baffled many that in 1982, after the success of their eighth studio album, The Visitors, Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad mysteriously disappeared. The band’s refusal to reform in 2000 was so firm that it was accompanied by a $1 billion offer (for 100 gigs). As Benny put it to the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet, “It’s a heck of a lot of money to say no to, but we decided it wasn’t for us.”
Fans were never given an explanation for the band’s sudden hiatus and subsequent absence for nearly four decades, despite the fact that their music is still widely played today and the likes of Mamma Mia! (both the movies and the stage production) have helped them reach new audiences across generations. For the first time since 1982, the original four members of Abba have reunited for a concert and record entitled “Abba Voyage.” Why did Abba truly disband, and what did they have to hide?
Why did Abba break up?
Abba never actually disbanded. Although the band’s demise was never officially confirmed, many fans saw the writing on the wall. The band’s composition of two couples—Björn and Agnetha, and Benny and Anni-Frid—meant that the demands of fame were a constant test for them all. It’s generally agreed that the split occurred in the early 1980s due to Anni-Frid and Agnetha’s desire to focus on solo albums and their respective divorces from their respective partners.
Anni-first Frid’s post-Abba solo album, Something’s Going On, was recorded and published in 1982, during the band’s final year of active performance. As 1982 came to a close, Agnetha began pursuing projects outside of Abba, such as a duet with Swedish singer (and former Abba backing vocalist) Tomas Ledin on the song “Never Again” and the release of her solo album, Wrap Your Arms Around Me.
Agnetha admitted that she struggled to remain a band member after her breakup. Benny and Bjorn’s friendship endured, and they eventually collaborated on the music for musicals like Chess. In an interview with Apple Music published on Thursday, September 2, Bjorn discussed the reasons for the band’s initial breakup in 1982.
READ MORE:
- Are Megan and Machine Gun Kelly still together?
- When Do Booth And Hannah Break Up: All Updates 2022!
- Is Lexi Rivera Dating A Boyfriend In 2022? All You Need To Know
‘We stopped because we didn’t have as much fun in the studio as we did this time, and we could feel the enthusiasm fading,’ they said. That’s why we urged, “Halt a minute.” ‘We never said, ‘This is it,'” he elaborated. We’ve gone our own ways, and there’s no way to get back together. That is not what we intended to imply. In retrospect, we simply agreed to take a break. As a result, we will resume our regularly scheduled programming immediately.
Which Abba couples were married?
The marriage of Agnetha Fältskog and Björn Ulvaeus lasted from 1971 till 1980. They got married only three years before ABBA’s big break in the Eurovision Song Contest. They are parents to Peter Christian Ulvaeus, 43, and Linda Elin Ulvaeus, 48. Both have spoken publicly about their divorce and the songwriting inspiration for The Winner Takes It All that came from their breakup.
Agnetha told the Daily Mail in 2013 that Björn wrote the song about her and her husband after they divorced, and that it was her favourite of the band’s songs. It’s sweet that he wrote it on the anniversary of the day we officially split up. “It was great to record that song since I was able to convey so much emotion.” I had no qualms with letting the world know.
I didn’t get an uneasy sensation doing it. That song packs a lot of meaning. ‘It was a combination of how I felt, how Björn felt, and how Benny and Frida felt and what they went through. Agnetha did not talk about how tough the divorce was for her and the kids until after her book came out. She revealed the truth about their “happy” divorce to the public by saying, “We always told the media that it was a happy divorce, which of course was a front,” in her memoir As I Am.
In their own words. pic.twitter.com/FJ4bsjnKVe
— ABBA (@ABBA) August 9, 2022
“Everyone knows there’s no such thing as a pleasant divorce, and that’s especially true when there are children involved,” said no one ever. Benny and Anni-Frid were the other members of Abba, which stands for the three initials of the three members (who often went by Frida). They were married for a total of three years, beginning in 1978 and ending in 1981.
In 1969, both were competing at Melodifestivalen, the Swedish national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest, where they first crossed paths. Benny assisted in the production of Anni-1971 Frid’s debut solo album, Frida, and by 1972 the two were engaged. Anni-Fri reluctantly joined her fiance’s band, Abba, in 1972. In the end, the couple tied the knot in 1978, but they announced their separation the following year, a full year before the band went on hiatus for the first of its 40 years.
Leave a Reply