Stig Anderson Appreciation Post

 Breaking up my Song Analysis posts to talk about Stikkan Anderson, a key player in ABBA's success story.  Without Stig, I don't think ABBA would have become the worldwide superstars that they still are today.  Stig was ABBA's manager, and co-founder of Polar Music.  Stig played a big part in buying rights to existing popular hits and adding new Swedish lyrics, which added a new level of interest throughout Sweden.  He also discovered a very young Bjorn Ulvaeus with his band, the West Bay Singers, back in the 60s, and skyrocketed their career throughout Scandinavia and parts of Europe under the new name the Hootenanny Singers.  

Aside from being ABBA's manager, Stig also contributed lyrics to a lot of ABBA's songs, including some of their most popular tracks.  His ABBA songwriting credits include: Ring Ring (Bara Du Slog En Signal), I Am Just A Girl, Merry-Go-Round, Waterloo, Hasta Manana, Honey Honey, Mamma Mia, Tropical Loveland, S.O.S., Bang-A-Boomerang, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I've Been Waiting For You, Dancing Queen, My Love, My Life, Knowing Me, Knowing You, That's Me, Fernando, Happy Hawaii, The Name Of The Game, Move On, and I Wonder (Departure).

Unfortunately, Stig and ABBA's story together didn't end on the friendliest of terms, with there even being a lawsuit over a dispute about profits.  Nowadays if any ABBA fan even remembers Stig, their opinions tend to be tainted by the negative events of this lawsuit, and many ABBA fans either forget about him  or think he's a bad guy.  In Carl Magnus Palms' book ABBA at 50, there was even this whole section highlighting the events of the ABBA vs. Stig dispute, and it really painted him badly.  But here's the thing, I don't think ABBA want Stig to be remembered that way.  At this point, the ABBA members don't seem to have any negative feelings towards Stig.  There's even a (assuming I'm remembering this correctly) a dance booth at ABBA Voyage named after Stig, and I believe hot dogs are sold at the restaurant at ABBA Voyage as a nod to Stig and his favorite food. 

Today would have been Stig Anderson's 93rd birthday.  He sadly passed away in 1997.  

The dispute that happened between ABBA and Stig was unfortunate and really sad, especially as their relationship with him never recovered, but it's not something that Stig deserves to be remembered for.  And I don't think ABBA want him to be remembered that way.  His legacy should remain as a testament to his significant contributions and unwavering dedication to their success story, allowing us to appreciate the best aspects of his impact on their remarkable journey.

 If you have the time and interest, I definitely recommend checking out this documentary all about Stig.  I think it talks about everything that happened with ABBA and Stig in a very respectful way, but doesn't leave out any of the details.

Happy 88th birthday Stig!

Today would've been Stig Anderson's 88th birthday.  Happy birthday, Stig. :)

Happy birthday Stig!

Today would've been ABBA's manager, Stikkan Anderson's 87th birthday. :)  Happy birthday Stig!

Ted - Show Me Love/För kärlekens skull Movie

In 2018 I believe, there's going to be a movie coming out about Ted Gardestad, the incredibly talented young singer from the 70s.  I've seen the trailer, but as someone who doesn't know Swedish, I wasn't able to understand what everyone was saying, but I think I get the gist of what's going on.  I quite like how it's giving the younger generation a chance to appreciate Ted's amazing music, but I can't help but notice that from the trailer, they seem to be dramatizing Ted's story quite a bit.  I know Ted's story ended quite tragically and that there were a lot of ups and downs, but I get the feeling that they're just exaggerating the story a little.  But that's just me and I could be wrong since I don't know a lot of the context from the trailer because I don't know Swedish. :P

I think they chose a pretty good actor to portray Ted.  The actor, whoever it is who is playing him, does resemble Ted quite a bit, only I can't say he has the right voice.  His voice is definitely a bit deeper than Ted's, which was a very unique and sweet voice.  But besides that, they did a good job on that part.

They also have an actor portraying Stig Anderson, as he's quite prominent in Ted's story.  I'd say they did well in choosing the actor to play him.  The hair isn't entirely accurate, but I'm just being picky because I'm all into everything being perfect.

And yes, ABBA are going to be making some appearances in the movie too.  I'm a bit skeptical about this since when it comes to ABBA, to me it just has to be perfect. xD  In the trailer, we see Bjorn and Benny, but we don't end up seeing Agnetha or Frida anywhere, though there's a chance that these two are Agnetha and Frida, and if so, then something's up.  Hopefully the blonde and brunette pictured here are not the As from ABBA and are just Ted's fans.  (Though it could be Bjorn, Agnetha, and Frida and well, what is up with the heights??? )

Anyway, this is what Bjorn and Benny look like in the movie:

I think they did okay, as in it's not the greatest but it'll do.  Judging by the hair, I'm guessing this is supposed to be during 1976, since they look a bit like the way Bjorn and Benny looked during the ABBA-Dabba-Doo special.

There is one scene where I'm pretty sure Agnetha and Frida are shown here, but only from the back.

And I think I can confirm that it is them because I have this picture of the actress Angelina Hakansson who plays Frida.  From the angle of this picture, she does look a little like Frida, but that's only at this angle.  So I can't say much.

By these two pictures, I am so confused as to what era of ABBA they are trying to portray and what year this takes place.  Frida has the hair that she had in late 1974/early 75,

Also note that Benny in the still from the trailer is also wearing this leopard print jacket that he wore a lot in '75

but the way the clothing that she and Agnetha are wearing resemble the way they dressed in 1976.

I'm hoping that the creators of this movie at least put some thought into the way ABBA's look has change throughout the 70s and 80s because it would be a shame if ABBA just had one look throughout the movie.  Frida's hair changes enough times over the years, she deserves to have multiple look and hairstyles, same for Agnetha.  Also I hope that if ABBA are shown performing at all, that they sound like ABBA, or at least mime to the original tracks.  But this movie isn't about ABBA - it's about Ted Gardestad.   

This movie does sound quite interesting and I hope to be able to watch it with subtitles if they're going to be available when the movie comes out. :)

Happy birthday Stig!

Today would have been ABBA's beloved manager Stikkan Anderson's 86th birthday.  Happy birthday Stig.  We miss you. :')

Stikkan Anderson

So I came across a post where someone had some pretty nasty stuff about Stig Anderson, and I thought I'd speak up about that.  I figure I should mention that ABBA wouldn't be ABBA without their manager Stig being there.  Stig was a wonderful man who took great care managing all of ABBA's stuff and everything involved with the music business.  Sure there may have been some arguments since no one ever said the behind the scenes work was easy, but ABBA loved Stig.  Stig contributed so much to the band!  The song "Hasta Manana" wouldn't be the way it is if not for Stig's help.  So if you've got something against Stig, please remember who you're talking about and how important Stig was to ABBA's success.  Thank you very much for reading. :)

85 years

Today, Stig Anderson would've turned 85.  Happy birthday, Stikkan.

Happy birthday, Stig!

Stikkan "Stig" Anderson was born 84 years ago on January 25th, 1931. The fifth member of ABBA, otherwise known as their manager, will still be remembered even though he is not with us today.  ABBA would not be ABBA if not for Stig. 

Happy 81st birthday, Stig! :D

Agnetha: Is it somebody's birthday today?

Yes, yes it is!  Happy birthday to Stig Anderson!  Its a shame that he's not with us anymore, but we will always remember him as ABBA's founding father.   :)

Happy 82nd Birthday, Stikkan Anderson...

... that is if you were alive today...  Poor Stig.  Anyway, if he were alive, then today would be his 82nd birthday!  Happy birthday to you...!  I'm sure that Stig would get an even bigger celebration than he did on his 50th birthday in 1981!  :D

  Here is a video (Sorry, I've got no time to make a LEGO video. I'm stuck at Take A Chance On Me at the moment) of ABBA singing "Tivedshambo" in 1986, the last time they ever got together to record a song.  Hopefully, they will again soon!  :D

And of course, the lyrics to sing along:

Vi skriver lördagskväll
Och tivedsflikan säll
Har vandrat ut från mörka skogen
Åt alla hörn och håll
Det gått som en paroll:
På lördag är det dans på logen
Och med en tacksam smäll
Att det är lördagskväll
Slår kolaren igen sin koja
För när som det är dans
I trakten någonstans
Då vill han vara med och skoja

Där vi i skog och dal
Sällan skådar kvinnlig fägring
Där uti kojan sval
Hamo låter som en hägring
Mennu uti vi chansen har
Att å minnen med tillbaka
Bra att ad vid långa gråa dar
Som tröst för det vi får försaka 

Hör raska klackar slår
När tivedshambo går.
Har Fridas Verner blivit galen
Här sprätter tivedsbor
I hambodansens klor,
Och Verner jagar landsfiskalen
Jag blir det gräl och kiv
Så avgörs det med kniv
För här är rena Vilda Västern
Till vardag och till fest
Är rapesnuset bäst.
Kom hit så bär vi bort orkestern

Hör raska klackar slår
När tivedshambo går.
Har Fridas Verner blivit galen
Här sprätter tivedsbor
I hambodansens klor,
Och Verner jagar landsfiskalen
Jag blir det gräl och kiv
Så avgörs det med kniv
För här är rena Vilda Västern
Till vardag och till fest
Är rapesnuset bäst.
Kom hit så bär vi bort orkestern 

Kvinnor, vin öch sång,
vi slåss på samma gång
och river sönder våra kläder
Och har man inga kvar
Man år med rumpan bar
Och tror på fortsatt vackert väder
Vi kastar inte pil,
Vi har en anna stil
Som mera lutar åt det vilda
Jag her väl ändå rätt
Att slåss på min biljett
När dom ger ögonkast åt Hilda 

Då kan det hända att
Tivedsblodet svallar över
Då åker rock hatt
Utifall ni stryk behöver
Vana vid släp och slit
Kojarliv och tivedskogar
Står vårt mod och våran fasta lit
Till styrkan och till våra knogar 

Hör raska klackar slår
När tivedshambo går.
Har Fridas Verner blivit galen
Här sprätter tivedsbor
I hambodansens klor,
Och Verner jagar landsfiskalen
Jag blir det gräl och kiv
Så avgörs det med kniv
För här är rena Vilda Västern
Till vardag och till fest
Är rapesnuset bäst.
Kom hit så bär vi bort orkestern