Customer Reviews

Waterloo (Digipak)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I never bought this album in my vinyl days, content with the tracks that were included on their first Greatest hits album, though I did buy it on CD. As with the Ring ring album, the selection of songs to be included on Greatest hits was spot on. The four selected (Waterloo, Hasta manana, Honey honey and Dance while the music still goes on) are easily the best tracks on this album. Not that there's anything wrong with the other songs here, just that the other four are exceptional.

The title track is by far the best known - this up-tempo song easily won the Eurovision song contest and quickly topped the British chart. It also topped the charts in many other countries and was also a top ten hit in America.

Hasta manana was considered as an alternative to Waterloo for Eurovision. It might have won, but it is unlikely that it would have been as big a hit as Waterloo turned out to be. Indeed, I'm not even sure if it was ever released as a single - but it is an enjoyable song.

Honey honey was a top thirty hit for Abba in America, but Sweet dreams (a duo featuring ex-Pickettywitch singer Polly Browne) covered the song and had a top ten hit with it in Britain. Apart from Dance while the music still goes on, perhaps the best of the rest are My mama said and Gonna sing you my love song.

As with so many of Abba's albums, this is generally upbeat. Despite several wonderful songs, it is not as strong as several of their later albums. This is one for Abba's committed fans like me - and there are plenty of those around the world to ensure steady sales for years to come.

Though occasionally derided for being a bunch of lightweights, Abba reigned supreme during the late 70s and early 80s as the world's most popular rock band since The Beatles. The reason was simple, they were capable of writing and performing great pop songs. Having said that, Abba was also first and foremost a singles band. Any of their various Greatest Hits and anthology collections are better buys for most fans that their original albums, which contain less than first rate filler material in between the hits.

"Waterloo" is actually one of their better original albums. The title track and "Honey Honey" are the big hits, but there are a number of solid less well known songs, including "Dance (While the Music Still Goes On," "What About Livingstone," "Gonna Sing You My Lovesong" and a decent regge attempt with "Sitting in a Palmtree." There are also a few out and out duds, particularly the silly "King Kong Song," a lame attempt at hard rock.

Overall, "Waterloo" is a good album for Abba fans, but I would recommend that casual listeners start with a Greatest Hits collection first.

The Swedish foursome's second album topped their debut in having more upbeat songs and better production. As again, Agnetha sings lead unless otherwise noted.

It was the galloping title track with catchy hooks and lyrics, jingling guitar, Agnetha's strong vocals combined with Frida's, and some tenor sax, that bettered "Ring Ring" by winning the next Eurovision song contest. As with that song, it was released in Swedish and English versions, and it's interesting to hear both. It was their first #1 UK hit.

The slow tropical sounding "Sitting In The Palmtree" sung lead by Bjorn is about a heartbroken guy sitting in that tree amid the coconuts waiting for his girl despite being made fun of by passersby.

A hard guitar permeates "King Kong Song," which veers towards a hard doo-wop rocker, and things get silly with the basso doo-wop vocals as Bjorn sings about writing a song about watching a gorilla movie on TV, and gives an uncharacteristically rowdy shout about "a big black wild gorilla." Agnetha takes on the next verse. One of the best songs here.

One of Agnetha's heartfelt mid-paced ballads is the farewell song "Hasta Manana." Or rather, goodbye till we meet again. There's a nod to a brief Shangri-La's type monologue (q.v. "Leader of the Pack") in the middle, as well as Connie Francis.

With the pulsing bass and drums as a backing, "My Mama Said" seems a precursor to the disco sound they would produce with "Dancing Queen." Didn't think a clean-cut group like them would do a rebellion song, as the protagonist, a teenager, wants a life of her own, but is nagged at by her parents.

"Dance (While The Music Still Goes On)" is a nod to romantic 60's-type pop like the Ronettes or the Crystals, a mid-paced dance floor number that foreshadows material from ABBA or Arrival. The harmony vocals towards the end meshed with the wall of instrumentation puts an ethereal magic touch on things.

One of my favourite ABBA songs: the brisk and danceable "Honey Honey" replete with strings and synths, also done in Swedish on this CD. Bjorn sings a few lines here.

"Watch Out" is more a rocker with some funky bass motifs which Bjorn molds his voice to in the verses. The refrain of "And I'm tired of waiting/yes it's driving me crazy" has counterharmonies from the girls going "ooh la la la" like the Beatles.

"What About Livingstone" is dance pop set to a reggae-like beat and praises sacrifices made in the name of progress and testing their courage for a greater cause.

It's Frida's turn to sing lead, and "Gonna Sing You My Lovesong" is a ballad comforting someone who's girl (or it is spouse?) is mad at him.

"Suzy-Hang-Around" is Benny's only lead vocal in ABBA period. It's one of those cruel childhood situations, where some mean boys who are "right at the time when boys like to think they're men" tell the title character to go away and find her own friends and playground(!!) Pity he didn't do any more lead vocals, as he isn't bad. The US remix of "Ring Ring" is included here as a bonus track. I tend to favour the original versions.

With this album, they became known by the acronym of their first names, Agnetha, Benny, Bjorn, and Anni-frid being quite a mouthful.

When the self-titled album was issued, for some reason, the title track, "Hasta Manana," and "Honey Honey" were tacked on there along with "Ring Ring" and "Nina Pretty Ballerina." Odd, really. Better than Ring Ring, Waterloo succeeds from more great songs and showing them able to do rock, a bit of tropical, and a precursor to disco.

Abba is the most important pop band of all time, and this CD is one of the best of the group. Their second album is full of beautiful melodies and a lot of amazing arrangements, in memorable songs like 'Hasta Mañana", "Dance (While The Music Still Goes On)", "Waterloo", and "My Mamma Said".
All the record is great, and you can hear and see how they were beyond the times, doing sometimes disco music in 1974, and without the motown influence, or some pre-discoteque kind of music. They were unique, very original, and this CD shows the begginig of the legend, a mature band in compositions, arrangements and ideas, even in this early stage of their career.
That is definitely "a must" to every fan of pop music and good music.

I purchased this disc for the sole purpose of obtaining the American mix of Ring-Ring, it is a nice jazz alternative of the one that we have grown accustomed to and was shocked at the actual quality difference in the music as a whole when compared to the disc that I already have. The instruments are more present, they have the audio depth of being in the room with a much warmer, cleaner delivery. Agnetha and Frida have more warmth to their voices, more sweetness in their delivery. I never thought that there would be as noticeable difference in the remastering and I look forward to replacing my collection...

No matter what anyone tells you- ABBA was and still is the greatest band of ALL Time! They were ahead of their time in 1974, which is why they are MORE popular today, especially in the USA, than ever before. Their song compositions are multi-layered, and comlex; that is why critics who really don't know them call them simplistic ballads. That's because they're too complex in nature to be dissected. Just sit back, listen to their songs, and escape reality for a while. This CD and all of their others are masterpieces that will survive time.

Besides songs like Eurovision winner "Waterloo" and their second hit single "Honey, Honey" being favorites from Mamma Mia, I've discovered new ones. "Gonna Sing You My Love Song", "Hasta Manana" and "Dance (While the Music Still Goes On)" are highlights for me on this. Ones that feel out of place are the reggae-styled "Sitting in the Palm Tree", the rocking "Watch Out" and "King Kong Song" and these songs I couldn't find a category for: "My Mama Said" and "What About Livingstone".

This album was the one that introduced ABBA to the USA (with the USA remix of Ring Ring tacked on at the end - I still prefer the single original mix without the added disco kick drum and sax solos).

On their (real) second album ABBA left their acoustic Swedish folk influences behind (though they do surface in many later recordings) and went for pure international Pop, thanks to the huge Eurovision success of the title track.

Despite some childish kids lyrics (Bjorn was still getting the hang of writing in english) every song here is so catchy you'll forget how silly songs like "King Kong Song" and the jangly "Suzy-Hang-Around" are. "(Dance) While the Music Still Goes On" is one of my all-time favorite early ABBA songs, a great 60's inspired track that should have been a single. And "Gonna Sing You My Love Song" was the beginning point for the huge ballads that became ABBA's stock in trade by the late 70's.

The production isn't as quite as pristine as ABBA's later albums, some tracks are very densely compressed and mixed to blast out of radios, not home stereos. Still the new CD is improvement over the CD that was released in the early 90's, with more crispness and clarity especially in the vocals.

Amazingly ABBA created that huge multi-layered sound during this time in a tiny Swedish studio with only a 8-Track multitrack recorder and a BIG Echo chamber using a drained swimming pool - no drum machines, MIDI or sampling here. Though it's not their best album, and might be a shock to hear if you're only familiar with their later classics, "Waterloo" is a lot of fun and a must have for ABBA fans.

Some reviewers want to say that this early album is simply formative and not that great. While it's true they had not quite gelled into their later "dance sheen", the fact is that this is among their best. If you are a true fan, you will find this album their most ecclectic, but full of all the things that made them great (which is why you will love it). The difference here is their doing so many different styles of music. But they all work. That's why they are Gods and Goddesses.