The Albums [Box set]

ABBA | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 11, 2008)
• Original Release Date: 2009
• Number of Discs: 9
• Format: Box set
• Note on Boxed Sets: During shipping, discs in boxed sets occasionally become dislodged without damage. Please examine and play these discs. If you are not completely satisfied, we'll refund or replace your purchase.
• Label: Polydor / Pgd
• ASIN: B001F9Y2CM
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,715 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #1 in Music > World Music > Europe > Scandinavia > Sweden
  • #5 in Music > Pop > Euro Pop > Swedish Pop
  • #8 in Music > Pop > Euro Pop > General

Editorial Reviews

This fantastic Abba box set includes nine CD's which includes all eight of their original albums (1973's Ring Ring, '74's Waterloo, '75'sABBA, '77's Arrival, '78's ABBA The Album, '79's Voulez-Vous, '80's Super Trouper and 1981's The Visitors) plus a ninth CD filled with bonus tracks and rarities. Universal. 2008.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

52 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Best Box Sets I Ever Bought!, February 28, 2009

By 

S. Rock "zhelder" (NJ) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Albums (Audio CD)

OK, admit it. You love ABBA. I do too. I didn't realize how brilliant ABBA was until well into adulthood, but this Swedish quartet put out some of the most exciting, catchy, and brilliant music of all time.

Until I bought this box set, I was only familiar with ABBA through their greatest hits collections: ABBA Gold and More ABBA Gold. All of the songs of these collections are brilliant, but there is so much more to ABBA than just their hits. ABBA was not just disco. Their discography of music is surprisingly eclectic, and they could rock hard just as easily as they could light up the dance floor at Studio 54.

Every one of ABBA's albums, from their 1973 debut to their final album in 1981, The Visitors, is a masterpiece. Every song ABBA created could have been a hit. As many others have said, ABBA truly never released a song or album that wasn't good.

And it is through this box set that I discovered how much incredible music from ABBA is unknown. Wall of Sound? It's more like a Cube of Sound with ABBA. Every song is meticulously composed, arranged, and sung. And it's because of this perfection that ABBA's music, even the songs on their debut album, sounds like it could have been recorded yesterday. Here's a brief rundown of each album in this set:

Ring Ring (1973) - What a debut! Powerful, peppy, Europop. The title song is probably the best known song from this album, but every song is terrific. Another Town, Another Train and Rock & Roll Band are two fantastic songs that could have been hits but weren't. I also love Nina, Pretty Ballerina, a fun, slightly silly song about a woman who's all business by day, but performs for the masses on Friday nights, and People Need Love, the first song Benny, Bjorn, Agnetha, and Anni-Frid recorded together. And again, thanks to that brilliant ABBA craftsmanship, most of these songs don't sound nearly as dated as others of the time period.

Waterloo (1974) - Wanna know what ABBA's best album was? This was it, despite a lack of true hits. This is ABBA's most eclectic album. Waterloo, the title track, is again pure power Europop, with great sax and piano work. ABBA rocks hard with Watch Out (probably their heaviest song) and the super silly, but brilliantly composed King Kong Song. My Mama Said is a song that proves ABBA may have helped to invent disco. But the song is much funkier that the typical disco song, with a great bass line, and therefore it doesn't sound dated at all. Honey Honey is a lovely little romantic ditty with synth work that ABBA created with a synthesizer than they got from the future. The album closes with Suzy Hang Around, a beautiful folksy song about a girl who just want to hang out with the boys but gets rejected, and it's wonderfully sung by Benny. Every time I play this album, my jaw drops when I think about the fact that most of these songs were recorded in 1973! They don't sound dated at all. This is not the music you think of when you think of ABBA. And that's why I love this album the most.

ABBA (1975) - Now the hits start coming. This album starts off with one of ABBA's best known songs, Mamma Mia. Mamma Mia is followed by one of ABBA's heavier rockers, Hey Hey Helen. The fantastic love song S.O.S. is also on this album. The highlight among highlights on this album is the beyond astonishing Intermezzo No. 1. Twenty years before Trans-Siberian Orchestra started to bring a fusion of hard rock and classical music to the masses, ABBA did it with this nearly four minute magnum opus. Words cannot describe how brilliant this composition is. And it was recorded in 1975?!? I can't believe it, and neither will you. I would say that this album is tied with its successor as ABBA's second best.

Arrival (1976) - Yes, ABBA truly did arrive with this album, and it's another masterpiece. This album features more hits, including what is probably ABBA's best know song, Dancing Queen. This album also features the best breakup song of all time, Knowing Me, Knowing You. The album starts off with the super peppy When I Kissed the Teacher, a song about a girl who shocks her class when she does exactly what the title says she does. The terrific Money, Money, Money is also on this album. While not a big hit when it was originally released, it has morphed into a pop staple over the years.

The Album (1977) - While a hair less brilliant than the three albums that preceded it, The Album still shows ABBA as masters of their craft. This album starts off with the majestic Eagle, which is followed by another one of ABBA's best known songs, Take a Chance on Me. One Man, One Woman is a great romantic ballad. Hole in Your Soul is the best "Should Have Been a Hit, But Wasn't" song on this album. A super uptempo rocker with tremendous energy, it will have you singing along every time you hear it. The albums ends with a trio of Broadwayesque "mini-musical" songs, Thank You for the Music, I Wonder (Departure), and I'm a Marionette.

Voulez-Vous (1979) - Here it is, the "Disco" album. I would say that this is my least favorite ABBA album. It's still brilliant, but not quite as terrific as the albums that preceded it. The heavy disco influence makes the songs on this album sound a little more dated than the other albums. Still, ABBA's disco songs will blow any other group's out of the water, thanks to the brilliant composing and arranging. The highlights of this album are the title track and the fantastically playful Disco/Rock fusion song Does Your Mother Know.

Super Trouper (1980) - As the 70s morphed into the 80s, something happened to ABBA that happens to most of us: they grew up. Super Trouper showcases a more mature, more introspective ABBA. The music toned down the super happy Europop a bit and brought in some more adult contemporary elements. It was like Voulez-Vous was ABBA's giant party, and this album let everyone know that it was time to get serious. The album starts off with the terrific Super Trouper. Other highlights: Me and I, the new waveesque On and On and On, and the terrific medieval sounding The Piper. This album is a bit different from the others, but still great.

The Visitors (1981) - While the final albums of most groups often shown a notable decline in music quality, that's not the case here. The Visitors is a terrific swan song. Like its predecessor, the albums tends to be more serious in tone than ABBA's 70s albums. The album starts off with the sci-fi inspired The Visitors, a great song with the typical hooky ABBA chours. Two for the Price of One is ABBA's "fun" song on this album. The album does have a bit of a somber tone throughout, but the quality of the songs still does not disappoint.

This set also contains a bonus disc with many extra songs from all of ABBA's different eras. Included are Swedish version of Ring Ring and Waterloo and some early songs sung by Bjorn, including Santa Rosa and Merry Go Round. I particularly like the Medley: Pick a Bale of Cotton, On Top of Old Smokey, and Midnight Special, recorded around the time of ABBA's self-titled album in 1975.

The packaging of this set is super compact, and all of the CDs are housed in replicas of the original LP album covers. There is also a bonus book containing little tidbits and dates about many of ABBA's songs.

The sound of every one of the CDs is absolutely stellar. Benny and Bjorn must have put their magic touch on these CDs. Every note is crystal clear.

I cannot recommend this collection enough. ABBA's contributions to pop music and, in fact, to music in general, cannot be praised enough. Pick up this set and you will get the opportunity to enjoy some of the best pop, rock, and disco music ever created. Yes, indeed, ABBA, thank you for the music.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars only for the completist, May 2, 2009

By 

James Tg Fuentes (quezon city Philippines) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Albums (Audio CD)

If you're the completist, whose sensibility almost always goes out the window; whose hard earned money goes out just as fast, then go ahead...blow it! I just did :)

But if you are a bit of a pragmatist and own their lavish, velvetty boxed set "the complete studio collection" from 2005, you might want to pass.

For one, the cd's and sleeves look exactly the same as the 2005 set, albeit without the bonus tracks. Second, audio quality, having been digitalized and remastered by the same blokes, masters of audio, is the same. These are the same folks who ruined Agnetha's "Wrap Your Arms Around Me" and Frida's "Something's Going On" remasters from 2005. When i heard that Universal will release yet another boxed set of the Swedish monolith's recorded work, i would have expected them to set history straight by including ABBA's spanish album "Gracias Por La Musica"...to my non surprise but nonetheless utter disappointment, they still blew that chance, so this would be the third reason not to buy it.

Although both Universal and ABBA have sole prerogative on how to market their body of work, they should realize that we fans, who've made the music a part of our lives by buying their records, are aware of the fact that 9 albums were OFFICIALLY released and not 8. And I'm not even counting in 1986's "ABBA-Live" which should actually bring the tally to 10 bona fide albums.

I can't see the reason why their Spanish album, which has done well in both South America, Spain and even Japan, continues to be denied its rightful place. Such revisionism, may backfire. Who knows, someone or something might knock some sense into me and might choose not to buy another, if Universal milks their catalog one more time with another boxed set.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great collection!, March 11, 2009

By 

M. McShane "Vermicious Knid" (Virginia, United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Albums (Audio CD)

Simply, this is a collection of all of ABBA's original albums. If you have the "Gold" collection or the "Definitive" Collection, you are going to have a few repeats. This is a great collection of ABBA music. The discs are in sleeves that look like the original album jackets which is pretty cute. The box the CDs come in isn't the same size as a standard jewel case so it probably won't fit in easily or uniformly with the rest of your collection.

But whatever. That's the packaging. As for the music, it is great. In fact, after having heard some ABBA songs I'd never heard (they were a little before my time in their original run), I am thinking that whoever put together the Definitive and Gold collections was asleep at the wheel. There are some really catchy songs that don't get much play or recognition. I love "Nina, Pretty Ballerina," "King Kong Song," "Me and Bobby and Bobby's Brother," and "Happy Hawaii." They all have really catchy melodies and are a great change from some of the overplayed standards.

I got this as a Lightening Deal and so got it for a lot less than list price. I am thrilled with my purchase. My coworkers, who've had to sit through hours of ABBA might not be quite as thrilled as I am though!