Super Trouper

Super Trouper is the seventh studio album by the Swedish pop group ABBA, released on 3 November 1980. It features the No.1 singles "The Winner Takes It All" and "Super Trouper". The album became the UK`s biggest-selling album of 1980.[1]

Overview

Led by the international hit "The Winner Takes It All", Super Trouper was the group`s sixth chart-topping album in the UK. It was also the best-selling album in Britain for 1980. Super Trouper was first released on CD in 1983 by Polar Music International, in the early 1980s by Polydor, and in the late 1980s by Atlantic Records for the US. The album has been reissued in digitally remastered form four times; first in 1997, then in 2001, again in 2005 as part of The Complete Studio Recordings box set and as a Deluxe Edition (containing a bonus DVD) in 2011.

The previous year`s divorce between Björn and Agnetha was explored in "The Winner Takes It All", and the members` lives in Stockholm high society circles coloured the lyrics for "On and On and On". Other well-known songs on the album include the hit single title track "Super Trouper", as well as the electro-dance of "Lay All Your Love on Me".

Probably due to the disco backlash at that time, the album saw ABBA returning to a more straightforward pop sound,[2] as opposed to the preceding (and noticeably more dance-oriented) Voulez-Vous album. The album closed with "The Way Old Friends Do", which was recorded live a year earlier during their 1979 concert tour. Although not released as a single with this album, the song was later released as a single in 1992 to promote the compilation More ABBA Gold: More ABBA Hits.[3] The song was later covered by The Alexander Brothers, The Kingston Trio, Philomena Begley and Faryl Smith. On some European vinyl issues, the cheering and applause at the end of "The Way Old Friends Do" is recorded up to the run-out groove, playing in an endless loop on manual turntables.

Release

Super Trouper was released in November 1980. It was first issued on CD in 1983 by Polar Music International, in the early 1980s by Polydor, and in the late 1980s by Atlantic Records for the US. The album has been reissued in digitally remastered form four times; first in 1997, then in 2001, again in 2005 as part of The Complete Studio Recordings box set and as a Deluxe Edition (containing a bonus DVD) in 2011.

On October 30, 2020, Super Trouper was reissued for its 40th anniversary as a multi-format release. It included: a double-LP, half-speed mastered version of the album, done by Miles Showell at Abbey Road Studios on 12" black 180 gram, 45rpm vinyl discs; a 7" singles box set of "Super Trouper", "Lay All Your Love on Me" and "The Winner Takes It All" pressed on colored vinyl; and individual 7" picture discs of these three singles.[4][5][6]

Deluxe edition

On May 9, 2011, Super Trouper was reissued as a 2-disc deluxe edition package to celebrate as part of its 30th anniversary celebration.[7][8] Disc one consisted of a remastered CD version of the original album, expanded with five bonus tracks.[8] It featured the stereo mix of the original, full length version of "On And On And On", that was previously only found in mono, as well as "Put on Your White Sombrero", a song recorded during the album`s sessions, released until 1994 for the Thank You for the Music box set.[9][10] The mastering of the tracks was done by Erik Broheden, using the original master tapes, at Masters of audio in Stockholm.[11]

The second disc contained a variety of television content, including: ABBA`s appearance on ZDF`s Show Express, that included performances of "The Winner Takes It All", "Super Trouper", and "On And On And On"; a performance of "Happy New Year" from SVT; Words And Music, a documentary produced by Polar Music International that features the group talking about the album after its completion; the new featurette, Somewhere In The Crowd There`s You – On Location With ABBA, that compiles footage from the night of the photo shoot for the album`s sleeve; remastered promo clips of "Super Trouper" and "Happy New Year"; two Super Trouper TV commercials; and the "International Sleeve Gallery".[9] This issue also had a 28-page booklet with an essay on the making of the album.[8]

Paul Sinclair of SuperDeluxeEdition said that Super Trouper`s deluxe edition "doesn`t offer a great deal that fans will not already be familiar with" but that "for those wishing to explore beyond the boundaries of the enduring ABBA Gold collection... [it] could be a very good place to start".[12]

Album cover

The title`s based on the Super Trouper spotlights, a registered trademark owned by Strong Entertainment Lighting. They`re a brand of followspots, i.e., directional spotlights used to follow a performer on stage.[citation needed]

Album cover designer, Rune Söderqvist, decided to use the spotlight theme and photograph the group, surrounded by circus performers, at Piccadilly Circus, London, but after failing to gain permission to base the shoot in central London, they instead invited the members of two local circuses to Europa Film Studios, Stockholm to take the photograph there.[citation needed]

Several of ABBA`s friends were also invited to take part and the following also appear on the cover: Görel Hanser (vice-president of Polar Music who subsequently married the band`s photographer Anders Hanser), Berka Bergkvist (another Polar Music employee), Tomas Ledin, and Anders Anderson (ABBA`s manager`s son).[13]

At the same time, Lasse Hallström also filmed scenes that were eventually used in the videos for "Happy New Year", "Felicidad" and "Super Trouper" even though the latter had not even been composed at the time.[citation needed]

Critical reception

The album received favorable reviews from music critics.

William Ruhlmann from AllMusic noted that "Super Trouper found ABBA, always trend-conscious, taking account of the passing of disco and returning to the pop/rock sound typical of their early albums" and that it includes "an unusual amount of what sounded like real unhappiness into their pop music".[2]

Douglas Wolk from Blender gave the album four out of five stars and wrote that although it shows some "dark side" of the group like "being sick of show business", the Agnetha and Björn divorce, it has a "lot of joy" like the song "Lay All Your Love On Me".[14]

Christopher Thelen, from The Daily Vault gave the album an A− and wrote that "whatever was happening to the band, internally or externally, they were able to take it and put the best creative spin on it. The result was possibly their best album".[15]

The German counterpart of Rolling Stone magazine and The Rolling Stone Album Guide both gave four out of five stars, while Smash Hits magazine and The Encyclopedia of Popular Music gave the album mixed reviews.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus.

Deluxe edition

Released on May 11, 2011, for the album`s 30th anniversary. All tracks are written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, except where noted.

Non-album tracks

• "Elaine"

A song recorded in 1980 and released as B-side "The Winner Takes It All" single.

• "Put on Your White Sombrero"

A song based on waltz with a Latin American sound recorded in 1980 with lead vocal by Lyngstad. The track was replaced at a late stage by this album`s title track, "Super Trouper". The arrangement of "Put On Your White Sombrero" was later remodelled into a new ABBA song, "Cassandra", which became the B-Side to "The Day Before You Came". The song remained unreleased until 1994.

Personnel

ABBA

• Anni-Frid Lyngstad – lead vocals (1, 4, 5, 7), co-lead vocals (3, 8, 10), backing vocals (2, 6, 9)
• Agnetha Fältskog – lead vocals (2, 6, 9), co-lead vocals (3, 8, 10), backing vocals (1, 4, 5, 7)
• Björn Ulvaeus – acoustic guitar (1, 5–8), backing vocals
• Benny Andersson – synthesizers (1–9), keyboards (1–9), backing vocals

Additional personnel

• Ola Brunkert – drums (2–9)
• Lars Carlsson – horn (3)
• Rutger Gunnarsson – bass (3–9), guitar, string arrangement (2)
• Janne Kling – flute (8), saxophone (3)
• Per Lindvall – drums (1)
• Janne Schaffer – guitar (1, 3, 6)
• Åke Sundqvist – percussion (1–2, 5, 7)
• Mike Watson – bass (1, 2)
• Lasse Wellander – guitar (2, 4–9), acoustic guitar (8)
• Kajtek Wojciechowski – saxophone (3)
• Halldor Pállson – saxophone (3)

Production

• Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus – producers, arrangers
• Michael B. Tretow – engineer
• Rune Söderqvist – design
• Zal Schreiber – mastering for 1980`s USA Atlantic CD version
• Jon Astley, Tim Young, Michael B. Tretow – remastering for the 1997 remasters
• Jon Astley, Michael B. Tretow – remastering for the 2001 remasters
• Henrik Jonsson – remastering for The Complete Studio Recordings 2005 box set

Charts

Certifications and sales