I Listened to a LEGENDARY Band I LOATHE for 3 Days…Did It CHANGE MY MIND? | Professor of Rock

so coming up next it's a group that I swore I would never feature on this channel I made that promise to myself never been a fan of this band they're one of the biggest bands of all time with nearly 40 top 10 hits across the world and after taking the 70s by storm they broke up in the 80s by the 90s there was this pop culture campaign to put them right back in the spotlight and it kind of drove me nuts a little today they're still going strong honestly I don't know why but I've never liked their music I mean call me crazy but for today's episode I conducted a little experiment I listen to their music for three days straight um I'm going to jump into their career do a little piece here to see maybe if I've been wrong all these years that's a big if though still if any song has a chance to flip the script I got to I got to admit it could be this one it might be the gateway drug into the rest of their catalog so will this or won't it change my mind well there's only one way to find out let's kick out the experiment and see what happened next on Professor Rock hey music junkies professor of rock always here to celebrate the greatest artist and the greatest songs of all time you know if you remember making a phone call from an actual phone booth you're going to dig this channel of deep musical Nostalgia make sure to subscribe below right now click the big red button uh and click the Bell so you always know our stuff's coming out also check us out on patreon you'll find more content there that helps us keep it a daily channel so today I might be going against my better judgment here uh that's because I'm featuring a group that honestly I've never really liked and as many of my biggest critics have noted I like everything I really don't but we've never covered this band in depth on the channel I've definitely got a lot of requests to tell their story and to talk about their songs so maybe it's time to give these guys a listen I'm open-minded I'm willing so I'm taking a chance here and telling the story of [Applause] ABBA yeah take a chance on me really catchy song for sure don't ask me why but I've never liked Abba it's not something I can really explain their music has just always driven me mad my wife and kids love them my friends love them again I'm open-minded so here we go in the 70s Abba emerged as a legitimate pop phenomenon I mean like him or not there's no denying the facts this boy girl forsome from Sweden garnered massive Global Acclaim throughout their career and afterwards really known for their infectious Melodies and their catchy hooks Abba crafted a catalog of mostly cheerful pop hits with an eye for the dance floor their music easily transitioned to match the Disco Cades of the era and then they kep kept pushing ahead into the 80s now the beginning of the Abba story dates back to Sweden nearly six decades ago actually June 1966 musicians Bjorn yvas and Benny Anderson met for the first time Bjorn was a member of the hootan singers a popular folk group there and Benny played keyboards for Sweden's Premier 60s pop Ensemble the uh Hep Stars the two wrote their first song together just a few weeks later by the end of the 60s the two were partners and compos ERS having shifted their priorities away from their respective bands coming together 1969 was a pivotal year for the two musicians as their pass Cross of AGA fcog and anif Fred lingad AKA fra AGA was on track as a successful solo artist after releasing her first single in 1967 she and Bjorn uh married in July 1971 Annie Fred started her recording career shortly before agnita Freda who was of Norwegian origin had moved to Sweden at a very early age Benny and Freda likewise became a couple and they married years after this foresome ultimately became Abba Abba at first the couples collaborated primarily by contributing to one another's projects however by 1972 the musicians had United under the name Bjorn and Benny agnetta and Annie Fred in 1973 though they entered the Eurovision song contest an annual program televised in 32 countries I'm sure you're You' heard of it and of course viewed by hundreds of millions of people and their song ring Ring finished [Music] third ring ring and the album of the same name proved to be among the biggest hits of the year in Sweden going number one and number two respectively by the following year the group had changed their name to Abba an acronym of their first names Abba once again they competed in the Eurovision song contest and they won it all with their International breakout waterl it's actually the 50th anniversary of that uh right [Music] now waterl went to number one across Europe and even reached number six in the US waterl the album was also a huge hit in Sweden and from there Abba would ride an avalanche of international hits in June 1975 SOS was released from their self-titled third album that one went top 10 in at least 15 countries of course mama Mia from the Same album returned the group to number one in the UK and also spent 10 weeks at number one in [Applause] [Music] Australia I again in 1976 abber released three more Smash Hits Fernando money money money and dancing queen they were close [Music] fando money money money must be fun dancing que actually Dancing Queen was Abba's highest charting song here in the US reaching that coveted number one spot Dancing Queen was also the first of Abba's songs to tap into the themes of dancing and nightclubs perfectly complimenting with the rise of disco at the same time with Dancing Queen Abba they were officially everywhere [Music] continuing their surch through the 70s Knowing Me Knowing You had scored Abba another UK number one in 1977 and went to number 14 here in [Music] America between January and March 1977 Abba embarked on a European and Australian tour filling venues wherever they went the tour was an overwhelming success the four piece also started work on a feature film titled Abba the movie The premiere of the film in December 1977 coincided with the release of their fifth record Abba the album ABA the incredible rise to Startup although reviews of the film were mixed ABA the album was predictably an instant Global success selling an unprecedented 760,000 copies in Sweden alone in fact its release date in the UK was pushed back to January 1978 because pressing plans couldn't meet the pre-order uh uh quite a demand there Abba the album peaked at number one across the world including the UK where it debuted at the top and stayed there for seven weeks in the US it was Abba's highest ranking album in the 70s and 80s reaching number 14 and they're only one uh to go platinum State Side actually singles included the name of the game take a chance on me and Eagle backed by fan favorite Thank You For The [Music] Music what's the name of the game I'm a bird in the I thank you for the music the songs I'm singing Take well let's get into take a chance on me the song that might bring me over to the ab aside this song is a 4minute admittedly irresistible pop frenzy and a gateway drug into Abba if there ever was one it's fun it's frivolous it's infectious it has in thring vocal harmonies I must admit the agnita and an Fred ambjorn and Benny songwriting it's irresistible with the song's unrelenting Tick Ticket Rhythm and the you know addictive singal along chorus of course if you change your mind so take a chance on me originated at metronome studios in 1977 it was initially titled Billy boy uh the early rendition of it featured a guitar piano and drum drift that would be dropped before the final version this first Rocky attempt didn't progress beyond the status of a backing track a portun of that recording can be heard in the Abba undeleted medle Obsession [Music] outake the group decided that the Billy boy backing track just didn't have the right feel so they returned to it a couple of weeks later for another attempt now this time around Benny and Bjorn created a much tighter much more popc Centric version of the song around this time Bjorn would also stumble upon the right set of lyrics almost literally in the book Mama Mia how can I resist you he explained and I quote ideas for the lyrics pop up in different ways often is a little scenario that comes into my mind but sometimes I start with a title take a chance on me as a case in point believe it or not the song's title came from Bjorn's jogging routine and have a jogger a Bjorn used to regularly run through the Stockholm suburbs where and AGN lived at the time as he ran he began singing to himself a sort of TI tick style Rhythm right as he sang the syllable style started to sound like the words take a chance said Bjorn with take a chance on me I started out with a combination of consonant sounds going around in my head take a take a take a which I felt were really rhythmic and really sounded great then I had to find words that contain those sounds and eventually I landed on take a chance and uh simply just added on me once I had settled Upon A Hook Line I started thinking what does this mean is there a story in there somewhere and then I build the rest of the lyrics around that line that's how it went from there emerged a song about a girl basically saying to a guy come and check me out right if you're all alone when the pretty birds have flowing honey I'm still free take a chance on me Classic lyrics right honey I'm fre take a chance the completed lyrics build on the upbeat mood of the backing track to make it the catchiest track on the album and arguably the catchiest track in all of Abba's catalog this is the one song by Abba that has definitely grown on me throughout the years I can stand it uh probably due to razer's Aba esque cover I love raser I'm still free I mean that Acappella opening with Freda and anus High register vocals perfectly contrasted with Bjorn and Benny's lower register actually back in 1978 record World said it uh best I believe they said it was one of Pop's most captivating Acappella openings since blue SED tackled Hooked on a Feeling you it's hard to argue with that one of course we just covered Hooked on a Feeling uh blue sued just a little while ago uh be sure to check that one out there's a cool story there anyway take a chance on me was the second single release from ABA the album that one dropped in January of 1978 and became the biggest hit from the record it went to number three here in America it would be Abba's second highest charting single behind Dancing Queen here although it would eventually outsell Dancing Queen to become Abba's best-selling us single so there's that take a chance on me also reach number five on the cashbox chart number nine on the adult contemporary chart and then internationally take a chance on me continued to solidify Abba's chart dominating success as usual it was a hit everywhere it went to number 14 in New Zealand it went to number 12 in Australia uh went to number eight in Norway number six in South Africa number three in Canada West Germany and Switzerland as well number two in the Netherlands and it went to number one in Austria Belgium Ireland Mexico and the UK where it certified gold within just a few [Music] weeks now as we continue to break down this classic further I do want to thank our sponsor zeni IA the glasses I always wear in here zeni is actually celebrating their 21st birthday and they're having a big sale for that buy one pair of glasses and get 25% off each additional pair of glasses is over $10 just put in our exclusive coupon code birthday 24 P click on the link here to do that and act now because it's only for a few more days and the information is below as well after the success of take a chance on me and ABA the album the group released their uh number six album Vu Vu uh that was in April of 1979 however by this point relationships within the group were beginning to uh Fray we'll say that rhymed and just months before the release of vule Vu uh Bjorn and AGN they announced that they were separating their divorce was finalized the following year Benny and Freda who had been living together since 1971 and then were married in 1978 would also file for divorce officially parting ways in 1981 still this did not spell the end of ABBA at least not yet uh though the fractured relationships did change how the group was perceived the group kept pressing forward into the 80s releasing two more successful albums Super Trooper in 1980 and the visitors in ' 81 both of course continued ab's chart topping streak in the UK and Sweden and here in the states both LPS went top 30 with the single The Winner Takes It All That reached number eight here on the Billboard Hot 100 The Winner Takes It All but really it was only a matter of time I mean let's be honest how many exes do you know that enjoy spending all of their time together not many plus by this point Benny and Bjorn's musical taste were shifting away from pop oriented Radio Ready singles so Abba they called it uh quits I believe it was the end of 1982 afterwards Abba's 2B boys collaborated with Tim Rice on the stage musical chess which of course included the hit single one night in bang [Music] AGN and Freda both turned back to their solo careers but success was fleeting freed to reach number 13 in the hot 182 if I know there's something going on Phil Collins producing and in 1983 Agnus single can't shake loose hit number 29 but any Commercial Success PED in comparison to Abba as a group I know there's something going on can't sh Jump Ahead to the 90s the beginnings of a major Abba Revival was in the works there not talking about the A's and the B's getting back together but rather a pop culture Abba Reawakening right contributing to this comeback were Abba covers high-profile movies featuring Abba and the biggest selling ABBA album of all time 1992's compilation ABA gold which would sell over 32 million copies worldwide take a chance on me also as I mentioned earlier in '92 a Razer released our EP called Abes it was comprised of four abbu covers uh LED with the Techno makeover to take a chance on me stealing the show that went to number one in the UK and Sweden and several other countries as well and was a big here here in the [Music] states more Abba compilations and collections followed in the '90s including more gold in 93 and the box set thank you for the music dropped in '94 the massively successful musical Mama Mia of course based on abis hits that premiered in London in 1999 and then opened on Broadway two years later and today it's been seen by more than 60 million people that's right 60 million incidentally the premere in Sweden in February 2005 was attended bya Bjorn Benny and Freda [Music] [Applause] throughout the New Millennium abis hitson especially take a chance on me have continued to show up all over Pop Culture media you can catch take a chance on me and Malcolm in the Middle get smart lip sync battle and then we dance Love and Death and even season four of the office as Andy tries to Acapella his way into Angel's heart if you got no place to go if you're feeling down April 2018 all four original members of Abba announced that they had recorded two new songs title I still have faith in you and don't shut me down both songs would ultimately appear on Abba's 9 studio album voyage that was released on November 5th 2021 it was her first record in almost four decades I still in following the announcement of the brand new album the band commented in a quote it's been a while since we made music together almost 40 years actually we took a break in the spring of 82 and now we've decided it's time to end it however in May 2022 Anderson stated uh in an interview with variety that nothing's going to happen after this presumably making this the group's final collaboration so after a few days of listening to ABBA's music non-stop band that I can't stand I'm going to give you the results of my experiment so here it is like him or leave him I have to admit that ABBA has left behind a Monumental Legacy for sure one of the biggest ever uh even bigger after they broke up and it's an Undisputed fact that they've written and recorded some of the catchiest songs of their era they have major Talent they are iconic but for whatever reason it just doesn't resonate fully with me I have to admit that after listening to them for several days a few other songs have grown on me and I definitely understand why they are beloved I do hey it took me 10 listens before Pet Sounds became one of my favorite albums ever I mean the first few listens I was kind of indifferent to it and then it connected I'm willing to continue to take a chance on the music of ABBA [Music] but what do you think is there a song or are there songs I should listen to to change my mind let me know in the comments make your voice heard uh you know what I'm I'm open-minded I I really I I see the talent I hear the talent just not my cup of tea but maybe I'm listening to the wrong songs let me know below thanks so much for watching leave us a comment what are your favorite ABBA songs uh what do you think about take a chance tell me what are your memories of it if you like our content we do invite you to subscribe below we'd love to have you as part of our community until next time three courts and the truth my friends [Music]

Channel: Professor of Rock

Views: 209,495

Keywords: professor of rock, professor of rock 70s, professor of rock abba, vinyl story, classic albums, song story, 70s, 70s rock, 70s greatest hits, 70s music, 70s hits, 70s nostalgia, rock band, pop, classic rock, seventies, abba, take a chance on me, abba the album, abba the movie, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, Agnetha Fältskog, Anni-Frid Lyngstad, abba documentary, disco, dance music, erasure, abba break up, abba union, abba take a chance on me, behind the music, 70s pop, frida

Id: 3TbE68FOt6s

Length: 20min 49sec (1249 seconds)

Published: Sat Apr 20 2024