Books about ABBA and related subjects

2026 note: These updates are about 20 years old and there is probably much more that should be updated in this book. However, ABBA – The Complete Guide To Their Music has been out of print for many years and will probably never be published again, so I'm just offering these updates here for historical purposes.

First of all, the introduction to the Assorted Tracks chapter (page 102) was unfortunately worded so as to indicate that all the tracks covered in that section were commercially released. This is not true of Live 77, Sång till Görel, Hovas vittne and Tivedshambo.

There are also a few tracks that should have been discussed in the book, yet were omitted. They are:

On And On And On (Full Length Version)
[This recording should have been mentioned in the description of the album version of On And On And On, featured on pages 59–60.]

This original full length version of On And On And On, featuring an extra verse, was used as the soundtrack to the official promo clip of the song. The running time for the full length version is 4.11, whereas the more familiar album version runs 3.41. It was first released in a digital format (in mono) on the DVD The Definitive Collection. It is now available on CD in mono in the box set The Complete Studio Recordings, and in stereo on Super Trouper Deluxe Edition. Finally, the video is also available with a stereo soundtrack on the DVD The Essential Collection.

The Name Of The Game (Single Edit)
[This entry belongs on page 103, between the entries for Medley... and Live 77.]

This recording has been edited down from the original 4.55 to 3.51, and was apparently released commercially as a single A-side in Canada in 1977 (Atlantic ST-A-34557-RI). I haven't heard this edit myself, but it appears this is the 3.55 promo edit described on page 87 in the book (first released commercially on The Singles – The First Ten Years), albeit with an early fade. This 3.51 edit has also been issued on the American compilation album I Love ABBA and a few other places.

Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight) (Single Edit)
[This entry belongs on page 105, between the entries for Angeleyes and Take A Chance On Me.]

The recording has been edited down from the original 4.53 to a more radio-friendly 3.38, issued on a US single in 1979 or possibly early 1980 (Atlantic 3652). The track has been edited in several places: the instrumental guitar introduction has been omitted to start the track right off with the synthesizer riff, the instrumental break has been shortened and the ending fades sooner.

The Visitors (Single Edit)
[This entry belongs on page 106, between the entries for Should I Laugh Or Cry and Hole In Your Soul.]

The recording has been edited down from the original 5.49 to 3.19 and then released as the B-side of the single 'When All Is Said And Done' in Mexico in 1982 (RCA SP-5718). The first 20 seconds of the song have been edited out. The instrumental section following the first two verses and the first chorus has been shortened. Then the third verse has been edited out completely, so that the song goes straight into the final chorus and fade-out.

The Day Before You Came (Single Edit)
[This entry belongs on page 106, between the entries for Hole In Your Soul and Summer Night City.]

The recording has been edited down from the original 5.54 to 4.45 and then released as a single A-side in Argentina in 1982 (RCA E-0255). This edit could best be described as an early fade, as it simply fades the song just as the outro starts.

Additional release info:

The Alternate Single Edit of Eagle released in Australia (mentioned on page 104) was also released in France (Vogue 45.X.125).

The Intro Version of Should I Laugh Or Cry released in the UK (mentioned on page 106) was also released in South Africa (Sunshine GBS 147).

The Medley mystery:

The mystery surrounding the two slightly different-sounding versions of 'Medley: Pick A Bale Of Cotton - On Top Of Old Smokey - Midnight Special' may have been resolved. The root of the problem is that the "versions" (the first being released on a West German charity album in 1975 and the second issued as the B-side to the 'Summer Night City' single in 1978) are in fact one and the same, but through compression being added during mastering for the 1978 single, confusion arose as to whether they were in fact two different mixes. At any rate, both the original uncompressed 1975 master and the 1978 compressed master have been issued on CD. On page 103 in the book it is stated that the first version has been available on vinyl only. It appears this is incorrect: it was in fact issued on CD in the Thank You For The Music box set.

And finally, contrary to what I must have written on a brain meltdown day, Money, Money, Money was not the third single from the Arrival album (see page 38) but actually the second (the third was of course Knowing Me, Knowing You).

Thanks to Frank Axelsson, Ian Cole, Neil Partridge, Pepé, Andries Provoost, Alejandro Vargas, Grant Whittingham and the ABBA For The Record website (now defunct) for their contributions to these updates.