Becoming a Singer || Mamma Mia! Special Features

when this was going to happen I said okay we're gonna do this film I want to be responsible for what this will sound like at the end of the day so I call the old guys in the band that were playing with us when we recorded originally dabeh [Music] so when we recorded this it was the first time for most of these songs that I sort of played them again I don't play these songs I don't sit at home and play dancing queen [Music] I thought he would take like three weeks to record it all it took like I don't know five days because they all remembered and I remember all my stuff and it's amazing how it sticks in your fingers Danny and Bjorn were very nervous the first day because they thought oh god is this American actress gonna wreck all the songs the key became can these actors were great than we love really sing these songs but it was just a nervous kind of tension in the beginning so first of all Benny went to New York to meet Meryl once we got Meryl on board he'd sat at the piano in the basement of Lincoln Center I remember that we'd stole in a room and they went through all the songs and they worked out all the keys that she wanted to sing in we were both elated after that day because we both knew it was possible that this could work you know now you've got a little bit of leeway in the keys you can shift them up a little bit you can shift them down a little bit [Music] but certainly with the women you haven't got that much room to maneuver largely because the range of these songs is massive if you look at dancing queen it goes from a low e you're in the mood for a dance down there see massive whichever way you move it you're in trouble you move it up it's doing there's less to like you can't do it oh you'll be fine that's so easy that's easy that's just you know those are Abba song they're much more complicated than you think they are there are harmonies that are complex and rhythms and they're very exacting about what they want you have to learn it properly my agent called me and said darling can you sing and I said no and then he said they're gonna do Mamma Mia as a film yes I said I can see because I'm film you know you can even fly you can be Superman or film couldn't escape if I wanted to [Music] no I don't think any of our three gentlemen heard someone scream before I don't think I've been so nervous about a job honey I'm still free take a chance on me some more hesitant than others I also knew that I had three days but for a three-minute song we're very nice and encouraging had images of being there until 10 o'clock at night every night [Music] [Music] before I knew it I was in the booth and I was saying I wasn't alone because I had Stalin and I had call him right there that really happened did I actually do that with it actually in the studio watching Benny behind the glass [Music] it's so surreal we were in this old church air studios and it was built inside of an old church and it was unbelievable also you record the songs and that's one terra and then comes the day and you have to sing the songs in front of you know 200 people I just surrendered to the whole experience and thoughtful playback the traditional in musicals is to do a pre record and then mime now because we have such fabulous actors in this film and some of them were very keen to be given the opportunity of doing it live we left the option open sang live all the time even for example you know you're on the edge of a cliff in the winner takes it all [Music] howling gale and it was unlikely we're going to be able to salvage much of that live recorded track but she sang out on every take I don't want to talk cuz it makes me feel sad she wanted the audience to feel the energy of that [Music] and there were times when we use the live recording I'm not gonna tell you when those are but a lot of it is a blend you know of of both watching a sequence where all wet quietly but the actresses and the actors the kettle singing clucks along the same laughing and the rain because they have these tiny little ear pieces in there is called earwigs and that's how we can mostly record their live vocals without playback track all over it for the moment you leave your vocals and your ears and sing along with it if you want us to take out Benny and Bjorn both of them were very easygoing given that they were giving over their music not to singers they were giving their music over to primarily actors no you're so cute [Music] it's quite unreal to hear all of those people taking the words that you wrote such a long time back in their mouths [Music] and I think they were really excited because actors bring actors care about words lyrics mean a lot to actors lyrics are what the text is how I hate to see you like this so the audiences have to listen to ABBA songs in a different way because you you danced those songs but you might not have listened to every lyric [Music] a little things here and there which are new and wonderful [Music] this is a new time you know and Benny has worked these tracks and recorded the vocals of all our actors [Music] you know you're gonna hear what you hear these songs these may be the best versions ever [Music] it's completely unreal that it started with Benny and me banging away on piano and guitar like 30 35 years ago hi [Music] remember the basement we were sitting in and now I'm here because of that [Music] it's such a joy because they're so good those actors they can seem cherish every moment [Music] you

Channel: GleePotter8468

Views: 428,422

Rating: 4.9734082 out of 5

Keywords: Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus, Meryl Streep, donna sheridan, Gary Goetzman, Martin Lowe, Christine Baranski, queen baranski, tanya, Stellan Skarsgård, bill anderson, Phyllida Lloyd, Pierce Brosnan, sam carmichael, amanda seyfried, Mark Huffam, Judy Craymer, Dominic Cooper, sky, mamma mia, special features

Id: uXdwmtl6Bqs

Length: 10min 50sec (650 seconds)

Published: Fri Dec 28 2018