Abba: creator of timeless music: Björn Ulvaeus turns 77

Abba
Creator of timeless music: Björn Ulvaeus turns 77

Björn Ulvaeus turns 77. Photo: Gustavo Valiente/EUROPA PRESS/dpa

© dpa-infocom GmbH

He knows how to write hits. Together with Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus has given the world numerous classics.

«Hela Sverige skramlar för Ukraina» – «All of Sweden collects money for Ukraine». That was the motto when various Swedish music stars held a solidarity concert for Ukraine in early April.

In front of 6000 spectators in the Avicii Arena in Stockholm, Björn Ulvaeus found emotional words to show solidarity with the people of Ukraine. In the end, one of the highest donation amounts ever collected in Sweden was reached with 7.3 million euros. The Abba guitarist and singer was the magnet of this event. This Monday (April 25) he will be 77 years old.

Inseparable from Benny Andersson

After gaining experience as a guitarist in a folk band for a few years from 1961, Ulvaeus met Benny Andersson in 1966, who was also a musician. The two remain close friends to this day.

And to this day, the two are one of the most important songwriting duos in pop and rock history. In 2015, Rolling Stone magazine ranked them among the 100 greatest songwriters of all time.

Written music history with Abba

With Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad, to whom they were also married for a while, the two founded the successful band Abba in 1972. In 1974 they won the Eurovision Song Contest in Brighton and thus celebrated their final breakthrough. In the 1970s, the band celebrated enormous success. Singles like “Mamma Mia” (1975), “Dancing Queen” (1976) or “Money Money Money” (1976) stayed at the top of the charts worldwide, sometimes for many months.

With 400 million records sold, they are one of the most successful bands of all time. In the 1980s, however, the success decreased, in 1983 the separation was announced.

Abba separation, but the spirit lives on

Ulvaeus made a name for themselves with musicals from the mid-1980s. In 1983 he wrote the musical “Chess” with the British musical and film music lyricist Tim Rice, which premiered in 1986 in London’s West End. In 1995 the musical «Kristina fran Duvemala», written by Ulvaeus and his friend Andersson, premiered in Malmö. The Abba hype never stopped. In 1999 they wrote the musical “Mamma Mia”, in which the band’s successes were discussed. The musical was also filmed in 2008.

In 1980, Agnetha Fältskog and Ulvaeus divorced after nine years. But they managed to stay together in the band. Two children (1973 and 1977) come from this marriage. A year later he married Lena Källersjö, with whom he also had two children (1982 and 1986). In February 2022, they announced their separation. Before that, Abba celebrated a brilliant comeback after a break of 40 years with the album «Voyage» (2021).

dpa

source site