ABBA: The Complete Studio Recordings - Disc 04 of 11 : Arrival CD Track Listing

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ABBA The Complete Studio Recordings - Disc 04 of 11 : Arrival (1976)
The Complete Studio Recordings - Disc 04 of 11 : Arrival\n2005 Polar Music International\nComplete Studio Recordings Box Released November 7, 2005 \n\nOriginally Released January 1977\nRemastered Edition Released March 16, 1999\nDigiPack Edition With Bonus Tracks Released October 16, 2001\n\n24-bit digital remaster with new liner notes, complete lyrics and two bonus tracks: 'Fernando' (US Remix 1974) and 'Happy Hawaii' (Swedish Version). \n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: ABBA's fourth album of new material appeared after the group had "arrived" as major stars. It featured "Dancing Queen, " a tame disco number that went No. 1 in both the US and UK, as well as "Knowing Me, Knowing You (another UK No. 1 that hit the Top 40 in the US) and a third single, "Money Money Money." The 1999 remastered edition (part of Polydor's "The ABBA Remasters" series) in 24-bit digital audio is a significant improvement over earlier CD or LP editions, bringing out not only stunning richness and radiance in the vocals by Faltskog and Lyngstadt, but also Rutger Gunnarsson's especially muscular bass playing throughout the album, and the rich texture of Bjorn Ulvaeus's acoustic guitar on "When I Kissed The Teacher, " Lasse Wellander's acoustic rhythm guitar on "Dum Dum Diddle, " and the rippling electric guitar and keyboard textures of "Knowing Me, Knowing You"--Wellander's power chords over the chorus of the latter song is one of those dramatic musical effects that this group played for maximum effect, and gave their music a raw power that their detractors usually overlooked. Some of this clarity is wasted on disco numbers that now seem to have relatively little point, though they are catchy and have relentless beat, but that's what the group was about at this point in their history--and the sheer presence of the bass drums behind the choruses on "Tiger" will be pretty impressive to any noise freaks. -- William Ruhlmann/Bruce Eder\n\nAmazon.com essential recording Editorial Reviews\nAt the height of their success, ABBA were second only to Volvo as Sweden's biggest export earners. Arrival (1977) sees the quartet just finding their stride, after a year of relative obscurity which followed the success of "Waterloo," their 1973 Eurovision Song Contest winner. Like their '70s peers ELO, ABBA knew the value of tunes, tunes, tunes. Arrival's hits include the glistening, full-on sheen of "Knowing Me, Knowing You," the irrepressible, piano-led disco stomp of "Dancing Queen," and the almost Cabaret-esque sarcasm of "Money, Money, Money"--all three cowritten by manager and mentor Stig Anderson. The album ends, meanwhile, on an almost Celtic theme with the soaring, wordless title track. Arrival is superconfident and superpolished, and was an unstoppably chartbound record of its moment. --Everett True \n\nAmazon.com \nIn its original vinyl form, the first side of this 1976 album was a smorgasbord of everything this undervalued but subsequently deified Swedish pop quartet had to offer. "When I Kissed the Teacher" shows off the intricate vocal arrangements and massive productions they brought to bear on absolute fluff, lending it dignity and a certain magnificence. "Dancing Queen" transcends its period disco trappings with the same undercurrent of sadness behind the painted smiles that informs another disco classic, Chic's "Good Times." "My Love My Life" is the "mature" ABBA, basically an MOR ballad that sidesteps excessive slushiness thanks to heartfelt vocals and a rational sensibility replacing the melodrama of the average MOR ballad. Then it's right back to bubblegum with "Dum Dum Diddle," a piece of pseudo-classical nonsense salvaged by a brilliant tune. And the side closes with possibly their greatest song, "Knowing Me, Knowing You," whose majestic vocal tapestry and colossal production renders a breakup the stuff of epochal tragedy. \n\nBookended by the overly clever, gimmicky Euro-cabaret of "Money Money Money" (ABBA's "Material Girl") and the prophetic but throwaway Celtic schlock of the title instrumental, the second side unfortunately can't come close to matching its predecessor. But Arrival's first five tracks are a rival for anything else in their glorious catalog. --Ken Barnes --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. \n\nCD Now Review\nScorned by hipsters, though loved by millions, Abba was a worldwide phenomenon from the mid-1970s through the early '80s. This aptly titled release marked the Swedish group's arrival at the top of the U.S. singles charts with the infectious, musical equivalent to the leisure suit, "Dancing Queen," as much a hallmark of the disco era as the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. \nThe rest of the album is really a microcosm of the band's career. Songs like "Money Money Money" and "Tiger" ("And if I meet you/What if I eat you/I am the tiger") are emblematic of the unabashed pop that brought the band early success, while the haunting "Knowing Me, Knowing You" and the lesser-known "That's Me" hint at the moodier tunes and lush arrangements that marked Abba's later works. \n\nBuy this re-mastered CD, get yourself a white jumpsuit from an online auction house, and you've arrived. -- Evan Davies\nCopyright

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