Rumour has it that the vocal was performed by Agnetha with the lights off, causing a whisper throughout the studio that this really was the end for the group. It could never be low-key.' But while a recording might be fun (if, as Frida says, somewhat highly strung), how on earth could a pair of sixtysomethings top the enduring appeal of the band's underrated last track – six-minute epic The Day Before You Came?įor those who remain immune to Abba's charms or haven't heard the song (after all, it wasn't on Mamma Mia!) The Day Before You Came – like many a classic – was an inexplicable flop, peaking at No 32 in October 1982 during a prolonged period of decline for the band. 'If we did, it would be hard to avoid all the pressure because of Abba. And Frida adds unforgetable, almost operatic, vocal sugar during the bridge.So the mighty female component of Abba are reportedly discussing working together again for the first time since 1983. 'It would be great to do something with Agnetha,' says Frida, now 65. Listen to this clip where Benny describes how Agnetha proposes to purposely sing the lyrics is a more ordinary way, because that's exactly the point - an ordinary woman singing about her ordinary life, requires an ordinary singing style, no over-top singing needed here. They are exploring a new way of writing lyrics, where the style of writing and singing, not just the words, are meant to evoke the sentiments. The lyrics are some of the most sophisticated Bjorn ever wrote. On Benny's 2017 Piano instrumental album, TDBYC is one of the few ABBA songs he plays - surely a sign he is very proud of the song. The singer let's you into her lonely life in so many detailed ways, so easy to relate to. The maturity, intimacy andf story-telling of the piece are unrivaled by anything else in their catalog, and you can see why they next moved on to musical theater. I think TDBYC is one of the very best songs ABBA ever created. If The Visitors showed ABBA starting to lose their direction, the 1982 recordings showed that they had lost the way altogether, and no one song says this more explicitly than TDBYC. I certainly agree that it hinted at the end of ABBA.

It’s not that I don’t enjoy it every now and again, but apart from that classic Benny melody, it carries literally none of the hallmarks that make me an ABBA fan.

Also, as they were with the disco stuff on Voulez Vous, they were 2-3 years late to the moody synth pop party- by the end of 1982 there were already countless artists who were already making this type of music, and doing it much better. They have also said several times through the years that they actually asked Agnetha to deliberately sing it not as well as she could have done. The premise is wonderful but the words themselves are clearly far from Bjorn’s best work. The melody is great, but Benny has made no secret of the fact that it was a rushed job, and the same obviously goes for the lyrics. It definitely stands out in the ABBA catalogue because it’s so different from everything else they did, but for me that’s to its detriment rather than it’s benefit. I appear to be one of very, very few fans who don’t rate TDBYC.

Abba the day before you came