"The Piper" is a track from the 1980 album '' Super Trouper'', by Swedish pop group

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 ...

. The song is loosely based on the famous story of ''

The Pied Piper of Hamelin The Pied Piper of Hamelin (german: der Rattenfänger von Hameln, also known as the Pan Piper or the Rat-Catcher of Hamelin) is the title character of a legend from the town of Hamelin (Hameln), Lower Saxony, Germany. The legend dates back to ...

'', but lyricist

Björn Ulvaeus Björn Kristian Ulvaeus (; born 25 April 1945) is a Swedish singer, songwriter, producer, a member of the musical group ABBA, and co-composer of the musicals ''Chess'', '' Kristina från Duvemåla'', and '' Mamma Mia!'' He co-produced the films ...

cites the novel ''

The Stand ''The Stand'' is a post-apocalyptic dark fantasy novel written by American author Stephen King and first published in 1978 by Doubleday. The plot centers on a deadly pandemic of weaponized influenza and its aftermath, in which the few survivin ...

'' by

Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. Described as the "King of Horror", a play on his surname and a reference to his high s ...

as a source of inspiration. It is regarded by some ABBA fans as being very different from the more mainstream songs they had recorded until this time. In particular, the dark lyrics dealing with the seduction by fascistic leaders and a somewhat medieval sound (drums, flute, choral) are not seen in their earlier songs. It is also the only ABBA song where a part of the refrain is in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

, and has gained a small cult following among ABBA fans. Because of the dark Medieval sounds and the Latin verse, ABBA have even been accused of

satanism Satanism is a group of ideological and philosophical beliefs based on Satan. Contemporary religious practice of Satanism began with the founding of the atheistic Church of Satan by Anton LaVey in the United States in 1966, although a few hi ...

. ''ABBA: Uncensored on the Road'' explains that the song was also the flip-side of the single "Super Trouper"; while ''From ABBA to Mamma Mia!: The Official Book'' adds: After a two-week break in March for the concluding tour of Japan, by the end of April ABBA had completed the songs "

Andante, Andante "Andante, Andante" is a song recorded by Swedish pop group ABBA for the album '' Super Trouper''. It was released as a single in only two countries: El Salvador and Argentina. It was written by members Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus on April ...

", "

On And On And On "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''. Background The track, which ha ...

", " Happy New Year", " Elaine" and "The Piper".

References

1980 songs ABBA songs Electronica songs Songs about musicians Songs based on fairy tales Works based on Pied Piper of Hamelin {{1980s-song-stub

See also

References