Customer Reviews

Number Ones

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If the only ABBA CD you own is 1992's multimillion selling GOLD, then it's definitely time to replace that collection of classic pop music it with a newer compilation. The digital remastering on this CD is amazing, and ABBA sounds shiny and new and vibrant all over again!

On the other hand, if Amazon still has THE DEFINITIVE COLLECTION on sale for $9.99, pick that up instead. Same remastering, MORE SONGS! LONG LIVE ABBA!

Once again Univeral Music is milking the ABBA cash cow. With the world wide MEGA success of 'ABBA GOLD' why on earth is this compilation needed? With that said, the ONLY territory possibly needing this CD is the USA. Why? The USA is the only country where 'GOLD' has never been remastered or repackaged. In fact, it still has the incorrect ABBA Logo using the wrong font! 3 songs from 'GOLD', "Does Your Mother Know", "Lay All Your Love On Me" & "Thank Your For The Music" have been replaced on 'Number Ones' with "Summer Night CIty" & "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do". For some strange reason, the USA edition only has 18 tracks whereas the European version has inlcuded "Ring Ring" to total 19. (The USA DVD does contain all 19 songs). Another plus for the US is the full versions of "Voulez-Vous" & "The Name Of The Game" are included. (GOLD had the edited versions). If you're looking for a single CD containing most of ABBA's biggest hits, then 'Number Ones' is nice. But for the extra few bucks, I would get double CD 'The Definitive Collection' I choose to give this CD 5 stars because I LOVE ABBA!

When a group is as universally popular as ABBA you can rest assured that those in charge of their catalogue will take advantage of this overwhelming popularity. If you were to believe the statistics, the Swedish Super-group has sold more than 360 million units worldwide, making them one of the biggest selling acts in the history of popular music trailing behind The Beatles and Elvis Presley. It should not come as a surprise that this compilation was released even though there are several others available that already showcase the talents of this lovable foursome. There's the 20th Century Masters collection (CD) featuring ABBA which was certified Gold in the US, "The Definitive Collection" (CD and DVD) and the most popular of them all "ABBA GOLD: Greatest Hits" (CD and DVD) which was certified 6 x platinum in the US and has sales of over 25 million world-wide. So what is the point of this new release titled "ABBA Number Ones" which like their previous compilations have been released in both CD and DVD format? The title of one of ABBA's hits comes to mind: "Money, Money, Money". For the millions who already own "GOLD" and "The Definitive Collection" purchasing "Number Ones" would be pointless since they already own these songs. However, for the millions of fans (like myself) "Number Ones" is just another compilation to add to your ever growing collection.

"ABBA: Number Ones" showcases all of the songs that topped the charts internationally (The DVD version includes all the videos to these classic songs and as a bonus, they throw in a live version of "Waterloo", 2 other live performances which were sung to a backing track and a Number One scrapbook which lists all the countries the respective singles topped the charts in, although some of the lists are incomplete since it omits countries several of these songs reached the top). Evidence of ABBA's overwhelming international appeal is that if you were to tally up all of their number ones, you would get a number well over 100. Missing in action however is "Does Your Mother Know" which reached # 1 in Belgium and the Top Ten in several other territories including Canada, "Eagle" which topped the charts in Belgium and "Lay All Your Love on Me" which was a top ten hit in the UK and reached # 1 in the US Hot Dance Club Play Charts in the early 80's.

ABBA's success in North America paled slightly to their massive appeal elsewhere however to state they were not successful in the US and Canada will be an inaccurate statement. In the US, the group had 20 singles reach the Billboard Hot 100 within an 8 year time frame out of which 14 reached the Top 40. They also scored a # 1 hit on the singles chart with "Dancing Queen" (featured here), two # 1 hits in the Billboard Adult Contemporary Charts with "Fernando" and "The Winner Takes It All" (featured here) and a # 1 in the Billboard Dance/Club charts with "Lay All Your Love on Me" (not featured here). In Canada they scored no less than 14 Top Forty hits out of which 8 reached the Top Ten and 6 consecutive Top Ten albums including a # 1 with Greatest Hit: Vol 2.

To the few who have not been exposed to these timeless and immaculate pop gems, "ABBA: Number Ones" may be a good place to start with since it's reasonably priced and offers their biggest hits but keep in mind that "The Definitive Collective" is far more extensive and may be a better buy. For the millions of ABBA fans out there, what can I say since you already own these songs? But knowing the passion this group inspires among their fan-base, I wouldn't be surprised in knowing that when entering your favorite music store, the first thing you do is extend your arm and grab this CD/DVD off the shelf and pay for it at the counter. I can't blame you since I have done exactly that. That is the power of ABBA's music

The writing team of Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson and their respective partners in music and life, Agnetha Faltskog and Frida Lyngstad, basically invented Europop when they pooled their collective talents and became ABBA. One supposes keeping their past-affiliations names (Hep Stars or the Hootenanny Singers) wasn't quite as catchy. But then they wrote "Waterloo" for a Eurovision song contests and the musical universe suddenly altered.

That one song pretty much laid out the template for Abba's world domination to come. Frothy melodies wed to instantly catchy choruses sung with frothy harmonies by the twin female singers. "Number Ones" captures that cotton candy in all its seventies glory, as the band rocketed from pop-stars to international phenomenon. As their songs moved from the catchy singles like "Ring Ring" and "Waterloo" into the later seventies, ABBA wisely embraced disco and created the immortal "Dancing Queen." They were so insanely wealthy from their worldwide hitmaking that they were forced to take payments in commodities instead of cash, that is how omnipresent the likes of "Dancing Queen" and other dancefloor smashes like "Voulez-Vous" and "Gimme Gimme Gimme" became.

Thus we have yet another ABBA greatest hits. The standard before this was "ABBA - Gold: Greatest Hits," and at a slightly higher cost (but frankly, with more songs than I needed) was "The Definitive Collection." While "Number Ones" boasts remastered sound over "Gold," we lose "Does Your Mother Know" and "Lay All Your Love On Me." ("The Definitive Collection" includes those as well as "Ring Ring.")

It also becomes obvious why this compilation was released as soon as the first song begins to play. Thanks to Madonna, who nicked the hook for her own "Hung Up," "Gimme Gimme Gimme (A Man After Midnight)" has opened the door for a whole new generation of ABBA fans. That is all fine by me - if a new crew of kids can learn the value of genuine musical composition, then I am willing to give "Number Ones" a hearty recommendation.

Even though other ABBA compilations already exist, this is still a well put together collection of tracks. It's safe to assume that the songs in this album were number one hits in countries around the world since their only chart topper in the US was "Dancing Queen". Hence, this collection truly underscores their global popularity.

Strangely the booklet is devoid of credits so it's not known who compiled or produced the disc nor does it say anywhere which countries the songs reached number one. But unlike other compilations "Gold" and "The Definitive Collection" the lyrics to the tracks are printed so you can actually sing along while it's playing.

New and old fans alike will love this album. It's great to play during long trips and/or parties. You'll be hard pressed to touch the skip button on this one.

As noted by previous reviewers, if you own 'Gold' it's time to update!
The new 2005 remasters by Johan Funemyr, DCM are top-notch compared to the 2001 remasters by John Astley with Michael B. Tretow in my opinion. This collection includes all the great hits from around the world, with the exception of 'Ring Ring' (found on the import double CD release). This album would be flawless if they had used the original single version of 'Summer Night City' because the extended part was added using "non-digital" efforts and has a noticeable drop out when the song picks up at the single version.
Drop this CD in and press play. You will NOT be dissapointed! I can only DARE you to try and turn it off!
Oh, and for you Madonna fans...she's quoted in the forward!

This is just another repackaging job from the money spinners at Universal. The tracks are the 2001 masters used for the reissue of all the original albums, and if you have none of these, then you might consider buying this double set. The second CD however, while not being number one hits, are tracks 'taken' from number one albums. I have no problem with this, but running at a slim 43 minutes, when we all know CDs can hold up to 80 minutes, you'd expect they might have been a little more generous. After all, it's not as though there isn't enough material to fill up the disc. One can't help but feel that Universal are bleeding consumers. Given this, my advice is to wait until the price plummets, or buy it second hand. Not good value for money, and quite a few punters believe these tracks were specially remastered for this release. The offical ABBA Fan Club in the Netherlands confirm this is not the case - these are recycled 2001 masters. Not that this is a bad thing, but if you are expecting something spectacularly different from the 2001 reissues you will be disappointed.

These eighteen ABBA's songs represent the best and you probably won't tire of them. It is amazing that four Swedes (Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus as writers and Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Agnetha Fältskog as the main singers) could take such simple English clichés and turn them into pop music magic. Despite sometimes maddeningly simple lyrics, the song arrangements were unnervingly catchy and the multi-level layered compositions are fascinating. The keyboards and synthesizers were used in some of the more ingenious ways during the seventies to produce that unmistakable ABBA sound. The energy and nearly anthemic enthusiasm emanating from each song marked them all as instant classics, no matter how jaded or cynical the listener. It is doubtful if you read the song list here that you would not know the melody. The one ironic thing about this groups phenomenal success, is that of over 400 million album sales, they only had one number one hit in the US - "Dancing Queen" - but when you look at world-wide markets, each one of these songs hit the number one spot at some time. That's quite an achievement.

I received this album as a gift and now I listen to it constantly. I bought it for the person who gave it to me. She and I both agree that you can't choose a favorite song on this album because they are all so great. Any ABBA fan should include this album in their collection because the 18 songs on it really capture their talent and they're just so much fun to sing! I love that the album comes with lyrics, also. In my opinion, out of all ABBA hits albums, this one is the best, especially for the price; you won't find a better value for your money. It has all the songs that made ABBA so popular and continues to keep their music alive today. You won't be disappointed and you'll want to play it loud again and again.

Bad news for reviewer Michael Allen, but the official sources confirm these are the 2001 remasters - none have been done since, so if you have the 2001 album reissues, they will sound exactly the same as this. This is just another repackaging job.