Search - Abba :: Oro

ABBA ORO is music to the ears.

E. Valero | Woodbridge, Ontario Canada | 02/29/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This was the FIRST ABBA record I ever owned. Originally released in 1980, The LP originally titled GRACIAS POR LA MUSICA (Thank You For The Music) featured some of ABBA's big hits (and a couple of lesser known songs) sung entirely in espanol. I must say (being a latino) that the girls sing wonderfully in spanish. The star vocalist on this album is Agnetha, since she sings most of the songs and her vocal work is superb. I prefer the spanish versions of CHIQUITITA, FERNANDO, THANK YOU FOR THE MUSIC(Gracias por la musica) & GIMME GIMMIE GIMMIE (Dame Dame Dame) over the original english versions. Main reason being is that the vocals and harmonies are far more clearer and pristine in the spanish versions. Agnetha's voice sounds spotless in CHIQUITITA, GRACIAS POR LAS MUSICA, AL ANDAR (Move On), and DAME DAME DAME. We get to hear the delicacy and texture of her gorgeous voice more here than on ABBA's other albums. And since the songs here are not as textured and overdubbed like their english counterparts, we get to hear the delightful harmonies in all of their ABBA-esque splendour. Just listen to the chorus in CHIQUITITA and AL ANDAR and you will see what I mean. The english versions sound bigger but the spanish versions are crisper, less intense production-wise but far superior in vocal sound and texture. Frida also shines in FERNANDO, ESTOY SONANDO (I Have a Dream) and CONOCIENDOME CONOCIENDOTE (Knowing Me Knowing You).With all of that said, I must also frankly state that the english version of DANCING QUEEN (La Reina Del Baile) is slightly better. Vocally the girls sound great but the overall production is slightly inferior. We don't get that intense and embellished musical production. LA REINA DEL BAILE sounds a bit watered down, less absorbing. However it's still a great song in any language and the girls devine voices and the timeless melody makes this one of the CD's showstoppers. Commercial wise, the LP GRACIAS POR LA MUSICA was a world-wide hit- especially in Latin America and the first single taken off the album CHIQUITITA reached # 1 in Argentina, Mexico and my native Chile among several other countries. The CD version retitled ABBA ORO contains 5 songs not included in the album originally- FELCIDAD (Happy New Year), ANDANTE ANDANTE, SE ME ESTA ESCAPANDO (Slipping Through My Fingers), NO HAY A QUIEN CULPAR (When all is said and done) and RING RING. I must warn anyone reading this review that it's the cd with the black covering of ABBA ORO that contains the bonus tracks not the gold plated one. I happened to stumble upon both of them at a store here in TORONTO and I was able to purchase the 15 track ABBA ORO in BLACK. And lastly, you don't need to know a word of spanish to appreciate this cd. The melodies are timeless and the girls voices are astonishing. This needs to be right next to your ABBA GOLD cd. It's simply FANTASTICO! !"