Benny Andersson. The man, the legend, the composer behind the music and the melodies of each and every Abba hit. One quarter of Abba himself. And for the past decade, the driving force and name behind a new musical outfit in Sweden – Benny Andersson’s Orkester.
Essentially, they’re a group of musicians who find time in their schedules a few times per year, to get together and to ‘jam’, record, and tour. Benny Andersson himself writes the music and lords over proceedings. And members include Helene Sjöholm, Tommy Körberg, Kalle Moraeus, and the three guys behind Orsa Spellmän. The band’s first three albums were an undoubted success, all going top 3 in Sweden. A live album followed and also reached the top 10. Although it was with their fourth album, ‘Story Of A Heart’, that they first started to gain some international attention (top 30 in the UK, and top 10 in Norway) thanks to the hugely Abba-esque lead single ‘Story Of A Heart’ (or ‘Sommaren Du Fick’ in its Swedish form). Hugely Abba-esque thanks to the fact that Benny’s old Abba-collabba, Björn Ulvaeus, providing the song’s lyrics and thus giving it a genuinely similar feel to the legendary band’s old sound.
The latest album ‘O Klang Och Jubeltid’ was released this year to mark the band’s ten year anniversary. Again it was led by another new Benny & Björn composition, ‘Kära Syster’. And again the album got to number 1 in Sweden.
It was out during the promoting of this album that we finally got to meet the man himself, Benny Andersson. The man who has done so very much for pop music. Who knows what or where Scandinavian pop music would be today without Abba’s influence and trailblazing. So naturally, when we found ourselves backstage after his appearance at Allsång På Skansen back in the end of June, we HAD to meet him. To shake his hand would have been more than enough. To say hello, even better. But we had a dictaphone with us, and there was a queue of other press people waiting to speak to him too, so we thought we might as well try to have a chat with him.
We succeeded.
A very quick chat of course, given the demand to speak to him. But a chat nonetheless.
And here’s how it went;
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scandipop: Hello Benny! So you’re here promoting the new album from Benny Andersson’s Orchestra. Obviously everybody in Sweden knows the band, the music, and what it’s all about. But most people internationally still only know you as Benny Andersson from Abba. So how would you describe the sound of the music of Benny Andersson’s Orchestra to them. To those people who only know you from Abba?
Benny: Well it’s a real mixture. Originally we were based on only Swedish folk music. Me and the fiddlers, just the five or six of us. And then I decided to create a bigger band. What we do is, we play sort of dance music from the forties, fifties, and sixties. And I try to write music in that tradition. So we combine the Swedish folk music scene, and the old dance music scene. That’s what we do. And it’s for fun!
scandipop: The recent singles, ‘Story Of A Heart’/’Sommaren Du Fick’ and ‘Kära Syster’, they’ve still been very melodious too, which is of course what you’re probably most famous for from your Abba days.
Benny: Yes, that’s true. That’s what happens, that’s what I like to write. Strong melodies. Always.
scandipop: Nowadays of course, it’s quite apparent that following your lead, Swedish songwriters and producers are amongst the most famous, admired, and prolific in the world of pop music.
Benny: Yeah! It’s quite amazing.
scandipop: Can you put your finger on why that could be? Do you have a theory behind the fact that Swedish songwriting goes on to be so well received worldwide?
Benny: Maybe it’s becoming something of a tradition here. If somebody is in the front-line, like we were from the beginning of the seventies, then I think everybody realises that it’s possible. That even if you’re from a small country like Sweden – if you really make a go of it and you work your ass off, then something might happen. Maybe that’s it. And also that we have good ears in Sweden!
scandipop: Yes, I was gonna say – don’t you think it’s because the Swedes traditionally have a trained ear for melody?
Benny: I don’t know. I don’t know. But lots of people have spent a lot of time trying to create good records, and that’s what counts I think. The more time you spend, if you have some talent, at the end of the day something good is going to come out of it. I think so, anyway!
scandipop: Well that does make a lot of sense I guess. Right, thank you very much for your time, Benny.
Benny: Thank you!
WOW!!!
Phew!
Well then, here’s the band’s current single, ‘En Dag i Sänder’. It’s another Abba-esque jaunt. Catchy, infectiously jolly, and with the always beautiful vocals of Helene Sjöholm.
