"Hey, Hey Helen" | |
---|---|
Song by ABBA | |
from the album ABBA | |
A-side | "Mamma Mia" (Australia)
|
Released | April 21, 1975 |
Genre | |
Length | 3:16 |
Label | |
Songwriter(s) | Björn Ulvaeus Benny Andersson |
Producer(s) | Björn Ulvaeus Benny Andersson |
Audio | |
"Hey, Hey Helen" on YouTube |
"Hey, Hey Helen" is a song by ABBA, featured on their 1975 self-titled album. It was used as the B-side to Mamma Mia in Australia and Fernando in the UK.
The song is in the Glam rock genre.
George Starostin Reviews says the song has "perfectly tolerable lyrics about a family breakup" from an anti-feminist perspective. [3] PopDose says "'Helen' took an adult look at divorce and single motherhood in a time when the divorce rate was up and the traditional family unit was taking a beating. At first, the lyrics seem a bit judgmental, until you get to that last bit in the chorus where the girls assure the newly single mother that she can, in fact, make it alone". [4]
Lush covered the song for an abandoned anti-poll tax compilation, [5] the cover version was released on their 1990 album Gala . [6]
The Trouser Press record guide described the song as "obscure". OneWeekOneBand said "The best bit of this - OK maybe apart from the riff - is where the lyrics go “Can you make it alone?” and the backing vox reply “Yes you can” and to prove it the song goes into a FUNK BREAKDOWN, the only one in ABBA's catalogue." [7] George Starostin Reviews says the song is "quite memorable", and adds it is "what all those 'heavy metal tunes' off Waterloo would have sounded like" if they had been given more of the 'ABBA' sound. It adds "the heavy guitar riffs on that one don't bother me in the least, as they never try to sound dreary or 'mock-ominous': they just emphasize the power of the tune, which is, in my opinion, a highly underrated ABBA classic, with all those riffs, a catchy, rhythmic synth solo, a groovy drum pattern". [3] PopDose describes the song as "one of the earliest glimmers that ABBA were more than just your standard bubblegum pop group". It wondered why the song wasn't featured in the Mamma Mia musical considering its subject matter, and theorises that it was because the song wasn't popular enough. It notes, however, that the group mimed it for quite a few TV appearances at the time, citing “Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert” in 1975. [4]
ABBA were a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. They are one of the most popular and successful musical groups of all time, and are one of the best-selling music acts in the history of popular music.
Björn Kristian Ulvaeus is a Swedish musician, singer, songwriter, and producer best known as a member of the musical group ABBA. He is also the co-composer of the musicals Chess, Kristina från Duvemåla, and Mamma Mia! He co-produced the films Mamma Mia! and Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again with fellow ABBA member and close friend Benny Andersson. He is the oldest member of the group.
Göran BrorBennyAndersson is a Swedish musician, composer and producer best known as a member of the pop group ABBA and co-composer of the musicals Chess, Kristina från Duvemåla, and Mamma Mia! For the 2008 film version of Mamma Mia! and its 2018 sequel, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, he worked also as an executive producer. Since 2001, he has been active with his own band Benny Anderssons orkester.
"Mamma Mia" is a song by the Swedish pop group ABBA, written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson, with the lead vocals shared by Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. It is the opening track on the group's third album, the self-titled ABBA (1975). The song was released in September 1975 as its sixth single. It tells the story of the narrator's on-again, off-again relationship with a lover who is repeatedly unfaithful to her. The song's name is derived from Italian and literally translates as "my mother", but is used as an interjection in situations of surprise, anguish, or excitement. The song was ABBA's first number one in the UK since "Waterloo" in 1974.
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ABBA is the third studio album by the Swedish pop group ABBA. It was originally released on 21 April 1975 through Polar Music and featured the hits "SOS", "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" and "Mamma Mia".
"Fernando" is a song written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, from the Swedish musical group ABBA. The song was written for their fellow group member Anni-Frid Lyngstad and was included on her 1975 album Frida ensam.
Mamma mia, Mammamia, Mamamia or Mumma Mia may refer to:
"The Winner Takes It All" is a song recorded by Swedish pop group ABBA. Released as the first single from the group's seventh studio album, Super Trouper (1980), it is a ballad in the key of G-flat major, reflecting on the end of a relationship. The single's B-side was the non-album track "Elaine". The song peaked at No.1 in several countries, including the UK, where it became their eighth chart-topper. It was also the group's final top 10 hit in the United States. It was written by Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, with Agnetha Fältskog singing the lead vocal.
"Does Your Mother Know" is a song by Swedish pop group ABBA. It was the second single taken from their sixth studio album, Voulez-Vous, as was the B-side, "Kisses of Fire". The track is notable for its emphasis on male vocals, performed by Björn Ulvaeus, with female backing vocals.
"I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" is a song by Swedish pop group ABBA. It was the third single to be released from their third studio album, ABBA (1975). The song was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and their manager Stig Anderson, and was released in April 1975 with "Rock Me" as the B-side.
"Intermezzo No. 1" is an instrumental track from Swedish pop group ABBA's self-titled third album, released in April 1975. It was the first of only two tracks by the group not to contain lyrics; the other was the title track of their 1976 release, Arrival. It is the only purely instrumental ABBA song however, as Arrival includes "a static layer of rich harmony vocals". On the cover, the song was credited as "Intermezzo No.1 featuring Benny Andersson".
A jukebox musical is a stage musical or musical film in which a majority of the songs are well-known, pre-existing popular music songs, rather than original music composed for the musical.
The Complete Studio Recordings is a box set of all of the studio material released by the Swedish pop group ABBA. It was released on 7 November 2005 and consists of 9 CDs and 2 DVDs, plus a full color booklet with a timeline and photos. Another booklet containing complete lyrics to all of the music was also included.
"Rock Me" is a song recorded in 1974 by Swedish pop group ABBA, with Björn Ulvaeus singing the lead vocals. It was first released on their third album, ABBA, and was used as the B-side to the group's 1975 single "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do". However, after "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" hit number one in both Australia and New Zealand, "Rock Me" was released as an A-side in April 1976, reaching number four and number two respectively. It was also issued as an A-side in Yugoslavia and in 1979 it was included on the band's Greatest Hits Vol. 2 album.
"When I Kissed the Teacher" is a song by the pop band ABBA. It is the opening track on their 1976 album Arrival.
Gala is the debut compilation album by the English alternative rock band Lush, released in 1990 by 4AD as an introduction to the US and Japanese markets, comprising the band's earliest releases in reverse chronological order, plus two additional tracks.
The Albums is a box set of recordings by the Swedish pop group ABBA. It was released on 11 November 2008 through Universal Music. The box set includes nine discs, the first eight are all of the original studio albums the way they were originally released between 1973 and 1981 while the ninth disc features all of the singles that were not released on the band's studio albums along with some of the B-sides. It includes a 40-page booklet on ABBA’s history. It does not include rarities or extras. The box set has charted in several countries.
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...from the crunchy hard rock guitar riff that propelled "Hey, Hey Helen"...