Touching to see someone so moved by this evergreen ABBA song. As with all ABBA songs we all find our own interpretations as we listen to them. That's the uniqueness of ABBA. 🤍
Wow 😲 so moved by your interpretation of this beautiful ballad from ABBA. I remember listening to this when the album was first released and listened to this track endlessly.... Frida is an angel herself, she was and has always been my favourite member of ABBA. My interpretation of this beautiful ballad from the moment I heard it was some elderly woman reflecting on her life as her life is slipping fading, remembering all that was good in her life and her loves, and as she closes her eyes she sees an Angel coming to guide her to something beyond the life she has just had😢 Just came across your reaction video's to ABBA, please keep delving into unknown tracks that are so loved by us original older fans. Look forward to them. 🇬🇧👍
Anni-Frid...Frida's voice in this song is so beautiful...touching...unbelievable color and projection of voice here....One of the greatest vocalists of the 20th century , that's what Frida is.
I think that the success of ABBA is: 1. The personalities of all of the ABBA members; Agnetha, Anni-Frid, Björn and Benny are all very authentically humble, nice, honest, down to earth and decent people. Swedish qualities. 2. Benny`s ability to compose catchy, wonderful and epic music, inspired in part from the Swedish folk music (I honestly believe that he is our time`s Mozart), Björn`s ability to create very deep and wise texts, that we all can relate to. Together the two Bs create this Happy-pain that ABBA is famous for. In my opinion, this mixture is what life is all about: the dance between those good times and those throbbing times. 3. Agnetha and Anni-Frid`s ability to harmonise their beautiful and powerful voices together. Ps. Look at the lyrics on the titles “He is your brother”, “I am a marionette” and “The Piper”. Contemplate on the message… Ds. Best regards from Lena in Norway
With an old music box playing, and an old clock ticking on the fireplace mantel, I see an elderly woman, alone, in the shadows and in the dark, sitting by the fire late at night, looking at an old photo album by the firelight, and all the memories of the past come back to haunt her of happy times, and loved ones long gone. I think of my very beloved grandma, who's been gone a very long time now. A very sentimental, priceless song.
Loved your sincere reaction to this beautiful song! No disrespect to Agnetha's superb voice, but in my humble opinion, Frida has the most beautiful female singing voice ever. ❤
I think she's luxuriating in the memories of past loves and past experiences. Bits of memories flit in and out of her mind, all too briefly just as an angel would when passing through. The 'gloom' refers to twilight, and not a gloomy mood, and she continues to enjoy her memories until the fire dies and the mood is over. She closes her eyes, and the memories evaporate. It can mean so many different things, and perhaps different things at different times. A great choice, a very thoughtful and deeply insightful review as always. Thanks TJ.
As an ABBA fan it always irks me when people dismiss their music as throwaway, bubblegum pop. There is SO much more to ABBA than that. And 'The Visitors' album is the best example of this. Their songwriting, arrangements and performances were sublime by this stage in their career. But sadly, by 1981, many people had made up their minds about ABBA and even now cannot (or will not) entertain the notion that they had real depth to them. Personally, I've always heard this song as Frida's melancholic musings about the end of her relationship to Benny. The phrase 'love was one prolonged goodbye' is very apt for that particular partnership. But, of course, the lyrics and mood allow for many other interpretations. Thanks so much for taking the time to go down the ABBA rabbit hole, Tommy.
"But sadly, by 1981, many people had made up their minds about ABBA and even now cannot (or will not) entertain the notion that they had real depth to them..." Spot on.
I didn't grow up with Abba. My mother has it all on vinyl and CD. I started listening to Abba when I was 16. When I turn up Dancing Queen or "Gimme gimme gimme" my mother starts dancing and smiling. Me too :-) As great as the appreciation for Abba later became ... I don't think any of these people listened to the lyrics. The lyrics are phenomenally good, the sound is pure perfection ... together with the voices it is and remains unmatched. At 25 I am not ashamed to say: I am an Abba fan. And if nobody remembers us anymore ... Abba will be remembered when there is no more electricity and her songs can no longer be played ... everyone will hum the songs to themselves ... and smile.
So much Frida-love in these comments. And rightly so! In my opinion the greatest and most beautiful vocalist of my lifetime. She could have sung anything, any genre, any generation, and made the listener melt. Try some of her solo stuff, particularly from the Djupa Andetag album. It’s all in Swedish but it doesn’t even matter, Frida’s voice takes you to heaven. 💛
Frida’s ethereal vocals add to atmospheric vibes to this song as she reminisces on past loves. For me this is without doubt one of the most iconic songs in the ABBA back catalogue that was not released as a single in its own right, Frida was definitely the right choice to perform this song.
one of the best songs from Frida... the harmonious music is hauntingly beautiful and does send goosebumps on you...I've actually told my family that this song to be played at my funeral if its possible....abso beautiful. Yes I agree with many comments on here about our own life passing on and remembering it as we get older....the lyric 'Like an angel passing through my room' i personally think, all the times you had bad days, the angel just passed through, helped you get through them and not waited for you to join her/him on your final journey.
This showcases Frida’s incredible vocal talent. Appreciate your reaction thank you. Should I Laugh or Cry is another ABBA masterpiece with Frida on lead.
Exactly right! There's a reason why this song took 5 tries to get it all just right in the end. It's a very complicated song that needed time to find it's right path.
This song is beautiful, but what makes it a true masterpiece is Frida's masterful and soulful delivery. I truly don't understand, why some of ABBA's members griped that this song is somehow lacking, I think it is absolutely perfect. There are several covers, including by opera diva and Tabernacle choir lead singer, and also by Madonna, but all of them altogether can't hold a candle to Frida's singing it. By the way, in some 90s interview Madonna said, that ABBA is boring, but then not only sang this song, but also sampled heavily Gimmie, Gimmie, Gimmie for her Hung Up song. What a hypocrite. Anyway, ABBA rules, in 300 years people still will be listening to them, and if people destroy the planet, ABBA's music will survive the destruction and will bless the ears of aliens.
@@godfrapp_ Yep, it applies to any regular person, but a singer, average at that, has to be really dumb to comment that on a legendary band whose singers can run miles around her both in terms of vocal abilities and charisma, she could say something neutral. Also she could write her own song, if she is so scintillating and not boring.
@@godfrapp_ The truth, that she was so ignorant, that she had no idea about ABBA's music, but must have seen some cheesy poster of them, so decided that they were boring.
This song will never age because it is timeless, both in its wording and its arrangments. It sounds as if it could have been composed anytime between then and now. The "child toy" you hear is just the ticking of an old grandfather clock in a peaceful empty room, as someone remembers past moments of her life in a half-awake state, late at night, drowsy from the warmth of a fireplace. That's the scene I always pictured since I first heard this song decades ago. I think you overthink just a little bit... ;)
THIS IS MY FAVE VOCAL FROM ANNI-FRID. SO PURE AND SILKY SMOOTH. A TOTAL UNDERRATED ABBA TRACK, FROM THE MOST UNDERRATED ALBUM OF ALL TIME, THE VISITORS😘
What I think is an oboe throughout this song is simply stunning, adding to Frida's vocals making them even more spectacular. Gives me goosebumps, and a strong sense of melancholy/sadness in the passing of a love/loved one...
Surely the best song to end the last studio album from ABBA. Just a beautiful masterpiece which I'm not ashamed to say, often brings a tear to my eyes.
This song is perfection in it's complexity and simplicity. I think it's basically about death. You were right about 'Twinkle, Twinkle' as those were actually the original lyrics for the song as the band was working on it. I think it's an interesting juxtaposition to take a music box sound to a child's song and add a ticking clock (or metronome), and then make the lyrics about an old person awaiting death peacefully, reminiscing about a life gone by. Frida's vocals are literal perfection. They tried this song with both Frida and Agnetha singing it, and even with Björn as lead initially, but Frida's voice, heard alone for their only song with only one voice, took the song to another, haunting dimension. Those long-held notes at the end can bring you to tears. Glorious.
An old woman on her death bed thinking of her past and we listen in to her thoughts and emotions ,At the very end in the darked room she passes with the sound of an old mantel clock winding down and stopping ... The End
played this at my partners memorial service 25 yrs ago. reverberating through a tiny chapel covered in gold mosaic. candles reflecting from the walls. so serene and beautiful
It was originally Penned as 'Twinkle twinkle little star and was mean't to be sung by Bjorn but was changed to Like an Angel Passing Through My Room and sung beautifully by Frida
Great reaction from you! I like your very analytical comments and interpretations! And I also get the goosebumps when I listen to it! LAAPTMR is one of my absolute ABBA favourite songs! So beautiful and sad, simple and complex at the same time! And Frida´s voice is outstanding! She has always been my favourite ABBA leadsinger because of her soft and strong voice with such a big range! Please react to other ABBA gems: "Eagle", "When all is said and done", "Knowing me, knowing you" and "Shoild I laugh or cry"!
Anni-Frid (aka Frida) Lyngstad...the dark-haired "ABBA girl"...sings lead on this, which was the last track on ABBA's last album. It's one of the few ABBA tracks with a completely solo vocal.
Last song on the last album. The only ABBA song with only one voice. I think the instrument you're looking for is a music box. To me this song is about looking back at your life at old age and having no regrets. The first lines "Long awaited darkness falls Casting shadows on the walls In the twilight hour I am alone" suggests that to me atleast. The "Love was one prolonged goodbye" could be relations that's come and gone over a lifetime. And the angel is that calm, warm, silent joy over a life well lived.
@@cannedmusic Björn and Benny was working on new material for the next album, and they'd already recorded some songs. The last song they recorded was "The day before you came" Agneta sang her part in a dark studio. When she'd finnished she hung her headphones on the mic stand and walked away.
Fantastic isn’t it. I listened to it again at least 5 times today. I can’t remember who commented earlier but they said they think she ends up dying at the end too and I think they might be right. The angelic voice, the clock that suddenly stops dead.... Even if not, it’s plausible that it could be interpreted that way, which only adds to the wonder of the song for me
@@ThomasJ_Music So I just splurged on a turntable for the first time in 25 years and I already know I have to get this on vinyl. There are 4 tracks on this LP that I love (and a couple of terrible ones obvs lol). Thanks for helping me listen to it properly after all this time! If you ever fancy taking another direction with Abba, I'd completely forgotten about their live performance of Eagle at Wembley '79. Was just listening. It's so bloody good. (Spoiler: features a 2 and a half minute kickass guitar solo!). Anyway, not suggesting you react to it but I do feel strongly that you need to hear it. It's here if you need: ua-cam.com/video/kSCDRyZulWs/v-deo.html
I think the truth of it remains a mystery but I tend to defer to what was to be the demise of ABBA as a unit. Ironic that the break ups brought about so much of their very best work.
Has nothing to do with death. It’s a poignant reflection on an ended marriage. Think of the 5 stages of grief. She has accepted the death of the relationship. “love was one prolonged good-bye”..... It didn’t end suddenly. They held on to it longer than they should have. Think of the anguish. She is gratefully beyond the anguish yet is acknowledging that in any unprotected moment the memories may ambush here. The song is haunting, but I don’t believe she is being haunted. She is now able to acknowledge, and reflect.....and accept. That is the moral within the song. My mental coda to the song is that she is now able to move forward. It is not spoken nor even insinuated. Yet amongst the vulnerability in her voice I hear inner strength as well. If you continue to research AnniFrid’s life after ABBA you will discover how this song has become eerily prophetic.
The beauty of a well written song is it can mean many things to different listeners. A song may even have one intended meaning originally by the songwriters, but a listener’s interpretation of the song is no less valid if it has a different, but powerful meaning to them. Great songs are layered and can be interpreted in different ways. Is there only one ‘right’ way to read these lyrics?
Greetings from Australia, Tommy 🐨🦘🦜👋😃✨ Thank you so much for this reaction/review, and it's wonderful to know that it's moved you 😊👍 • It's sung by Frida (the one who used to have red- and brown-coloured hairstyles [but since the 2000s, it has varied from snow-blonde, to strawberry-blonde, to blonde].). • I hadn't thought about the interpretation of someone going through depression before, but that certainly makes sense to me, Tommy 👍 • For years after I first heard this song, after it came out in 1981 when I was 16, I always just imagined it was a comfy-cozy afternoon by the fire-side in a sofa type-of song, before falling to sleep. • In 1985, when a friend heard it for the first time, he liked it, but it made him think of the old movie 'The Ghost & Mrs Muir'. I thought that was a good interpretation, but I recoiled all the same, still determined to interpret it as a *positive* 'comfy/snoozy' song. • But in 2012, both of my wonderful parents passed away, six months apart (Dad, then Mum). And not too long after Mum had passed, this song got a new meaning for me, where the narrator sounds like they are describing their own dying. Then just towards the end to indicate the starting of passing away, Frida's last held note slowly fades out to Benny's synth music-box, then that fades out to the 'tick-tocks' only; and, for me, the person finally dies on the last 'tock', into to eternity. • And, since my partner passed away nearly two years ago, that interpretation is stronger. It is now a very personal song for me, and I usually need to listen to it by myself, and it makes me focus thoughts of my parents and partner. If it's being played while others are in the room, I usually need to look elsewhere so they don't see me getting teary. • Since my more recent interpretation, I believe it is arguably Björn's best and most creative lyric, along with the final arrangement, Benny's minimal instrumental playing (quite the opposite to his usual preference for multi-layered recordings during the ABBA years), and Frida's melancholic, yet resigned, emotion. • One final comment... Frida & Benny, who were married, were in early days of their split/divorce by the stage of recording this song, yet they just worked on this recording together alone in the studio, which I think was wonderful; regardless of the divorce, the bond and respect for working with each other was still there, as had been the case for divorced Agnetha & Björn. The divorced couples have all worked in random ways since (moreso: Frida & Benny); and of course, they enjoyed working together a few years ago for the *still* yet-to-be-released 'new' songs. A sort of bitter-sweetness, although more sweet than the bitter. Cheers mate 👋😃
Hey Anthony, I’m glad this song has helped you through difficult times. I always say the sign of great music is that it allows for different people to take their own meanings from it, but when the same person can take different meanings, that’s just the icing on the cake right? I hadn’t considered that this song was the singer passing away, but it totally makes sense and makes me want to go and listen to it again now! I’m also intrigued by these new songs! I hope they’re released someday soon! Take care and thanks for watching!
@@cw-crazyworld8259 Hello George. Thank you very much for your kind message ...I am most appreciative. I feel that we're definitely blessed when we can connect with music, and even more with a whole catalogue of a group or singer, to help us get through life: magic support to get us through those dark times, and fantastic treats to enjoy during the good times. I hope things are going Ok for you, Geroge. Best wishes to you too.
@@ThomasJ_Music Thank you. When you mentioned about the interpretation of someone going through depression, I totally understood that view too. With all that's gone on in the last 10+ years (my partner stating slow decline into many bad health concerns; my parents passing; my cancer diagnosis; and my partner passing, that 'journey' has seen me with depression: remembering and wishing for balanced days if not happier days, and other metaphors that could be understood in Björn's lyrics. Thank you for providing very interesting and enjoyable reactions (actually, I find that the way you do them as a step above 'reactions'; more like a review for others to learn and discover from). Cheers for now.
I sang this as a lulabye for my children. It is sad, but beautiful and perfect for getting the little angels to nod off. Music box and a clock. None of the usual harmonies that you usually get from this group, but it is so pretty
Frida's vocal control is amazing and, remember too, this was in the days before all this corrective technology came about to save those who had looks but couldn't sing. Frida and Agnetha had it all and, as a singing duo, were, and remain unsurpassed. Their voices simply blended seamlessly. ABBA were long underrated but I truly believe those who discover them now have a huge appreciation for their talent. Especially the US people of colour. If you watch any of their reaction videos you will understand what I mean. Thanks for your work Tommy. I love what you're doing and the fact you like so much of the 70s stuf. Can I suggest you lend an ear to anything from the Crime of the Century album by Supertramp. It predates their less likeable commercial work (e.g. Breakfast in America) and has most of the very best of their stuff on it. I recommend "Rudy".
This song ❤️ It means more to me as an adult than it did as a kid. It captures a moment when you’re alone, feeling reflective and melancholy, thinking about moments in your life (good and bad) and these emotions come over you and leave you as if you were in a trance. Just a moment...and then you carry on with things ❤️💔
LOVE your reactions, very thoughtful, clear and concise. This is one of Frida’s best songs, stripped bare backing track by Benny and sorrowful lyrics by Bjorn.
I remember Bjorn saying they had produced a few different, more layered versions of this song but in the end they decided this, more stripped down sound, was the best.
The Vistors album is very much a story of moving on, endings, nostalgic melancholy, it's utterly beautiful, I think ABBA knew this was going to be their goodbye.
@@ThomasJ_Music jag är svensk! :) your welcome! I live in a city about one hour from Stockholm. Here you live close to the nature and not that much ppl as in UK. As I think u have notised. Assuming you're british?
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star was the first set of lyrics tried for the melody ua-cam.com/video/5Pceu098Qds/v-deo.html And it's odd how this was the last song on the last album, almost like the group, as a whole, knew it was over, and this was their goodbye
I love the whole 9 minute history vid of how this song was created from twinkle (as you mentioned) up to the finished song. I think there's at least 3 or 4 examples inbetween 1st and last that were good enough in their own right!! Certainly always has been my favourite abba tune, amazed its not that well known.
So the band was pretty much done by this point. Nether couple was together anymore. They weren't working together in the studio anymore. For the most part each girl would come in and put down her track. The sound engineer talks about this album and watching all of them being heartbreaking. Fridas vocal was put down with only Benny playing keyboard. It can be heard as recorded at the end of the demo here -> ua-cam.com/video/wWsXwFOFv9k/v-deo.html She's said she remembers doing it and thinking (I'm singing this the way I want to. And don't you dare tell me how to sing it) It was not a happy camp in ABBALAND at this point. Love you Anni-Fr[d, Benny was a jerk.
Will listen to this tomorrow night [Christmas Eve] as always. Like a ghost story at Christmas, it has become a tradition for me. I think I must have some melancholic Nordic blood in me!
Chiming in a few years later, though I still have the same view of , at least, what I feel from this song. Upon listening to the lyrics, the ticking,the bells, the mention of an "Angel passing through my room" sets this up to be a person on their death bed, going through memories in their last moments of life. I believe I'd want this played at my funeral.
love your reaction to this one Tommy, there's so much more to ABBA than Mamma Mia (although there's nothing wrong with that at all). For me 'Like An Angel' is about grief and reconciling yourself to it and finding peace.
Amazing! You picked the exact two ABBA songs (LAAPTMR and The Visitors) that I beg people to listen to when it comes ABBA. Most think only Dancing Queen, and easily dismissed them, but they were so much more than that. Glad you saw these two songs in particular as art forms.
Thank you for this touching reaction. I cried with your sensitive interpretation. I love this song! Madonna recorded a version of this song, also very beautiful. But the original is more pungent.
My favourite of all their songs. One of those compositions one could fairly happily hear while dying, I think... Norwegian soprano Sissel Kyrkjebo does a stunning live version of this gorgeous song with full orchestra. Look that one up too, it's on UA-cam...
This track is awesome in millions and billions of ways and IMO it is very science fiction sounding Anni-Frids voice is awesome and beautiful in billions of ways and I love this track to bits
Hey Calan! The Day Before you Came will be in the list somewhere. i did it about 2 weeks ago. another great song and a side to ABBA i never knew they had! loving it!
The Visitors LP was such a step in another direction so to speak that it left me anticipating what the next ABBA album would progress to. Unfortunately...... Another great composition on Visitors LP is 'I Let The Music Speak' .... check it out NorthernEar !
Out of all the UA-cam channels that critique ABBA songs yours is really up there. I love your in depth analysis, not going for easy platitudes AND choosing lesser known songs. I've just subscribed. I really enjoy your style
@@ThomasJ_Music you are very welcome. As a long standing ABBA fan I love to hear a meaningful critique of their music. I look forward to watching more on your channel 😊
If anything triggered the fantastic Chess musical, it had to have been I Let The Music Speak. No wonder it's also the first track on Benny Anderson's Piano album. It must be that important a song
Funny that you should mention "TwinkleTwinkle Little Star". ABBA recorded many different demo versions of "Like An Angel ..." and one of them was "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". You can find those versions on the deluxe edition of 'The Visitors', but also on UA-cam: ua-cam.com/video/5Pceu098Qds/v-deo.html
There's a lot of space for interpretations, I like that. Everytime I hear this song I think about melancholy. Just sitting (near the fireplace or wherever) there, maybe after a party, or after a stressful day, or in a sleepless night. It's quiet and peaceful and thoughts and memories begin to run. You remember your first best friend in school and smile. You remember your first kiss and blush. You remember the day you gave birth to your child and cry. Bittersweet moments and now you take the time to enjoy them.
I lost my partner a while back and so I found it very relatable in the assessment of it possibly being about the death of a loved one. I imagine her being comforted by memories of them, it sounded kind of bittersweet to me rather than painful, so maybe she's through the worst of it and she's coming out the other side. I never knew ABBA had this side to them, or I would have listened to them way more. I always thought they were all 'dancing queen' and 'mama mia' type songs, which have never been my thing. Sad, beautiful song, and her voice was gorgeous. The clock ticking in the silence at the end was particularly poignant, I thought. You are setting the bar pretty high this week - keep it up!
@@cannedmusic Wow, this is very different as well. There is a a lot more to this band than I thought there was. I'm going to have to listen to the whole album I think.
@@ThomasJ_Music Thank you. ❤️ Still can't make up your mind what my name should be, huh? lol David, I really liked that song, you should think about putting it in as a request for the next ABBA song, because it's so different to anything else I've heard so far by them.
Can't say I cared for this song when the album came out, but over the years I've grown to appreciate it more and more. Loved hearing the other possible versions of it in "From a Twinking Star..." I sort of like the second to the last version of that, and wonder if that would have been a bigger hit. I've always thought this type of song is what Frida whould be doing. She's perfect for this, as well as in "The Sun Will Shine Again." That was another masterpiece by John Lord that should have gotten more notice.
Here's a demo with samples of various different styles they tried, recorded during its recording proccess , showing how the song started and ended till the final released version.Such a hard work. ua-cam.com/video/5Pceu098Qds/v-deo.html
Hi! Not sure if you're familiar with the saying "an angel pass by the room" which means a momentary lul in a conversation or frenzied activity. So, basically, what this song is about is a woman using the nocturnal silence to pensively reflect her life and the dissolution of a relationship. 🙂
I read somewhere it actually was a Moog-Synthesizer which they had a hard time tweaking making it tick like a clock. One source is Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Like_an_Angel_Passing_Through_My_Room?wprov=sfti1 Strange they didn’t used a metronome, though?
ABBA was very particular on who sang the lead on songs. Some were Frida and some were Agnetha. Some songs had them both share the lead vocals. An example: Frida really wanted to sing the lead vocal on The Winner Takes It All but Agnetha was chosen. It all depended on their voices: Frida is a mezzo-soprano and Agnetha is a soprano.
You need to listen to the track “from a twinkling star to a passing angle” from the CD “ The Visitors Deluxe Edition” this demonstrates the many phases this song went through to become the finished item.
Love, love this song. Always been a big ABBA fan. If you want a similar theme in a different genre, check out Judas Priest’s “The Beginning of the End” - to me it’s one of the most beautiful songs about transitioning to the other side.
Touching to see someone so moved by this evergreen ABBA song. As with all ABBA songs we all find our own interpretations as we listen to them. That's the uniqueness of ABBA. 🤍
Wow 😲 so moved by your interpretation of this beautiful ballad from ABBA.
I remember listening to this when the album was first released and listened to this track endlessly.... Frida is an angel herself, she was and has always been my favourite member of ABBA.
My interpretation of this beautiful ballad from the moment I heard it was some elderly woman reflecting on her life as her life is slipping fading, remembering all that was good in her life and her loves, and as she closes her eyes she sees an Angel coming to guide her to something beyond the life she has just had😢
Just came across your reaction video's to ABBA, please keep delving into unknown tracks that are so loved by us original older fans.
Look forward to them.
🇬🇧👍
It also gives me goosebumps, due to the depth of the lyrics and due to the beautiful Frida's voice
Anni-Frid...Frida's voice in this song is so beautiful...touching...unbelievable color and projection of voice here....One of the greatest vocalists of the 20th century , that's what Frida is.
I think that the success of ABBA is:
1. The personalities of all of the ABBA members; Agnetha, Anni-Frid, Björn and Benny are all very authentically humble, nice, honest, down to earth and decent people. Swedish qualities.
2. Benny`s ability to compose catchy, wonderful and epic music, inspired in part from the Swedish folk music (I honestly believe that he is our time`s Mozart), Björn`s ability to create very deep and wise texts, that we all can relate to. Together the two Bs create this Happy-pain that ABBA is famous for. In my opinion, this mixture is what life is all about: the dance between those good times and those throbbing times.
3. Agnetha and Anni-Frid`s ability to harmonise their beautiful and powerful voices together.
Ps. Look at the lyrics on the titles “He is your brother”, “I am a marionette” and “The Piper”. Contemplate on the message… Ds.
Best regards from Lena in Norway
It's Christmas Eve again [2021], so time to keep my tradition alive and listen to this magical track.
This is about ABBA dying as an entity. Little did they know we would never let them die! Long live ABBA!
With an old music box playing, and an old clock ticking on the fireplace mantel, I see an elderly woman, alone, in the shadows and in the dark, sitting by the fire late at night, looking at an old photo album by the firelight, and all the memories of the past come back to haunt her of happy times, and loved ones long gone. I think of my very beloved grandma, who's been gone a very long time now. A very sentimental, priceless song.
Frida has the most beautiful voice ever recorded
Frida is a angel! BEAUTIFUL!!!!
One of Frida's favourite songs... And it's easy to know why.
Loved your sincere reaction to this beautiful song!
No disrespect to Agnetha's superb voice, but in my humble opinion, Frida has the most beautiful female singing voice ever.
❤
I think she's luxuriating in the memories of past loves and past experiences. Bits of memories flit in and out of her mind, all too briefly just as an angel would when passing through. The 'gloom' refers to twilight, and not a gloomy mood, and she continues to enjoy her memories until the fire dies and the mood is over. She closes her eyes, and the memories evaporate. It can mean so many different things, and perhaps different things at different times. A great choice, a very thoughtful and deeply insightful review as always. Thanks TJ.
As an ABBA fan it always irks me when people dismiss their music as throwaway, bubblegum pop. There is SO much more to ABBA than that. And 'The Visitors' album is the best example of this. Their songwriting, arrangements and performances were sublime by this stage in their career. But sadly, by 1981, many people had made up their minds about ABBA and even now cannot (or will not) entertain the notion that they had real depth to them. Personally, I've always heard this song as Frida's melancholic musings about the end of her relationship to Benny. The phrase 'love was one prolonged goodbye' is very apt for that particular partnership. But, of course, the lyrics and mood allow for many other interpretations. Thanks so much for taking the time to go down the ABBA rabbit hole, Tommy.
"But sadly, by 1981, many people had made up their minds about ABBA and even now cannot (or will not) entertain the notion that they had real depth to them..." Spot on.
Am I just say I absolutely loved your reaction. This is a fantastic and underrated ABBA song .
I didn't grow up with Abba. My mother has it all on vinyl and CD. I started listening to Abba when I was 16. When I turn up Dancing Queen or "Gimme gimme gimme" my mother starts dancing and smiling. Me too :-) As great as the appreciation for Abba later became ... I don't think any of these people listened to the lyrics. The lyrics are phenomenally good, the sound is pure perfection ... together with the voices it is and remains unmatched. At 25 I am not ashamed to say: I am an Abba fan. And if nobody remembers us anymore ... Abba will be remembered when there is no more electricity and her songs can no longer be played ... everyone will hum the songs to themselves ... and smile.
Fridas voice is so beautiful ❤
So much Frida-love in these comments. And rightly so! In my opinion the greatest and most beautiful vocalist of my lifetime. She could have sung anything, any genre, any generation, and made the listener melt. Try some of her solo stuff, particularly from the Djupa Andetag album. It’s all in Swedish but it doesn’t even matter, Frida’s voice takes you to heaven. 💛
.... or this one - a Bjorn and Benny song from the pre-ABBA days. How beautiful is this 💕
ua-cam.com/video/PeOaYcl5QNA/v-deo.html
Frida’s ethereal vocals add to atmospheric vibes to this song as she reminisces on past loves. For me this is without doubt one of the most iconic songs in the ABBA back catalogue that was not released as a single in its own right, Frida was definitely the right choice to perform this song.
Now he sees why Abba are gods.
Masterpiece 👍👍😍
That is the wonderful Frida.....the greatest mezzo-soprano ever
one of the best songs from Frida... the harmonious music is hauntingly beautiful and does send goosebumps on you...I've actually told my family that this song to be played at my funeral if its possible....abso beautiful. Yes I agree with many comments on here about our own life passing on and remembering it as we get older....the lyric 'Like an angel passing through my room' i personally think, all the times you had bad days, the angel just passed through, helped you get through them and not waited for you to join her/him on your final journey.
One day people who have dismissed ABBA will realise how good they were.
Very sensitive guy.. Touching reaction.
This showcases Frida’s incredible vocal talent. Appreciate your reaction thank you. Should I Laugh or Cry is another ABBA masterpiece with Frida on lead.
From a twinkling star to a passing angel shows you how Benny and Björn arrived at the final version. Worth a listen!
Exactly right! There's a reason why this song took 5 tries to get it all just right in the end. It's a very complicated song that needed time to find it's right path.
Would be intresting to hear your take on it NorthernEar !!
Agreed. Brilliant.
This song is beautiful, but what makes it a true masterpiece is Frida's masterful and soulful delivery. I truly don't understand, why some of ABBA's members griped that this song is somehow lacking, I think it is absolutely perfect. There are several covers, including by opera diva and Tabernacle choir lead singer, and also by Madonna, but all of them altogether can't hold a candle to Frida's singing it. By the way, in some 90s interview Madonna said, that ABBA is boring, but then not only sang this song, but also sampled heavily Gimmie, Gimmie, Gimmie for her Hung Up song. What a hypocrite. Anyway, ABBA rules, in 300 years people still will be listening to them, and if people destroy the planet, ABBA's music will survive the destruction and will bless the ears of aliens.
Madonna may be a hypocrite, but have you ever heard of people changing their minds about things, for example after getting to know them better?
@@godfrapp_ Yep, it applies to any regular person, but a singer, average at that, has to be really dumb to comment that on a legendary band whose singers can run miles around her both in terms of vocal abilities and charisma, she could say something neutral. Also she could write her own song, if she is so scintillating and not boring.
Helen Hunt so what was she supposed to have said instead???
@@godfrapp_ The truth, that she was so ignorant, that she had no idea about ABBA's music, but must have seen some cheesy poster of them, so decided that they were boring.
@@godfrapp_ kept her trap shut!
Thank you! Loved your reaction!
This song will never age because it is timeless, both in its wording and its arrangments. It sounds as if it could have been composed anytime between then and now. The "child toy" you hear is just the ticking of an old grandfather clock in a peaceful empty room, as someone remembers past moments of her life in a half-awake state, late at night, drowsy from the warmth of a fireplace. That's the scene I always pictured since I first heard this song decades ago.
I think you overthink just a little bit... ;)
THIS IS MY FAVE VOCAL FROM ANNI-FRID. SO PURE AND SILKY SMOOTH. A TOTAL UNDERRATED ABBA TRACK, FROM THE MOST UNDERRATED ALBUM OF ALL TIME, THE VISITORS😘
What I think is an oboe throughout this song is simply stunning, adding to Frida's vocals making them even more spectacular. Gives me goosebumps, and a strong sense of melancholy/sadness in the passing of a love/loved one...
Anna-Frid's best vocal performance IMO
Surely the best song to end the last studio album from ABBA. Just a beautiful masterpiece which I'm not ashamed to say, often brings a tear to my eyes.
I agree Robert!
Tnx for elaborate reaction! Frida's soothing voice, can't get enough.
Another pleasant song by ABBA.
This song is perfection in it's complexity and simplicity. I think it's basically about death. You were right about 'Twinkle, Twinkle' as those were actually the original lyrics for the song as the band was working on it. I think it's an interesting juxtaposition to take a music box sound to a child's song and add a ticking clock (or metronome), and then make the lyrics about an old person awaiting death peacefully, reminiscing about a life gone by. Frida's vocals are literal perfection. They tried this song with both Frida and Agnetha singing it, and even with Björn as lead initially, but Frida's voice, heard alone for their only song with only one voice, took the song to another, haunting dimension. Those long-held notes at the end can bring you to tears. Glorious.
Frida The Best!❤
An old woman on her death bed thinking of her past and we listen in to her thoughts and emotions ,At the very end in the darked room she passes with the sound of an old mantel clock winding down and stopping ... The End
For avid ABBA dances there a 9 minute studio version of this song,mesmerising
played this at my partners memorial service 25 yrs ago. reverberating through a tiny chapel covered in gold mosaic. candles reflecting from the walls. so serene and beautiful
The woman here is dying and seeing her life flash before her. Beautiful song
It was originally Penned as 'Twinkle twinkle little star and was mean't to be sung by Bjorn but was changed to Like an Angel Passing Through My Room and sung beautifully by Frida
Great reaction from you! I like your very analytical comments and interpretations!
And I also get the goosebumps when I listen to it! LAAPTMR is one of my absolute ABBA favourite songs! So beautiful and sad, simple and complex at the same time! And Frida´s voice is outstanding! She has always been my favourite ABBA leadsinger because of her soft and strong voice with such a big range!
Please react to other ABBA gems: "Eagle", "When all is said and done", "Knowing me, knowing you" and "Shoild I laugh or cry"!
Su voz es tan dulce en esta cancion. Her voice is so sweet in this song.
This is one of my favourites songs of ABBA when I lost my daughter in birth this song matched how I felt and it gave me strength to carry on
I’m sorry to hear that Ronald, but glad that you found some solace in music
Anni-Frid (aka Frida) Lyngstad...the dark-haired "ABBA girl"...sings lead on this, which was the last track on ABBA's last album. It's one of the few ABBA tracks with a completely solo vocal.
Last song on the last album. The only ABBA song with only one voice.
I think the instrument you're looking for is a music box.
To me this song is about looking back at your life at old age and having no regrets. The first lines "Long awaited darkness falls Casting shadows on the walls In the twilight hour I am alone" suggests that to me atleast.
The "Love was one prolonged goodbye" could be relations that's come and gone over a lifetime.
And the angel is that calm, warm, silent joy over a life well lived.
I love this idea, it being about looking back over your life.
you hit on something, last song of the last album, almost like they knew, as a group, it was goodbye
@@cannedmusic Björn and Benny was working on new material for the next album, and they'd already recorded some songs.
The last song they recorded was "The day before you came" Agneta sang her part in a dark studio. When she'd finnished she hung her headphones on the mic stand and walked away.
@@loud6037 Listen to the clock to. It doesn't fade out, it just stops..
@@darkiee69 true
Ok I don’t remember this song being this good. It’s actually stunning. Cheers.
Fantastic isn’t it. I listened to it again at least 5 times today. I can’t remember who commented earlier but they said they think she ends up dying at the end too and I think they might be right. The angelic voice, the clock that suddenly stops dead....
Even if not, it’s plausible that it could be interpreted that way, which only adds to the wonder of the song for me
@@ThomasJ_Music So I just splurged on a turntable for the first time in 25 years and I already know I have to get this on vinyl. There are 4 tracks on this LP that I love (and a couple of terrible ones obvs lol). Thanks for helping me listen to it properly after all this time! If you ever fancy taking another direction with Abba, I'd completely forgotten about their live performance of Eagle at Wembley '79. Was just listening. It's so bloody good. (Spoiler: features a 2 and a half minute kickass guitar solo!). Anyway, not suggesting you react to it but I do feel strongly that you need to hear it. It's here if you need: ua-cam.com/video/kSCDRyZulWs/v-deo.html
I believe the song is actually about someone contemplating their own life before going to sleep for the last time,
Me too.
I think the truth of it remains a mystery but I tend to defer to what was to be the demise of ABBA as a unit. Ironic that the break ups brought about so much of their very best work.
Has nothing to do with death. It’s a poignant reflection on an ended marriage. Think of the 5 stages of grief. She has accepted the death of the relationship. “love was one prolonged good-bye”..... It didn’t end suddenly. They held on to it longer than they should have. Think of the anguish. She is gratefully beyond the anguish yet is acknowledging that in any unprotected moment the memories may ambush here. The song is haunting, but I don’t believe she is being haunted. She is now able to acknowledge, and reflect.....and accept. That is the moral within the song. My mental coda to the song is that she is now able to move forward. It is not spoken nor even insinuated. Yet amongst the vulnerability in her voice I hear inner strength as well. If you continue to research AnniFrid’s life after ABBA you will discover how this song has become eerily prophetic.
Depending on the listener, why couldn't it be about death, or divorce, or any other kind of loss that impacts them deeply?
The beauty of a well written song is it can mean many things to different listeners. A song may even have one intended meaning originally by the songwriters, but a listener’s interpretation of the song is no less valid if it has a different, but powerful meaning to them. Great songs are layered and can be interpreted in different ways. Is there only one ‘right’ way to read these lyrics?
Greetings from Australia, Tommy 🐨🦘🦜👋😃✨
Thank you so much for this reaction/review, and it's wonderful to know that it's moved you 😊👍
• It's sung by Frida (the one who used to have red- and brown-coloured hairstyles [but since the 2000s, it has varied from snow-blonde, to strawberry-blonde, to blonde].).
• I hadn't thought about the interpretation of someone going through depression before, but that certainly makes sense to me, Tommy 👍
• For years after I first heard this song, after it came out in 1981 when I was 16, I always just imagined it was a comfy-cozy afternoon by the fire-side in a sofa type-of song, before falling to sleep.
• In 1985, when a friend heard it for the first time, he liked it, but it made him think of the old movie 'The Ghost & Mrs Muir'. I thought that was a good interpretation, but I recoiled all the same, still determined to interpret it as a *positive* 'comfy/snoozy' song.
• But in 2012, both of my wonderful parents passed away, six months apart (Dad, then Mum). And not too long after Mum had passed, this song got a new meaning for me, where the narrator sounds like they are describing their own dying. Then just towards the end to indicate the starting of passing away, Frida's last held note slowly fades out to Benny's synth music-box, then that fades out to the 'tick-tocks' only; and, for me, the person finally dies on the last 'tock', into to eternity.
• And, since my partner passed away nearly two years ago, that interpretation is stronger. It is now a very personal song for me, and I usually need to listen to it by myself, and it makes me focus thoughts of my parents and partner. If it's being played while others are in the room, I usually need to look elsewhere so they don't see me getting teary.
• Since my more recent interpretation, I believe it is arguably Björn's best and most creative lyric, along with the final arrangement, Benny's minimal instrumental playing (quite the opposite to his usual preference for multi-layered recordings during the ABBA years), and Frida's melancholic, yet resigned, emotion.
• One final comment... Frida & Benny, who were married, were in early days of their split/divorce by the stage of recording this song, yet they just worked on this recording together alone in the studio, which I think was wonderful; regardless of the divorce, the bond and respect for working with each other was still there, as had been the case for divorced Agnetha & Björn. The divorced couples have all worked in random ways since (moreso: Frida & Benny); and of course, they enjoyed working together a few years ago for the *still* yet-to-be-released 'new' songs. A sort of bitter-sweetness, although more sweet than the bitter.
Cheers mate 👋😃
You gone through difficult times, the song helped you...ABBA helpt me also trough dark times...Best Wishes
Hey Anthony, I’m glad this song has helped you through difficult times. I always say the sign of great music is that it allows for different people to take their own meanings from it, but when the same person can take different meanings, that’s just the icing on the cake right?
I hadn’t considered that this song was the singer passing away, but it totally makes sense and makes me want to go and listen to it again now!
I’m also intrigued by these new songs! I hope they’re released someday soon!
Take care and thanks for watching!
@@cw-crazyworld8259 Hello George.
Thank you very much for your kind message ...I am most appreciative.
I feel that we're definitely blessed when we can connect with music, and even more with a whole catalogue of a group or singer, to help us get through life: magic support to get us through those dark times, and fantastic treats to enjoy during the good times.
I hope things are going Ok for you, Geroge.
Best wishes to you too.
@@ThomasJ_Music Thank you.
When you mentioned about the interpretation of someone going through depression, I totally understood that view too. With all that's gone on in the last 10+ years (my partner stating slow decline into many bad health concerns; my parents passing; my cancer diagnosis; and my partner passing, that 'journey' has seen me with depression: remembering and wishing for balanced days if not happier days, and other metaphors that could be understood in Björn's lyrics.
Thank you for providing very interesting and enjoyable reactions (actually, I find that the way you do them as a step above 'reactions'; more like a review for others to learn and discover from).
Cheers for now.
it's about getting old, my friend, being close to the end. the angel is our youthfulness...
This is inspired from the all time children's song "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star".
I sang this as a lulabye for my children. It is sad, but beautiful and perfect for getting the little angels to nod off. Music box and a clock. None of the usual harmonies that you usually get from this group, but it is so pretty
Frida's vocal control is amazing and, remember too, this was in the days before all this corrective technology came about to save those who had looks but couldn't sing. Frida and Agnetha had it all and, as a singing duo, were, and remain unsurpassed. Their voices simply blended seamlessly. ABBA were long underrated but I truly believe those who discover them now have a huge appreciation for their talent. Especially the US people of colour. If you watch any of their reaction videos you will understand what I mean. Thanks for your work Tommy. I love what you're doing and the fact you like so much of the 70s stuf. Can I suggest you lend an ear to anything from the Crime of the Century album by Supertramp. It predates their less likeable commercial work (e.g. Breakfast in America) and has most of the very best of their stuff on it. I recommend "Rudy".
This song ❤️ It means more to me as an adult than it did as a kid. It captures a moment when you’re alone, feeling reflective and
melancholy, thinking about moments in your life (good and bad) and these emotions come over you and leave you as if you were in a trance. Just a moment...and then you carry on with things ❤️💔
Andante Andante a lovely song try it.
LOVE your reactions, very thoughtful, clear and concise. This is one of Frida’s best songs, stripped bare backing track by Benny and sorrowful lyrics by Bjorn.
Was moved by this as a teen. Rediscovering it now,18 months after losing my wife of 25 years.
Brings tears each listen...and comfort as well.
I’m sorry for your loss Craig, but glad music can bring some comfort
I've always thought of this as the person themselves dying hence the clock ticking and the 'twighlight images go by' being her in her old age
I remember Bjorn saying they had produced a few different, more layered versions of this song but in the end they decided this, more stripped down sound, was the best.
The Vistors album is very much a story of moving on, endings, nostalgic melancholy, it's utterly beautiful, I think ABBA knew this was going to be their goodbye.
Thanks for another reaction! Like your analysis on the song. You should go for abba's "should I laugh or cry". Think that is one of their hidden gems.
Hej! Är du svensk? I love your country! I visit there as often as I can to see family!
Thank you for the suggestion! I shall take a look
@@ThomasJ_Music jag är svensk! :) your welcome! I live in a city about one hour from Stockholm. Here you live close to the nature and not that much ppl as in UK. As I think u have notised. Assuming you're british?
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star was the first set of lyrics tried for the melody ua-cam.com/video/5Pceu098Qds/v-deo.html And it's odd how this was the last song on the last album, almost like the group, as a whole, knew it was over, and this was their goodbye
I love the whole 9 minute history vid of how this song was created from twinkle (as you mentioned) up to the finished song. I think there's at least 3 or 4 examples inbetween 1st and last that were good enough in their own right!! Certainly always has been my favourite abba tune, amazed its not that well known.
So the band was pretty much done by this point. Nether couple was together anymore. They weren't working together in the studio anymore. For the most part each girl would come in and put down her track. The sound engineer talks about this album and watching all of them being heartbreaking. Fridas vocal was put down with only Benny playing keyboard. It can be heard as recorded at the end of the demo here -> ua-cam.com/video/wWsXwFOFv9k/v-deo.html She's said she remembers doing it and thinking (I'm singing this the way I want to. And don't you dare tell me how to sing it) It was not a happy camp in ABBALAND at this point. Love you Anni-Fr[d, Benny was a jerk.
Agreed, the last sentence is exactly my feelings.
Not forgetting Bjorn. Neither of them knew how lucky they were and how the two ladies were as much a part of ABBA, if not more, than they were.
What a great reaction. I love the song and I really enjoyed your analysis of it. You felt the song.
Thank you Gary. Such a good song!
Will listen to this tomorrow night [Christmas Eve] as always. Like a ghost story at Christmas, it has become a tradition for me. I think I must have some melancholic Nordic blood in me!
Chiming in a few years later, though I still have the same view of , at least, what I feel from this song.
Upon listening to the lyrics, the ticking,the bells, the mention of an "Angel passing through my room" sets this up to be a person on their death bed, going through memories in their last moments of life. I believe I'd want this played at my funeral.
love your reaction to this one Tommy, there's so much more to ABBA than Mamma Mia (although there's nothing wrong with that at all). For me 'Like An Angel' is about grief and reconciling yourself to it and finding peace.
Amazing! You picked the exact two ABBA songs (LAAPTMR and The Visitors) that I beg people to listen to when it comes ABBA. Most think only Dancing Queen, and easily dismissed them, but they were so much more than that. Glad you saw these two songs in particular as art forms.
Thank you for this touching reaction. I cried with your sensitive interpretation. I love this song! Madonna recorded a version of this song, also very beautiful. But the original is more pungent.
Try Cassandra from the same album. It has a beautiful story
Another great reaction! The Visitors album is stunning and was so underrated (including by me back in 1981)!
My favourite of all their songs. One of those compositions one could fairly happily hear while dying, I think...
Norwegian soprano Sissel Kyrkjebo does a stunning live version of this gorgeous song with full orchestra. Look that one up too, it's on UA-cam...
magic
Again another Masterpiece from this album.
This track is awesome in millions and billions of ways and IMO it is very science fiction sounding Anni-Frids voice is awesome and beautiful in billions of ways and I love this track to bits
Love this song and album. You might also like ABBA’s The Day Before You Came or Andante Andante. Great reaction
Hey Calan! The Day Before you Came will be in the list somewhere. i did it about 2 weeks ago. another great song and a side to ABBA i never knew they had! loving it!
The Visitors LP was such a step in another direction so to speak that it left me anticipating what the next ABBA album would progress to. Unfortunately...... Another great composition on Visitors LP is 'I Let The Music Speak' .... check it out NorthernEar !
Only Abbas musicality made this song different but not boring. Great reaction....
Out of all the UA-cam channels that critique ABBA songs yours is really up there. I love your in depth analysis, not going for easy platitudes AND choosing lesser known songs. I've just subscribed. I really enjoy your style
Thanks Anthony! Much appreciated! I try to explore as much as possible, not just the big selling stuff! Glad to have you on board! 😎
@@ThomasJ_Music you are very welcome. As a long standing ABBA fan I love to hear a meaningful critique of their music. I look forward to watching more on your channel 😊
It is about the ending of a relationship and the sadness surrounding it . A beautiful song
U should react to another fridas vocal masterpiece, I let the music speak. You wouldn't believe they recorded it!
If anything triggered the fantastic Chess musical, it had to have been I Let The Music Speak. No wonder it's also the first track on Benny Anderson's Piano album. It must be that important a song
I love her voice in "Our Last Summer".
@@badlongon525 I'd suggest "Should I Laugh or Cry". Frida at her most brilliant - a fantastic song musically as well.
Funny that you should mention "TwinkleTwinkle Little Star". ABBA recorded many different demo versions of "Like An Angel ..." and one of them was "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". You can find those versions on the deluxe edition of 'The Visitors', but also on UA-cam: ua-cam.com/video/5Pceu098Qds/v-deo.html
There's a lot of space for interpretations, I like that. Everytime I hear this song I think about melancholy. Just sitting (near the fireplace or wherever) there, maybe after a party, or after a stressful day, or in a sleepless night. It's quiet and peaceful and thoughts and memories begin to run. You remember your first best friend in school and smile. You remember your first kiss and blush. You remember the day you gave birth to your child and cry. Bittersweet moments and now you take the time to enjoy them.
Анни-Фрид лучшая!!! ❤❤❤❤❤💝💝💝💝💝💝💝💝💝💝💝💝
I lost my partner a while back and so I found it very relatable in the assessment of it possibly being about the death of a loved one.
I imagine her being comforted by memories of them, it sounded kind of bittersweet to me rather than painful, so maybe she's through the worst of it and she's coming out the other side.
I never knew ABBA had this side to them, or I would have listened to them way more. I always thought they were all 'dancing queen' and 'mama mia' type songs, which have never been my thing.
Sad, beautiful song, and her voice was gorgeous. The clock ticking in the silence at the end was particularly poignant, I thought.
You are setting the bar pretty high this week - keep it up!
look up a song from this album called I Let the Music Speak
@@cannedmusic Wow, this is very different as well. There is a a lot more to this band than I thought there was. I'm going to have to listen to the whole album I think.
Sorry to hear that Lou. I think you’re right though. It will have been a comfort to her. I too never thought ABBA had this side to them!
@@loud6037 My favorite on The Visitors was Head Over Heels. When the record came out I had a thing for Latin and tango music.
@@ThomasJ_Music Thank you. ❤️
Still can't make up your mind what my name should be, huh? lol
David, I really liked that song, you should think about putting it in as a request for the next ABBA song, because it's so different to anything else I've heard so far by them.
Can't say I cared for this song when the album came out, but over the years I've grown to appreciate it more and more. Loved hearing the other possible versions of it in "From a Twinking Star..." I sort of like the second to the last version of that, and wonder if that would have been a bigger hit. I've always thought this type of song is what Frida whould be doing. She's perfect for this, as well as in "The Sun Will Shine Again." That was another masterpiece by John Lord that should have gotten more notice.
Here's a demo with samples of various different styles they tried, recorded during its recording proccess , showing how the song started and ended till the final released version.Such a hard work.
ua-cam.com/video/5Pceu098Qds/v-deo.html
Hi! Not sure if you're familiar with the saying "an angel pass by the room" which means a momentary lul in a conversation or frenzied activity. So, basically, what this song is about is a woman using the nocturnal silence to pensively reflect her life and the dissolution of a relationship. 🙂
the instrument is a metronome, used for keeping time when playing an instrument like a piano
I read somewhere it actually was a Moog-Synthesizer which they had a hard time tweaking making it tick like a clock. One source is Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Like_an_Angel_Passing_Through_My_Room?wprov=sfti1
Strange they didn’t used a metronome, though?
There's only one problem with Frida's voice. It's so beautifully relaxing that it puts me to sleep and I rarely get to the end of the song.
It’s incredible isn’t it!!
Nice reaction Tommy, pleasant tune.
ABBA was very particular on who sang the lead on songs. Some were Frida and some were Agnetha. Some songs had them both share the lead vocals. An example: Frida really wanted to sing the lead vocal on The Winner Takes It All but Agnetha was chosen. It all depended on their voices: Frida is a mezzo-soprano and Agnetha is a soprano.
You need to listen to the track “from a twinkling star to a passing angle” from the CD “ The Visitors Deluxe Edition” this demonstrates the many phases this song went through to become the finished item.
Personally I think The Visitors album was their best! This track along with I Let The Music Speak are amazing. Love your reviews!
Love, love this song. Always been a big ABBA fan. If you want a similar theme in a different genre, check out Judas Priest’s “The Beginning of the End” - to me it’s one of the most beautiful songs about transitioning to the other side.
Maybe just a melancholic person letting her mind wander at twilight time.
In the beginning,there’s that ticking of what sounds like a little alarm clock followed by what’s to be a small music box