Our Last Summer
Encyclopedia
"Our Last Summer" is a song by ABBA
from the group's seventh studio album, Super Trouper
. It was written by Benny Andersson
and Björn Ulvaeus
.
Recording for this track began on 4 June 1980 in Polar Music Studios. The song features Anni-Frid Lyngstad
on lead vocals and her time in the studio during the recording is captured in a series of photographs taken by Anders Hanser.
In the background of the bridge
to this song, during Lasse Wellander's guitar solo, part of the Chess
song, 'Anthem' can be heard. Andersson and Ulvaeus had been working on the melody for Anthem for a number of years but had never found a place for it in any ABBA project. When they finally came to use it in the musical Chess they hoped that no one would notice that part of it had already been used in Our Last Summer.
Ulvaeus found lyrical inspiration for this song in a memory of a romance he had during a visit to Paris as a teenager.
ABBA
ABBA was a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1970 which consisted of Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Agnetha Fältskog...
from the group's seventh studio album, Super Trouper
Super Trouper (album)
Super Trouper is the seventh studio album by Swedish pop group ABBA, first released in 1980 .-Overview:Led by the international hit "The Winner Takes It All", Super Trouper was the group's sixth chart-topping album in the UK. It was also the best-selling album in Britain for 1980...
. It was written by Benny Andersson
Benny Andersson
Göran Bror "Benny" Andersson is a Swedish musician, composer, a former member of the Swedish musical group ABBA , and co-composer of the musicals Chess, Kristina från Duvemåla, and Mamma Mia!...
and Björn Ulvaeus
Björn Ulvaeus
Björn Kristian Ulvaeus is a Swedish songwriter, composer, musician, writer, producer, a former member of the Swedish musical group ABBA , and co-composer of the musicals Chess, Kristina från Duvemåla, and Mamma Mia!...
.
Recording for this track began on 4 June 1980 in Polar Music Studios. The song features Anni-Frid Lyngstad
Anni-Frid Lyngstad
Anni-Frid Prinzessin Reuss von Plauen , is a Norwegian-born Swedish pop singer...
on lead vocals and her time in the studio during the recording is captured in a series of photographs taken by Anders Hanser.
In the background of the bridge
Bridge (music)
In music, especially western popular music, a bridge is a contrasting section which also prepares for the return of the original material section...
to this song, during Lasse Wellander's guitar solo, part of the Chess
Chess (musical)
Chess is a musical with music by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, formerly of ABBA, and with lyrics by Tim Rice. The story involves a romantic triangle between two top players, an American and a Russian, in a world chess championship, and a woman who manages one and falls in love with the other;...
song, 'Anthem' can be heard. Andersson and Ulvaeus had been working on the melody for Anthem for a number of years but had never found a place for it in any ABBA project. When they finally came to use it in the musical Chess they hoped that no one would notice that part of it had already been used in Our Last Summer.
Ulvaeus found lyrical inspiration for this song in a memory of a romance he had during a visit to Paris as a teenager.
Cover versions
- British singer Hazell DeanHazell DeanHazell Dean is a British dance-pop singer, who achieved her biggest success in the 1980s as a leading Hi-NRG artist. She is best known for the top ten hits "Searchin' ", "Whatever I Do " and "Who's Leaving Who"...
recorded a cover for her 1996 tribute album The Winner Takes It All: Hazell Dean Sings Abba. - Swedish teen pop group A*Teens covered the song for their debut album The ABBA Generation in 1999.
- The song is used in the musical Mamma Mia!Mamma Mia!Mamma Mia! is a stage musical written by British playwright Catherine Johnson, based on the songs of ABBA, composed by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, former members of the band. Although the title of the musical is taken from the group's 1975 chart-topper "Mamma Mia", the plot is fictional, not...
and the lyrics provided the writer of the storyline, Catherine JohnsonCatherine JohnsonCatherine Johnson is a British playwright, producing works for stage and television. She is best known for her script for the musical Mamma Mia! and screenplay for the film of the same name, which became the highest grossing UK film of all time and the biggest selling UK DVD of all time in January...
, with the name of one of her characters - Harry. - In the film adaptation of the musicalMamma Mia! (film)Mamma Mia! is a 2008 musical/romantic comedy film adapted from the 1999 West End/2001 Broadway musical of the same name, based on the songs of successful pop group ABBA, with additional music composed by ABBA member Benny Andersson...
, the song is sung mainly by Harry (played by Colin FirthColin FirthSirColin Andrew Firth, CBE is a British film, television, and theatre actor. Firth gained wide public attention in the 1990s for his portrayal of Mr. Darcy in the 1995 television adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice...
) and Sophie (Amanda SeyfriedAmanda SeyfriedAmanda Michelle Seyfried is an American actress, singer-songwriter and former child model. She began her career as a child model when she was 11, and at 15 began her career as an actress, starting off with uncredited roles and moving on to recurring roles on As the World Turns and All My...
), but also includes parts sung by Sam (Pierce BrosnanPierce BrosnanPierce Brendan Brosnan, OBE is an Irish actor, film producer and environmentalist. After leaving school at 16, Brosnan began training in commercial illustration, but trained at the Drama Centre in London for three years...
), Bill (Stellan SkarsgårdStellan SkarsgårdStellan John Skarsgård is a Swedish actor, known internationally for his film roles in Angels & Demons, Breaking the Waves, The Hunt for Red October, Ronin, Good Will Hunting, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist,...
), and Donna (Meryl StreepMeryl StreepMary Louise "Meryl" Streep is an American actress who has worked in theatre, television and film.Streep made her professional stage debut in 1971's The Playboy of Seville, before her screen debut in the television movie The Deadliest Season in 1977. In that same year, she made her film debut with...
). In this context, the three 'potential fathers' are telling Sophie about how they spent their last summer with Donna, her mother.