ABBA

The most commercially successful pop group of the 1970s, the origins of the Swedish superstars ABBA dated back to 1966, when keyboardist and vocalist Benny Andersson, a onetime member of the popular beat outfit the Hep Stars, first teamed with guitarist and vocalist Bjorn Ulvaeus, the leader of the folk-rock unit the Hootenanny Singers.

The two performers began composing songs together and handling session and production work for Polar Music/Union Songs, a publishing company owned by Stig Anderson, himself a prolific songwriter throughout the 1950s and 1960s.

At the same time, both Andersson and Ulvaeus worked on projects with their respective girlfriends: Ulvaeus had become involved with vocalist Agnetha Faltskog, a performer with a recent number one Swedish hit, "I Was So in Love," under her belt, while Andersson began seeing Anni-Frid Lyngstad, a one-time jazz singer who rose to fame by winning a national talent contest. In 1971, Faltskog ventured into theatrical work, accepting the role of Mary Magdalene in a production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Jesus Christ Superstar; her cover of the musical's "Don't Know How to Love Him" became a significant hit.

The following year, the duo of Andersson and Ulvaeus scored a massive international hit with "People Need Love," which featured Faltskog and Lyngstad on backing vocals.

The record's success earned them an invitation to enter the Swedish leg of the 1973 Eurovision song contest, where, under the unwieldy name of Bjorn, Benny, Agnetha & Frida, they submitted "Ring Ring," which proved extremely popular with audiences but placed only third in the judges' ballots. The next year, rechristened ABBA (a suggestion from Stig Anderson and an acronym of the members' first names), the quartet submitted the single "Waterloo," and became the first Swedish act to win the Eurovision competition.

The record proved to be the first of many international hits, although the group hit a slump after their initial success as subsequent singles failed to chart.

In 1975, however, ABBA issued "S.O.S.," a smash not only in America and Britain but also in non-English speaking countries such as Spain, Germany and the Benelux nations, where the group's success was fairly unprecedented.

A string of hits followed, including "Mamma Mia," "Fernando," and "Dancing Queen" (ABBA's sole U.S.

chart-topper), further honing their lush, buoyant sound; by the spring of 1976, they were already in position to issue their first Greatest Hits collection. ABBA's popularity continued in 1977, when both "Knowing Me, Knowing You" and "The Name of the Game" dominated airwaves.

The group also starred in the feature film ABBA -- The Movie, which was released in 1978.

That year Andersson and Lyngstad married, as had Ulvaeus and Faltskog in 1971, although the latter couple separated a few months later; in fact, romantic suffering was the subject of many songs on the quartet's next LP, 1979's Voulez-Vous.

Shortly after the release of 1980s Super Trouper, Andersson and Lyngstad divorced as well, further straining the group dynamic; The Visitors, issued the following year, was the final LP of new ABBA material, and the foursome officially disbanded after the December 1982 release of their single "Under Attack." Although all of the group's members soon embarked on new projects -- both Lyngstad and Faltskog issued solo LPs, while Andersson and Ulvaeus collaborated with Tim Rice on the musical Chess -- none proved as successful as the group's earlier work, largely because throughout much of the world, especially Europe and Australia, the ABBA phenomenon never went away.

Repackaged hits compilations and live collections continued hitting the charts long after the group's demise, and new artists regularly pointed to the quartet's inspiration: while the British dance duo Erasure released a covers collection, ABBA-esque, an Australian group called Bjorn Again found success as ABBA impersonators.

In 1993, "Dancing Queen" became a staple of U2's "Zoo TV" tour -- Andersson and Ulvaeus even joined the Irish superstars on-stage in Stockholm -- while the 1995 feature Muriel's Wedding, which won acclaim for its depiction of a lonely Australian girl who seeks refuge in ABBA's music, helped bring the group's work to the attention of a new generation of moviegoers and music fans.

~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide

ABBA are reportedly considering a reunion after group member Frida said she would like to sing with her bandmate Agnetha again.

(BANG) -

ABBA are reportedly considering a reunion.

Anni-Frid Lyngstad - best known as Frida - said she and Agnetha Faltskog, who made up the female half of the band, have discussed singing together again for the first time since the group disbanded in 1983.

Frida, 65, told the Daily Express newspaper: "It would be great to do something with Agnetha. If we did, it would be hard to avoid all the pressure because of ABBA. It could never be low-key, but we do talk about it."

The Swedish singers were joined in the group by their then husbands, Bjorn Ulvaeus, who was married to Agnetha and Benny Andersson, who was married to Frida. Both couples divorced after the band broke up, but their legacy lives on , and they have sold over 375 million records worldwide to date.

While both of the female members of the group pursued solo careers after the band, Benny and Bjorn have carried on working together on various projects including musicals 'Chess' and 'Mamma Mia!', which is based on the group's songs.

In 2000 the group reportedly turned down an offer of $1 billion to reform and play a tour, and all four members only appeared together in public in 2008 for the Swedish premiere of the film version of 'Mamma Mia!', at which Bjorn played down rumours of a reunion.

He said: "We will never appear on stage again. There is simply no motivation to re-group. Money is not a factor."

Frida and Agnetha have always been reluctant to reform the group, citing that they have both moved away from the world of music since the group split.

Five acts - The Stooges, Genesis, Abba, The Hollies and Jimmy Cliff - were inducted into the Rock 'N' Roll hall of fame in New York last night (15.03.10).

(BANG) -

The Stooges, Genesis, ABBA, The Hollies and Jimmy Cliff were inducted into the Rock 'N' Roll hall of fame last night (15.03.10).

The legendary performers were all honoured with a dinner in New York, and representatives from all of the acts performed, apart from Genesis - who were instead tribute by the band Phish.

ABBA member Anni-Frid Prinzessin - who attended the show with singer-songwriter Benny Andersson, her ex-husband, from the group - said: "I am truly very touched by what once started as partnerships a long time ago, and that this has brought us here tonight."

Benny later performed a rendition of the band's song 'The Winner Takes It All' on piano, accompanied by singer Faith Hill on vocals.

Genesis attended the event, aside from original vocalist Peter Gabriel.

Drummer Phil Collins joked: "For people to come out and own up that they like what we do was very interesting, because we don't get a lot of that. It's very nice to accept music generally, rather than just rock 'n' roll."

Jimmy Cliff was on the verge of tears as he collected his award from producer and singer Wyclef Jean.

Jimmy said: "Reggae is a music that was not conceived in the United States like most of the music forms that we know. So to be standing here with you today, with a style of music that I was part of creating, is a great honour."

Iggy Pop - leader of The Stooges - took a more direct approach, saying "This thing is . . . heavy," when picking up his award, before showing two middle fingers to the crowd.

The Stooges performed their tracks 'Search and Destroy' and 'I Wanna Be Your Dog' at the event; Jimmy Cliff played 'The Harder They Come', accompanied by Wyclef, while the Hollies performed alongside Maroon 5 singer Adam Levine and Graham Nash.

The five annual entrants to the Rock 'N' Roll hall of fame are chosen by a panel of 600 US music industry professionals. Acts are eligible to qualify 25 years after releasing their debut record.

ABBA, The Hollies the Stooges, Genesis and Jimmy Cliff are to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

(BANG) -

Benny Andersson never expected ABBA to make it to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

The four piece Swedish band - who are set to join the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame next year, along with The Hollies, the Stooges, the Genesis and Jimmy Cliff - will join the prestigious roll of honour at a ceremony in New York, much to the surprise of the 'Waterloo' hitmakers.

Benny said: "I didn't think this would happen, because we were a pop band, not a rock band. Being a foreigner from the North Pole, this feels really good."

Meanwhile, Stooges frontman Iggy Pop, 62, said he was delighted to finally be recognised.

He said: "We've been rejected seven times, and we would have set a record, I think, if it happened again."

The acts will be inducted at a ceremony on March 15.