NEW YORK (JustInTime Records) - In the 1970s, Abba, one of the most successful pop bands of all-time, filled the world with sugar-coated songs that were light-hearted and fun. Few would have predicted the amazing durability and timelessness of the Swedish supergroup's well-crafted songbook.
Have you ever wondered what those songs would have sounded like if instead they were recorded by a sizzling funk band like
Earth, Wind & Fire or a rapid-fire rapper like Jay-Z' Swedish trombonist and vocalist Nils Landgren, who recorded with Abba in 1979, did. Known as "The Man with the Red Horn" because of his signature trombone, he is a funkster at heart and with the blessing of one of Abba's primary songwriters, Benny Andersson, Landgren's Funk Unit re-imagined a dozen of the group's songs. Worldwide hits such as "Dancing Queen," "Knowing Me, Knowing You," and "
Take A Chance On Me" have been funk-da-fied by a skintight, booty shakin' rhythm section, blown up by a fierce, fire-breathing horn section and smoked by a def microphone fiend.
Already on the pop and jazz album charts in Germany and Sweden, Funky Abba will be released in the United States on October 26 by Justin Time Records, which is distributed nationally by IDN, a division of the Alliance Corporation.
Landgren, a solo artist who has also played with such diverse artists as Ace of Base, Lalo Schifrin, and Oscar Brown Jr., produced Funky Abba with Magnum Coltrane Price, who appears on Janet Jackson's Damito Jo album. Price also contributed vocals, microphone poetry and synthesizers to Funky Abba. The album was recorded in Stockholm, Sweden in Polar Studio A, the very same room where Abba recorded their albums. The Funk Unit entirely rearranged the pop songs to the point that they are fresh new creations. One thing that the dynamic duo of Landgren & Price did do old school was keep the sound pure and organic by using real drums, horns, guitars, bass and keyboards just like funk records were made in the '70s. Andersson makes a special appearance on piano on "When All Is Said And Done," the poignant album closing ballad.
"What a challenge it was to dig into this treasure," said Landgren of delving into the songbook of Andersson and writing partner Bjˆrn Ulvaeus. "This is my seventh album, but it was probably the most fun to make. Even for non-Abba fans, what stands out the most are the melodies. Although we deep fried the pop confections in funk, hip hop, soul and jazz, the melodies really shine through and that's what we loved most about these songs in the first place."
The Funk Unit, which has been gigging throughout Europe for years, is comprised of Landgren and Price along with Henrik Janson (guitar), Jesper Nordenstrom (keyboards), Roberto Di Gioia (keyboards), Lars DK Danielsson (bass), Wolfgang Haffner (drums & backing vocals), and Karl-Martin Almqvist (saxophone). Guests include Till Bronner (trumpet), Sharon Dyall (vocals), Viktoria Tolstoy (vocals), Per Lindvall (drums), Alex Papaconstantinou (bouzouki) and Nimo (co-flow).
