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| Polar Music | |
|---|---|
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| Parent company | Universal Music Sweden |
| Founded | 1963 |
| Founder | Stig Anderson Bengt Bernhag |
| Genre | Pop Rock |
| Country of origin | Sweden |
| Location | Stockholm, Sweden |
Polar Music is a Swedish record company founded in 1963 by Stig Anderson and his friend Bengt Bernhag.
The first act that Polar Music signed was the Hootenanny Singers featuring Björn Ulvaeus. [1] Polar eventually gained prosperity producing Ulvaeus' next group, international superstars ABBA. As a small Scandinavian company based in Sweden, Polar could not afford to set up operations worldwide and was ABBA's record company only in the Scandinavian countries. Therefore, ABBA's recordings were licensed to different record companies in each country, but usually to companies that had international operations, meaning they could effectively compete with each other to acquire the licenses in more countries if they proved successful in their own. The licenses gave the companies a few allowances to issue certain tracks as singles that Polar had not, or to modify single (and occasionally album) artwork. The licenses were for three years at a time, meaning that between 1989 and 1992 they all expired. This enabled PolyGram to release Gold: Greatest Hits to major success around the world.
Polar Music is currently distributed by Universal Music Group [1] whose predecessor company, PolyGram, purchased it in 1989. However, Polar Music International AB legally still exists and ABBA's recordings remain copyrighted to the company. Polar is now ABBA's record label internationally, and the historic Polar vinyl label designs have been used on the group's CD releases since 2004 (usually on deluxe releases of studio albums).
The Polar Music Prize, an award for outstanding musical achievement, was created by Stig Anderson, [2] the same year after he sold the label to PolyGram.
Artists signed by Polar Music included ABBA, [1] Alive Feat, Jessie Martins, Lena Andersson, [1] Chana, Crosstalk, Dilba, Emilia, Anni-Frid Lyngstad, [1] Agnetha Fältskog and Linda Ulvaeus, Ted Gärdestad, [1] Gemini, The Hellacopters, The Infinite Mass, Fredrik Kempe, Lambretta, Maarja, Paulo Mendonça, Mr. Vegas Fea Intense, Emma Nilsdotter, Mats Paulson, Pineforest Crunch, Sam (musician), Skintrade, Starr Chukki/infinit, Svenne and Lotta, [1] Joey Tempest, Top-Notch, Harpo, Topaz Sound and Anders Widmark. The last band to be signed to Polar were Beagle whose two albums for the label Sound On Sound and Within are considered to be power-pop classics.[ by whom? ]
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ABBA are 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.
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.
Stig Erik Leopold "Stikkan" Anderson was a Swedish music manager, lyricist and music publisher. He was the co-founder of Polar Music, and is best known for managing the Swedish pop band ABBA.
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.
Ted Arnbjörn Gärdestad was a Swedish singer, songwriter, musician and actor known internationally as Ted. Gärdestad began his acting career in 1966 and began playing music in 1971, signing with Polar Music. Assigned with in-house producers Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, Gärdestad released his first single, "Hela världen runt," in late 1971 and worked closely with the four members of ABBA to create his debut album Undringar (1972). As Polar Music's best-selling solo artist, he continued to work with the group members throughout the 1970s, releasing three more albums Ted (1973), Upptåg (1974) and Franska Kort (1976), which were moderately successful. In 1978, Gärdestad released his first English-language album, Blue Virgin Isles, which did not have success internationally, as his predecessor albums had in his home country.
"People Need Love" is the debut single recorded in March 1972 by Swedish pop group ABBA, at the time known as 'Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid'. The song was on the group's first album, Ring Ring, released in 1973.
Gracias Por La Música is a Spanish-language album by Swedish pop group ABBA, released in Spain on 5 April 1980 and Latin America on May 10. Gracias Por La Música was originally released due to the unexpected surge in popularity for the group in Latin American countries such as Mexico and Argentina after the release of the Spanish-language versions of "Chiquitita" and "I Have a Dream" in 1979. These tracks were both released as singles and went on to become big hits. Encouraged by this success, the band therefore decided to record another eight tracks in Spanish and release a full-length album especially for the Latin American market. The album was also released in ABBA's native Sweden on June 23, and in Japan on July 21 after ABBA played eleven successful concerts earlier in March.
Frida is the debut studio album by Swedish singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad, released in March 1971 by EMI Columbia. Recorded between September 1970 and January 1971, Frida was produced by her then-fiancé, Benny Andersson. Frida was her only album recorded for EMI during her contract, not counting her eponymous compilation album from 1972, before being signed to Polar and form with the Swedish pop group ABBA, a year later.
Frida ensam is the second studio album by Swedish singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad. It was first released by Polar Music in 1975 while Lyngstad was a member of the pop group ABBA and produced by her then-fiancé and fellow ABBA member, Benny Andersson. It has since been re-released several times, most significantly in remastered form in 2005 with bonus tracks. The lead song was the original version of "Fernando" sung in Swedish by Lyngstad. The album was a huge success in Sweden and Lyngstad was awarded a platinum disc. The album is included in the box set, Frida – 4xCD 1xDVD.
"One of Us" is a song by Swedish pop group ABBA. It was released in December 1981 by Polar Music as the lead single from the band's eighth studio album, The Visitors (1981). Written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, who also produced it, the song has lead vocals by Agnetha Fältskog and is about a woman trying to revive a relationship she had ended. It would become ABBA's last major hit for 40 years, and the last No. 1 single of their career, topping the charts in Belgium, Denmark, West Germany, Ireland and the Netherlands. "One of Us" was also a top-10 hit in countries like Austria, Norway, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland and the UK. In the US, where it was released in 1983, it only charted on the Billboard Bubbling Under the Hot 100 chart and the Adult Contemporary chart, peaking at number 107 and 33, respectively. The music video for the song was directed by Lasse Hallström, featuring Fältskog as a woman moving in her new house. "One of Us" has since been covered by Pandora in 1995, A-Teens in 1999 and Cher in 2018.
"Ring Ring" is a song by Swedish group ABBA, released as the title track of their 1973 debut album. The single gave the group their big break in several European countries (although the rest of Europe, North America and Australia would be introduced to ABBA the following year). The song was written in Swedish by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, along with their manager Stig Anderson, with an original title of "Ring Ring (Bara du slog en signal)" ("Ring Ring (If Only You Called)"). Translation into English lyrics was helped by Neil Sedaka and his collaborator Phil Cody. The Swedish version reached No. 1 in the Swedish charts.
Polar Studios was a recording studio in Stockholm, Sweden, which operated from 1978 through 2004. The studio was formed by ABBA musicians Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson and the band's manager Stig Anderson, owner of the Polar Music recording label.
"He Is Your Brother" is a song recorded in 1972 by Swedish pop group ABBA, at the time known as "Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid".
"Bang-A-Boomerang" is a song by ABBA, first released by Svenne & Lotta. The track was first recorded as a demo with English lyrics in September 1974 by the ABBA musicians for their eponymous album ABBA. The song was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson and at one point had the working title "Stop and Listen to Your Heart". The lyrics compare the "message of love" with the returning boomerangs which the Aboriginal Australians developed.
Görel Johnsen, later Görel Hanser, was born 21 June 1949 in Skultorp, near Skövde in Sweden. Johnsen started working at the offices of Stig Anderson’s publishing company Sweden Music and the record company Polar Music in September 1969.
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.
The Best of ABBA is a compilation greatest hits album by Swedish pop group ABBA, first released in August 1975 in the Netherlands. It was then released in West Germany, and then in Australia and New Zealand in November 1975, before being released in Austria and India in 1976. Despite not being released in Norway, imports led the album to chart. After import copies were being sold in Scandinavia, ABBA's Greatest Hits was rush-released there in November 1975. The album topped the charts in Australia, Austria and New Zealand, and went on to be certified 24× Platinum in New Zealand and 22× Platinum in Australia. The album is tied with Dire Straits' album Brothers in Arms for being the best-selling album in New Zealand.
Thank You for the Music is a box set by the Swedish pop group ABBA, released on 31 October 1994. It consists of 66 tracks across four discs, with the first three discs including all of the band's singles from 1972–1982, many B-sides, and some album tracks in chronological order; while the fourth disc includes some rarities and some previously unreleased material, most notably the 23-and-a-half minute long medley "ABBA Undeleted", which includes the track "Just a Notion", later released as part of Voyage in 2021. This box set marks the appearance of several ABBA tracks on compact disc for the first time.
Greatest Hits is a compilation album by the Swedish pop group ABBA. It was originally released in Scandinavia on 17 November 1975 and in other parts of the world in 1976, notably the UK on 10 April, and on 18 September in the US and Canada. The 1976 version of the album included the band's most recent single "Fernando".
Atlantis Studios is a recording studio at Karlbergsvägen 57 in Stockholm. Founded in 1959 as Metronome Studios, it is the location of early recordings of the members of ABBA prior to the formation of the group, as well as the majority of the group's hit singles and recordings by The Cardigans, Roxette, Opeth, The Hives, and others.
