I am so excited. For days I’ve been hoping ABBA have done the folliw up to “The Day Before You Came” in amongst the new music. All the time it was right there in “Don’t Shut Me Down”. It really is. 40 years later she’s back waiting to see him in the apartment. It’s all in the lyrics below. Wheres she been, what’s she been up to, do the police know? I’ve got my theories and I know you won’t let me down with yours. I can already imagine the Blancmange version. It’s a great song too, my favourite of the 2 new ones… SO excited…
A while Ago I Heard The Sound Of Children’s Laughter
Now It’s Quiet, So I Guess They Left The Park
This Wooden Bench Is Getting Harder By The Hour
The Sun Is Going Down, It’s Getting Dark
I Realise I’m Cold
The Rain Begins To Pour
As I Watch The Windows On The Second Floor
The Lights Are On, It’s Time To Go
It’s Time At Last To Let Him Know
I Believe It Would Be Fair To Say
You Look Bewildered
And You Wonder Why I’m Here Today
And So You Should, I Would
When I Lеft I Felt I’d Had Enough
But In The Shape And Form I Appеar Now
I Have Learned To Cope
And Love And Hope Is Why I Am Here Now
And Now You See Another Me
I’ve Been Reloaded, Yea-ah
I’m Fired Up, Don’t Shut Me Down
I’m Like A Dream Within A Dream That’s Been Decoded
I’m Fired Up, I’m Hot, Don’t Shut Me Down
I’m Not The One You Knew
I’m Now And Then Combined
And I’m Asking You To Have An Open Mind Now
I’m Not The Same This Time Around
I’m Fired Up, Don’t Shut Me Down
Will You Leave Me Standing In The Hall
Or Let Me Enter?
The Apartment Hasn’t Changed At All
I Got To Say I’m Glad
Once These Rooms Were Witness To Our Love
My Tantrums And Increasing Frustration
But I Go From Mad
To Not So Bad In My Transformation
And Now You See Another Me
I’ve Been Reloaded, Yea-ah
I’m Fired Up, Don’t Shut Me Down
I’m Like A Dream Within A Dream That’s Been Decoded
I’m Fired Up, I’m Hot, Don’t Shut Me Down
I’m Not The One You Knew
I’m Now And Then Combined
And I’m Asking You To Have An Open Mind
I’m Not The Same This Time Around
I’m Fired Up, Don’t Shut Me Down
You Asked Me Not To Leave
Well, Here I Am Again
And I Love You Still And So I Won’t Pretend
I Have Learned To Cope
And Love And Hope Is Why I Am Here Now
I like it too, but I prefer I Still Have Faith in You. Perhaps we should ask our resident ABBA expert for his definitive verdict. Calling Lodes…..Come in please….
@boneshaker the reason for my extra excitement is this https://theafterword.co.uk/the-day-before-you-came/ You may have seen it at the time, or not… Either way it’s one of my favourite of all songs, not just ABBA and the thought they may have done a follow up has blown my tiny mind…
That was a good bit of writing Dave. I remember when TDBYC was released and thinking that it was time ABBA called it a day. All these years later it has matured into one of their best songs.
“I’m like a dream within a dream that’s been decoded”.
It’s like The Moody Blues re-imagined as an ELO tribute band, like putting red sauce on bacon, like having a normal conversation with Dai and then he starts shouting at you, like wondering if that busty barmaid really really fancies you, like waiting at the bus stop in the pouring rain knowing in your heart of hearts the last bus home was two minutes early, like thinking Aberdeen might just for once get past Round 1 of the European Qualifying Last Chance Losers stage.
Those lyrics may well be the most depressingly banal in all of Pop’s inglorious history. Those lyrics are, no it can’t be true, worse than, shiver, Fernando. How can that be so? Nothing in the world has ever been worse than Fernando. Until now.
“But I go from Bad to not so Mad in my Transformation”. Next you’ll be telling me you’re fired up and hot and there’s no need to shut you down.
I love Abba, I do.
In an interview with Benny and Bjorn, Benny said…. “Once we’d read the analysis of “The Day Before You Came” on The Afterword blorum we knew we had to tell the story of what happened next but without filling the 40 year gap. We know our more intelligent fans will make the connection. Some won’t but apparently some hate Fernando. (Bjorn laughs a weary laugh and shakes his head) Benny continues.. “I’m Like A Dream Within A Dream That’s Been Decoded” will be too obscure for those but understanding “The Day Before You Came” makes it obvious. The dream, within the dream has been decoded you see. Obvious, right? Take a line like “But I go from Bad to not so Mad in my Transformation” out of context will be a cheap shot for those who can’t, or won’t hear. Add the line “Once These Rooms Were Witness To Our Love
My Tantrums And Increasing Frustration” and consider the line “Oh yes, I’m sure my life was well within its usual frame
The day before you came” and you don’t have to be too bright to make the connection. Are we done now? We need to go for an Abbatar fitting then knock out another ten million selling tunes before bedtime.
Touché
I read a few comments that the lyrics aren’t good. I think they are fabulous. And a perfect follow up to TDBYC. Good call Dave.
Oh, and the Blancmange version would be spectacular as well.
😖
😳
‘Extraordinary how potent cheap music is’ – Noel Coward. Indeed. To many objective ears the new ABBA is beyond fluffy (ABBA Greatest Hits Vol 4 stuff) but the extraordinary thing is how it has released feelings about a previous stage of people’s lives. Are The Archies due to reform to follow up the peerless ‘Sugar Sugar’?
‘Gummy Gummy’ is already in post-production.
Gummy Gummy Gummy (A Man After Midnight)?
Incidentally, the musical link from the drawn out, pensive end of the verse to the upbeat, bouncy start of the chorus is sublime – up there with the 2nd movement of Beethoven’s 7th for smooth management of an abrupt change in mood.
Darn, you’re right!!
Perhaps The Archies will reform as real people. Weird.
‘Sugar Sugar’ followed up many years later by ‘Type Two Diabetes’
More than anything, I’m impressed at how much like “Abba” these songs sound, which I know is ridiculous (who else would they sound like?!) but they’re reassuringly of a piece with their later catalogue, though I’ll be disappointed if these are the best tracks from the new album (based on the titles, at least two of the new songs are decades old and have been bootlegged for ages, so I hope it’s not too much of a scraped-together selection…)
To be honest, “I Still Have Faith In You” is exactly what I expected from the comeback – a big grown-up syrupy ballad, but after a few days’ listening, “Don’t Shut Me Down” is my favourite for now, pretty much a musical mash-up of “The Day Before You Came” and “One Of Us” (plus at least one other track I can’t quite place), so right up my alley…
THE ABBA reunion does not count as a proper one because it’s not grey-haired old blokes with guitars, men have confirmed.
https://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/arts-entertainment/abba-not-a-proper-reunion-because-its-not-grey-haired-old-men-with-guitars-20210903211722
And Echo & The Bunnymen are still the only band in Pop History© to actually release a good reunion album.
Ha!
Evergreen. It’s ace. The one after it isn’t bad either.
That would be “What Are You Going To Do With Your Life?”, and yes, it’s great (I prefer it to “Evergreen”, to be honest…)
… and I couldn’t help noticing that “Evergreen” came only 10 years after the last proper E&TB album (the eponymous one – no-one counts “Reverberation”), which barely even counts as splitting up at today’s rates of album releases for most bands …
Aye, but ‘appen ten years were a long time back int’ twentieth century.
Tell ’em that these days, and they don’t believe you.
Yes, I agree: What Are You Going To Do With Your Life? is a very good album.
Oh I dunno – The Specials Encore was none too shabby
See also “Oceans Apart” by the Go-Betweens.
Listened again last night, for me this is distinctly the lesser of the two new tracks, that opinion could change as I get used to them though.
This comment will sink without trace since the Recently Updated list is broken but nevertheless I must have my remarks recorded for posterity.
I listened to this for the first time today. I wasn’t impressed with the other one so didn’t bother, sue me. I’m glad I did. It’s far the better of the two: I’m getting a lot more of the later period “grown up” ABBA angst from this one, and rather than a sequel to TDBYC it could be Super Trouper part II. Which is a great thing.
I’ve resued this comment for your pleasure. No, no, I insist, it was nothing.