Thank You For The Music ♪♪

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ABBA Super Troupers: A Celebratory Film from Waterloo to Mamma Mia! (DVD)
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Say what you will about their peppy rhythms, folksy gaiety and ridiculous outfits, not to mention bankable good looks, ABBA had some catchy tunes--quite a lot frankly. By the late 1970’s, they were Sweden’s biggest export, more marketable than Volvo and so wildly successful (their rabid fans frequently so uncontrollably frenzied the foursome would be trapped in their hotel) that popularity partially contributed to their disbandment.
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Often overlooked in the context of the band’s tacky getup and mammoth commercial success (grossing over $1 million per day) was their talent. Composed of two married couples Bjorn Ulvaeus/Agnetha Falkstog and Benny Andersson/Anni-Frid “Frida” Lyngstad (hence each member’s first letter of their first name forming the band’s title), the quartet had an astonishing blend of musical skill, artistic ingenuity and vocal harmony. Immediately identifiable, basically on every track (and of course in the existing video footage), are the two women usually singing in unison. Both sopranos, each possessed unmatched angelic voices with extraordinary range, strength and command, able to execute complex, vocally rigorous melodies synchronized within exhausting multi-octave songs. Agnetha’s routinely recognized among the premier female vocalists of the twentieth century with Frida not far behind. It was the incomparable tandem of Benny and Bjorn though, composer/keyboardist and lyricist/guitar player respectively, which essentially made the group what it was, the pair virtually a machine cranking out hit after hit after hit at their Stockholm studio. Production engineer Michael Tretow, who mixed each record with ample amounts of synthesized material, would help give ABBA its trademark feel-good sound.
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ABBA Super Troupers is a typical music documentary, conventionally profiling the supergroup’s folk-rock roots, its evolution as a Swedish pop band, swift movement up the European billboard charts and international stardom with a raucous fanbase (particularly in the UK and Australia). Yet the film justifiably reveals the essence of the band's phenomenon, detailing their proficiency at creating such an appealing brand of pop music and how the relatively normal coming together of four exceptionally gifted artists produced such a substantial collection of timeless songs. Especially apparent is how the heart of ABBA, the likely reason for its immense success, was their artistic passion and resonance. They really were in it purely for the music. The group's disintegration in 1982, initiated by each couple’s divorce along with Agnetha's growing agoraphobia and reluctance to travel, was the true end. All inquiries into reuniting are just that, questions, put to a stop immediately with each member ardently opposed to a comeback—they were offered a sum of over $1 Billion to do a reunion tour and promptly turned it down—considering any attempt at reunification to be a blight on the original ten-year trek.