Abba-esque

Last updated

Abba-esque
Abba-esque.jpeg
EP by
Erasure
Released1 June 1992 (1992-06-01)
Genre Synth-pop
Length17:46
Label Mute
Producer David Bascombe
Erasure EPs chronology
Am I Right?
(1991)		Abba-esque
(1992)		 I Love Saturday
(1994)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Entertainment Weekly C+ [1]

Abba-esque is an extended play (EP) by English synth-pop duo Erasure. Released on 1 June 1992, the EP was Erasure's first and only number one on the UK Singles Chart and also became a number-one hit in Austria, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Ireland, and Sweden.

Contents

As big fans of the Swedish group ABBA, Erasure (Vince Clarke and Andy Bell) had often performed ABBA songs in concert over the years. They had originally planned to release an album of ABBA covers but instead opted to release an EP of four of ABBA hits.[ citation needed ]

Background

Mute Records released Abba-esque in the UK, while Elektra Records released it in the US. Music videos were produced for all four tracks, and issued as a video EP on VHS. A remix EP was also released by Mute Records in the UK which featured the same four songs in heavily reworked form. [2] Shortly after the release, ABBA's Gold: Greatest Hits album was released, sparking a revival of ABBA's music that has endured well into the 21st century.

After peaking at number two twice (with "Sometimes" in 1986 and Crackers International in 1988), Erasure finally reached number one in the UK with this release, remaining there for five weeks. [3] In the United States, where EPs chart on the Billboard 200, Abba-esque peaked at number 85. [4] Although never officially released as a single by itself, the song "Take a Chance on Me", which features a guest rap by MC Kinky, received significant radio play in the US, allowing it to peak at number 52 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart. [5] In Sweden, the EP peaked at number one, staying there for six consecutive weeks, [6] and it also peaked atop the charts of Austria, Denmark, Finland, Greece and Ireland. [7] [8] [9] [10] [11]

The release of the Abba-esque EP in due course precipitated the release of a similar EP, Erasure-ish, by the ABBA tribute band Björn Again, which features two Erasure tracks ("A Little Respect" and "Stop!") performed in the style of ABBA as an answer record.

Critical reception

Joe Brown from The Washington Post wrote, "To promote its summer tour, reportedly a camp extravaganza surpassing the last one, electroduo Erasure offer a sweet, cool pop-sicle - a four-song EP of faithful ABBA covers, delivered without perceptible irony. Like George Michael, who sang a slew of beloved '70s songs on his most recent tour, Andy Bell gets to pretend he is ABBA - specifically Frida and Agnetha. You can imagine Bell singing "S.O.S." and "Lay All Your Love On Me" in front of his bedroom mirror (complete with faintly phonetic English), while synthmeister Vince Clark handles the Bjorn-and-Benny parts singlehandedly - dense, bleeping-and-whooshing synth textures that sound like Giorgio Moroder's late-'70s settings for Donna Summer. Erasure drags yet another guilty pop pleasure out of the closet - what's surprising now is how grown-up and complex these ABBA songs really were beneath their candy coatings." [12]

Music videos

The music video for "Take a Chance on Me" was directed by Philippe Gautier, and the other three were directed by Jan Kounen. [13]

Track listings

Abba-esque

  1. "Lay All Your Love on Me" (B. Andersson / B. Ulvaeus) – 4:45
  2. "SOS" (S. Anderson / B. Andersson/B. Ulvaeus) – 3:49
  3. "Take a Chance on Me" (B. Andersson / B. Ulvaeus) – 3:43
  4. "Voulez-Vous" (B. Andersson / B. Ulvaeus) – 5:35
iTunes Store bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
5."Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!"B. Andersson/B. Ulvaeus3:55

Abba-esque – The Remixes

  1. "Voulez-Vous" (Brain Stem Death Test Mix) (remixed by Fortran 5)
  2. "Lay All Your Love on Me" (No Panties Mix) (remixed by Fortran 5)
  3. "Take a Chance on Me" (Take a Trance on Me Mix) (remixed by Philip Kelsey)
  4. "SOS" (Perimeter Mix) (remixed by Chris & Cosey)

Charts

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Austria (IFPI Austria) [42] Gold25,000*
Germany (BVMI) [43] Gold250,000^
United Kingdom (BPI) [44] Gold400,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

RegionDateFormat(s)Label(s)Ref.
United Kingdom1 June 1992
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • 12-inch vinyl
  • CD
  • cassette
 Mute [45]
Japan21 July 1992CD [46]

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References

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  11. 1 2 "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Abba-esque (EP)". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 2 August 2019.
  12. ↑ Brown, Joe (17 July 1992). "Moving the Feet, Shaking the Mind". The Washington Post .
  13. ↑ "Erasure" . Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  14. ↑ "Erasure – Abba-esque". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 2 August 2019.
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  20. ↑ "European Dance Radio" (PDF). Music & Media . 19 September 1992. p. 24. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
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  24. ↑ 16 June 1992
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  41. ↑ "Bestenlisten – Singles 1990er". Hung Medien Austrian Charts Portal (in German). Retrieved 14 May 2019.
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  43. ↑ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Erasure; 'Abbaesque')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie . Retrieved 2 August 2019.
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  46. ↑ "アバ-エスク | イレイジャー" [Abba-esque | Erasure] (in Japanese). Oricon . Retrieved 14 January 2024.
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