News that there would a tribute concert to B & B first came in the late spring of 1998.  The claim was that there would be a single, unique, concert in Göteborg.  A sellout was expected.  By the time I contacted Scandinavium to purchase tickets, it was known that massive public response had caused the scheduling of a second concert, on the following night.  Not long after, word came that there would be a Göteborg matinee performance, and that the concert would also be performed in Stockholm at a late date(s).  These turned out to be scheduled on the last weekend in October.

    Although my tickets were already bought, I recall wondering which concert, in which venue, was most likely to produce attendance by B & B, or especially Frida.  This is a parlor-game-in-waiting.

    1.  Mike Scurr, an ABBAmailer from South Africa who is elsewhere quoted in these ABBA AERIE pages, went to the Friday night concert, and reported:

The CD of the BB shows is out! Recorded at Göteborg.  Mono Music on the Sony/Columbia label.  Its called 'Från Waterloo till Duvemåla' and I bought it at the concert last night, first time I've seen it.

Globen is an amazing venue.  Huge!  Most of the highlights of the concert are on the CD, but of course, at least half is not on the CD.  Fortunately Helen's magnificent Money Money Money is there, as is Sunny Girl.  Significant omissions as far as I'm concerned are Anders G's powerful Knowing Me, Knowing You, and the charming Dum Dum Diddle by Helen and Kalle Moreaus.  Sixteen tracks, 10 of which are Abba.  Nice mix.

What a very well dressed, normal looking crowd it was!  Quite a lot of middle aged people too, and the reception that Arrival and the Mona vals got was amazing.  Well, I could go on and on, but the intention now is just to tell you about the CD.

Of course, the Götborg fire tragedy hung over the proceedings....a minutes silence was observed, the entire Globen standing quietly. Anders Eljas led the Gothenburg Symphony (who honoured their committment to perform) in a moving classical piece before the concert in memory of the victims. 

    2. Again, from Mike Scurr:

It's just before midnight here in Stockholm and about 1 degree Celcius.  I've just left Globen and diverted to the internet cafe to pass on the news...

[Saturday's] performance was attended by Benny.  He joined Orsa Spelmän on stage for 'Födelsedagsvals till Mona' and Globen went wild!  At interval he came to sit about 10 metres from me, with Mona (and perhaps his son?).  Peter Grönvall and family were also there as was Lars the director of Kristina.

Watching Benny's reaction to the music was a treat!  Finally, he jumped up and joined the orchestra and band on stage for the last 40 minutes, including 4 encores.  Benny played piano on a whole bunch of Abba tracks, everything from Take a chance on me, on and on and on, Does your mother know, DQ, TYFTM, etc etc etc.

WOW!

It was really special and very moving to see.

    3.  Sara Barnes had also made the pilgrammage, and sent this initial report to ABBAmail:

The Globen Arena is huge, an amazing building just like a enormous great golf ball.  You can see it looming in the distance from the taxi ... builds up the excitement for what is to come ... The Globen was packed out, there were middle-aged respectable people everwhere and then there was us .... all excited and looking forward to enjoying what promised to be a fabulous concert based on the info we had from Gothenberg.

The backdrop of the stage was another large video screen for the benefit of the people on the flat in front of the stage, sandwiched between two back to front Bs made up of dozens of large light bulbs.  They were lit up but not too bright.

The stage was open (no curtains) so we could see where the orchestra, the choir and the rock band would take their positions.  Almost bang on time, the choir started to mingle by the side of the stage and then took their places.  There were two rows of about 50 people all dressed in black.  Women on either end and a bank of men in the middle. Then the orchestra, then the rock band.  No importance whatsoever was placed on the fact that Lasse Wellander and Rutger Gunnarson were on that stage.  Typically modest Swedes, they took their positions to no announcements.  I recognised Lasse through my binoculars (BOY was I glad I took them!) but Rutger was harder to spot.  He was on a  raised piece of platform behind the other Rock band members and kept his head down with his guitar on his lap. You don't think of rock musicians sitting to play their instruments, they usually stand with the strap around their necks so the guitar sits comfortably ... so it looked strange to me to see these two guys sitting down to play their instruments.

Once all the musicians were in place, and we had our binoculars in our hands, Anders Eljas  walked on stage through the tunnel separating the orchestra from the rock band.  To an applause full of respect, he took a few bows and got into position.

Orsa Spelman wandered onto the stage and started the concert off with "Inspel***sing"  which turned into the full and proper "Klinga Mina Klocker". I have to be honest and admit (as Frida would say) that throughout the choral singing I was scouring the faces of the choir with my binoculars knowing that Frida was in the choir for the original recording (also Nanne ...) boy am I desperate!

Then each soloist came on one by one to perform a song.  First up was Karin Glenmark.  She has lost weight since the last time I saw a picture of her and she has the most amazing pudding bowl haircut.  Her first song was ... would you believe it .... "I Have A Dream"  We all looked at each other in dismay ... of all the songs to start with!!  But really, it was lovely ... and the adult voices of the choir was a 100% improvement of the squeaks of the kiddies.  You know, it doesn't help that in Gothenberg, they got "Alska Mej" ... I feel a bit cheated!!

Next up .... Anders Glenmark in a green suit (no, it looked really nice) with a guitar around his shoulders (Rutger and Lasse take note ...).  He started to sing to his own guitar playing, "Knowing Me Knowing You".  It was wonderful ... then the orchestra and everyone else joined for the chorus and for the rest of the song.  For the 'aha' bits, we didn't have vocals, we had strings ... very nice. Anders, unlike his sister, was a skinny old stick ... he's lost loads of weight since I last saw him in the Frida 'Mitt i Livet' video ....

Helen Sjoholm came on next to great applause.  This woman is a little treasure.  I cannot praise her enough.  She performed a totally magnificent "Money Money Money" .. luckily this is on the B&B CD.  She changed the tune to the second verse ... you must hear it to understand what I mean ... I usually hate it when singers do this, but Helen is so wonderful at interpreting the music, it worked for her.  When she sang, "I'd fool around and have a ball", as she sang "have a ball" she screwed her nose up, laughed and teased in a wicked way!  The chorus after the key change was just brilliant.   She sang repeatedly,

Tommy Korberg ... he's a star and a half.  He casually wandered in during the haunting introduction to "Guldet Blev Til Sand" and then he opened his mouth to sing ... what a voice, what a song.  Very powerful, he virtually got into the role of Robert to sing this song in the right context.

    4.  [Editors note:  On November 1st, Aftonbladet ran a short interview with Benny. There was a picture of Benny playing at the concert with the orchestra, and the video screen showing Anders Glenmark behind him.  As translated by Mike:]

Benny plays ABBA again

Benny Andersson back in the Abba era.  For the first time in 17 years.

"It felt fantastic" said Benny.

The show "B&B" has become a public success, both at the Scandinavium in Gothenburg and at Globen.  In total, nearly 60 000 people have seen the tribute performances to Abba's legendary "B's": Björn Ulvaeus and Benny
Andersson.

Last night the concert series had a surprising and historic conclusion at Globen.  In front of 12 000 jubilant spectators and the shows stars - Tommy Körberg, Karin Glenmark, Helen Sjöholm and Anders Glenmark -  Benny Andersson got onto the stage and sat down behind the piano.  'Gimme Gimme, Gimme', 'Voulez-Vous' 'Super Trouper'  and 'Dancing Queen' and the thus far somewhat orderly crowd began to shout, dance and clap ecstatically.

"It was rock'n roll, something that Abba were not so good at" said Benny, smiling happily after the concert.

Afton: It wasn't exactly yesterday that you played Abba songs in concert?
Benny: No, the last time must have been 1981.  Or possibly 1982.
Afton: It must feel flattering to see a show with old Abba tunes selling out Globen?
Benny: No, it feels rather fascinating that there is life in the old work.  I can't grasp how big Abba were.
Afton: Now I'm thinking of asking that Abba question again, you know.
Benny: No, there'll be no reunion
 

I guess everyone knows by now that Benny took part in the final B&B concert at Globen in Stockholm on Saturday night. I was there and it was just amazing! I nearly fell off my seat with excitement when he walked on - or at least when I noticed, because we were so high up that I didn't spot him when he strolled on to the stage. It was a minute or so before I glanced at the video screen and spotted him - all the Swedes sitting around me were dead cool about the whole thing, and there's me leaping out of my seat, yelping 'It's him, it's him!'!

Benny came on first about two or three songs in, I think, and played his accordion [with Orsa Spelman].  I was having a little trouble concentrating on the music at that point. He said the last time he'd been (or it might have been the last time he'd played) at Globen was with U2. I think that was the only thing he said to the audience all evening. Then he went off, and I thought that was probably it, or maybe he'd come back on for the last song.....but the best was yet to come!

In the second half, Anders and Karin Glenmark, Tommy Korberg and Helene Sjoholm started on some Abba songs, and in the middle of one of them, Benny appeared again, sat down at the piano and played.....and played and played. I was sure he'd disappear again after one song, but he stayed for the whole set. He really seemed to be enjoying himself, which was terrific to see. They were called back four times for encores - the first time they played Dancing Queen, the second Thank you for the Music, the third Anders and Tommy camped up the 'I am the girl with Golden Hair' bit from TYFM, and the fourth one they didn't seem to know what to do and just milled around a bit and then took some bows. Benny seemed a bit bemused by the whole thing at this stage, and very obviously didn't want to take all the attention away from the others.

All too soon, it was over,  and all the way back to the hotel I could still hardly believe what we'd seen. Obviously I'd hoped at least one Abba member woudl turn up, and I'd figured that Benny was the most likely because he was in that schlager show recently - but I thought if he came it might just be to take part in the last song or something. I never imagined he'd come on and play for so long. It really felt like watching Abba all over again - not just because of Benny, but because Anders and the others made such a good job of the Abba songs (listening to them showed up what a pig's ear Bjorn Again make of the music).

The only bit I wasn't so keen on was Tommy K's rendition of Winner Takes it All - I love Tommy's voice, but for some reason for WTIA he sounded like Des O'Connor (a middle-aged, easy listening, light entertainment type singer, for those non-UK Abbamailers who aren't familiar with him). It was almost spooky actually, that song is so much Agnetha's that even though Tommy was right there in front of me singing it, it was her voice and face I could see and hear in my head. I think she would have been delighted to hear him sing it!