Abba • The Vinyl Collection
Polar Records 060252734646
Nine 33-RPM 180 g LPs
This boxed set contains all eight of Abba’s studio albums, plus an extra album featuring bonus tracks including several singles and B sides that weren’t on other albums. Arguably Sweden’s greatest musical export, Abba were massive in the 1970s and early 1980s despite being perceived—at least in my circles at the time—as being very uncool. Who cares?!
Most of the music is great, with the girls’ (Agnetha and Anni-Frid) harmonies deliciously complementing the boys’ (Benny and Björn) melodies. A favourite of mine (and my late grandmother), The Way Old Friends Do, (which is the closing track of their penultimate album, Super Trouper) still brings a lump to my through when I listen to it, especially when the bass kicks in when the verse repeats. Incidentally, this track features the locked groove of the original: try doing that on a CD!
Remastered from the original master tapes and duplicating the original Swedish packaging (including the inner sleeves), the sound quality on this set is OK, the more recent albums generally sounding better than the older ones. The records themselves are fine and the surfaces are quiet.
The collection comes in an attractive box which also includes a very nice booklet with numerous photos and information about the recording dates and so on. This set is probably the best way to enjoy Abba on vinyl, so indulge yourself in this (not inexpensive, alas) guilty pleasure!