"Me and I" is a song from

ABBA ABBA ( , , formerly named Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid or Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida) are a Swedish supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The group's ...

's 1980 album '' Super Trouper''. As with much of ABBA's 1980s output, the song features use of a synthesizer, and some have classified the song as

synthpop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s a ...

Anni-Frid Lyngstad Princess Anni-Frid Synni Reuss, Countess of Plauen (born Anni-Frid Synni Lyngstad on 15 November 1945), also known by her nickname "Frida", is a Norwegian-born Swedish singer, songwriter and environmentalist, who is best known as one of the foun ...

handles the lead vocals.

Background

Recording began on 8 September 1980 and finished on 25 September 1980. The track acquired the following two working titles: "Jackass" and "Piccolino". It is the last song on the first side of ''Super Trouper''. In the book ''Bright Lights, Dark Shadows'' by

Carl Magnus Palm Carl Magnus Palm (born 1965) is a Swedish author and historian, writing in Swedish and English, best known for his work on the Swedish pop group ABBA. ABBA Carl Magnus Palm’s first book on ABBA was ''ABBA – The Complete Recording Sessions' ...

, he wrote the following:

"Bjorn's maturity as a lyricist was showcased in songs like '
The Winner Takes It All "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 relatio ...
', and the hidden gem, 'Me and I', featuring an
Eartha Kitt Eartha Kitt (born Eartha Mae Keith; January 17, 1927 – December 25, 2008) was an American singer and actress known for her highly distinctive singing style and her 1953 recordings of "C'est si bon" and the Christmas novelty song "Santa Ba ...
-inspired lead vocal by Frida, showed a hitherto secluded side of Björn's imagination. Its split personality theme - ''I am to myself what Jekyll must have been to Hyde'' - combined with Frida's forceful delivery put a welcome darker spin on
ABBA ABBA ( , , formerly named Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid or Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida) are a Swedish supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The group's ...
's largely bright and wholesome universe. It was a more literal version of broodiness that colored songs like '
SOS is a Morse code distress signal (), used internationally, that was originally established for maritime use. In formal notation is written with an overscore line, to indicate that the Morse code equivalents for the individual letters of "SOS" ...
' and '
Knowing Me, Knowing You "Knowing Me, Knowing You" is a song recorded by Swedish pop group ABBA, released in February 1977 as the third single from the group's fourth album, ''Arrival'' (1976). It was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson, with A ...
'."

In the early 1980s the instrumental segment of this song was used as theme music to

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

television coverage of

bowls Bowls, also known as lawn bowls or lawn bowling, is a sport in which the objective is to roll biased balls so that they stop close to a smaller ball called a "jack" or "kitty". It is played on a bowling green, which may be flat (for "flat-gre ...

Critical reception

''Abba - Uncensored on the Record'' described it as a "comparatively rarely heard song from the Super Trouper album". ''Bright Lights Dark Shadows: The Real Story of Abba'' described it as "the hidden gem" of the Super Trouper album.

Performances

The song has been performed once, on the ABBA TV special, ''

Dick Cavett Meets ABBA ''Dick Cavett Meets ABBA'' is a 1981 television special featuring the Swedish pop group being interviewed by the American television personality Dick Cavett. ABBA also took to the stage, performing nine songs in a so-called "mini-concert". A one-o ...

'' in 1981. The live rendition is included on the ''

Thank You for the Music "Thank You for the Music" is a song by the Swedish pop group ABBA. It was originally featured on the group's fifth studio album, '' The Album'' (1977), and was released as a double-A sided single with "Eagle" in May 1978 in limited territories ...

box set A box set or (its original name) boxed set is a set of items (for example, a compilation of books, musical recordings, films or television programs) traditionally packaged in a box and offered for sale as a single unit. Music Artists and bands ...

released in 1994.

References

{{authority control 1980 songs ABBA songs