"Lay All Your Love on Me" | ||||
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Single by ABBA | ||||
from the album Super Trouper | ||||
B-side | "On and on and On" | |||
Released | July 1981 | |||
Recorded | September–October 1980 | |||
Genre | Dance | |||
Length | 4:32 | |||
Label | Polar Music | |||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) |
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ABBA singles chronology | ||||
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Lyric video | ||||
"ABBA - Lay All Your Love On Me (Official Lyric Video)" on YouTube |
"Lay All Your Love on Me" is a song recorded by Swedish pop group ABBA in 1980 for their seventh studio album, Super Trouper . The song was not intended to be a single but after a remixed version gained popularity in nightclubs, the song was released as the album's sixth and final single in the summer of 1981, eight months after the album's release. At the time, it was the highest selling 12-inch record in UK chart history, where it peaked at No. 7.
In 2006, Slant Magazine placed it at No. 60 on their list of the greatest dance songs of all time, [1] and at 66 on the updated 2020 list. [2]
"Lay All Your Love on Me" is an electro-disco song penned by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, with Agnetha Fältskog singing lead. Recording began at Polar Music Studios in Stockholm on 9 September 1980, with the final mix of the song being completed on 10 October 1980.
"Lay All Your Love on Me" is known for a descending vocal sound at the end of the verse immediately preceding the refrain. This was achieved by sending the vocal into a harmoniser device, which was set up to produce a slightly lower-pitched version of the vocal. In turn its output was fed back to its input, thereby continually lowering the pitch of the vocal. Andersson and Ulvaeus felt that the chorus of the song sounded like a hymn, so parts of the vocals in the choruses were run through a vocoder, to recreate the sound of a church congregation singing, slightly out of tune. [3] The song was not originally intended to be released as a single, but was issued in 12-inch form in the UK and a few other countries in 1981. "Lay All Your Love on Me" has since been much covered and is also featured in the Mamma Mia! musical (and its film adaptation), that showcases many of ABBA's hits.
ABBA did not film a promotional video for "Lay All Your Love on Me", and so Epic hastily assembled a video (at a cost of £3,500) by using excerpts from the existing ABBA videos for "Take a Chance on Me", "Summer Night City", "The Name of the Game", "I Have a Dream", "Voulez-Vous" and "The Winner Takes It All". It was never shown on TV because Epic managers thought it "wasn't needed", but was included on the ABBA Gold VHS. [4]
As "Lay All Your Love on Me" was not intended to be a single, it was not released until 1981, the year after it had been recorded. It was only after a remixed version by Raul A. Rodriguez [5] - (aka C.O.D) of Disconet - had soared in popularity in nightclubs, that it topped the U.S. Hot Dance Club Play chart (along with "Super Trouper" and "On and on and On"). [6] Therefore, the decision was made to release "Lay All Your Love on Me" in limited territories in 12-inch form, as opposed to the standard 7-inch record. It peaked at No. 7 in the UK, becoming ABBA's lowest charting single since "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" in 1975. However, reaching No. 7 in the charts was, at the time, the highest charting position achieved for a 12-inch only release in the UK. "Lay All Your Love on Me" also charted in Ireland (No. 8), Belgium (No. 13) and West Germany (No. 26).
As of September 2021, it is ABBA's 17th-biggest song in the UK, including both pure sales and digital streams. [7]
Chart (1981) | Peak position |
---|---|
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [8] | 13 |
Ireland (IRMA) [9] | 8 |
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan) [10] | 68 |
UK Singles (OCC) [11] | 7 |
US Dance Club Songs ( Billboard ) [12] | 1 |
West Germany (Official German Charts) [13] | 26 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Denmark (IFPI Danmark) [14] | Gold | 45,000‡ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [15] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [16] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
"Lay All Your Love on Me" | ||||
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Single by Information Society | ||||
from the album Information Society | ||||
Released | 1989 | |||
Genre | Dance, synthpop, electronica | |||
Label | Tommy Boy | |||
Songwriter(s) | Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus | |||
Information Society singles chronology | ||||
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"Lay All Your Love on Me" was covered by American techno-pop band Information Society on their 1988 self-titled debut album. The track peaked at No. 83 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1989. It was later included on the compilation ABBA: A Tribute – The 25th Anniversary Celebration.
Track listing
"Lay All Your Love on Me" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Helloween | ||||
from the album Metal Jukebox | ||||
Released | 1999 | |||
Genre | Power metal | |||
Length | 11:08 | |||
Label | Victor Entertainment | |||
Songwriter(s) | Benny Andersson Björn Ulvaeus | |||
Helloween singles chronology | ||||
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"Lay All Your Love on Me" was covered by Helloween from their Metal Jukebox album. It was released as a single in Japan.
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Lay All Your Love on Me" (ABBA cover) | 4:38 |
2. | "From Out of Nowhere" (Faith No More cover) | 3:21 |
3. | "All my loving" (The Beatles cover) | 1:44 |
Lost in Space (Part 1) | ||||
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EP by | ||||
Released | 16 November 2007 | |||
Recorded | March 2007 | |||
Genre | Symphonic power metal | |||
Length | 17:53 | |||
Label | Nuclear Blast Records | |||
Producer | Sascha Paeth & Tobias Sammet | |||
Avantasia chronology | ||||
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"Lay All Your Love on Me" was also covered by German supergroup metal opera project Avantasia on their Lost in Space Part I EP and was included on their compilation album Lost in Space Part I & II.
EP track listing
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Lost in Space" | 3:52 |
2. | "Lay All Your Love on Me" (ABBA cover) | 4:23 |
3. | "Another Angel Down" | 5:42 |
4. | "The Story Ain't Over" | 4:59 |
5. | "Return to Avantasia" | 0:47 |
6. | "Ride the Sky" (Lucifer's Friend cover [17] ) | 2:55 |
Credits
Guest vocalists
Guest musicians
ABBA were a Swedish pop supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The group's name is an acronym of the first letters of their first names arranged as a palindrome. 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, topping the charts worldwide from 1974 to 1982, and again from 2016 to 2022 following their brief reunion.
Waterloo is the second studio album by the Swedish pop group ABBA, and the first released internationally. It was originally released on 4 March 1974 in Sweden through Polar Music. The album's title track won ABBA the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest and became a global hit, launching the group's career.
Super Trouper is the seventh studio album by the Swedish pop group ABBA, released on 3 November 1980. It features the No.1 singles "The Winner Takes It All" and "Super Trouper". The album became the biggest-selling album of 1980 in the UK.
Agneta Åse Fältskog, known as Agnetha Fältskog and AnnaFältskog, is a Swedish singer, songwriter and a member of the pop group ABBA. She first achieved success in Sweden with the release of her 1968 self-titled debut album. She rose to international stardom in the 1970s as a member of ABBA, which is one of the best-selling music acts in history. She is the youngest member of ABBA, and the only one born in the 1950s.
Ring Ring is the debut studio album by the Swedish group ABBA, initially credited as Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida. It was released in Scandinavia on 26 March 1973, and later in a limited number of other territories, including West Germany, Australia, South Africa and Mexico, through Polar Music. It was a chart-topping album in Belgium, and a big success in the Netherlands, Norway and South Africa.
Arrival is the fourth studio album by the Swedish pop group ABBA. It was originally released in Sweden on 11 October 1976 by Polar Records. It became one of ABBA's most successful albums to date, producing three of their biggest hits: "Dancing Queen", "Money, Money, Money" and "Knowing Me, Knowing You". The track "Fernando", which had been recently released as a single in March 1976, was included on the Australian and New Zealand versions of the album. Arrival was the best-selling album of 1977 in the United Kingdom and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America.
"Super Trouper" is a song by the Swedish pop group ABBA, and the title track from their 1980 studio album of the same name, written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus. It was released in November 1980 as the album's third single. The song – with lead vocals by Anni-Frid Lyngstad – had the working title "Blinka Lilla Stjärna", and was the last track to be written and recorded for the album.
Elva kvinnor i ett hus is the fifth studio album by Swedish pop singer Agnetha Fältskog, released on 1 December 1975 by Cupol Records.
The Singles: The First Ten Years is a double compilation album by Swedish pop group ABBA, released in November 1982.
"One of Us" is a song by Swedish pop group ABBA. It was released in December 1981 as the lead single from the band's eighth studio album, The Visitors (1981).
"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.
"Head Over Heels" is a 1981 song recorded by Swedish pop group ABBA and the second track from their eighth studio album, The Visitors. It was released as a single the following year.
"Eagle" is a song that was recorded in 1977 by the Swedish pop group ABBA. It was the first track on the group's fifth album, ABBA: The Album, in terms of the album's sequence of songs, and the longest track they ever recorded. The third and last official single from ABBA: The Album, it was released only in a limited number of territories as a single and in France as a double A-side with "Thank You for the Music." "Eagle" was not released as a single in the United Kingdom. It was intended to be a U.S. single, but was withdrawn.
ABBA Oro: Grandes Éxitos is a greatest hits compilation album by ABBA, first released by Polydor in the United States in 1992, in which the songs are sung in Spanish. This album is the Spanish equivalent of their Gold: Greatest Hits album, originally released as Gracias Por La Música in early 1980. It was certified Gold in Argentina.
"On and On and On" is a pop song recorded by Swedish pop group ABBA. It was released as a single in a limited number of countries in 1980 as the second single from their seventh studio album, Super Trouper.
Number Ones is a compilation album of recordings by Swedish pop group ABBA, released by Polar Music in 2006.
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Longplay Album – Volume II is the second album by the Dutch soundalike studio group Stars on 45, released on the CNR Records label in the Netherlands in August 1981. In the US the album was retitled Stars On Long Play II, released on Radio Records and credited to 'Stars On'. In the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand the album was listed as Stars on 45 Volume 2 or Stars on 45 - The Album - Volume 2, credited to Starsound and issued on CBS Records. Just like the first Stars on 45 album Longplay Album – Volume II was also officially released in the Eastern Bloc by state-owned czechoslovak label Opus, credited to Stars On 45 but under the title Stars on 45 - Volume II.
A is the fifth English-language studio album by Swedish singer Agnetha Fältskog, a member of the group ABBA. It is her twelfth studio album overall.
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