Here I go again. Again

Last week Mamma Mia! returned to Sydney for the “10th Anniversary Tour”.

Friends will know that the first time I saw Mamma Mia! (world premiere, London, 6 April 1999) I hated it, thought it was tacky and pantomime like, thought it would not last more than a few months and would never travel beyond the UK. It seemed a very “British” thing. And I wasn’t the only one.

When Mamma Mia! opened in Melbourne in June 2001 for its first Australasian tour (2001-2005) I saw it again, and either the show had changed or I’d grown accustomed to it, because I didn’t hate it anymore. And it has helped to sell millions more ABBA CDs, DVDs and books, so it can’t be all bad

So now we have a touring version back in Australia. A smaller ensemble and band, but the cast are obviously having a lot of fun on stage, which is quite infectious. Several cast members from the original Australian production have returned to the same roles. Premiere night saw a smattering of local celebrities (Senator Bronwyn Bishop was right behind us, I caught her eye during the encore).

For more information go to www.mamma-mia.com.au. See here for some reviews and news stories.

Mamma Mia!

Today’s Daily Telegraph newspaper (Sydney, not UK) featured an article about ABBA fans getting together to celebrate ABBA in the lead up to Mamma Mia! returning to Sydney.

I was there (back row, second from the left) with friends Mark, Cotton, David, Sandra, Louise, Gary and Jason. It was a fun night at the Gourmet Viking Scandinavian restaurant in Enmore. Some brought along their old memorabilia to inspire conversation. You can see some of it in the photo.

The article was great, and thankfully didn’t make us look like a bunch of loner freaks who live in the past. Some great stories were shared – a shame that not everything could have appeared in the article, though some really good stuff did. Modesty restrains me from saying what it says about me , though it does mention my recent trip to New York for Kristina.

Thanks JP, Alex and Katrina.

Weekly ABBA show on Australian radio

For a few years Canberra community radio station 2XX has hosted a weekly ABBA radio show, GimmeGimmeGimme – There’s more to ABBA than you think.

Last week I tuned in to listen online for the first time. It was  lot of fun! The theme for this show was “Pick on ABBA”, playing some of those less classic moments in the ABBA catalogue. After a call out to me and ABBA World by Luke, one of the hosts (and an old friend), I rang to say hi and before I knew it I was on air, talking about the website and my recent trip to New York for Kristina. Tuning in might become a regular feature of my Sunday afternoons. 

GimmeGimmeGimme is on every Sunday between 5-6 pm Australian Eastern Time (06.00 GMT). Tune in to 2XX fm 98.3 in Canberra or listen online here.

ABBA and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

On September 23 it was announced that ABBA is among the nominees for induction to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.

ABBA has been nominated once before, in 2003. Artists are eligible for nomination 25 years after their first record release, which made ABBA eligible since 1997.

Discussion (unsurprisingly) has been rampant in ABBA fan communities, which can be broken down into two camps:

Those who see it as an honour that ABBA is even considered. ABBA won very few awards during its time together, so to be recognised now by the music industry is honourable.

Those who think that ABBA don’t need this sort of recognition, that phenomenal record sales and enduring popularity are reward enough, and that ABBA isn’t “rock and roll” enough to be part of this hall of fame.

There is a subset of the first group that sees induction as the opportunity for an “ABBA reunion”, assuming that ABBA will only be inducted if all four turn up and perform at the traditional jam session that ends the induction ceremony. But not all inductees are present for induction. Perhaps most famously Paul McCartney was a no-show when The Beatles were inducted in 1988.

Should ABBA be inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? It certainly wouldn’t hurt the band’s credibility. But at the same time it doesn’t really matter that they’re not.

Fans are invited to comment on the nominees here.

Kristina at Carnegie Hall

Last week I travelled to New York for Kristina – A Concert Event at Carnegie Hall, the English language premiere of Benny and Björn’s 1995 masterpiece Kristina från Duvemåla.

Kristina in English has been a long time coming. When Mamma Mia! opened on Broadway in October 2001 there was talk that a draft translation was ready for presentation then. In 2006 a workshop was held with a hope for a full production within a couple of years, however it was not to be as prospective financial backers at the time declared “sad doesn’t sell”.

So finally Kristina has been presented to New York in concert form. The concert starred Swede Helen Sjöholm, who originated the role of Kristina, British tenor Russell Watson as her husband Karl Oskar, Louise Pitre, who originated Donna in Mamma Mia!in North America, as Ulrika the reformed whore, and Broadway star Kevin Odekirk (Les Miserables) as Karl Oskar’s brother Robert.

Kristina tells the story of Karl Oskar and Kristina who, after hardship and famine in Sweden, emigrate to America with family and friends, some of whom are escaping religious persecution. It is based on the Vilhelm Moberg series of novels The Emigrants (Utvandrarna).

English versions of several songs have been heard over the years, but this is the final version that may one day see a full stage production. Lyricist Herbert Kretzmer, who worked on the translation of the French musical Les Miserables, contributed his expertise to the English lyrics.

As a non-Swedish speaker I have long enjoyed the music and had an understanding of the story, but not of the actual lyrics. Unofficial translations have been around on the internet for many years. Finally I, and other English speakers, could enjoy the whole show. The English lyrics are a success, in some cases greatly different from the Swedish versions but changed for the better with the new language. Though cut down from the source novels and cut down further from the Swedish stage version, the major story elements remain intact.

The concert was well received, with Helen Sjöholm receiving a standing ovation for her act two showstopper ‘You Have To Be There’ (Du måste finnas), and another standing ovation for the curtain calls. Over the following days the show received mostly positive reviews in newspapers and theatre websites.

In the photo above I’m in the third row, in front of Kevin Odekirk.

Kristina was recorded for future CD release. Hopefully we won’t have to wait a year, as we did with the 2008 Chess in Concert.

See more first hand reviews @ icethesite.

New York Post blog posts by Elisabeth Vincentelli:
The road to ‘Kristina’ 
Chatting with “Kristina” director Lars Rudolfsson
Benny and Björn on ‘Kristina’
Benny and Björn talk influences
Louise Pitre on her Carnegie Hall debut
Kristina on “Kristina”

ABBA in Japan on DVD

The upcoming ABBA In Japan DVD celebrates ABBA’s adventures in Japan in 1978 and 1980. The centrepiece of the release is “ABBA Special”, a television extravaganza filmed when the group visited Japan in November 1978.

This legendary television special is now released on DVD for the first time. Moreover, it has been reassembled from the unedited material, which means that you will get more ABBA for your money! ‘Fernando’, which featured a couple of verses and a chorus in the original broadcast, is now seen in complete form for the first time. And the performance of ‘Summer Night City’, originally presented in a split-screen format with ABBA only taking up a quarter of the screen, is now focused entirely on ABBA. Finally, ‘The Name Of The Game’, which was edited out of the original broadcast, has been reinserted in its rightful place.

Every song in the television special has been synchronised with the latest stereo remasters, except for the three live numbers: ‘Money, Money, Money’, ‘SOS’ and ‘Thank You For The Music’. 

 The DVD comes with two bonus selections. The first is the fascinating fly-on-the-wall documentary ABBA In Japan Nov. 1978, which covers the group’s visit at the time of the television special. The disc also features the performance of ‘If It Wasn’t For The Nights’ from the special, but with the original, slightly different sound mix as featured in the broadcast – at the time, the song hadn’t been released on record yet and it was subject to further mixes by ABBA before finally being issued on the Voulez-Vous album.

ABBA In Japan is also released in a 2-disc Limited Special Edition. The contents of the first disc are identical to the single-disc version. The second disc in the Limited Special Edition features a very rare behind-the-scenes documentary from ABBA’s concert tour of Japan in March 1980. The disc also features two galleries: one containing photos from the visit in 1978, and one offering a generous selection of Japanese single and album sleeves. Further goodies come in the shape of three ABBA photo cards and the original tour sticker from ABBA’s concert tour of Japan.

Both versions of ABBA In Japan feature a fully illustrated booklet with an essay by Carl Magnus Palm detailing ABBA’s adventures in Japan and the making of the television special.

The international release date for ABBA In Japan is October 26, 2009, although the date may of course vary a little from territory to territory.

Source: ABBA The Official Site

Who owns a song?

A frequent comment heard from ABBA fans is that so-and-so “owns” a song and no one else can do the song justice. It’s been used most recently in discussions about the recent CHESS In Concert CD and DVD releases (from last year’s Royal Albert Hall concert) and also tomorrow night’s Thank You For The Music: A Celebration of the Music of Abba concert in Hyde Park in London.

But who really does own a song? And if a song “belongs” to a certain singer, does that mean it’s not that good a song but rather the performer or performance that makes it “good”?

Because that’s the subtext every time someone says that no one else can perform a song. ‘The Winner Takes It All’ is a good example. Fans claim that it is “Agnetha’s song”, frequently vote it as the best ever ABBA song, and criticise every cover version, including the Benny-produced performance by Meryl Streep in the Mamma Mia!movie. Ergo, if every other version is not up to Agnetha’s, or is “rubbish”, then the song mustn’t be very good if it can’t be interpreted by anyone else.

A similar thing has come up with the forthcoming Kristina concert at Carnegie Hall in New York.  The claim is that Helen Sjöholm isKristina, no one else can perform the role and sing those songs. I saw the original Swedish production twice in 1999, with actress Frida Bergh in the role. I thought she played a fine performance, and her singing, especially of the signature song ‘Du måste finnas’, was up there with Helen’s performance that I was familiar with from the CD.

The genuine sign of good music is that anyone can perform it in any style. Certainly there have been some awful cover versions of ABBA songs, but there have also been some excellent ones, the best of all interpreting the song in their own way.

Music is an ephemeral thing. Once the song is over it doesn’t really exist. Music needs to be performed to stay alive.

So who really owns an ABBA song? We all do, every time we hear one, whoever it’s performed by.

No Voulez-Vous Deluxe Edition?

One of the most anticipated and expected ABBA releases this year has been the Voulez-Vous Deluxe Edition.

We have had precedent with the Waterloo 30th Anniversary Edition in 2004, which should have been in the Deluxe Edition series but wasn’t; Arrival Deluxe Edition in 2006 to commemorate the 30th anniversary of that album’s release; and ABBA – The Album Deluxe Edition in 2007.

The Deluxe Editions don’t necessarily coincide with the anniversary of the albums’ release.

It seems that this year we won’t be getting a Voulez-Vous Deluxe Edition, but that doesn’t mean we won’t get one at some point in the future, nor that we might not get Deluxe Editions of other ABBA albums. This year it appears that priorities have been elsewhere – the highly anticipated ABBA in Japan DVD for one.

Many fans have written to Carl Magnus Palm asking whether there will be a Voulez-Vous Deluxe Edition or for news of the ABBA in Japan DVD or whatever other new releases might be in the pipeline. Unfortunately he’s constrained by what has been announced. As many of you would know I’ve been honoured enough to work with Carl Magnus on many ABBA releases over the years. I can assure you that he and Universal Music are well aware of what’s out there and what sort of releases the fans would like to see.

Visit Carl Magnus Palm.com for much information on the work he has put in to so many ABBA releases so far and hints at other releases he would like to see in the future.

Win CHESS In Concert CDs and DVDs

To celebrate the UK release of CHESS IN CONCERT 25TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION on CD and DVD ABBA World, courtesy of Warner Music Entertainment, has three CHESS IN CONCERT bundles to give away.

Each bundle consists of:
One CHESS double CD
One CHESS DVD

To win simply answer the following question:
What year was the original CHESS concept album released?
a. 1982
b. 1984
c. 1986

 Send your answer with your full name to competition@abba-world.net. Competition closes 12 noon GMT 14 September 2009. Winners will be selected at random and contacted by email for their full address. Names of the winners will be published at ABBA World.

Thanks to Warner Music Entertainment. CHESS IN CONCERT screens at cinemas across the UK and Ireland in September. See More2Screen for details.

CHESS IN CONCERT is available now fro pre-order on Amazon.co.uk:
Double CD
Single “Highlights” CD
DVD

My City_My Life: Björn Ulvaeus in Stockholm

In September on ‘My City_My Life’ ABBA pop legend Björn Ulvaeus (pictured) takes viewers on a journey around Sweden’s capital, Stockholm, including the city’s picturesque Gamla Stan (the Old Town) and the Ostermalmshallen Food Hall to the Vasa, Scandinavia’s most visited museum. As cameras explore the city, Bjorn talks about its vibrant atmosphere and shows viewers the studio where the first ABBA songs were recorded. Along the way, ‘My City_My Life’ discovers the city’s quaint neighbourhoods, its cultural splendour and joins Bjorn on a helicopter ride to the island of Söderarm. As the ABBA star puts it, ‘there’s no Stockholm without its archipelago’.
www.cnn.com/mycitymylife

Show times:
Thursday September 3: 1030
Friday September 4: 0500
Saturday September 5: 1030, 1900
Sunday September 6: 0030, 1630

All times GMT.

Check local guides for local times. The programme can be viewed on line from September 3 @ www.cnn.com/mycitymylife. Click here to view a teaser clip.

Source: CNN