Product Description

1979's VOULEZ-VOUZ, the Swedish foursome's sixth album, wasprobably their commercial pinnacle, as nearly half of the album's ten tracks became substantial hits. The discofied title track, the anthemic "I Have A Dream", Bjorn Ulvaeus' vocal showcase "Does Your Mother Know?" and the UNICEF benefit single "Chiquitita" were inescapable on AM radio in the waning days of the '70s. However, those tracks aren't the album'sonly merits, as the bittersweet "Angeleyes" and the downright spiteful "The King Has Lost His Crown" are among ABBA's best and most beloved songs. In 1979, ABBA were the biggest-selling band in popular music. The slick yet substantial VOULEZ-VOUS shows why this position was justified.

Track Listing

1. As Good As New
2. Voulez-Vous
3. I Have A Dream
4. Angel Eyes
5. The King Has Lost His Crown
6. Does Your Mother Know
7. If It Wasn't For The Night
8. Chiquitita
9. Lovers (Live A Little Longer)
10. Kisses Of Fire
11. Summer Night City
12. Lovelight
13. Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #112 in Music
• Released on: 2002-02-01
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 54 minutes

Customer Reviews

Brilliant ABBA album. One of the best
'Voulez-Vous' is the ABBA album that is full of disco tracks. It is so energetic and thoroughly enjoyable to listen to. These 24-bit remastering CD's are simply amazing indeed. My favourite track from this album is 'Angeleyes.' It has the best beat out of all the songs on 'Voulez-Vous.' I also love 'As Good As New', 'Kisses of Fire', 'Does Your Mother Know', 'If It wasn't For The Nights', 'I Have A Dream' and 'The King Has Lost His Crown.'

I also enjoy the bonus tracks featured on 'Voulez-Vous.' 'Lovelight' was the B-side to 'Chiquitita' when the single was released. 'Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)' is magnificent' and the same goes to 'Summer Night City.' A Fantastic album

Abba do their own version of Disco
Abba followed the disco trend, but in their own way. Allegedly, more tracks were written, partially recorded and scrapped for Voulez-Vous than any other Abba album. Thankfully, they ended up with 10 classic tracks (yes, even I Have A Dream, though only just).

Originally, the album contained four Top 4 hit singles, more than any other Abba album. There was even a fifth, the title track, which was issued as a double A-side with the UK hit Angeleyes. Does Your Mother Know was the first UK single to feature Bjorn on lead vocals, and contained a somewhat adult subject matter (though not X-rated lyrics). Such is the quality of this album that there are other tracks, such as As Good As New and If It Wasn't For The Nights, that could easily have been released as singles.

The duff track is I Have A Dream, which doesn't really fit in with the rest of the album, is over-long and over-sentimental.

Additional singles released around the album were Summer Night City (originally intended for inclusion but left off) and Gimme Gimme Gimme, a new single released after the album. Both tracks are added as bonuses, and fit in perfectly, as does Lovelight, one of Abba's best b-sides (and I was disappointed when I first heard Robbie Williams' Lovelight as I'd hoped it was a cover version of Abba's, but sadly it wasn't).

All six singles missed the UK No. 1, but none reached lower than No. 5, and Abba weren't done yet. This certainly wasn't the beginning of the end.

This is one of Abba's best three albums (the others being Arrival and The Album) and is a classic.

Voulez-vous? You betcha!
The ever adaptable ABBA kept their finger on the late 70s pulse by dipping into the sex-soaked disco culture. Without adopting genre wholesale, they got creative with some of its tricks for their own classic pop creations.

"If It Wasn't For The Nights", an absolute delight, is a perfect example of this marriage of dancefloor pizzazz to Abba's trademark piano-driven tunefulness. It is the No.1 single that should have been. The disco feel is more keenly felt on the album's zingy title track, which still sounds fresh almost 30 years on. Meanwhile, the sexy "Lovers" adds a sultry touch of funk to the mix.

Like any Abba album, great tunes are at the core. "Angeleyes" and "Chiquitita" are among Abba's all-time classics. The structure of the latter owes more to, perhaps, classical music than to pop and, like "I Have A Dream," is a little at odds with the overall feel of the album. Nevertheless, it demonstrates the breadth of Andersson's and Ulvaeus' talent. "The King Has Lost His Crown", with it's dreamy intro, Frida's sultry lead vocal and that melting string arrangement, is a hidden gem. Understandly so if you consider that 5 of the album's ten original tracks achieved A-side status: "Chiquitita", "Does Your Mother Know?", "Voulez-Vous", "Angeleyes" and "I Have A Dream".

This remastered version of the album is augmented by the 1978 hit single "Summer Night City", "Lovelight", (a B-side which actually sounds like an A-side) and the 1979 hit "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" - a sample of which breathed life into Madonna's "Hung Up". These bonus tracks were recorded during the album sessions and work well with the set.

Well mastered and crammed sull of hits, this is a definite must-have album.