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AIBU?

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Original poster

To not understand why Abba are considered so important ?

70 replies

AugustaProdworthy · 13/12/2013 21:59

It's Abba arama on channel 5 this evening. I just don't understand- please can sonekbe explain why they are considered to be so good? I think I might be missing something?

OP posts:
lougle · 13/12/2013 23:57

That, and the fact that they changed their lyrics to English just before the final because they knew that no one would be interested otherwise.

They were revolutionary, musically. They broke barriers and made real music.

southeastastra · 13/12/2013 23:58

musically perfect, my dp doesn't get them either

but they are really just perfect music really

snowtunesgirl · 14/12/2013 00:02

Their songs may sound simple but they really aren't.

Also, have you tried belting out an ABBA song? They are right up in the difficult belt range and you need a very good voice to pull off an ABBA song.

rabbitlady · 14/12/2013 00:02

didn't like them.

HeeHiles · 14/12/2013 00:05

I remember being in our school playground - we were trying to sing Dancing Queen as it was a big hit at the time - it was funny! It's so hard to sing their songs, their range and harmonies were just fabulous! And I had a holiday romance with a guy called Fernando - so that one leaves me all whimsical and dreamy - Love Abba

(Can you hear the drums Fernando........sigh happy days!)

Ham69 · 14/12/2013 00:26

Fernando gets me every time too! Love them.

AnAdventureInCakeAndWine · 14/12/2013 00:35

They were the first pop act from outside the US or UK to achieve major international stardom, and they pioneered the use of music videos to crack new markets. Also off the back of ABBA Benny and Björn built Polar Studios, which at its peak was regarded as one of the best in the world and produced a whole bunch of important acts (The Ramones, Rammstein, Roxy Music, Genesis, Adam Ant, Backstreet Boys, Beastie Boys, Belinda Carlisle, Roxette...)

MrsFlorrick · 14/12/2013 00:37

Love me or leave please I do I do I do I do.

Super trouper lights are gonna blind me...

You have to ask!!!! The lyrics, the harmonies, and the outfits.

Caitlin17 · 14/12/2013 01:37

I was a teenager in the 70s and a complete snob about music. It was the time of album bands versus singles bands. Somebody mentioned the age divide, Abba crossed the elitist/ populist divide too. The only other forums I post on are 2 very snooty music forums but most people will have a good word for them.

That doesn't really explain it other than it just is.

BlingBang · 14/12/2013 01:38

Because they are fucking amazing!

BlingBang · 14/12/2013 01:41

And anyone who can put Glasgow in the first lines of one of their biggest hits is all right by me.

Caitlin17 · 14/12/2013 01:50

Re Polar Studio Led Zeppelin recorded In Through the Out Door There. They were fans too.

Spermysextowel · 14/12/2013 01:54

My sons (14 & 16) know Abba songs better than they know Beatles/Rolling Stones songs. My parents thought that the Beatles appeal would never die & to some extent that's true but fortunately Abba knew that it's better to quit when you're winning before you try to move with the times, dye your hair & put in an embarrassing performance in front of a large audience.

moondog · 14/12/2013 08:41

Belinda Carliske could not by any stretch if the imagination, be described as 'an important act',

hackmum · 14/12/2013 08:46

Stephen Fry put it nicely when he said they were much better than they needed to be. They were writing simple pop songs with cheesy and sometimes nonsensical lyrics. But the effort they put into in terms of harmonies and arrangement was amazing.

YouStayClassySanDiego · 14/12/2013 08:48

Just a brilliant band who wrote their own stuff and didn't rely on looks and being appealing to the youth of the day.

The songs still sound better than the pop tunes of today.

Love em!

LadyBeagleEyes · 14/12/2013 08:52

Because they were fun and had some of the best pop tunes ever.

Crowler · 14/12/2013 08:54

They're talented, their music is enduring.

HandragsNGladbags · 14/12/2013 09:00

I remember Andre Lloyd Webber saying that you would need an operatic range to sing Abba songs

HandragsNGladbags · 14/12/2013 09:03

Andrew, not his French cousin Andre ;)

CogitoErgoSometimes · 14/12/2013 09:07

It's the PR machine in action. Mamma Mia is very successful, ABBA was a cultural phenomenon and there is a good possibility of a reunion concert. Cue the retrospective documentary.

Freddiefrog · 14/12/2013 09:17

I don't know about important, but I've always loved Abba

They seem to have lyrics for every occasion, , I was watching Mamma Mia over the summer, just before my eldest daughter started high school and Slipping Through My Fingers made me cry my eyes out, DH thought I'd finally lost the plot but it hit exactly how I was feeling if that makes sense

AnAdventureInCakeAndWine · 14/12/2013 09:18

Yes, I will hold my hands up to C&Ping that list -- I knew about Polar Studios and that lots of groups had worked with them but thought I'd look up a fuller list.

It took a while for anyone to pick me up on Belinda, though... Grin

Crowler · 14/12/2013 09:19

"Heaven Is A Place On Earth" is a seminal landmark in Western culture

Very true

lljkk · 14/12/2013 09:24

I never heard of them until I came to live in the UK ('92).