Forever ABBA

"Forever Gold" is an exclusive double CD containing both "ABBA Gold" and "More ABBA Gold", two albums usually sold separately. Thus, if you buy this one, you get them both!

39 ABBA songs, can one really want more? All the good time oldies are included: "Waterloo", "Dancing Queen", "Take a chance on me"...should I continue? All these songs are classics. Especially the ones at the "ABBA Gold" disc.

What strikes me as peculiar about ABBA is how modern they sounded already around 1974. Björn, Benny, Agneta and Frida were at least a decade before their time. Even more peculiar is the fact that the band was Swedish. In general, Swedish pop music did *not* sound like this 35 years ago. Far from it. ABBA were something of musical aliens even in Sweden.

Still today, ABBA and their gold are worth listening to. This is how real pop music should sound like. Melodies, citizen, melodies! Today, what passes for pop music is an incomprehensible mishmash of screams, porn and general lack of melody. The only exception in terms of music, Lady Gaga, is obviously a kind of unnatural ABBA clone! (Her videoclips is something else again, however.)

I could tell you a lot of funny ABBA anecdotes, but I'm not sure if you would get them, so I'll pass on it. OK, I have to tell you one! In Sweden, there is a tuna fish company called Abba. They sell small canisters marked "Abbas tuna". Apparently, when ABBA were formed, they made a kind of gentleman agreement with this company, permitting the pop band to use the name without legal action being taken by either party. So must Swedes grew up, listening to ABBA and eating...Abbas tuna fish salad.

However, I don't think you should eat tuna while listening to this album!