ABBA: Waterloo CD Track Listing

A list by checkmate

ABBA Waterloo (1974)
The Complete Studio Recordings - Disc 02 of 11 : Waterloo\n2005 Polar Music International\n\nOriginally Released 1974\nRemastered Edition Released March 16, 1999\nDigiPack Edition With Bonus Tracks Released October 16, 2001\nComplete Studio Recordings Box Released \n\nExclusive import limited edition Digipak version is remastered, has extensive liner notes and lyrics and includes three bonus songs, 'Ring Ring (US Remix 1974)', 'Waterloo (Swedish Version)' and 'Honey Honey (Swedish Version)'. 14 tracks in all. \n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: ABBA's second (and U.S. debut) album contains the American top 10 title track, as well as "Honey, Honey, " a minor U.S. hit that deserved better. This album is rather unusual in the group's output, however, for the fact that the guys are still featured fairly prominently in some of the vocals, and for the variety of sounds, including reggae, folk-rock, and hard rock, embraced by its 11 songs. The reggae number "Sitting In the Palm Tree" is quite remarkable to hear, with its perfect Caribbean beat and those radiant female voices carrying the chorus behind the beat. "King Kong Song" is a good example of hard-rock by rote, going through the motions of screaming vocals and over-amplified guitar (courtest of Janne Schaffer), although even here, when the womens' voices jump in on the choruses, it's hard not to listen attentively--the quartet knew what a powerful weapon they had, but not quite how to use it. They get a little closer to their winning formula on the catchy, folky-textured pop song "Hasta Manana, " which sounds like a lost Mary Hopkin number. "Dance (While the Music Still Goes On)" is on the money, as the embodiment of the Euro-disco sound that the group would move in the millions on their coming albums, although it also embraces a vague oldies sound, with a melody that somehow reminds this listener of both the Four Seasons' "Dawn" and the Beach Boys' "Don't Worry Baby." [The 1999 PolyGram remastering adds no songs but is still a significant improvement over the original LP or earlier CD editions -- the vocals are stunningly clear and glistening ("Honey, Honey" is particularly ravishing), and the instruments finally get their due.] -- Bruce Eder\n\nAmazon.com Editorial Reviews\nOriginally issued under the rather unwieldy group title Bjorn, Benny, Agnetha & Frida, Waterloo contains the first glimmers of ABBA's future greatness--particularly in the buoyant, joyous title track. The irresistible "Waterloo" walked away with 1973's Eurovision Song Contest. Elsewhere, the group's output was more variable--veering between would-be calypso ("My Mama Said," "Sitting in the Palmtree"), Alice Cooper pastiches ("King Kong Song," "Watch Out"), and a little pristine, melt-in-the-mouth pop (the deliciously light "Honey, Honey"). The full-on, piano-saturated "Gonna Sing You My Love Song," however, indicated where ABBA's hearts were leading them: toward the almost Irving Berlin-like precision of songs such as "The Name of the Game" and "The Winner Takes It All." --Everett True \n\nCD Now Review\nAbba's Agnetha Turns 50\nBelieve it or not, "Waterloo" was a breath of fresh air when it hit the U.S. airwaves in 1974. The nation was in bad shape: The Watergate scandal dominated the news, inflation was rampant, gas lines were growing long, soldiers were still stuck in Vietnam with no hope of a solution, and a pervasive cultural hangover from the '60s cast a general pall of apathy over the country's mood. Musically, trends were dying as well: An endless procession of singer-songwriters were phasing out (see: Lobo, Loggins & Messina) one-hit wonders came and went (Paper Lace, Edward Bear), and prog-rock bands grew even more self-indulgent than anyone thought they could (Yes, ELP). \n\nSo along came four fresh-faced foreigners whose sheer naivete -- and knack for writing undeniably catchy three-minute pop songs -- was like a dose of happy medicine. They smiled, they bopped their heads, and they had no idea there was anything wrong with such songs as "Sitting in the Palmtree," "Suzy-Hang-Around," and "King Kong Song." \n\nMusically, of course, they've now earned their due. Chief songwriters -- and band founders -- Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson went on to write an impressive catalog of memorable pop tunes. They weren't artists -- just terrific craftsmen, who honed each melody and shaped each hook with studio ingenuity. \n\nAlso, to their credit, Ulvaeus and Andersson ultimately had the smarts to stay in the background while their kewpie-doll girlfriends/wives, Agnetha Faltskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad, co-fronted the band, singing in a unison style that would later be emulated to death by such groups as Bananarama and the Spice Girls. Unfortunately for Waterloo (the album), Bjorn and Benny hadn't yet realized the power of this decision; thus, the guys sing a good half of the songs here. \n\nStill, it's hard to find a better way to spend two minutes and 43 seconds than to listen to the title track, with its relentless tempo, perky hook, and audacious lyrics (which compare Napoleon's historic defeat to one woman's (er, two?) final capture by her fated mate). \n\nIf you're new to the Abba canon, Waterloo may be the chronological starting point, but not the most recommended one. It's best to stick to the safer ground of Abba Gold, then move on to the slightly riskier Arrival, whose treasure is the gorgeous "Knowing Me, Knowing You." But then, you'd never have the pleasure of experiencing Bjorn (or is that Benny?) sing, "We do the King Kong song / Won't you sing along? / Can't you hear the ring of the monkey dong dong?" -- John Bitzer\n\nCD Connection Review\nABBA's second album, titled after their breakthrough single, which won the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest, shows how the Swedish foursome was already starting to outgrow the confines of the chirpy bubblegum with which they originally made their name. Super-catchy songs like "Waterloo" and "Honey Honey" abound, but composers Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson seem to be taking cues from greats like Lennon and McCartney and Brian Wilson, slipping febrile, inventive tunes like "What About Livingstone" and "Suzy Hang Around" in amongst silly but entertaining trifles like "Sitting in the Palmtree" and "King Kong Song." \n\nMeanwhile, "Hasta Manana" shows the first glimpse of the fascination with Latin music that would lead to songs like "Fernando" and, much later, the Oro and Mas Oro compilations. Overall, WATERLOO shows that ABBA was well on their way to the brilliance of their later career as the decade's foremost purveyors of commercial pop. YEAR: 1974
This misc cd contains 18 tracks and runs 56min 59sec.
Freedb: 1f0d5912
Buy: from Amazon.com

Categories

Latest lists

ABBA: Waterloo CD Track Listing

Category

Tags

cyList

Legal