Maps of Music

Ring Ring (1973)

Where the lyrics of Ring Ring take you, and where it was really made.

ABBA's debut album was first credited to Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida rather than to ABBA.

Key places

Atlantis Studios, Stockholm (1973)

Recording site Atlantis Studios — Listed among the Stockholm studios used for the album, under the Metronome name. No session date is given. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Ring Ring: debut studio album by the Swedish group ABBA
• Initially credited as Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida
• Released in Scandinavia on 26 March 1973 through Polar Music
• Later issued in a limited number of other territories, including West Germany, Australia, South Africa and Mexico
• Takes its name from the title track 'Ring Ring'

Background

• The first group recording, 'People Need Love', was made in spring 1972
• At that time the four members were involved in many separate projects
• Only after the title track became a hit did the four decide to keep working together on a permanent basis
• The original 1973 Polar version opened with the Swedish 'Ring ring (bara du slog en signal)'
• The English-language version was placed as track four on side two of the original
• International editions open with the English version instead
• The original slot was filled by 'She's My Kind of Girl', first recorded in 1969 for the Swedish film Inga II
• 'She's My Kind of Girl' was released as a single in 1970 and became a hit in Japan
• 'Disillusion' was co-written by Björn Ulvaeus and Agnetha Fältskog

Recording

• Recorded at Europafilm, Metronome (Atlantis Studios) and KMH in Stockholm
• Producers: Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus
• Engineer: Michael B. Tretow

Cover

• Front cover photography by Bengt H. Malmqvist
• Back cover photography by Lars Falk
• Layout and art direction by Peter Wiking

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• ABBA was a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad.
• Their name is an acronym of the members' first names; it was officially adopted in 1973.
• Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson first collaborated as songwriters in 1966 and became hit writers in 1969.
• Stig Anderson, founder of Polar Music, pushed the pair toward international success.

Members

• Agnetha Fältskog and Björn Ulvaeus were married from 1971 to 1980.
• Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad were married from 1978 to 1981.
• Fältskog sang lead and backing vocals; Lyngstad sang lead and backing vocals.
• Ulvaeus played guitar and sang; Andersson played keyboards and sang.

Career

• The group won the Eurovision Song Contest 1974 for Sweden with "Waterloo".
• Hits include "Dancing Queen", "Fernando", "Mamma Mia" and "The Winner Takes It All".
• They disbanded in December 1982 after their final public performance.
• ABBA Gold, released in 1992, became a worldwide best-seller.
• Mamma Mia! the stage musical premiered in 1999 and was adapted into a 2008 film.
• The group reunited in 2016 and released the album Voyage in 2021.
• ABBA Voyage, a concert residency with digital avatars, opened in London in May 2022.
• In 2024 all four members were appointed Commanders, First Class, of the Royal Order of Vasa.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Reached the top ten in Australia, Norway and Sweden
• Released in Scandinavia first, then in a limited number of other territories through Polar Music
• Re-released in Australasia in 1975

Reappraisal

• The United Kingdom did not get the album until 7 September 1992, on cassette, with CD following in 1993
• The United States did not get it until 1995, on CD from Polydor
• First CD release in 1988
• Polar Music issued the original Scandinavian running order on CD in 1988, the only CD issue of the album to do so
• Rainbow Music Group issued the international version on CD in Australia in 1988
• Polydor released the international version on CD throughout Europe in 1990
• Remastered on CD in 1997 as part of 'The ABBA Remasters' series, in 2001 with updated cover artwork and bonus tracks, in 2005 in The Complete Studio Recordings box set, and in 2013 as a 'Deluxe Edition'
• A 40th anniversary Deluxe Edition came out on 14 October 2013
• On 19 May 2023 a 50th anniversary vinyl set was released

Records

• Top ten chart positions in Australia, Norway and Sweden

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• 'She's My Kind of Girl' was recorded in 1969 for the Swedish soft porn film Inga II: the Seduction of Inga and became a hit in Japan as a 1970 single.
• 'Disillusion' is the only song on an ABBA studio album with a songwriting contribution from Agnetha Fältskog.
• 'Disillusion' later appeared with Swedish lyrics on Fältskog's solo album Elva kvinnor i ett hus.
• The 2023 50th anniversary vinyl set included a double-LP edition half-speed mastered by Miles Showell at Abbey Road Studios.
• The 1988 Polar CD used the original Scandinavian running order, the only CD issue of the album to do so.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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