Шведская группа ABBA собирается перевыпустить свой "золотой" альбом The Visitors. На диске, помимо оригинального альбома, будут представлены архивные видеозаписи, а также ранее нигде не издававшийся трек From a Twinkling Star to a Passing Angel.
Первый раз за последние 18 лет шведская группа ABBA подарит своим поклонникам новую песню - From a Twinkling Star to a Passing Angel. Песня была записана еще в 1981 году, но не была издана ни в одном из альбомов поп-исполнителей.
Аудиотрек будет включен в новую версию уже издававшегося ранее альбома The Visitors, ставшего последней совместной пластинкой участников ABBA.

Песни АББА выбор королей
Свадьба королевской четы сопровождалась музыкой группы ABBA. Кейт Мидлтон и Принц Уильям не смогли найти более подходящей музыки для сопровождения бала в Букингемском дворце. Вечеринкой распоряжался Чарльз, принц Уэльский, отец Уильяма.

На празднике было 300 гостей.Однако, Чарльз благородно разрешил выбирать музыку для вечеринки сыну. Они выбрали АББА.Вечеринка прошла после венчания Кейт и Уильяма. С утра же будущие супруги готовились к предстоящей церемонии. Интересно какая музыка звучала в головах королевской пары в этот период?
http://www.abbanet.ru/news/?PHPSESSID=26d5afeb8264bac47fa19185f57f801a

Весной 1973-го Стиг, уставший от неудобного названия группы, начал называть её приватно и публично как АББА. Это сначала было шуткой, так как Абба — название широко известной в Швеции компании по переработке морепродуктов. По воспоминаниям Агнеты, «Когда мы решили назваться А-Б-Б-А, мы должны были получить разрешение у этой компании. Там нам ответили: „Согласны, только смотрите, чтобы нам не было за вас стыдно“. Не думаю, чтобы им пришлось стыдиться за группу». Группа также устроила конкурс на выбор названия в местной газете. Среди вариантов были «Алибаба» и «БАБА». На иврите и арамейском языке слово «абба» означает «папа»

ABBA (на русском — АББА) — шведский музыкальный квартет, существовавший в 1972—1982 годах и названный по первым буквам имён исполнителей. Является одним из наиболее успешных коллективов за всю историю популярной музыки и самым успешным из числа созданных в Скандинавии: записи группы по всему миру были проданы тиражом более 350 миллионов экземпляров. Синглы квартета занимали первые места в мировых чартах с середины 1970-х (Waterloo) до начала 1980-х (One of Us), а альбомы-сборники возглавляли мировые хит-парады и в 2000-х. Они остались в плей-листах радиостанций, и их альбомы продолжают продаваться по сей день.
Они были первыми представителями континентальной Европы, кто завоевал первые места в чартах всех ведущих англоговорящих стран (США, Великобритания, Канада, Ирландия, Австралия и Новая Зеландия).
Группа ABBA была включена в Зал славы рок-н-ролла 15 марта 2010 года.

Эта же песня, переведённая на русский язык!
Счастливого Нового Года! (перевод)

Всё шампанское выпито,Фейерверки давно погасли. И вот мы сидим, я и ты, Словно потерянные, с тоской глядя друг на друга. Вечеринка закончилась, И наступившее утро кажется таким серым И далёким от шумного веселья праздника. Сейчас самое время сказать… Счастливого Нового года! Счастливого Нового года! Пусть теперь мы все увидим новый мир, Где все люди – братья. Счастливого Нового года! Счастливого Нового года! Пусть наша жизнь будет полна надежд и стремлений, Ведь без этого лучше просто взять и умереть, Тебе и мне... Иногда мне кажется, Что мы живём в Дивном Новом Мире, Процветающем На пепле наших душ. Да, мы наивны, Мы думаем, что всё будет хорошо. Идя на глиняных ногах сквозь серые будни, Мы и не подозреваем, что сбились с пути, И продолжаем идти дальше... Счастливого Нового года! Счастливого Нового года! Пусть теперь мы все увидим новый мир, Где все люди – братья. Счастливого Нового года! Счастливого Нового года! Пусть наша жизнь будет полна надежд и стремлений, Ведь без этого лучше просто взять и умереть, Тебе и мне... Сейчас мне кажется, Что все наши прежние мечты Растаяли, как сон. Теперь они не более, Чем конфетти, усыпающие пол. Очередное десятилетие Осталось позади. Кто знает, что предложит будущее, Что ждёт нас там, За чертой 1989 года... Счастливого Нового года! Счастливого Нового года! Пусть теперь мы все увидим новый мир, Где все люди – братья. Счастливого Нового года! Счастливого Нового года! Пусть наша жизнь будет полна надежд и стремлений, Ведь без этого лучше просто взять и умереть, Тебе и мне...

Happy New Year (оригинал Abba)No more champagneAnd the fireworks are through Here we are, me and you Feeling lost and feeling blue It's the end of the party And the morning seems so grey So unlike yesterday Now's the time for us to say... Happy new year Happy new year May we all have a vision now and then Of a world where every neighbour is a friend Happy new year Happy new year May we all have our hopes, our will to try If we don't we might as well lay down and die You and I Sometimes I see How the Brave New World arrives And I see how it thrives In the ashes of our lives Oh yes, man is a fool And he thinks he'll be okay Dragging on, feet of clay Never knowing he's astray Keeps on going anyway... Happy new year Happy new year May we all have a vision now and then Of a world where every neighbour is a friend Happy new year Happy new year May we all have our hopes, our will to try If we don't we might as well lay down and die You and I Seems to me now That the dreams we had before Are all dead, nothing more Than confetti on the floor It's the end of a decade In another ten years time Who can say what we'll find What lies waiting down the line In the end of eighty-nine... Happy new year Happy new year May we all have a vision now and then Of a world where every neighbour is a friend Happy new year Happy new year May we all have our hopes, our will to try If we don't we might as well lay down and die You and I

Основателями группы АББА были музыканты, певцы и авторы песен Бьёрн Ульвеус и Бенни Андерссон. Впервые они встретились на вечеринке в Вастервике летом 1966 года, где решили, что им следует сочинять песни вместе. Бенни был в тот момент клавишником популярной в Швеции группы Hep Stars, Бьёрн певцом и гитаристом в ансамбле Hootenanny Singers‎. На концерте в Мальмё Бенни познакомился с певицей Анни-Фрид Люнгстад, которая с тринадцати лет пела с разными группами и даже выступала на песенных фестивалях в Японии и Венесуэле. Тогда же Бьёрн услышал по радио, как поёт собственную песню «I Was So In Love» Агнета Фэльтскуг, и решил её пригласить в группу.

Mama Mia!
I've been cheated by you since I don't know when
So I made up my mind, it must come to an end
Look at me now, will I ever learn?
I don't know how but I suddenly lose control
There's a fire within my soul
Just one look and I can hear a bell ring
One more look and I forget everything, o-o-o-oh

Mama mia, here I go again
My my, how can I resist you?
Mama mia, does it show again?
My my, just how much I've missed you
Yes, I've been brokenhearted
Blue since the day we parted
Why, why did I ever let you go?
Mama mia, now I really know,
My my, I could never let you go.

I've been angry and sad about the things that you do
I can't count all the times that I've told you we're through
And when you go, when you slam the door
I think you know that you won't be away too long
You know that I'm not that strong.
Just one look and I can hear a bell ring
One more look and I forget everything, o-o-o-oh

Mama mia, here I go again
My my, how can I resist you?
Mama mia, does it show again?
My my, just how much I've missed you
Yes, I've been brokenhearted
Blue since the day we parted
Why, why did I ever let you go?
Mama mia, even if I say
Bye bye, leave me now or never
Mama mia, it's a game we play
Bye bye doesn't mean forever

Mama mia, here I go again
My my, how can I resist you?
Mama mia, does it show again?
My my, just how much I've missed you
Yes, I've been brokenhearted
Blue since the day we parted
Why, why did I ever let you go
Mama mia, now I really know
My my, I could never let you go

Источник: http://www.amalgama-lab.com/songs/a/abba/mama_mia.html#ixzz1pUnSWBkW

Before ABBA (1960s)
Benny Andersson (born 16 December 1946 in Stockholm, Sweden) became (at age 18) the member of a popular Swedish pop-rock group, The Hep Stars, that performed covers of international hits. The Hep Stars were known as "The Swedish Beatles". They also set up Hep House, their equivalent of Apple Corps. Andersson played the keyboard and eventually started writing original songs for his band, many of which became major hits including "No Response" that hit number 3 in 1965, "Sunny Girl", "Wedding" and "Consolation", all of which hit number 1 in 1966. Andersson also had a fruitful songwriting collaboration with Lasse Berghagen, with whom he wrote his first Svensktoppen entry "Sagan om lilla Sofi" ("The Story of Little Sophie") in 1968.
Björn Ulvaeus (born 25 April 1945 in Gothenburg, Sweden) also began his musical career at 18 (as a singer and guitarist), when he fronted The Hootenanny Singers, a popular Swedish folk-skiffle group. Ulvaeus started writing English-language songs for his group, and even had a brief solo career alongside. The Hootenanny Singers and The Hep Stars sometimes crossed paths while touring. In June 1966, Ulvaeus and Andersson decided to write a song together. Their first attempt was "Isn't It Easy to Say", a song later recorded by The Hep Stars. Stig Anderson was the manager of The Hootenanny Singers and founder of the Polar Music label. He saw potential in the collaboration, and encouraged them to write more. Both also began playing occasionally with the other's bands on stage and on record, although it was not until 1969 that the pair wrote and produced some of their first real hits together: "Ljuva sextital" ("Merry Sixties"), recorded by Brita Borg, and The Hep Stars' 1969 hit "Speleman" ("Fiddler").
Andersson wrote and submitted the song "Hej, Clown" for the 1969 Melodifestivalen, the Swedish Eurovision Song Contest. The song tied for first place, but re-voting relegated Andersson's song to second place. On that occasion Andersson briefly met his future spouse, singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad, who also participated in the contest. A month later, the two had become a couple. As their respective bands began to break up during 1969, Andersson and Ulvaeus teamed up and recorded their first album together in 1970, called Lycka ("Happiness"), which included original songs sung by both men. Their spouses were often present in the recording studio, and sometimes added backing vocals; Fältskog even co-wrote a song with the two. Ulvaeus still occasionally recorded and performed with The Hootenanny Singers until the summer of 1974, and Andersson took part in producing their records.
Agnetha Fältskog (born 5 April 1950 in Jönköping, Sweden) had a number 1 record in Sweden when she was 17, and was soon noted by the critics and songwriters as a talented singer/songwriter of schlager style songs. Fältskog's main inspiration in her early years were singers such as Connie Francis. Along with her own compositions, she recorded covers of foreign hits and performed them on tours in Swedish folkparks. In 1967, she submitted an original song, "Försonade" ("Redeemed") for Melodifestivalen, but it was rejected. She briefly met Anni-Frid Lyngstad for the first time during a TV show in January 1968, and met Ulvaeus at a concert venue a few months later.
During filming of a Swedish TV special in May 1969, Fältskog met Ulvaeus again, and they were married in 1971. Fältskog and Ulvaeus eventually were involved in each other's recording sessions, and soon even Andersson and Lyngstad added backing vocals to her third studio album Som jag är (As I Am) (1970). In 1972, Fältskog starred as Mary Magdalene in the original Swedish production of Jesus Christ Superstar and attracted favourable reviews. Between 1967 and 1975, Fältskog released five studio albums.
Anni-Frid "Frida" Lyngstad (born 15 November 1945 in Bjørkåsen in Ballangen, Norway) sang from the age of 13 with various dance bands, and worked mainly in a jazz-oriented cabaret style. She also formed her own band, the Anni-Frid Four. In the summer of 1967, she won a national talent competition with the song "En ledig dag" ("A Day Off"), which is included in the EMI compilation Frida 1967-1972. The first prize was a recording contract with EMI Sweden and to perform live on the most popular TV shows in the country. This TV performance, amongst many others, is included in the 3½ hour documentary Frida - The DVD. Lyngstad released several singles on EMI and had many hits in the Swedish charts. When Benny Andersson started to produce her recordings in 1971, she had her first number 1 single, "Min egen stad" ("My Own Town"), for which all the future ABBA members sang the backup vocals. Lyngstad toured and performed regularly in the folkpark circuit and made appearances on radio and TV. She met Ulvaeus briefly in 1963 during a talent contest, and Fältskog during a TV show in early 1968.
Lyngstad finally linked up with her future bandmates in 1969. On 1 March 1969, she participated in the Melodifestivalen, where she met Andersson for the first time. A few weeks later they met again during a concert tour in southern Sweden and they soon became a couple. Andersson produced her single "Peter Pan" in September 1969 – her first collaboration with Benny & Björn, as they had written the song. Andersson would then produce Lyngstad's debut studio album, Frida, which was released in March 1971 and praised by critics. Lyngstad also played in several revues and cabaret shows in Stockholm between 1969 and 1973. After ABBA formed, she recorded another successful album in 1975, Frida ensam, which included the original Swedish rendition of "Fernando", a hit in Scandinavia before the English version was recorded.

ABBA was a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1972, comprising Agnetha Fältskog, Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. They became one of the most commercially successful acts in the history of pop music, topping the charts worldwide from 1972 to 1982. ABBA has sold over 370 million records worldwide and still sell millions of records a year, which makes them one of the best-selling music artists, and the second best selling music group in history, behind The Beatles . ABBA was the first pop group to come from a non-English-speaking country that enjoyed consistent success in the charts of English-speaking countries, including the UK, Ireland, the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the Philippines. The group also enjoyed significant success in Latin American markets, and recorded a collection of their hit songs in Spanish.
During the band's active years, Fältskog and Ulvaeus were a married couple, as were Lyngstad and Andersson–although both couples later divorced. At the height of their popularity, both relationships were suffering strain which ultimately resulted in the collapse of the Ulvaeus-Fältskog marriage in 1979 and the Andersson-Lyngstad marriage in 1981. As a result, these relationship changes began appearing in the group's music, and later compositions produced more introspective lyrics.
After ABBA broke up in early 1983, Andersson and Ulvaeus achieved success writing music for the stage while Lyngstad and Fältskog pursued individual solo careers with mixed success. ABBA's music declined in popularity until several films, notably Muriel's Wedding and The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, revived interest in the group, spawning several tribute bands. In 1999, ABBA's music was adapted into the successful musical Mamma Mia! that toured worldwide. A film of the same name released in 2008 became the highest-grossing film in the United Kingdom that year. The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on 15 March 2010.