List of unreleased songs recorded by ABBA

This is a list of songs that were either recorded or written by ABBA, but which were never released during the bands' active years (1972–1983) for various reasons. Some of the songs were released later in their entirety or as parts of the track "Abba Undeleted" (included in the box set Thank You for the Music, 1994), while some of the songs were released as part of solo projects.

Björn - Benny & Agnetha - Anni-Frid (ABBA) era

1972

• "Den Stora Kärleken"

ABBA era

1974

• "Ricky Rock 'N' Roller" is a song recorded during the recording sessions for ABBA's self-titled album in 1974, but the song was left unfinished. The Swedish rock star Jerry Williams recorded and released it as a single after ABBA had decided their version was unsuitable for release. An excerpt of the demo of the song was released in the box set Thank You for the Music.^[1][2]
• "Here Comes Rubie Jamie" is the working title of a song recorded in 1974, which had acquired the name "Terra Del Fuego" by the time the lyrics were recorded. The song is unique in that it is the only studio recording to feature lead vocals by all four ABBA members. An excerpt of this song was released on the box set Thank You for the Music, although here only Benny and Frida are heard. The excerpt was particularly edited so as not to include the chorus, as it is said that Björn and Benny violently dislike it. This is the reason why it is not named after its original title, but named to not refer the chorus.^[2][3]
• "Baby" is the early demo version of "Rock Me" recorded in 1974 with the lead vocals by Fältskog. An excerpt of this song was released in the box set Thank You for the Music.^[2][4]
• "Radio 1 Jingle" is a short re-recording of Waterloo with different lyrics. ^[5]

1975

• "To Live with You" is an attempt to record the song "Lycka" (previously released by Björn and Benny for their first album by the same title, and also recorded by Lyngstad on her debut album) in English. The demo recording dates from 1975, and was later released on the remastered CD of Björn & Benny's Lycka album in May 2006.^[6]
• "Dancing Queen" (Early version) is a demo version with an extra verse. The extra verse can be heard on the documentary The Winner Takes It All and the ARRIVAL deluxe DVD originally from "Mr Trendsetter" Swedish program. The extra verse appears on the Spanish version of "Dancing Queen".^[7][8] The Extra line: "Baby, baby, you're out of sight/Hey, you're looking alright tonight/When you come to the party/Listen to the guys They've got the look in their eyes". The song then resumes with the line: You're a teaser, you turn them on.
• "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" (early version) is a demo version with an extra verse.^[2]
• "Tango" is an early version of "Fernando" with Swedish lyrics. An excerpt was included in the ABBA Undeleted medley as part of the 4-CD box set Thank You For the Music in 1994.^[8][9] A completed version of the song with the same lyrics was released in 1975 by Frida on her solo album "Ensam".
• "Rock 'n' Roll" a.k.a. "Olle Olle", "I Want You" and later "High On Your Love" are all early demos recorded around 1975. However, none of these were used during the Arrival sessions. Parts of these demos were later used with Hole in Your Soul and Does Your Mother Know.^[10][11]

1976

• "Funky Feet" is a song recorded during the Arrival sessions that eventually was dropped due to the similarity of "Dancing Queen". Later the song was recorded by Svenne & Lotta, Australian group The Studs, Alcazar, and Arrival, a Swedish ABBA tribute band.^[12][13] Part of the beginning of the song was later reused with "I Am The City"
• "National Song" is a short track recorded for the Australian TV commercial of the National appliances. It is a re-recording of "Fernando" with new lyrics, using the backing track from the song.
• "Monsieur, Monsieur" is the title of the early demo version of "My Love, My Life" with lead vocals by Agnetha.^[14]
• "Memory Lane" is a third title of "Why Did It Have to Be Me"/"Happy Hawaii" that is said to have been recorded but never released.^[12][15]
• "Gypsy Girl" was an alternative name for Money, Money, Money. A demo was recorded but the title was shortly changed back to Money, Money, Money.

1977

• "I Am an A" is a song written for the 1977 Tour with lyrics written by all four, jokingly depicting themselves as A, B, B and A. The song was never considered for a studio version, but parts of the chorus was later reused in "Free as a Bumblebee", and as that song never progressed beyond the demo, the chorus surfaced during the Chess songwriting sessions as the UK number 1 hit "I Know Him So Well".^[16][17]
• "Get On the Carousel" is another song from the 1977 Tour, written for the mini-musical The Girl with the Golden Hair. The song was considered too weak to progress further, but the chorus surfaced as a melody line in "Hole in Your Soul" (the part "...ahaa-, the songs you sing are too romantic..."). "Get On the Carousel" appears in ABBA: The Movie.^[16][17]
• "Scaramouche" is a demo instrumental recording from 1977. Some parts surfaced in the recording sessions for "Chess" and resulted in a melody line in the track "Merano". An excerpt of this song was released in the box set Thank You for the Music.^[18][19]
• "Billy Boy" is the early version of "Take a Chance on Me". An excerpt of the track was released in the box set Thank You for the Music.^[19][20]
• "Love for Me Is Love Forever" a.k.a. "Yippee Yay", "Big John" and "Joanne" are early versions of "Move On".^[19][21]
• "I Believe In You" is a song recorded on 19 July 1977.^[22] It has never been publicly released.

1978

• "Free as a Bumble Bee" a.k.a. "Svantes Inferno" is a demo recorded in 1978 with lead vocals by Björn and Benny, released in the box set Thank You For The Music. Part of the chorus was later reused in "I Know Him So Well" from the musical Chess.^[23][24]
• "Mountain Top"/"Dr.Claus Von Hamlet Nos. 1, 2 and 3" are several demos recorded in 1978. The composition underwent several changes and [fun] demo titles during the sessions. At one point the demo featured lyrics and vocals by Ulvaeus entitled "Mountain Top", and another instrumental attempt ("Part I") and later reworking "Part 2" (with lead vocals by Fältskog and Lyngstad) was released in the box set Thank You for the Music. Parts of the composition would re-surface in the June 1980 demo "Burning My Bridges", but eventually the song was defined as a 'schottis' and put aside until Benny made his first instrumental folk album Klinga Mina Klockor in 1987, and there named "Lottis Schottis".^[24][25]
• "Summer Night City" (Early mixes) according to Michael B. Tretow, there are over 30 different mixes of the song preserved on old tapes, some which are very different from that which was later released as a single. One version was released on the 1994 box set Thank You for the Music, with an instrumental string intro. This version, in an improved edit, was released on The Complete Studio Recordings and again on Voulez-Vous Deluxe Edition.^[24][26]
• "Just a Notion" is a demo recorded in 1978. A snippet of this track was released in the box set Thank You for the Music. A complete version was recorded by cover band Arrival, which features original ABBA bass player Rutger Gunnarsson, and was included on their 1999 album First Flight. This recording features a full set of lyrics (which are identical to those which ABBA used), unlike the small snippet of the released ABBA version. Carl Magnus Palm has also confirmed that the verse included in "ABBA Undeleted" is in fact the second verse of the song. Just A Notion was intended to be released in full on the 2010 Voulez Vous Deluxe Edition but for some unknown reason it was not included.^[24][27]
• "Crying Over You" is a demo recorded in 1978 with lead vocals by Ulvaeus. An excerpt of the track was released in the box set Thank You for the Music.
• "In the Arms of Rosalita" is an early demo version of "Chiquitita". An excerpt can be heard in the TV documentary The Winner Takes It All. It featured lead vocals by Lyngstad. A later version "Chiquitita Angelina" was sung by both girls in unison.^[28][29]
• "Nämndöfjärden" is an instrumental demo with Benny Andersson playing synthesizers, recorded on December 13, 1978. The track remains unreleased.^[30]

1979

• "Sång till Görel" is a tribute song for Görel Johnsen's 30th birthday recorded in 1979. It was never commercially released; however, a very limited number of records were pressed and given to people who attended the party.^[31][32]
• "Lady Bird" is a song with no vocals recorded, later used in "Someone Else's Story" from the musical Chess.^[31][32]
• "And the Wind Cries Mary" is a demo recording made on June 25, 1979, the recording does not feature any vocals.^[32]
• "Dream World" - see main article
• "Rubber Ball Man" - was a song ABBA recorded in 1979. However, it was never officially released or included in any album.
• "Under My Sun" - is a demo version, containing dummy lyrics, of a song entitled "Rubber Ball Man", recorded in early 1979. The lyrics do not make sense - they were recorded so that Ulvaeus could get a feel for the sound of the song, before any real lyrics were to be written. The lead vocals are shared by Fältskog and Lyngstad. An excerpt of this track was released in the box set Thank You for the Music. The melody of the verse would later be heard as a part of the melody for the verses in "Under Attack" ("and every day the hold is getting tighter.../I wish there was a way that I could show you...").^[32][33]
• "No Man's Land" is a song which is believed was recorded in 1979 by ABBA. It may have been an early demo/working titile for Voulez-Vous or As Good As New.^[34] It was stated in a newspaper that the song was going to be included in the Voulez-Vous album.^[35]
• "The Devil In Miss Jones" is a song believed to have been a demo version of "The King Has Lost His Crown" or "If It Wasn't For The Nights".^[36] Very little else is known about this song.
• "I'm Still Alive" is yet another song ABBA performed live but never recorded in the studio. It was performed live in 1979 at their show at London Wembley Arena. Having been bootlegged for years, a professional recording this show released on CD in 2014, thus making "I'm Still Alive" officially available for the first time.^[37]
• "Does Your Mother Know (live version)" is a song which has a different "rock" intro. It was performed live several times before the official album version was even released. One time at Spain in 1979, it was performed with the Spanish title, "Lo Sabe Tu Madre?".
• "Been And Gone And Done It" is a demo of Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight) recorded on 9 August 1979.

1980

• "Burning My Bridges" is a country/rockabilly song recorded in 1980 with lead vocal by Ulvaeus. An excerpt of this track was released in the box set Thank You for the Music.^[38][39]
• "Put On Your White Sombrero" is a song based on waltz with a latinamerican sound recorded in 1980 with lead vocal by Lyngstad. Originally the track was intended to be released on the 1980-album Super Trouper. It was however replaced by that album's title track. The song remained unreleased until 1994, when it was included in the box set Thank You for the Music and the promo-cd-single "Dream World". It has since apperared as a bonus track on various versions of reissues of Super Trouper-and in the box set The Complete Studio Recordings. The song's backing track was used 2 years later with Cassandra.

1981

• "Hovas vittne" is a song sung in Swedish, recorded as a tribute to Stig Anderson's 50th birthday in 1981, and released on a limited amount of singles for the guests attending the party only. The title is a play on words; Hova is the small village in Västergötland in which Anderson was born, and Vittne is a reference to Jehovah's Witnesses. The song includes a four bar passage that was later used in the Chess ouverture "Merano".^[40][41]
• "Tivedshambo" is an instrumental recording of Stig Anderson's first published song, recorded in 1981. It is the B-side of "Hovas vittne".^[40][41]
• "When All Is Said and Done" (Demo version and various mixes) is an instrumental track recorded in 1981 with a different bridge. A version with vocals featured a more emotional repetition of the first verse after the third, making the track 4:20 instead of 3:15. When the video was released in 1981 it featured another alternate version with a different ending.^[41][42]
• "Nationalsång" is an instrumental track that later was used in "Anthem" from the musical Chess. The song is well known as "Opus 10" among ABBA fans due a misunderstanding made by a journalist.^[40][41]
• "I Am a Musician" is an instrumental demo track recorded in 1981. Later the song was included in the musical ABBAcadabra and recorded by B. A. Robertson with the slightly altered title '(I Am) The Seeker'. The melody to the chorus was later used by Benny Andersson in the song 'Upp Till Dig' from his 2007 album, BAO 3.^[40][41]
• "Fanfare for Icehockey World Championships '81" is a short instrumental track written for the Ice Hockey World Championship hosted by Sweden in 1981. Used as the jingle/opening theme for the television special Dick Cavett Meets ABBA aired later in 1981.^[40][41]
• "Two for the Price of One" (Early demo version) has slightly different lyrics, and is sung from a first person perspective (I have what you might call a simple occupation/I clean the toilets of the local railway station/With no romance in my life/Sometimes I wish I had a knife).^[41][43]
• "Givin’ a Little More" is a demo recorded in 1981 with lead vocals by Ulvaeus. On this song they didn't make a drummer play, but used a Linn LM-1 drum machine. An excerpt of this track was released in the box set Thank You for the Music.^[41][44]
• "An Angel's Passing Through My Room" is an early demo version of "Like an Angel Passing Through My Room" with both Frida and Agnetha on lead vocals. The track was at some point arranged and mixed in the disco-style of "Lay All Your Love On Me" and later heavily reworked.^[45][46]
• "Another Morning Without You" is another early demo version of "Like an Angel Passing Through My Room". The song had an operatic feel to it, with shared lead vocals by Agnetha & Frida. Also, the song had a full backing band instead of the synth only backing that eventually became "Like an Angel Passing Through My Room".^[46][47]

1982

• "Just Like That" is the title of one of Swedish pop group ABBA's last songs, and has caused a lot of interest and hype among ABBA fans as it has not yet been officially released in its entirety, though a complete bootleg version exists on the album "ABBA - We Owed You One" on the Mistrial Music label.^[48][49]
  ABBAs composers Andersson and Ulvaeus wrote "Just Like That" sometime in the springtime of 1982, and the group started recording sessions with this and a handful of other new songs in the beginning of May that year. The composers however lost interest in the track after several attempts at recording it, and decided in early June to put the "Just Like That" tapes aside. Journalists visiting ABBA in their studio during these sessions wrote about the new material, and fans thus heard of the new ABBA songs to come. Two titles were mentioned: "Just Like That" and "I Am the City". Just Like That was also mentioned in an official Polar Music Press release in the summer of 1982. It stated that the song was completed and would be released on the next studio album. However, the outcome of these last recording sessions during the summer months of 1982 was two singles released in August and November 1982 respectively: "The Day Before You Came"/"Cassandra", and "Under Attack"/"You Owe Me One". The a-sides were included in the new ABBA release The Singles: The First Ten Years, a double LP celebrating ABBA's singles from 1973 until 1982. Although the foursome stated the group would continue work in 1983, this eventually did not happen.
  During 1983, demo versions of later unreleased ABBA songs were circulating amongst London's theatreworld as being possible melodies for the up-coming Rice/Andersson/Ulvaeus musical Chess. These then became bootleg versions circulating among fans during the 1980s, and as such there has been a growing interest for their official release. Benny and Björn allowed for a snippet of "Just Like That" to be released in a 'medley' track in a box set released in 1994: Thank You For The Music, but this became nothing but a teaser for the avid ABBA fan. The "Just Like That" 'snippet' released in 1994 revealed the chorus of the track only, and not only did it include an unmistakenly shared vocal by Agnetha and Anni-Frid, but also a saxophone solo by Raphael Ravenscroft, who worked on Gerry Rafferty's hit "Baker Street" in 1978 (one of the few times that ABBA used a musician outside the usual ABBA circle).
  In June 1982 the song was shelved, but after ABBA split up, Benny and Björn looked at the song again, and in 1984 decided to rework both composition and lyrics and ended up with two new songs. The first, which kept the original "Just Like That" chorus, was recorded by Swedish duo Gemini when Benny and Björn wrote songs and produced their first album in 1985. "Just Like That" was even released as a Gemini single in the UK. The other part of the song, composed around the original "Just Like That" verses, had the demo title "When the Waves Roll out to Sea", and as such was one of the songs tried out (by both Elaine Paige and Tommy Körberg) as "If The Stars Are In The Sky" during sessions for Benny and Björn's work with Tim Rice for the Chess musical, but it was once again put aside.
  The ABBA version, with its composition of verse and chorus, was left unsatisfactory by Benny and Björn in June 1982. They have stated this first version sounded 'wrong': verse and chorus did not fit together, and that is why it was scrapped, and the two admit this happens regularly in their way of writing music: a mediocre song can become a bridge or a riff in another song, and a good melody line can lie around for years until it surfaces in a composition.
  "When the Waves Roll out to Sea" surfaced when Benny was working on the Swedish staging of Chess - Chess på svenska - in 2002, as the 1984 musical by now had a new libretto and new material was needed. The verses to the old "Just Like That" were added to a new chorus in 1984, and now it found its place in Chess - almost 20 years later - as the number "Glöm mig om du kan", a ballad sung by the Russian character Molokov, with Swedish lyrics by Ulvaeus.
  There are at least two known bootleg demo versions of ABBA's original version of "Just Like That". The first attempt at recording the song has become known as the 'slow' version, or 'dream' version. This version has a simple instrumental melody in between the verses and the choruses. Also apparent is a guitar riff that eventually made its way into the verse melody of ABBA's last official single release, "Under Attack" ("Don't know how to take it/don't know where to go/my resistance running low...").^[50]
  The second version of the song is known as the 'na na na' (or 'la la la') version. The song is essentially the same as the first; the same backing track and arrangement, but this time, with Agnetha singing emotional 'na na na na's on top of the instrumental melody.
  The final and completed version of the song has become known as the 'saxophone' version. This is the official 'final mix' of "Just Like That". This version is very different from the first two, with a different arrangement and a new backing track. In place of the previous instrumental melodies/'na na na' vocal overdubs, there are lengthy saxophone riffs (courtesy of Raphael Ravenscroft). This version of the song is the only version to be released, albeit not in its entirety.
  Michael B. Tretow, ABBA's recording engineer throughout their whole career, did the editing of the released version of the track for the 1994 box set.
  Carl Magnus Palm, author of the ABBA biography Bright Lights, Dark Shadows" in 2001, states in his 1994 book ABBA -The Complete Recording Sessions on this last version that this "...is what would have reached the listener's ears had the track been released".
  Agnetha said in 1994: "I haven't heard it in several years, but I remember it as a very good song and recording. It is one of my big favourites, and I hope it's going to be released one day".^[51]
  The lyrical theme seems to have been transferred from the shelved "Just Like That" in June 1982 to the lyrics for "The Day Before You Came", which were recorded in August the same year: "Until that day/My life had been a river/Following the same/pre-destinated course/Suddenly detouring so unexpectedly/With uncompromising force/My strongholds broke down all too easily/I remember well/How it did embarrass me/I hung on to his every smile/Marveled at his style/ [...] /Just like that.../And once again/the river's flowing slowly/Following the same and uneventful course/Now the tears have dried/it's become a pleasant break/I recall without remorse/But now and then/I wonder where he is/And I will admit/he had something that I miss/I guess he was a rolling stone/The only one I've known..." The song was originally intended to be featured in the ABBA musical, "Mamma Mia!", sung as a love duet between Sophie and Sky, but was removed during rehearsals, as it did not advance the story.^[52]
• "I Am the City" is a song recorded in May 1982, originally made for inclusion on what would have been the group's ninth studio album. However, these plans were soon abandoned by the band members, instead settling for a double-compilation album release of their most successful singles, The Singles: The First Ten Years. As a result of this, "I Am the City" remained unreleased for eleven years until it was first commercially released on the More ABBA Gold: More ABBA Hits compilation album in 1993. Previously the song had surfaced on bootleg recordings.^[48][49]
• "When The Waves Roll Out To The Sea"is an unused instrumental track featuring Benny Andersson on piano.

1983

• "Every Good Man" is a demo version of the song "Heaven Help My Heart", which was later recorded by Elaine Paige and included on the Chess (musical) concept album and later in the stage show. The track is not strictly an ABBA demo; it was written and always intended exclusively for Chess (musical). The track does, however, feature Agnetha Fältskog on lead vocals and Benny Andersson on synthesizer/piano; Anni-Frid Lyngstad does not feature in the recording. The song was recorded in January 1983.

1988

Several newspapers and magazines believed ABBA would make a comeback in 1988. In an interview with an unknown ABBA member, 4 new songs were stated to have been recorded: "It's Been Swell", "It's Alright Darling", "I Just Wasn't Thinking" and "Something On My Mind". It's unknown if this was actually true or if these songs were ever recorded by ABBA.^[53][54]

Dream World

"Dream World"
Single by ABBA
from the album Thank You for the Music
Released	1994
Format	CD
Recorded	1978
Genre	Pop
Length	3:35
Label	Polar Music
Writer(s)	Benny Andersson Björn Ulvaeus
Producer(s)	Benny Andersson Björn Ulvaeus
ABBA singles chronology
Thank You for the Music (1983) "Dream World" (1994)

"Dream World" (working title: "Dream Land") is a song recorded in September 1978 with shared vocals by Fältskog and Lyngstad and solo passage by Fältskog. The song was recorded during sessions for the Voulez-Vous album. Composers Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus decided, however, that "Dream World" was not suitable for release, and instead, agreed to scrap the recording.

The melody and chord sequence of the middle-eight of "Dream World" were re-used, with different lyrics, as the bridge for the middle-eight of the song "Does Your Mother Know", later released as the second single from Voulez-Vous

In the 1980s, the song was heard for the first time in a Swedish radio programme featuring ABBA's engineer Michael B. Tretow, and subsequently found its way onto a bootleg album.

In 1994, "Dream World" was released in Sweden, Germany and Australia as a promotional-only CD-single with other ABBA rarities to advertise the Thank You for the Music four CD box-set, which also contained the track.

The version of the song released in 1994 differs from the version heard in the radio show in that its fairground-like synthesiser intro fades in rather than starting abruptly. However this is because the tape from which the track was taken was partly destroyed. Voulez-Vous Deluxe Edition, released in May 2010, contains the track with its original beginning. It is unknown how the full intro was resurrected from the partially destroyed tape.

It was reported just before its 1994 release that Benny and Björn were in the studio remixing the track, and hence it is most probably a new mixdown of the song done expressly in 1994. Indeed, it exhibits a certain "digital" sound suggesting it was mixed down to a digital recorder as opposed to previously released songs from this period which were mixed onto analog tape.

"Dream World" was included in full form (without the fade-in) for the first time on the Voulez-Vous Deluxe Edition CD/DVD package, released on May 31, 2010.

Single track listing

1. "Dream World"
2. "Put On Your White Sombrero"
3. "Just Like That (Edited version)"
4. "Thank You for the Music" (Doris Day version)

From A Twinkling Star To A Passing Angel

Released on April 23, 2012, The Visitors Deluxe Edition includes the previously unreleased demo track From A Twinkling Star To A Passing Angel.^[55] It is the first release of a previously unreleased track since 1994.^[55]

References

• http://www.abba4therecord.com/cdsingles_results.php
• Voulez-Vous (2001 Remastered Edition); CD liner notes by Carl Magnus Palm.
• Dream World (1994 German Promotional CDS); liner notes.
• http://www.carlmagnuspalm.com/abba/compilations-and-box-sets/thank-you-for-the-music/thank-you-for-the-music-the-making-of-a-box-set-part-8-of-8

Notes

ABBA
Anni-Frid Lyngstad Björn Ulvaeus Benny Andersson Agnetha Fältskog
Studio albums	Ring Ring Waterloo ABBA Arrival ABBA: The Album Voulez-Vous Super Trouper The Visitors
Compilations	Greatest Hits Greatest Hits Vol. 2 Gracias Por La Música The Singles: The First Ten Years Thank You for the Music Hits! Hits! Hits! The Songbook – Australian Chart Hits Gold: Greatest Hits Oro: Grandes Éxitos More ABBA Gold: More ABBA Hits Thank You for the Music (box set) Love Stories The Definitive Collection 18 Hits The Complete Studio Recordings Number Ones The Albums
Other albums	ABBA Live List of ABBA tribute albums Abba-esque The ABBA Generation ABBAmania Abbasalutely Rajaton Sings ABBA with Lahti Symphony Orchestra A Tribute to ABBA Mamma Mia Mamma Mia! Original Cast Recording Mamma Mia! The Movie Soundtrack Live at Wembley Arena
Tours and TV specials	Eurovision Song Contest 1974 European & Australian Tour (ABBA) ABBA: The Tour Dick Cavett Meets ABBA Congratulations: 50 Years of the Eurovision Song Contest
Films and musicals	ABBA: The Movie The Girl with the Golden Hair Mamma Mia! Mamma Mia! (film)
Video games	SingStar ABBA ABBA: You Can Dance
Related music	Discography Awards and nominations Songs Just Like That Unreleased songs ABBA: The Museum Music of Sweden
Related individuals	Stig Anderson Ola Brunkert Rutger Gunnarsson Janne Schaffer Michael B. Tretow Lasse Hallström A-Teens Björn Again Linda Ulvaeus
Book:ABBA