Sales roster. The group has now landed 22 placements on the ranking that looks only at physical products like CDs, cassettes, and vinyl, and 18 appearances on the general list of the top-selling titles in the country, including this latest arrival. ABBA's Gold Rises Again Gold: Greatest Hits — another one of ABBA's hugely successful compilations — joins ABBA – The Singles on the Official Albums Sales chart, while also finding space on several other tallies. Gold, one of the longest-running and longest-charting titles in U.K. history, rises to No. 13 on the Official Albums list. At the same time, it appears on both the Official Albums Streaming and Official Album Downloads rosters. ABBA's Trio of Charting Albums ABBA scores a third successful title as its 1975 third full-length, a self-titled affair, reenters a trio of tallies. ABBA breaks back onto the Official Vinyl Albums, Official Physical Albums, and Official Albums Sales charts at Nos. 22, 45, and 51, respectively, following a special vinyl re-release. ABBA's Multiple Hit Songs The Swedish superstars land a trio of popular albums in the U.K. at the moment, but even more hit songs. Four of the group's beloved singles, all from the band's self-titled album, debut across a variety of charts after being re-released on vinyl alongside the full-length itself. 'Mamma Mia,' 'So Long,' 'SOS,' and 'I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do' all appear on a trio of tallies and even manage to start inside the top 10 on most of them.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Sabrina Carpenter Cold-Plunges Before Every Show and 16 Other Things That Didn't Make Our Cover Story
It shouldn't come as a surprise that Sabrina Carpenter is a really good hang. 'Most people who are friends with a pop star would be like, 'People don't know that she's so funny,' says her best friend, Paloma Sandoval. 'But actually, it's this incredibly unique situation where everyone knows that. As far as things that people wouldn't expect, I would say she's the smartest person [I've] ever met. You'll never have a conversation with her that's dumb.' Considering we spent several hours with Carpenter for the July-August Rolling Stone cover story, we have to agree. Across two different continents, extreme temperatures (a sauna and a cold plunge were involved), and several beverages, Carpenter was deeply insightful and charming. Though our cover story stretched past 6,000 words, we left a lot on the cutting-room floor. Here are 17 things that didn't make it. More from Rolling Stone Dolly Parton Will Receive Honorary Oscar at 2025 Governors Awards Dolly Parton Is Still A Diamond In A Rhinestone World - And Her Second Jewelry Collab With Kendra Scott Proves It Sabrina Carpenter's 'Manchild' Debuts at Number One on Hot 100 The video for Carpenter's latest smash hit, directed by Vania Heymann and Gal Muggia, depicts Carpenter in a chaotic adventure, hitchhiking, hopping on a beefy dude's motorcycle, bathing with piglets, and so on. 'I truly was just watching a shit-ton of movie trailers,' she says. 'Because I love a good trailer and the way that it's cut together. You could be crying in three seconds just because of an expression someone makes, or see someone laughing, and then someone crying, and then someone kissing, and then someone dancing. It's all of those little vignettes that really feel like they tell a whole story in a really short period of time.' Carpenter spoke in her cover story about being selective when she drinks alcohol, especially when she's on tour. 'There's been a key song in every album that I've made since I was legal that has come from a lot of alcohol,' she said. 'On the last album, it was 'Bed Chem.' We had to be a little tipsy to write that song. I think that'll be a trend. I never go crazy, but sometimes it's fun for me.' But she's never been a weed smoker. 'It's just not for me,' she said. 'I don't know how to describe it. It's not positive. It's not negative. It literally makes me nothing. I've acknowledged that that's enough for me to go, 'Why would I ever do it?' I don't like the smell of it on clothing. I think that's also why I steer clear of it. I like things that smell good.' As far as vices go, she loves chocolate: 'my vice till the day I die.' While Carpenter is a massive ABBA fan — covering the Swedish pop legends on the Short n' Sweet tour, naming her cats after two of its members, and having Björn Ulvaeus give her a personal tour of the ABBA museum in Stockholm — her producer brings another Seventies sound to the mix. 'When we're together, ABBA is a big reference point for her, and ELO is a big reference point for me,' Jack Antonoff told us. 'I think those comp each other beautifully. If her reference point was ABBA and mine was Captain Beefheart, that wouldn't work.''On a lot of these recordings, you hear people playing these synthesizers like their heads [are] on fire, and they're discovering it for the first time,' he adds. 'There's a childlike wonder to that. And what the result is was a super untamed relationship to organic and synthetic, and that concept was something that we fucking loved. Just absolutely loved. Dexys Midnight Runners is another big example for me of that. All these things are happening and they make sense, but it's such a kaleidoscope.' When we interviewed Ulvaeus for the cover story, he had some words of wisdom for ABBA's biggest fan. 'I do have one [piece] of advice,' he said. 'Don't let anyone breathe down your neck. Concentrate on the song and the recording. That's where it starts. That is the very heart of the whole business. It all starts with a song. Remember that. Don't tour so much that you cannot concentrate on creating that.' Carpenter's two heroes both said they see a bright future for her, whether it's starring in films, television, or even in gaming. 'I just see her as a smart businesswoman,' Parton said, while Ulvaeus said, 'I know her heart is in creating music, and whatever she else does, she will always return to that.' Following their 'Please Please Please' duet, off the Short n' Sweet deluxe version, Parton told Rolling Stone she wants to work with Carpenter again. 'I hope she does ask me to sing on something else,' she said. 'Maybe someday she'll sing one of my songs. That would thrill me to death.… We just had a connection that was bound to be, and I really think it was for a bigger reason. I can't wait to see what we do next together, if anything. But I'll always treasure what we did, whether it's anything else or not.' Carpenter describes her sister as 'my creative partner slash photographer slash best friend. We do everything together.' Sarah's role in the Carpenterverse runs deep. She has never missed a single Sabrina concert, and she sang backing vocals early on. 'Of all of our sisters, I think the two of us were the closest,' Sarah told us. During Carpenter's Girl Meets World days, Sarah followed Carpenter and their mom to L.A., and even appeared on the show, playing one of the students. 'I was like, 'I want to be with my sister,'' she recalled. 'So that's what I did. And then we just were together, and honestly, I have not left her side since.' Sarah takes Polaroids of Carpenter, using a camera owned by a great uncle, who was from Brooklyn. 'You can go to the actual spot where he took this photo from across the Brooklyn Bridge, and it's right in the neighborhood that I was living in when I first moved to New York,' Carpenter said. Sarah, who posts the photos on a separate Instagram account, has been taking Polaroids of Carpenter for over a decade. 'She's got thousands,' Carpenter says. 'They've gotten significantly better over the last five years, which has been so special for us, because it really informs all the imagery for everything I do.' Sarah says she hopes to one day release a book of her sister's Polaroids. 'I've always wanted to do that,' she said. 'It's a big dream of mine. That's definitely on my bucket list. I have ideas and titles in mind. It's just about timing and what makes sense.' Sandoval, who appeared in Carpenter's video for 'Nonsense' and goes on tour with her, said the duo often makes up stories about how they met. Sometimes they say they met on Bumble or Hinge, or that they're sisters or cousins, or that Sandoval is her assistant. 'We get the question so often, and lying is fun,' Sandoval says. 'I'm going to give you the true story, which sounds fake, but we met at a vegan restaurant.' They were introduced through a mutual friend in New York in late 2020. 'I didn't know anything about her except that she was a singer, and she didn't know anything about me,' Sandoval says. 'She goes, 'Are you guys like vegan or something?' And we kind of just were like, 'Well, we thought maybe you were vegan.' And she goes, 'Oh, I'm not. Do you guys actually want to not eat here?'' From there, Sandoval met Sarah, and the three of them started hanging out. 'We can't get rid of each other, we're attached at the hip,' Sandoval says. 'I have no business being best friends with these people and traveling the world with them, but we just clicked so crazy hard.' The Short n' Sweet highlight was born during the first trip Sandoval took with Carpenter. 'It was another incident of me forcing myself upon them,' she jokes. 'It was the first time that Sab and I shared a bed. We talked for an hour, and our sentences just trailed off into the abyss, and we both fell asleep. Nine hours passed by. We've just had such an amazing sleep, and both of our eyes just flutter open at the same time. We we woke up and just immediately picked back up those words that we had dropped when we fell asleep.' Sandoval doesn't remember who said it first, but their peaceful sleep resulted in a cheeky phrase. 'One of us said 'bed' and the other one said 'chem,'' she says. 'The words appeared above us like a cloud, and we were like, 'Oh, my God. We have bed chem!' I remember running around the house being like, 'Yeah, we just found out we had bed chem last night.' The song ended up being promiscuous, but we just meant we both slept like logs.' The Short n' Sweet tour begins with a video of Carpenter in a bubble bath, only for her to appear onstage in a towel. This isn't too far from real life: Before every show, she's plunging in a backstage bathroom in her portable ice bath, minutes before she goes onstage. 'Do you want to picture something really silly?' she said. 'It's me in full glam and stage curls, and I don't put my head in. So it's just from the neck up, I'm like onstage Sabrina, and then from neck down, I'm nude.' Sometimes, Carpenter will plunge outdoors or in spas in whatever city she's playing She won't bring her crew ('They have the funniest reaction to getting in. They still shriek or scream and start panicking'), but she does take Sarah and Sandoval. 'I would say I'm addicted to the cold plunge because of her,' Sandoval says. 'We all have our go-to ice bath song that we listen to, and we know what time it ends. You need to put on your ice-bath song if you're going to be about that life.' Carpenter wrote the new single with Antonoff and Amy Allen, whom she collaborated with on Short n' Sweet. 'The three of us have become more and more like the Three Musketeers in such a beautiful way,' she said. 'We all understand each other so well.' Carpenter described writing 'Manchild' as mostly effortless, except for the first verse, which she described as 'a little bit of a bitch. We had all the lyrics and we had no melody, which is weird for us. I think it was because the hook was so strong, and everything else felt so exciting and big, that we didn't want to start the song on a dumbass note.' But after tinkering with the song for a few days, Carpenter and Allen struck gold. 'She's strumming the chords, and I literally read the lyrics off my phone in that melody,' she said. 'It was like, 'that's it.' Those moments feel really special, because it feels like a little puzzle piece.' Like many of us, Carpenter's For You page contains Trader Joe's products and recipes for her alcoholic beverage of choice. 'I get people making their homemade spritzes for the summer, like hugo spritz, limoncello spritz, rhubarb spritz,' she says. 'It's very wholesome.' Carpenter is often asked about the evolution between her breakup album Emails I Can't Send and Short n' Sweet, but she says it's not that complicated. There was no master plan to showcase her humor more; it all happened quite naturally. 'I truly was just sad when I made Emails I Can't Send, and then I was happier when I made Short n' Sweet,' she said. 'It wasn't this grand sit-down meeting where I plotted how I was going to [do] it. It really did just happen organically through a few key songs.' 'The other thing people underestimate is how important the visuals are,' she added. 'It brought it all to life, whether it's the tour looks, the music video outfits, the kiss mark on my shoulder, and things like that. You could feel like you're there with me. That was really important to me, but it wasn't something that I was even aware of until it was done. I was just like, 'What a magical little world where everything's making sense and it feels light, funny, and versatile. It feels like me.' It's such a beautiful feeling. That's why I hold this album so close to my heart, and I always will.' Carpenter had a blast duetting with Paul Simon on SNL earlier this year, performing Simon & Garfunkel's 'Homeward Bound' on the 50th-anniversary special. The line 'Cigarettes and magazines' was changed to 'Airport lounges and magazines,' which Carpenter said was Simon's idea. 'I think he's at a point in his life where he's like, 'We shouldn't be promoting smoking,'' she said. 'Respect. I would've never tampered with the lyrics.' When asked if she felt strange about the fact that the other half of Simon & Garfunkel was blocks away, presumably sitting in his Upper West Side apartment watching their duet of 'Homeward Bound' on television, she shrugged. 'I'm not in all that drama,' she said. 'But I was like, 'If someone's got to step in for this one, I'll step in.' No one's going to put more effort or thought or time into something like that than I would. I know how important that is to someone like him, and the show in general. Paul is literally one of the greatest of all time.' Carpenter said she's open to the possibility of banning phones at future concerts, requiring fans to lock them in pouches, like Bob Dylan, Adele, Madonna, and other artists have. 'This will honestly piss off my fans, but absolutely,' she said. 'Because I went to see Silk Sonic in Vegas, and they locked my phone. I've never had a better experience at a concert. I genuinely felt like I was back in the Seventies — wasn't alive. Genuinely felt like I was there. Everyone's singing, dancing, looking at each other, and laughing. It really, really just felt so beautiful.' 'I've grown up in the age of people having iPhones at shows,' she added. 'It unfortunately feels super normal to me. I can't blame people for wanting to have memories. But depending on how long I want to be touring, and what age I am, girl, take those phones away. You cannot zoom in on my face. Right now, my skin is soft and supple. It's fine. Do not zoom in on me when I'm 80 years old up there.' In the cover story, Carpenter spoke at length about her decision to release Man's Best Friend so quickly after Short n' Sweet (the new album arrives on Aug. 29, exactly 359 days after its predecessor). 'If I really wanted to, I could have stretched out Short n' Sweet much, much longer,' she told RS. 'But I'm at that point in my life where I'm like, 'Wait a second, there's no rules.' If I'm inspired to write and make something new, I would rather do that.' But that's not to say that she wouldn't revisit Short n' Sweet, especially as she's still touring behind the album. Carpenter said that if she ever feels like it, she'd release more videos from the album, like 'Bed Chem' and 'Juno.' 'If I feel like I want to wake up one day and make a 'Busy Woman' music video in two years, no one's telling me I can't,' she said. 'I'm in this weird zone right now where I just see the rules meaning less and less.' She also spoke about formally releasing 'Needless to Say,' a vinyl-only bonus track from the album that tackles the endless online scrutiny she faces. 'I would put it out when the time is right,' she said. 'That was a song that I loved for the longest time but couldn't really fully put it out. I guess by the time it got to releasing the deluxe, I moved on to a different little sonic chapter. It didn't feel like it fit anymore. But I'm happy that it still exists in the world on vinyl.' Best of Rolling Stone Sly and the Family Stone: 20 Essential Songs The 50 Greatest Eminem Songs All 274 of Taylor Swift's Songs, Ranked
Forbes
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
ABBA Nearly Charts A Brand New No. 1 Hit
ABBA earns four new top 10s on the Official Vinyl Singles chart, led by 'So Long' at No. 2 after the ... More band reissued several smashes on collectible vinyl. Studioaufnahme der schwedischen Popgruppe ABBA, Deutschland 1970er Jahre. (Photo by Siegfried Pilz/United Archives via Getty Images) ABBA has long been known as a singles act, with many of the group's tunes proving far more popular decades after their release than the band's traditional albums. Throughout the years the Swedish musicians were together, they produced dozens of popular cuts, some of which remain among the most successful in pop music history. Multiple ABBA tracks reappear on the charts in the United Kingdom this week after the group reissued them on vinyl. The superstars almost claim a new No. 1 as a decades-old composition surges on the charts. ABBA Misses No. 1 By One Space ABBA scores four new top 10 hits on the Official Vinyl Singles chart this week, and remarkably, the group's titles appear one after another in a hugely successful streak. The band nearly secures a new leader, but just misses the throne as "So Long" opens at No. 2. The Official Vinyl Singles tally is led instead by Biffy Clyro, whose "A Little Love" launches at No. 1. Three Additional New Top 10 Hits As "So Long" starts in the runner-up space, three other ABBA cuts follow closely behind in the next trio of positions. "Mamma Mia," "SOS," and "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" debut at Nos. 3, 4, and 5, respectively this week. ABBA's Dozens of Top 10 Smashes ABBA has now snagged an impressive 33 top 10 hits on the Official Vinyl Singles tally. That roundup includes six No. 1 smashes, including iconic releases like "Waterloo," "Ring Ring," "Lay All Your Love on Me," and the more recent release "I Still Have Faith in You," all of which have spent at least one frame at the summit. ABBA's Vinyl Reissues After ABBA issued "Mamma Mia," "So Long," "SOS," and "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" on collectible vinyl, those tracks also manage to debut inside the top 10 on the Official Physical Singles chart, though they rank in slightly different positions than on the vinyl list. Each composition also becomes an immediate top 40 bestseller on the all-format, all-genre Official Singles Sales tally. On that roster, "Mamma Mia" was the top performer, as it enters at No. 22. "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" followed at No. 32, with "So Long" and "SOS" sandwiched between the two.
USA Today
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
ABBA book revelations: AC/DC connection, the unlikely inspiration for ‘Mamma Mia!', more
From 'Dancing Queen' to 'Fernando,' 'Knowing Me, Knowing You' to 'Super Trouper,' the polished pop of ABBA still glistens. Beloved around the world, the quartet of Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad have remained mostly in the background in the decades since their 1970s domination, peeking out occasionally for a movie or theater opening (the staggeringly successful 'Mamma Mia!') or the debut of their live digital avatar show, 'ABBA Voyage,' currently playing in London. In 2013, the quartet allowed Swedish music journalist Jan Gradvall access to them and for the next decade, he culled their personal stories for 'The Story of ABBA: Melancholy Undercover' (out now from St. Martin's Press, 336 pages). The book reads as a thesis-like analysis of Swedish music and how ABBA's songs contributed to the globalization of pop culture. But Gradvall did extract tidbits about the origin of their hits and how ABBA became as much a business as a band. Those seeking juicy insights about intra-group dynamics or the dissolution of the marriages between Faltskog and Ulvaeus and Andersson and Lyngstad during ABBA's pinnacle should look elsewhere. ABBA's is a unicorn of a success story – a band that won Eurovision in 1974 with the delectable 'Waterloo' and for the next seven years dominated the charts with flawless pop songs that shimmered on the outside, but, as Andersson once said, snuck in some 'melancholy undercover.' Here are some highlights from the book. More: New music documentaries rock the big screen at Tribeca | The Excerpt Ambient sound played a vital role in one of ABBA's biggest hits Much like the Bee Gees have explained that the scratchy guitar intro of 'Jive Talkin'' originated with the band hearing the 'ch-ka-ch-ka-ch-ka' cadence from their car tires when they crossed a causeway into Miami each day, ABBA's 'Take a Chance on Me' also developed from unconventional influence. Ulvaeus was an avid runner – a hobby he started as a way to lose weight – and would frequently go on 6-mile runs in whichever city ABBA was touring. Before one outing, Andersson handed him a cassette tape of a new song that needed lyrics. As he ran the trail, Ulvaeus was aware of the rhythm his feet were making on the ground: 't-k-ch, t-k-ch, t-k-ch.' The sounds blossomed into words – 'take a chance, take a chance, take a chance' – and an ABBA classic was born. The song became the group's seventh No. 1 in the U.K. and reached No. 3 in the U.S. The curious connection between ABBA and AC/DC In order to tour Australia, ABBA was informed the country's musician's union required them to book an Australian band for shows back in Sweden. Concert promoter Thomas Johansson liked the debut of a barely known Australian rock band – AC/DC – and, while worried no one would buy tickets to see them, booked them in 1976 at dance halls and on bills with bigger acts. AC/DC earned an early fan base in Sweden after performing on outdoor dance floors (one show was billed as 'ballroom dancing') and with 'dansbands' including Bert Bennys. ABBA's biggest fan was a notorious punk rocker Sex Pistols legend Sid Vicious was known for violent outbursts, considerable drug use, and according to bandmate John Lydon (aka Johnny Rotten), loving ABBA. In a memorable moment for at least some of the people involved, Vicious and ABBA were both in Arlanda Airport in Stockholm when a smitten Vicious spotted the band and started running toward them with proclamations of love. Perhaps the vomit on his jacket propelled ABBA's security to quickly hustle the band away from the 'deathly pale teenage boy with a … dog collar around his neck,' thwarting Vicious from meeting his idols. More evidence of Vicious' admiration for the glossy pop band came from a one-time girlfriend, Teddie Dahlin. In her book 'A Vicious Love Story,' she wrote that during the Norwegian leg of the Sex Pistols' 1977 tour, Vicious brought only one cassette tape on his tour bus – ABBA's 'Greatest Hits.' More: Bruce Springsteen is releasing his 'Lost Albums': The songs you haven't heard but need to 'Mamma Mia!' the musical emerged from an unlikely source When it opened in London's West End in 1999, no one, including ABBA, could have imagined that a musical with a cute-if-flimsy plotline suffused with the songs of the Swedes would eventually play in 60 countries, including a 14-year run on Broadway (it closed in 2015 but returns Aug. 2-Feb. 1). The backstory of the creation of 'Mamma Mia!' comes from an amusing source: salacious American daytime talk shows such as Jerry Springer and Ricki Lake. The band didn't want a 'cheesy' musical, and book writer Catherine Johnson, a burgeoning playwright from Bristol, took inspiration from the outlandish parental stories as well as drawing from her own experiences as a single mother. The English Conservative government at the time suggested that women got pregnant merely to justify government aid, a concept that 'upset me a great deal,' Johnson says in the book. That anger fueled the storyline of a mother and daughter with three possible fathers, but in a thoughtful, positive manner. 'Mamma Mia!' was also the first West End musical to have a female writer, a female producer (Judy Craymer) and a female director (Phyllida Lloyd).
