| The Visitors | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio album by ABBA | ||||
| Released | November 30, 1981 | |||
| Recorded | March 16–November 14, 1981 | |||
| Genre | Pop, pop rock, synthpop | |||
| Length | 37:39 Polar (LP 1981) 67:11 Universal Music (CD 2005) |
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| Label | Polar Atlantic Records (US original release) |
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| Producer | Benny Andersson & Björn Ulvaeus | |||
| ABBA chronology | ||||
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| Singles from The Visitors | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic | [1] |
The Visitors is the eighth and final studio album by Swedish pop group ABBA, released on November 30, 1981.
With The Visitors, ABBA took several steps away from the "lighter" pop music they had recorded previously and the album is often regarded as a more complex and mature effort.[2] The opening track, "The Visitors", with its ominous synthesizer sounds and the distinctive lead vocal by Frida, announced a change in musical style. With Benny and Frida going their separate ways, the pain of splitting up was explored yet again in "When All is Said and Done". The major hit single on the album, "One of Us" also depicted the end of a love story. Elsewhere there were current cold war themes—highly topical at the time—and further songs of isolation and regret.
The Visitors album was one of the first records to be recorded and mixed digitally, and was the first in history to be manufactured on the new CD format in 1982 on Atlantic.[3] The Visitors has been reissued in digitally remastered form three times—first in 1997, then in 2001 and again in 2005 as part of The Complete Studio Recordings box set.
Contents |
Following the divorce of Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad, recording began on what was to become ABBA's final studio album on 16 March 1981.[4] Only one month had passed since their divorce when the group entered the studio.
The members of ABBA and their personnel have memories of the recording sessions for this album being rather difficult. To begin with, their sound engineer Michael Tretow had to become accustomed to using the new 32-track digital recorder that had been purchased for Polar Music Studios. He said, "Digital recording...cut out all the hiss, but it also meant that sounds were sharply cut off below a certain level. The sound simply became too clean, so I had to find ways of compensating for that." The first three tracks for the album had already been recorded using analogue tape and therefore Tretow had to transfer all subsequent tracks from digital to analogue and back again to avoid a difference in quality.[5]
Ulvaeus also mentioned in retrospect that the recording sessions were troubled. "It could be frosty sometimes," he acknowledged in an interview. Lyngstad also commented that they were beginning to tire of working together.[6]
On its release, The Visitors reached the top of the charts in a number of territories but was not as successful as their previous albums.[7]
Billboard: "The inevitable culmination of introspection, experience and fantasy into a marriage of music and words that is Abba's first true masterpiece – song after song... Abba and pop music at its endearing best."
Trouser Press: "Its high points must be the sort of thing you hear in heaven..."
New Musical Express: "The Visitors" provokes...thoughts after you drift away with those exquisite harmonies..."
Los Angeles Times: "Biggest departure to date from the bubbly, sprightly pop sound which first brought [them] fame in the mid-70s...While rich, sophisticated music isn't as instantly accessible as Abba's past hits, in the end it's just as rewarding....Abba's thoughtful treatment of mature themes here shows impressive growth..."
Creem: "Abba feel. Abba are socially concerned. In fact, Abba take things so seriously and react to life and love with such overwhelming intensity that Ingmar Bergman would do well to sign them on for a soundtrack."
Melody Maker: "Music like this is a juke box dream, golden sparkle and inspiration that's instantly singable yet lasts a virtual lifetime..."
A negative review came from Rolling Stone magazine's reviewer who sorely missed ABBA's upbeat tunes: "The boys and girls of Abba are in a slump. Synth-drenched, melodramatic balladeering seems to have supplanted almost entirely the perky pop."
Even more intriguing, however, was that the reviews of The Visitors now freely included references to "[The] Beatles' psychedelic harmonies, moods and textures", "George Harrison's beguiling eastern charms", and "Steven Sondheim's dark melodies". It reflected further shifting of critical attitudes towards the essence of ABBA's music.
Rune Söderqvist designed the cover and photographed the group in a room containing Julius Kronberg's painting of Eros. The room is the Atelje Studio in Skansen Park, Stockholm. The group are positioned apart and appear to be waiting solemnly in the shadows.[8][9]
All songs written and composed by Benny Andersson & Björn Ulvaeus.
(P) 1981 Polar Music International AB, Stockholm
All songs written and composed by Benny Andersson & Björn Ulvaeus.
(P) 1981 Polar Music International AB (1–12).
(P) 1982 Polar Music International AB (13–16).
The songs "No Hay a Quien Culpar" and "Se Me Está Escapando" translation into Spanish Buddy McCluskey and Mary McCluskey.
The Visitors album was also released and remastered in 1997 with a bonus "Should I Laugh or Cry", "The Day Before You Came", "Cassandra" and "Under Attack". 2001, a new mastering with bonuses "Should I Laugh or Cry", "The Day Before You Came", "Under Attack" and "You Owe Me One".
The Visitors was reissued once again in 2008 as part of the The Albums box set but without any bonus tracks.
ABBA
Additional personnel
A song sung in Swedish, recorded as a tribute to Stig Anderson's 50th birthday in 1981, and released on a limited amount of singles for the guests attending the party only. The title is a play on words; Hova is the small village in Västergötland in which Anderson was born, and Vittne is a reference to Jehovah's Witnesses. The song includes a four bar passage that was later used in the Chess ouverture "Merano". "Tivedshambo" is an instrumental recording of Stig Anderson's first published song, recorded in 1981. It is the B-side of "Hovas vittne".
An instrumental track recorded in 1981 with a different bridge. A version with vocals featured a more emotional repetition of the first verse after the third, making the track 4:20 instead of 3:15. When the video was released in 1981 it featured another alternate version with a different ending.
An instrumental track that later was used in "Anthem" from the musical Chess. The song is well known as "Opus 10" among ABBA fans due a misunderstanding made by a journalist.
An instrumental demo track recorded in 1981. Later the song was included in the musical ABBAcadabra and recorded by B. A. Robertson with the slightly altered title '(I Am) The Seeker'. The melody to the chorus was later used by Benny Andersson in the song 'Upp Till Dig' from his 2007 album, BAO 3.
A short instrumental track written for the Ice Hockey World Championship hosted by Sweden in 1981. Used as the jingle/opening theme for the television special Dick Cavett Meets ABBA aired later in 1981.
This early version has slightly different lyrics, and is sung from a first person perspective (I have what you might call a simple occupation/I clean the toilets of the local railway station/With no romance in my life/Sometimes I wish I had a knife).[40][42]
Another early demo version of "Like an Angel Passing Through My Room". The song had an operatic feel to it, with shared lead vocals by Agnetha & Frida. Also, the song had a full backing band instead of the synth only backing that eventually became "Like an Angel Passing Through My Room".
Album
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Australian Albums Chart | 22 |
| Austrian Albums Chart | 3 | |
| Belgian Albums Chart | 1 | |
| Dutch Albums Chart | 1 | |
| Finnish Albums Chart | 3 | |
| French Albums Chart | 12 | |
| Italian Albums Chart | 35 | |
| Japanese Albums Chart | 12 | |
| Mexican Albums Chart | 38 | |
| New Zealand Albums Chart | 19 | |
| Norwegian Albums Chart | 1 | |
| South African Albums Chart | 3 | |
| Spanish Albums Chart | 6 | |
| Swedish Albums Chart | 1 | |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 1 | |
| UK Albums Chart | 1 | |
| West German Albums Chart | 1 | |
| Zimbabwe | 1 | |
| Canada | 18 | |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 29 |
According to The Official Charts Company, the album spent 18 consecutive weeks in the Top 40 from 19 December 1981 to 3 April 1982. It went straight into the Top 40 at Number One.
Weekly chart positions from 19 December 1981 to 3 April 1982: 1-1-1-2-3-4-6-11-15-21-19-21-19-26-25-28-28-37
Singles (Australian Singles Chart)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | "One of Us" | Australian Singles Chart | 4 |
| "When All Is Said and Done" | 81 |
Singles (New Zealand Singles Chart)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | "One of Us" | New Zealand Singles Chart | 43 |
Singles (Norwegian Singles Chart)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | "One of Us" | Norwegian Singles Chart | 6 |
Singles (Swedish Singles Chart)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | "One of Us" | Swedish Singles Chart | 2 |
Singles (UK Singles Chart)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | "One of Us" | UK Singles Chart | 3 |
| 1982 | "Head Over Heels" | 25 |
Singles Billboard (North America)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | "When All Is Said and Done" | Adult Contemporary | 10 |
| Billboard Hot 100 | 27 | ||
| "The Visitors"/"When All Is Said and Done" | Club Play Singles | 8 | |
| "The Visitors" | Billboard Hot 100 | 63 | |
| 1983 | "One of Us" | Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles | 107 |
| Adult Contemporary | 33 |
| Preceded by Chart Hits '81 by Various Artists |
UK Albums Chart number one album 19 December 1981 – 8 January 1982 |
Succeeded by Dare by The Human League |
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