ABBA blog

Just the other day I reached a bit of a milestone in my efforts at updating my book ABBA – The Complete Recording Sessions 1972–1982 to an even better and more informative volume than the most recent edition, published in 2017. In fact, I think if I were to add more information, the book would simply burst at the seams!

The milestone was completing the re-editing and updating of the 1981 chapter. As long-time ABBA fans will be aware, this was the final year that the group recorded a full album: The Visitors. This also means that it was the final chapter in the book that took a lot of time to update. Don't get me wrong: it's not like I don't have any interesting stuff to add to the 1982 chapter, and there is still much work to do before we can go to print, but those really complicated recording years are now behind me.

Among the additions to the 1981 chapter is the information gleaned from Michael Tretow's session tapes for 'Slipping Through My Fingers', 'When All Is Said And Done', 'Two For The Price Of One', 'Like An Angel Passing Through My Room' (an incredibly complex story made even more complex!), 'Head Over Heels', 'I Let The Music Speak', 'Should I Laugh Or Cry' and 'The Visitors'.

The chapter has also been updated with information about unreleased songs such as 'I Am That Woman', 'I Believe In You' and 'Sinking Deeper', and there are also new details about 'Hovas vittne' and ABBA's recorded birthday greeting to Stig Anderson's wife, Gudrun, broadcast on BBC radio.

But really, the entire book is just full of new information and stories, along with the fab stuff that was already in there – and yes, even though I am the author, I'm allowed to say that it's fab, because reading through it all now, I was shocked at just how much information about ABBA's work is in this book. One of the additions I enjoyed getting to grips with was to discuss the lyric changes for some of the ABBA songs in more detail. Some of the original lyric sheets survive and were reproduced in previous editions of the book, as indeed they will be in this updated edition, but this time I have also discussed those lyric changes in the book's main text.

I could go on, but suffice it to say that this enhanced and expanded edition of ABBA – The Complete Recording Sessions 1972–1982 is the one you need to have on your bookshelves.

Read more about the book and pre-order your copy at Kickstarter.