Published on Feb 3, 2008
Say what you will about ABBA putting out their best work in the eighties, because their 1974 breakthrough album
The men of ABBA actually have nearly as many opportunities to sing lead as the ladies on this album. Early on, we are treated to the perfect tune for lazing on a Sunday afternoon, “Sitting In A Palm Tree.” Then later, we have a pair of faux metal tracks that are pure, unadulterated fun. The first of these is “King Kong Song,” which is ABBA’s clever take on the preponderance of dark heavy metal music that was being released at the time. As producers, Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus undoubtedly felt that classic rock groups were taking themselves far too seriously. So, with a set of nonsensical lyrics and their own silly attempt at bombast, they came up with “King Kong Song” and “Watch Out,” which is another one of my earlier favorites, though it sounds somewhat dated now.
To balance things out, the ladies of ABBA also have a pair of frothy pop tunes that would have made great singles. The sophisticated “My Mama Said” has an indefinable sexy vibe to it that causes it to be more about the atmosphere it creates than anything else. Then there’s “What About Livingstone,” which I used to call “The Jump Rope Song” because it has such a fun, bouncy melody and sing-along quality. Isn’t fun what pop music should be all about? ABBA was always one of those groups that seemed to really get it. They understood that the best pop songs should be both catchy and fun.
The two songs that were chosen as singles from
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