The Winner's Gonna Take It All: The final...

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Tasteless heathens.
 
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Deleted member 312

I honestly don't think the original Angel sounds much like Lay All Your Love at all, aside from being the same genre.

Another 7, just like Teacher. I'm not mortified but I've still got a couple of 2-4s left that really need to fuck off.
 
He/Him
41.

'...And I've often wondered, how did it all start... Who found out that nothing can capture a heart like a melody can... Well, whoever it was, I'm a fan...'
- Agnetha Fältskog in Thank You for the Music -

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This picture is the epitomy of grin-and-bear-it...

Average: 7.7283
Highest score: 12 *
10.00 - @TrueBeliever @haps @ohnostalgia @Terminus @ufint @Gotnomoretosay @Sprockrooster @WhatKindOfKylie? @P'NutButter @WhipperSnapper @SecretsOfFatima @Angeleyes
Lowest score: 3 * 2.00 - @bichard @cityofdoomsday @dancingwithmyself
My score: 5.00

The Album loses another track just before we reach the top 40.

And it's a rather iconic one...

Thank You for the Music was written and recorded in 1977 and was part of a mini-musical Benny and Björn wrote, called The Girl with the Golden Hair. As I have told you before, that mini-musical was performed during their 1977 world tour. The other songs featured were I Wonder (Departure), I'm a Marionette and Get on the Carousel, which in turn was an early version of Hole in Your Soul.
The version you all know and love isn't actually the original either, as the Doris Day mix was the song that was performed on tour. It was eventually released on the 1994 box set aptly titled Thank You for the Music.


The song was released in 1978 as a double A-side with Eagle and became a moderately sized hit in territories such as Belgium, Australia, Switzerland, Austria, France, Germany and The Netherlands, and in South Africa where it became one of the biggest hits of that year actually.

In 1980 the Spanish version Gracias Por La Musica was released as a single in Spanish territories to promote the release of the album of the same name, which featured Spanish language renditions of some of their biggest hits.

The song was eventually released as a single in the United Kingdom and Ireland in 1983, where it became a top 40 and top 20 hit respectively. Only France and The Netherlands got the single that year too, but it's needless to say it didn't set the charts alight over there either as ABBA's popularity was fast declining and they were reaching the end of their tether.

Personally, I don't really care for the song and to me it's a kii and a half that this went out just before the top 40... Agnetha gives us a nice enough performance and shows she has it in her to be theatrical, but let's face it... There's only one queen of the stage in that group and it ain't Aggie.
Still, it's a fucking classic and the lessers only wish they could record a song such as this and it still being remembered by the general public a mere 40 years after it was first released.

VivaForever gets it right. "Kind of overrated for obvious reasons but still a very good song. Would be top tier for a lot of groups that aren't ABBA.". Great minds think alike, sis.

To TrueBeliever this is "Classic and beautiful, the song encapsulates the ABBA experience for so many fans. We used this song as the groom/mother dance at our wedding, as my mom indoctrinated me into the world of ABBA from an early age.", while for poor ol' Sprockrooster it only takes "One second and I am instantly hooked/captivated. And I know what is to come. Still I am blown away every time. A dedication to music itself and it could not have sounded better. The perfect sing-a-long ending for a concert (encore).".
This was actually used here in Flanders as the encore for something called De Soundmixshow, which featured people impersonating their favourite acts and this is the song all the acts would sing at the end of the show. Oh, the days...

WhatKindOfKylie? sees this as "The 'unoffical' ABBA farewell anthem, that has managed to become just as loved and as iconic as their biggest hits. A song that shows how important music means to each and every one of us. Especially the great back catalogue of ABBA!".
"This song nearly always makes me cry a little bit and I don’t particularly know why." admits SecretsOfFatima and maybe it's that unofficial farewell that's giving you the feels?

Low scorer bichard admits "I fucking hate this song.", while Filippa gives us one of her small tidbits in saying "Not mine."...

Okay.

Mumty proclaims he's had "a long relationship with this one. I’ve hated it, I’ve loved it and I’ve hated it again. It’s deceivingly simple when in fact the song contains 457 chord changes." and Mina calls it "Serviceable and certainly better than I Have a Dream I just don't really care for it despite having heard it many, many times.". I find myself firmly in your camp though as I either hate or love it when listening to it and I can never quite make my mind up... It is better than I Have a Dream though.

Giving this 8 points and explaining why... It's Mikey1701!
"Just like with Dancing Queen, my high score for this is not so much because I love it- it’s not something I actively want to listen to even though but I do find it a solid, theatrical and camp track- but because of the cultural legacy of the song. You hear this and you know it’s ABBA. Rightfully one of their signatures, everything that makes ABBA great is here in this track. Agnetha has never sounded better than she does on this, the harmonies are spectacular and it’s so joyous that it’s impossible to not smile.".

Hudweiser's "favourite bit of this song is Agnetha's last line "for giving iiiiiit... to me". The rest of it falls in with I Have a Dream to some extent, a little too folky and squeaky clean, but one of those songs almost everyone knows." and it's actually CasperFan's "Dad’s favourite! Yes it’s a bit cheesy and corny but what a beautiful, catchy tune with a fabulous vocal. Could easily have been a number 1 single if it had been released at the time.".

tylerc904 doesn't "begrudge its status as an ABBA classic over many, many gems I prefer, because the sentiment is so special and true. I will say the Alcazar tribute/”homage” Thank You is BETTER.". Listen and judge for yourselves, girls...


Thinking it's "Gorgeous and the lyrics are so cosy... if that makes sense?" is P'nutbutter, but someone who doesn't share the same sentiment is constantino, to whom it's "So, so depressing. It’s almost Sound Of Music-esque and I’m just not here for it I’m afraid.", yet still gives it 6 points.

We'll end with ufint whose commentary speaks for itself...
"It’s banal and cheesy as hell, but thank you for the music, ABBA."

Indeed.

THANK YOU.



A performance video was shot in 1977 to promote the song when it was released as a double A-side with Eagle.


The release of ABBA: The Album coincided with the release of ABBA: The Movie and Thank You for the Music inevitably was featured in that too...

 
He/Him
...and of course it was performed during their 1979 world tour. Here's them performing it at Wembley Arena.


They shot a performance video for the Spanish version in 1980 to promote the release of Gracias Por La Musica.


Here's the performance they gave during their 1979 tv special ABBA in Switzerland...


...and here's the one from 1981, which was performed during their special Dick Cavett Meets ABBA.


In November 1982 they went on their last ever promotional tour, however, and the song was performed on The Late Late Late Breakfast Show...

 
He/Him
...and eventually it was performed on Swedish tv a couple of weeks later, which would be their last ever performance as a group.


Hold onto your wigs for these covers, girls!

In 1978 The Carpenters covered this, but it was never finished in the end...


...and a year later The Nolans recorded a cover for their Nolan Sisters album.


That same year Dame Vera Lynn covered for her covers album Thank You for the Music (I Sing the Songs)...


...and in 1997 German eurodance group E-Rotic released a cover of the song on their ABBA tribute album Thank You for the Music.
 
He/Him
idratherjack brings us seemlessly to the next cover version... "I still fondly remember dancing to this as the last song of the night in grim regional homosexual nitespots and singing "thank ABBA for the music" to the amazing Steps/Tina Cousins/Cleopatra/B*Witched and Billie version. What a time to be alive!",
as in 1999 it was performed as part of a medley at the Brit Awards ceremony by those acts and the song eventually was released as a single, becoming a top 10 hit for all the artists involved.

Icons only.

To be fair, the song has been covered and performed on television a shitload, so lemme end on this one...

In 2006, the song was included as a hidden track on the Mamma Mia! soundtrack, wonderfully sung by Amanda Seyfried. It's not really featured in the movie, but can be heard during the end credits.
 
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