ABBA – all four members are behind the sponsorship

The world-famous Swedish pop band ABBA used to only sing ‘SOS’ – now they are supporting SOS Children’s Villages.

Together with their production companies the four members of the 1970s supergroup are going to sponsor the construction of a house in the newly constructed SOS Children’s Village Bossangoa, Central African Republic built in honour of Pippi Longstocking author Astrid Lindgren.

“SOS Children’s Villages have a very serious and long term approach that we were impressed by and we thought it would be fun to build a house in the village,” said Bjorn Ulvaeus in an interview with the Swedish business web magazine di.se. Ulvaeus, along with Agnetha Faltskog, Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad is one of four former members of the Swedish pop/rock group which was formed in 1972. During the 1970s they became one of the most successful acts in the history of pop music, topping the charts worldwide until their breakup in 1983.

The four former members of the group have reunited to give a loving home to 10 children in the Central African Republic. There are two villages in the Central African Republic, in Bangui and Bouar, and a new village is being constructed in Bossangoa, consisting of 12 family houses for 120 children. The new Bossangoa village will include a house funded through donations from ABBA, in cooperation with their record company Polar Music and their music publishing house Union Songs.

“It’s fantastic that ABBA, Polar Music and Union Songs engage in our work,” said Anna Ryott, Managing Director of SOS Children’s Villages Sweden. “Thanks to that we will be able to give more children in Central African Republic a loving home and a caring family.”

The Children’s Village in Bossangoa is being built in memoriam of Swedish children’s author Astrid Lindgren, known internationally for her Pippi Longstocking books. The house has been called “Bullerbyn” – a village in one of Lindgren’s books. The initiative has been taken by the company Saltkrakan (run by Lindgren’s relatives), toy company Micki Leksaker, and the amusement park Astrid Lindgren’s World. The construction is a long-term cooperation which also includes a preschool, a school, a medical centre and a social centre.

“The combination of Astrid Lindgren and ABBA has a special glow I think. To do something with Astrid Lindgren’s relatives felt like a good idea,” said Mr Ulvaeus, who has been an Lindgren’s work.

The 67-year-old musician has never been to the Central African Republic, but the house that will be built has inspired him to find out more about the country and possibly visit the village in the future. When asked why the members of ABBA opted for supporting the SOS Children’s Village in Bossangoa, Mr Ulvaeus explained: “One has to be convinced that the money really is used for the purpose. That was what convinced us. This project will be a reality and it is concrete, it is not a lot of middle hands that take away some of the amount on the way.”

The above news release appeared on the SOS Children’s Villages website. All quotes from Bjorn Ulvaeus are taken from an interview of the Swedish business magazine di.se.

It seems that, according to Swedish media outlet Expressen, the work has started with Benny playing the secret piece (along with members of Orsa Spelman) that will be revealed to the wider world when the SEK 30 million organ is revealed later this year or early 2013.

Hans-Ola Ericsson checking out the organ pipes. Image: Joseph Knevel.

Objecting to Slussen redevelopment

As icethesite followers will know, Stockholm’s city council are planning to redevelop an area of Stockholm called Sluseen and Benny Andersson vehemently opposes the proposal.

So incensed was Benny about the changes to his home town that he ordered officials at Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport to remove a huge poster of ABBA that greeted arriving international visitors to the city. His rationale being that he no longer wanted to be seen as a representative of the city if the city couldn’t sense over the proposed Slussen redevelopment.

In all, 205 appeals against the proposed redevelopment of Stockholm’s Slussen disctrict were received as part of the appeals process but only 45 were deemed admissable. The rest were judged to be from parties who do not live in or near the Slussen area.

The 45 appeals that were received have all been rejected.

Related links:

• Svensa Dagbladet - Alla överklaganden mot Slussen avslås
• Benny Andersson svarar Sten Nordin om Slussen
• Allt fler kulturprofiler tar strid för Slussen
• Benny Andersson opposes Slussen redevelopment plans (Updated)
• Dagens Nyheter – Benny Andersson: Vill du bli ihågkommen som Stockholms värsta marodör?
• KulturSlussen
• ABBA poster gone from Arlanda Airport, Stockholm

Björn Ulvaeus

Last year Björn wrote an article called ’Även ateister kan förundras’ (Even atheists can marvel) for Swedish magazine Sans.

In the article, he drew on his beliefs as a Humanist, as a music listener and as a person who has experienced what it means to love, to argue that beauty and wonder are not solely the preserve of the religious-minded.

Just published in Sweden is a brand new Sans Magazine article in which Björn reflects on his recent experiences of becoming reacquainted with Kristina från Duvemåla and how, despite the musical having a deeply religious central character, it has only helped reaffirm his status as a ’freethinker’.

Read my translation of the article below:

Björn Ulvaeus: Thanks to the Svenska Teatern in Helsinki, I have had the opportunity to become familiar again with the musical Kristina från Duvemåla. It premiered at the end of February and being on set was, like last time in the 1990s, entirely fantastic and stimulating.

Once again I was struck how tenderly the author Vilhelm Moberg depicted the profound believer Kristina. Sympathy with the lonely frontier wives out there in the wilderness is self-evident for him, and I felt the same thing when I wrote the lyrics.

It got me thinking about why some people hold close to a dear religious belief, while for others it is impossible.

Vilhelm Moberg places Kristina alone under a starry sky in her singular heart-rending moment of doubt. For the first time in her life, she is not sure whether God really exists. A number of crucial events have meant that she has reached this pivotal moment. In the musical we have her singing:

Du måste finnas, du måste
- You must be there, you must

Hur kan du då överge mig
- How can you abandon me?

Jag vore ingenstans…
- I would be nowhere…

Jag vore ingenting om du inte fanns
- I would be nothing if you did not exist

Kristina stares out into the infinite, icy abyss and feels that despite everything, God is out there. He must be out there because she needs him so much.

I believe that this applies to billions of people in the world; because the need is so great, there must be an answer to it as if the needs is itself based on the theory of supply and demand but on ideological grounds.

“The human need for consolation is insatiable,” wrote Stig Dagerman, and therefore he could never become a happy person, because ” I have no belief and because of that I can never be a happy man. Because happy men should never fear that their lives drift meaninglessly toward the certainty of death.”

Is it the case that evolution has seen to it that some of us have brains that are predisposed to accept religious impulses without questioning them?

Hopefully, neuroscientific brain mapping will eventually provide answers to what religion is.

While others, like me, have an icy-cold scepticism, a part of me that like a cobra strikes down on those impulses and begs the inevitable question: “Is it actually right to think like this? Yeah, I know it would be nice if it were true, but… ”

As everyone knows, the brain is able to put us into a state of dreaming and so one could imagine that religious revelations, of the type that Mohammed and Paul are said to have had, is just the brain playing tricks on us. Hopefully, neuroscientific brain mapping will eventually provide answers to what religion is, and on to whether God exists or not.

If it is the case that there are people who deeply and from their very core, honestly and without any doubt, feel, know, that there is a God and that he cares about them, then it follows that those people must be happier than others.

They are to be congratulated as long as they do not allow decisions made as a result of their convictions impact others.

Kristina gets her unyielding faith back, convinced that she and Karl Oskar are destined to meet again on the other side:

I natt, ska en stjärna tändas, den ska skina klar
- Tonight, there will be a new star, it shall shine so bright

Den lyser dej väg, du och jag, vi mötas åter
- It lights up your way, you and I, we will meet in the ever after

Beskyddet av en ängel som står vakt
- Protection from an angel on his guard

Det vet du att jag har
- You know that I will have that

Jag vill att du ska minnas vad jag sagt
- I implore that you shall recall what I said…

Jag är i gott bevar
- I am in good keeping

I find myself also staring into the boundless, icy abyss and imagine a universe that does not care the slightest bit about me.

Related links:

• Fritankesmedja – Du måste finnas av Björn Ulvaeus
• Björn Ulvaeus – Even atheists can marvel
• Björn Ulvaeus – Artist plus atheist

ABBA - The Essential Collection released on 21 May comes in three flavours

The Essential Collection – a brand new ABBA hits collection will be released on 21 May 2012**. Billed as including “all the hits and more on 2 CDs and 1 DVD.”

**Colin, an icethesite visitor writes: For some reason, The Essential Collection will not now be released in the UK until Monday 3 September it seems. That is for all 3 versions of it – the 2 CDs + DVD, the 2 CDs & the DVD. It is still being released elsewhere in May. It may not be released in Ireland until September, too, as the UK & Ireland tend to have similar release schedules.”

Carl Magnus Palm adds: “Germany gets it now, the rest of the world later. The release dates for The Essential Collection, in all its different configurations, have been changed. Germany will still get the CD, DVD and 3-disc versions in May, to coincide with the German television special to be aired in June. In the rest of the world The Essential Collection will be released in September.”

The release will come in three different configurations: a double-CD,  a DVD, and a Limited Edition package featuring the two CDs, the DVD and an illustrated 28-page booklet.

The DVD features all official ABBA promo clips in remastered form, including two previously unreleased videos: Conociéndome, Conociéndote and Gracias por la música (Spanish versions of Knowing Me, Knowing You and Thank You For The Music, respectively).

Track listings:

CD 01:

1. People Need Love
2. He Is Your Brother
3. Ring Ring
4. Love Isn’t Easy (But It Sure Is Hard Enough)
5. Waterloo
6. Honey, Honey
7. So Long
8. I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do
9. SOS
10. Mamma Mia
11.Bang-A-Boomerang
12. Fernando
13. Dancing Queen
14. Money, Money, Money
15. Knowing Me, Knowing You
16. That’s Me
17. The Name Of The Game
18. Take A Chance On Me
19. Eagle
20. One Man, One Woman
21. Thank You For The Music
22. Summer Night City

CD 02:

1. Chiquitita
2. Does Your Mother Know
3. Voulez-Vous
4. Angeleyes
5. Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)
6. I Have A Dream
7. The Winner Takes It All
8. Super Trouper
9. On And On And On
10. Lay All Your Love On Me
11. Happy New Year
12. One Of Us
13. When All Is Said And Done
14. Head Over Heels
15. The Visitors
16. The Day Before You Came
17. Under Attack

DVD:

1. Waterloo
2. Ring Ring
3. Mamma Mia
4. SOS
5. Bang-A-Boomerang
6. I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do
7. Fernando
8. Dancing Queen
9. Money, Money, Money
10. Knowing Me, Knowing You
11. That’s Me
12. The Name Of The Game
13. Take A Chance On Me
14. Eagle
15. One Man, One Woman
16. Thank You For The Music
17. Summer Night City
18. Chiquitita
19. Does Your Mother Know
20. Voulez-Vous
21. Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)
22. On And On And On
23. The Winner Takes It All
24. Super Trouper
25. Happy New Year
26. When All Is Said And Done
27. One Of Us
28. Head Over Heels
29. The Day Before You Came
30. Under Attack
31. Estoy Soñando
32. Conociéndome, conociéndote
33. Gracias por la música
34. Felicidad
35. No Hay A Quien Culpar
36. The Last Video

Carl Magnus Palm is responsible for writing the booklet and on his website, he has further details, including these details about the DVD:

“The Essential Collection pulls together every official ABBA promo clip as originally conceived and produced by Polar Music in the 1970s and 1980s…

The clips are newly remastered in the 16:9 format, as opposed to the normal 4:3 format. However, this does not mean that the aspect ratio of the picture has been compromised – on the contrary you get more picture for your money, since the 4:3 frame shaves off some of the original 16mm picture. On the DVD, the picture takes up more space on the screen, with “black bars” on either side of the picture.”

Related links:

Carl Magnus Palm.com – The Essential Collection

Benny Andersson attends Grimstaskolans 'Culture week'

Grimstaskolans culture week got off to a flying start when Benny Andersson, who had attended the school, inaugurated and signed the renovated piano and played songs on the instrument in the Assembly Hall.

Culture week is part of the Grimstaskolans participation in Skapande Skola.

“We want students to meet people who have succeeded well in life by developing a talent,” said Assistant Director of the programme Marita Svahn.

The ‘Culture week’ was initiated by Benny Andersson who signed the school’s grand piano.

“I’ve played at least two hours every day for fifty years now”

“What do you want me to play?” Benny asked as he settled at the instrument.

“Waterloo” shouted a student. “Mamma Mia” shouted others. Just then the familiar tones of Mamma Mia were resonating through the Assembly Hall. Everyone tapped their feet and a few dared to sing.

Benny recalled how he crept into the Assembly Hall to play at this particular grand piano, each breaktime and each lunch period. He was mostly ignored by other people.

“But there were a few who seemed to understand what it meant to me to play and that it could be good. Lennart Nilbert who became my class Director was one of them; he was the kind of teacher that I wish everyone could have.”

Benny also spoke of the fact that he wasn’t on course for great grades and that he had to raise his game for the ninth grade. Today we know, however, that it was all the hours at the piano that paved the way for his career.

“Whatever people want to be good at, they need to devote a lot of time to. Practice it enough so you can’t stop. I’ve played at least two hours every day for fifty years now. It wouldn’t be very good if it was not that way. So, practice!”, he urged the students.

When the choir started on an ABBA medley to end the homage to Benny Andersson, he received a commemorative gift; a booklet containing, inter alia, school photos of classmates and three of his own school works from 1962.

“It is wonderful that Benny Andersson came here,” said pupil Elin Slyngstadli afterwards. Another pupile Priya Punj said “We were happy, we never really thought that he would come.”

Elin and Priya are both in Class 5C and are members of the choir who performed the ABBA medley. Neither of them had listened to ABBA before preparation for the culture week started. But they had heard the songs from Mamma Mia!

Related link:

Benny Andersson inledde Grimstaskolans kulturvecka

For those that can access the BBC iPlayer, you can find the programme here for the next 7 days: http://www.bbc.co.uk/i/b01f1cw3/

The track comes at about 1hr 40 mins and 35 secs in.

Hot on the heels of the trailer being issued comes news in the latest Svenska Teatern newsletter that tickets for Spring 2013 will be released later this year, meaning that the show will not close at the end of the current run (21 December). Great news all round!