Like many, my infatuation with music began when I was an impressionable young kid, at a time when my ears were at the whim of my parents’ CD collections. Lucky for me, I was in good company among the ska punk sounds of No Doubt and the alt-rock grunge of the Hoodoo Gurus—not to mention legends like Elton John and the Beatles. My parents loved telling my brothers and I stories about the artists they grew up on, and they often blared their albums from the speakers of our in-home stereo while we sat on the floor and nodded along. Listening to their memories while flipping through that treasure trove of physical media was undeniably cathartic. I may have grown up in the heyday of YouTube and the iPod, but there is nothing as special as the little world contained in every compact disc. Each personalized cover entrances you, and flipping through each insert shares a taste of what’s to come. As my father slipped a new CD into the stereo, my mind was consumed by the all-immersive experience of listening to songs. In hearing them, I felt strangely safe, understood, and alive.
While this was a pattern at my home, the songs I remember hearing again and again were those from the legendary Europop group ABBA. Made up of Swedish power vocalists Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad, and song-smiths Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, ABBA found fame after winning the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest. Two years later, the group released the album that solidified their stardom: the lush Arrival. In their previous efforts, ABA experimented with different sounds to varying success, from glam-rock to whimsical folk. Still, they never quite landed on their feet. Arrival, on the other hand, is rife with theatrical musical styles, eccentric tales, and highly-stylized song structures. Producers Andersson and Ulvaeus are at their best, and Fältskog and Lyngstad’s harmonies fit together like a puzzle piece. Compared to the band’s other works, this album feels truly timeless.
Not only is this the album where ABBA finally found their groove, it’s also one of their most historic projects. Arrival marks some of the band’s most beloved songs, including the luminous hit “Dancing Queen.” (Additionally, this was ABBA’s first time using the mirrored B in their name, which later became their trademark.) The songs across Arrival are also full of ABBA’s undeniable whimsical pop sound. Take the unabashed opener, the risqué “When I Kissed The Teacher”: Atop soaring strums from a 12-string guitar, singer Fältskog cheekily croons about kissing her geometry teacher (and wishes for some more from her blushing victim). While this is one of the classic songs on the album, similar tracks are more underrated. “That’s Me,” for example, tackles another suggestive topic: “I’m Carrie-not-the-kind-of-girl-you-marry,” the band sings over the chorus, the playful lyrics enhanced by bouncy piano lines.
While those songs on Arrival are fun, they’re not all surface-level. Many of the lyrics reflect feelings of sadness or despair. On the ballad “My Love, My Love,” an ethereal track that walks listeners through the pain of heartbreak, the instrumentals soar above angelic vocal harmonies. It drips with solitude, as the narrator watches her lover go. “But I know I don’t possess you / So go away, God bless you,” she sings. “Knowing Me, Knowing You” echoes that regretful sentiment, but this time from the opposing perspective. Even with the happy memories in mind, the protagonist knows the relationship has reached an end. “Breaking up is never easy, I know, but I have to go,” she sings. The intensity in the electric guitars reflects the determined attitude of the storyteller. She knows it’s been fun, but it’s time to walk away and let go.
The glittery “Dum Dum Diddle” finds ABBA yearning after a fiddle-obsessed lover. Songs like these are why some critics have written Arrival off as another silly pop record. Ulvaeus later admitted that the song was written in a rush on its day of recording, and the vocals here also occasionally border on shrill—due to the combined high vocal and instrumental registers. Still, it’s undeniably catchy, and the fun lyrics are a testament to the group’s commitment to eccentricity. I have a similar sentiment towards the intense “Money, Money, Money.” The piano chords have a menacing lean, evoking dangerous images of a dream man-to-be: a sleazy businessman who can’t help rubbing his hands together and smirking at the thought of money. It might be a bit cartoonish, but it’s ABBA, and the lyrical theatrics combined with the driving instrumentals work.
While the album has its moments of sincerity, the flamboyant instrumentals are paired with its fair share of uplifting lyrics, too. Take, for example, the aforementioned disco hit “Dancing Queen.” Originally called “Boogaloo” before rewrites, the song is defined now by its iconic intermingling of bright piano and synth: a radiant foundation for the soaring harmonies and beautiful arrangements to pair. It’s a carefree dance anthem detailing a youthful night out on the town. But, more than that, it’s a song that embodies a feeling: listening to just the right music at just the right time, and feeling unstoppable in your youthful glow. It’s a feeling everyone aspires to have, which might explain why it was, and still is, so beloved. (Lyngstad cried when she heard the initial demo.)
The rest of Arrival, admittedly, is just fine. From the menacing lyrics of rock track “Tiger” to the simplistic doo-wop of “Why Did It Have to Be Me,” which is pretty much just a rehash of the group’s bubblegum-pop track “Happy Hawaii,” they’re pretty lackluster compared to the rest of this energetic collection. While some fans swear by the more rock-leaning side of ABBA, I think these songs lack the stylistic intrigue that a lot of the other material has. Arrival’s atmospheric title track leaves me feeling a similar way: A booming ambient hymn—a nod to the Swedish folk genre, not to mention the band’s roots—points to the otherworldly feel of its title. The music supplies an easy farewell to the album, even if it lacks a punch.
While most of the songs on this album soar, I’d view Arrival as more of a collection of singles rather than a full-fledged album. It’s not a cohesive project, but rather a diverse string of fun, eccentric stories framed by glittery synthesizers and retro disco beats. Some songs are full of unique structures and really glow, while others are more simplistic retreads of previous ideas. The lack of continuity from this album gave many critics another reason to write ABBA off, but as someone enjoying this record almost 50 years after its release, it’s all good by me. Arrival gave us some of ABBA’s best work. Who could be mad about that?
