Customer Reviews

Lycka

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This is as hooky, clever and just as beatifully melodic as anything ABBA released. I ve just listened to the first 5 songs over and over again. I havent memorized the thing yet, but for any fans of melody, beauty and infectious melodies, get this. For God's sake, its Benny and Bjorn!

In some ways this is the birth of ABBA.
This album features the first track to have
all future members of ABBA on it and this is the very first album to have all the music written by Björn and Benny. Björn and Benny wrote the music to all of the songs and some of the lyrics. The whole album is sung in Swedish . Björn doing most of the lead vocals, with Benny providing some backing vocals. Benny actually sings lead on one of the songs here-"Kara Gamla Sol", but's it's hard to tell it's Benny. The original album featured eleven songs. The title translates into Happiness. This album was released in the fall of 1970 on Polar Records. As a whole, this album features some of Björn's best work.

Acoustic and Electric Guitar feature more prominently here than they would on ABBA records. The electric guitar ,in particular dominates on "Kalles Visa" and "Nagonting Ar Pa Vag".This album is a bit more serious in tone than some of the later B&B songs and early ABBA songs that would follow in the early and mid-Seventies. None of the songs here (even in translation) have a bubble gum lyrics or sound.

"Hej Gamle Man" (Hello Old Man) was released as the single from this album and proved to be successful, though the album was not overly successful. "Hej Gamle Man" features Agnetha and Frida on backing vocals. It was the first song to feature all four members of ABBA. "Hej Gamle Man" actually shows up on the ABBA box set -THANK YOU FOR YOU THE MUSIC.

My favorite song on this album is the great acoustic guitar workout "Liselotte " (it features lyrics by Agnetha and Björn). I also love the anthemic "Ge Oss En Chans"(Give Us A Chance) . "Ge Oss En Chans "has some soulful singing and some great organ. A nice little touch can be found at the beginning of "Lilla Du, Lilla Van' which starts with Benny's piano sneaking in at a low volume.

The stark brown cover is telling. It's clear that their is seriousness of purpose and intent in these two young man. Benny's (age 23) trademark beard puts in it's first appearence on a album cover (Benny (never had a beard on the Hep Stars album covers). Björn (then age 25) looks a little smug but the trademark smile is there. The Swedish flag on the Guitar seems to say ,"We represent Sweden to the world!. This album was made complete in 2006 with the inclusion as bonus tracks of all the remaining songs recorded by Bjorn and Benny

For those of you who know early ABBA - and its plodding pop template - "Lycka" will be a surprise. There should be little argument that ABBA's first album, "Ring Ring", gave little indication of the pop greatness ahead, with its twee lyrics, clumsy Anglophilia and embryonic "ABBA sound". "Lycka" is quite different. Written and recorded at the turn of the decade, it reflects a distinctly pastoral, almost psychedelic sensibility. It's obvious Benny & Bjorn were greatly influenced by Brian Wilson, but their music at the time also grew out of distinctively Scandinavian folk origins; there are lots of softly strummed guitars and Bjorn singing sotto voce here. Unfortunately, Bjorn singing softly doesn't add much to this very pretty music - in fact, his anonymous vocals are often so bland as to actually detract from the music, a common problem with his solo turns during ABBA. Nevertheless, this album took me by surprise (have I mentioned that before?) after I sat and listened to it, rather than initially dismissing it as "primitive ABBA". It's not. Some of the songs on "Lycka" are quite beautiful and often unlike anything produced during ABBA. Recommended.

I was happy to found this CD on a music store, and immediately bought it. I own the Thank you for the Music Box Set and there I enjoyed "Hej gamle man!", but here I was pleased to find some other songs featuring vocals of Agnetha and Frida, like "Tank om jorden vore ung", but the real discovery is the eclectic music of Benny & Björn of that time... you never get bored, with rock melodies and soultry and intimate ballads. If you're an ABBA fan and like the voices of these guys... go for it! the bonus is awesome, with 14 tunes (the double than the original CD!) with songs in swedish, german and english. Also, different versions of nice first ABBA tunes, like Rock'n roll band and Merry Go Round, and the unreleased english version of Lycka, the title track: To Live with you. I highly recommend it!

Lycka is an important album. It gives us a preview of the gestation of ABBA, a very influential and successful pop music act. The song-writing and production are simple and beautiful. Even without the voices of Frida and Agnetha, Bjorn and Benny manage to convey deep emotion and melancholy.