''Ring Ring'' is the debut studio album by the Swedish 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 ...

, initially credited as Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida. It was released in

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Swe ...

on 26 March 1973, and later in a limited number of other territories, including West Germany, Australia, South Africa and Mexico, through

Polar Music Polar Music is a Swedish record company founded in 1963 by Stig Anderson and his friend Bengt Bernhag. Background The first act that Polar Music signed was the Hootenanny Singers featuring Björn Ulvaeus. Polar eventually gained prosperity pr ...

. It was a chart-topping album in Belgium, and a big success in the Netherlands, Norway and South Africa.Scott, Robert (2002) 'ABBA: Thank You for the Music – The Stories Behind Every Song', Carlton Books Limited: Great Britain, p. 24 The album was re-released in

Australasia Australasia is a region that comprises Australia, New Zealand and some neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term is used in a number of different contexts, including geopolitically, physiogeographically, philologically, and ecologi ...

in 1975, but was not released in the United Kingdom until 1992, and the United States until 1995.

Overview

When the first song "

People Need Love "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. Track listing # A. "P ...

" was recorded in the spring of 1972, the group was just one of many projects the four members were involved in. Only after the title track, " Ring Ring" became a hit, did the four decide to go on working together as a permanent group. The original 1973 Polar version of the album opens with " Ring Ring (Bara du slog en signal)", the Swedish version of the track, and places the English-language version as track four on side two. The track "

She's My Kind of Girl "She's My Kind of Girl" is a song written and performed by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, who were later famous as members of ABBA. Written for the Swedish movie ''Inga II: The Seduction Of Inga'', the song was recorded in November/December ...

", included on the international editions, was originally recorded by Björn & Benny in 1969 for the Swedish pornographic film ''Inga II: the Seduction of Inga''. Released as a single in 1970, it became a hit in Japan,Palm, C. M. ''

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 ...

''. Polar Music International AB, 1994. and was released as the B-side of the English version of the "Ring Ring" single in Scandinavia. The track "Disillusion" was originally written in Swedish by

Agnetha Fältskog Agneta Åse Fältskog (born 5 April 1950), known as Agnetha Fältskog (), is a Swedish singer, songwriter, and musician. She first achieved success in Sweden with the release of her 1968 self-titled debut album. She later achieved internatio ...

for her solo album ''

Elva kvinnor i ett hus ''Elva kvinnor i ett hus'' (English: ''Eleven Women in One House'') is the fifth studio album by Swedish pop singer Agnetha Fältskog, released on 1 December 1975 by Cupol Records. Album information The album was recorded in the same period as ...

''. Although she had composed much of her Swedish solo output, "Disillusion" is the only song released on an ABBA studio album to feature a songwriting contribution from her. ''Ring Ring'' was first released on CD in Scandinavia in 1988 by Polar Music alongside '' Waterloo'' and ABBA's self titled album. It follows the same running order as the original Scandinavian LP, being the only CD of this album to do so. Also in 1988, the international version was first released on CD in Australia by Rainbow Music Group. In 1990, the international version of the album was released on CD throughout Europe by

Polydor Records Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States. ...

with the discs manufactured in West Germany. In the United States, ''Ring Ring'' would not be made available on CD - or indeed at all - until 1995 when it was released there by Polydor. The album has been digitally remastered on CD multiple times: in 1997 as part of "The ABBA Remasters" series, in 2001 with an updated cover artwork and some bonus tracks, in 2005 as part of '' The Complete Studio Recordings'' box set, and most recently in 2013 as a "

Deluxe Edition The terms special edition, limited edition, and variants such as deluxe edition, or collector's edition, are used as a marketing incentive for various kinds of products, originally published products related to the arts, such as books, prints, r ...

Track listing

Notes *All reissues above use the international edition track listing.

Personnel

– vocals *

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 ...

– vocals *

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 ...

– acoustic guitar, vocals *

Benny Andersson Göran Bror Benny Andersson (; born 16 December 1946) is a Swedish musician, singer, composer and producer best known as a member of the musical group ABBA and co-composer of the musicals ''Chess'', ''Kristina från Duvemåla'', and '' Mamma M ...

–

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

, mellotron, vocals

Additional musicians

Ola Brunkert Ola Brunkert (15 September 1946 – 16 March 2008) was a Swedish drummer who was one of the main session drummers for the pop group ABBA. Brunkert and bassist Rutger Gunnarsson are the only two side musicians to appear on every ABBA album, not cou ...

– drums * Roger Palm – drums on "Me and Bobby and Bobby's brother" and "Rock 'n' roll band" * Jan Bandel - drums on "He is your brother" *

Rutger Gunnarsson Johan Rutger Gunnarsson (12 February 1946 – 30 April 2015) was a Swedish musician, bass guitarist, guitarist, arranger and producer. He was closely associated with the pop group ABBA. Career Gunnarsson grew up in Ledberg parish. His career began ...

– bass * Mike Watson – bass on "Disillusion", "People need love", "I saw it in the mirror" and "Love isn't easy" * Stefan Brolund - bass on "He is your brother" *

Janne Schaffer Jan Erik Tage "Janne" Schaffer (born 24 September 1945) is a Swedish songwriter and guitarist. He is best known for his work as a session guitarist for ABBA but he has also recorded with artists such as Bob Marley, Johnny Nash, Art Farmer and To ...

– acoustic guitar on "Another town, another train",

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gu ...

* Håkan Jansson - baritone saxophone on "He is your brother"

Production

* Benny Andersson; Björn Ulvaeus – producers, arrangers * Michael B. Tretow – engineer * Björn Almstedt; Lennart Karlsmyr; Rune Persson – assistant engineers * Sven-Olof Walldoff – string arrangements on "I Am Just a Girl"Scott, Robert (2002) 'ABBA: Thank You for the Music – The Stories Behind Every Song', Carlton Books Limited: Great Britain, p. * Lars Falck; Bengt H. Malmqvist – photography * Peter Wiking – original album design * Jon Astley; Tim Young; Michael B. Tretow – remastering for the 1997 remasters * Jon Astley; Michael B. Tretow – remastering for the 2001 remasters * Henrik Jonsson – remastering for ''The Complete Studio Recordings'' box set

Charts

Certifications and sales

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ring Ring (Album) 1973 debut albums ABBA albums Albums produced by Benny Andersson Albums produced by Björn Ulvaeus Benny Andersson albums Björn Ulvaeus albums Polar Music albums