Abba - Voulez Vous (40th Anniversary Celebration)

Buy Voulez Vous here (Amazon GB)
Read my other Abba album 40th anniversary posts here

After the commercial success of their fifth album, Abba-The Album and its accompanying movie, Abba-The Movie, the Swedish foursome were at a new crest of popularity. This type of fame and acclaim can, no doubt, unleash uncertainty and second-guessing amongst the most hardy of folk and it appears ABBA were no different. Early recording sessions failed to yield much they were satisfied with (though I, for one, would love to hear a song called Dr Claus von Hamlet) and though some tracks were salvaged for later use (Lovelight and Dreamworld), nothing was there which made any semblance of album number six. Mercifully, the writers block and dissatisfaction with progress didn't last forever and, as Benny, Bjorn, Agnetha and Anni-Frid starting to experiment more with their own take on the increasingly popular disco sound, Voulez Vous was born. Growing up in a household where ABBA music was a regular fixture meant that Voulez Vous soon became an essential part of my music DNA. I fell hard for the album from the moment I heard the classical strings at the beginning of As Good As New - and when that resonant beat kicked in for the verses I knew I was done for; Voulez Vous remains my very favourite ABBA album to this very day - one I never get tired of playing from start to finish. Here's a look back at the glittering array of singles it produced...

• Summer Night City ~ in order to ensure they weren't absent from the pop charts for too long, ABBA took the decision to release a song as a single which they weren't entirely happy with. Apparently, they just couldn't put their finger on what didn't work. Perhaps that is why it never made the final album - but acts as a bookend to the album's promotional campaign. I had no such compunction about the song - and particularly love the sweeping ballad intro which appeared on the Thank You For The Music boxset in 1994. There is a simmering anticipation to this string-laden intro which then swoops into life with a layered wall of sound. It was/is all quite exhilarating. The lyrics are descriptive and evocative, blending with the music to create an aura of the thrill of the unknown which can happen at sundown. It must have been quite the shock for the quartet that it debuted at a lowly 22 in the UK (after 3 consecutive number ones from their previous album) - it did eventually climb to number five but wasn't the chart-topping smash everyone was expecting.
• Chiquitita ~ the first single proper from Voulez Vous is perhaps less indicative of the overall sound than Summer Night City but that didn't stop the world taking this cherished pop gem to its collective bosom. It was featured in a UNICEF charity concert, beaming the already ubiquitous group into the homes of millions. It is rather more schlager than disco, but perhaps that is what made it even more endearing to fans - the buoyant beat and hand-clap rhythms alongside that infectious, sing-along refrain would charm even the hardest of hearts. The pomp and circumstance of the instrumental moments is a shining example of how each ABBA song is so much more than just lyrics and singing. It topped charts across the world (although was held in the number two position in the UK thanks to the equally contagious Heart of Glass by Blondie) and holds the distinction (so far) for having the highest chart debut position in the UK of any ABBA single (number eight).
• Does Your Mother Know ~ later in life it frustrated me a little that ABBA seemed to be choosing songs which least reflected the disco decadence of the album. Following on from the not-at-all-disco Chiquitita was the 60s rocker inspired Does Your Mother Know, featuring Bjorn on lead vocals. It is not that this isn't a good ABBA song; actually it is a GREAT ABBA song - the melody flows in the verses and blossoms into a full on belter in the chorus. Perhaps it is the fact that one of my all-time favourite ABBA numbers, Kisses of Fire was the b-side and I have long thought the a and b should have been flipped for this release. But what do I know? It was a solid top five hit in the UK, charted higher than Chiquitita in the US and was prominently used in the Mamma Mia musical. This sneaky little charmer certainly endures...
• Voulez Vous ~ oh the opulence of this ferocious, unstoppable song. Such a work of living breathing art with the intricacy of the score, the passion of the layered vocals and the swirling, intoxicating nature of the titular refrain. It is a credit to the genius of this song that it sounds so fresh and exhilarating all these years later. Rarely has sexual liberation sounded so spine-tinglingly good ("nothing promised, no regrets"). It is one of the rare ABBA songs to be released in multiple mixes - the five minute plus album mix remains the definitive version but both a radio edit and an extended promo version are also mighty fine. The allure of the song sent it hurtling into the top five in most European countries, including the UK where it nestled at number three. It also sent the parent album back into the top ten for another nine week run (having only just slipped out after debuting at number one for four weeks). Disco ABBA had arrived and were fully dominating the charts...
• Angeleyes ~ one of the album's earliest compositions was almost deemed too dated sounding for this contemporary collection. Luckily, sanity prevailed because Angeleyes is a rather engaging track. Its super sweet 60s girl-group style sound blends well with the danceable nature of the chorus and both are a juxtaposition with the lyrics telling a tale of no-good cad who seduces and moves on without a care in the world. I've always found this harmonious warning rather splendid, both ladies layering their vocals to exquisite perfection in their denouement of this rotter. It has the rare distinction of being (I think) the only official AA side single released by ABBA in the UK, coupled with the equally vibrant album title track. Thus it shares the same peak position as that song but I can't help but feel it would have done equally well if released on its own.
• Gimme Gimme Gimme (A Man After Midnight) ~ ABBA were never one to play by the rules and, whilst planning their most festive sounding single to date to be released from Voulez Vous, they shared with the world a brand new song to promote their latest Greatest Hits collection. Gimme Gimme Gimme remains one of their most iconic tracks and - despite being recorded some months after their sixth album was released - fits perfectly with the Voulez Vous style. Agnetha gives a stellar vocal, taking us on a journey of a woman who views her loneliness as a forbidding darkness of night, even drawing parallels to how the happy endings of movie stars are so different from her own existence. It is no surprise that this song followed Voulez Vous into the UK top 3 and lingered in the top ten for 5 weeks. Note - it was the first ABBA track Erasure would cover early in their career, way before the excellent ABBA-esque EP. And, of course, Madonna famously sampled the song for her number one smash Hung Up.
• I Have A Dream ~ if any ABBA song was going to be a Christmas single then it had to be this one. The race for the seasonal number one was and is still a big deal in the UK; a time when record labels roll out the best songs from their biggest stars to be in with a chance. And take a chance ABBA did - the song was released in a gatefold picture sleeve as a souvenir for fans who had attended the concerts in the UK, something my mum bought and refused to let us kids touch (because our fingers had destructive oils apparently). With a child choir added to the mix, this became the archetypal song to promote hope and optimism in an oft-bleary and cynical world. That it was kept at number two in the UK for four weeks by Another Brick In The Wall (by Pink Floyd, also featuring a child choir) is one of the greatest pop injustices of our time. Sure it is sentimental, but just allow yourself to be immersed in the magic of it and you are taken to a place far better than here. 20 years after this was released by ABBA, Westlife did a pretty faithful cover of it and gave it the number one it richly deserved.

And so, the Voulez Vous album campaign came to a close, but that doesn't mean there aren't other classics to be eternally beloved. It was the first ABBA album where I truly believed every song could be a single. If It Wasn't For The Nights was actually meant to be the first single before Chiquitita was birthed. Those jaunty piano chords and funky guitar riffs draw you into a world where the distractions of the day are a monotony to be craved so that the heartache of a break-up is staved off. The chorus makes you believe the ladies sing not because it will make it better, but because it is too painful not too sing - particularly with the silent hours of early morning an ever constant threat to their psyche. As Good As New and The King Has Lost His Crown are both excellent compositions which still have the ability to delight and surprise. The former lulls you into a false sense of security before that hip-shimmying groove kicks in (and was rightly a hit single in Mexico); the latter has a majestic, regal introduction that enables Frida's sublime vocal to carry the melodic nature of the verses through to the rock-meets-disco fusion of the chorus.

The joy of Lovers (Live A Little Longer) is entirely irrepressible, perhaps the sexiest song ABBA ever recorded. Presented almost a musical conversation between friends at a wine bar, the verses are lower register before a crescendo into the soaring chorus which has you grinning ear to ear. Who doesn't want to proclaim how romance has released an endorphin rush which makes them feel fantastic? Similarly, Chiquitita b-side Lovelight, spreads the gleeful glow of love. Most acts would feel privileged to have a song as intoxicating as this as their main single so let us give thanks that it is given its place on the Voulez Vous deluxe edition releases of recent years. It is a solid pop song. Dreamworld is another deluxe edition addition, and a rather unique with its circus-esque intro music and a fun arrangement. It is clear parts of this song were purloined for Does Your Mother Know but that doesn't spoil your enjoyment of it. Finally, as previously mentioned, there is Kisses of Fire - one of my top three ABBA songs of all time. Its dreamy Agnetha voiced intro just knocks your socks off when it hits full tempo. The sizzling passion is evident in every note - and, during a final run through of that sonorous, sensational chorus, there is a held note which is one of the most pure pop moments in history. No need for melisma, just there to be savoured and enjoyed. I'm happy that the more casual ABBA fan will have had this song bought to their attention through Mamma Mia 2: Here We Go Again but there is no substitute for the original.