Ring Ring (song)
Encyclopedia
"Ring Ring" is a 1973 single by ABBA
, which gave the group their big break in several European countries (although the rest of Europe
, North America
and Australia
would be introduced to ABBA the following year). "Ring Ring" was originally written in Swedish by Benny Andersson
and Björn Ulvaeus
, along with their manager Stig Anderson
, and the translation into English lyrics was helped by Neil Sedaka
and Phil Cody. The Swedish version reached #1 in the Swedish charts.
The song tells of a lover waiting all alone by the telephone for the object of their desire to call.
" in 1972 by Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid (as the group was then known), the group's manager, Stig Anderson
, realised the potential of coupling the vocal talents of the women with the writing talents of the men. It was then decided that the quartet would record an LP. This eventually turned out to be the album Ring Ring
.
Andersson, Ulvaeus and Anderson were invited to submit a song for the Swedish selection process in order to choose their entry for the 1973 Eurovision Song Contest
. After several days, Andersson and Ulvaeus came up with the tune for the Swedish version of "Ring Ring", with the working title "Klocklåt" (Clock Tune). Stig Anderson wrote the lyrics with the intention of making a "poppy" song, trying to remove the pomp and circumstance surrounding the Eurovision Song Contest at the time.
After this, the song had been retitled "Ring Ring". To make it more accessible to a universal audience, Anderson asked American songwriter Neil Sedaka to pen the lyrics for an English version, together with his songwriting partner, Phil Cody.
On January 10, 1973, the song was recorded at the Metronome Studio in Stockholm
. Michael B. Tretow
, the studio engineer, collaborated with Andersson and Ulvaeus over many of their subsequent singles and albums. Tretow had read a book about record producer Phil Spector
, famed for his "Wall of Sound
" treatment to the songs that he produced. While Spector used several musicians playing the same instruments in the same recording studio at the same time, this was far too expensive for this case. Thus, Tretow's solution was to simply record the song's backing track twice, in order to achieve an orchestral sound. By changing the speed of the tape between the overdubs, making the instruments marginally out of tune, this increased the effect. This was unlike anything that had been done before in Swedish music.
However, when Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid performed "Ring Ring" in the Swedish heats on 10 February 1973, they only finished third. Nevertheless, the song fared much better in the Swedish charts, both in its Swedish and English language incarnations, where it hit number one and number two respectively.
It was only now the quartet decided that performing as a group was a serious and realistic idea. They toured Sweden, and despite the failure of "Ring Ring" to represent the country at the 1973 Eurovision Song Contest, they began to prepare themselves for 1974's competition, with "Waterloo".
in the 1973 Eurovision Song Contest, the subtitled Swedish Version ("Bara Du Slog En Signal") performed extremely well in the Swedish charts, giving the quartet their first #1 hit. The English version did almost as well, peaking at #2 in Sweden
, Norway
and Austria
, and reaching the Top 10 in the Netherlands
, South Africa
and Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe
) charts. (On the official South African year-end chart for 1974, "Ring Ring" was placed 13th; while its successor "Waterloo" was placed as the 14th best selling singles for that year). It did, however, top the charts in Belgium
, becoming the first of 16 chart-toppers for ABBA in that country. It was the group's first release in the UK
in October 1973, but failed to chart, selling only five thousand copies. A remixed version of the song reached #32 in June 1974 (after the #1 success of "Waterloo"), and would later hit #7 in Australia
during the height of "ABBAmania". A second remixed version, different than but based on the one released in the UK, was included as a bonus track on the original U.S.
and Canadian
release of the Waterloo
album. A German language version of the song was also recorded, and was released in what was then West Germany
, but failed to chart. A Spanish version was also recorded (with lyrics by Doris Band), but this was not released until the 1993 CD compilation Más ABBA Oro in selected countries, and internationally on the 1999 edition of ABBA Oro: Grandes Éxitos
.
The master tapes of the 1974 remix were presumed missing, or at least unobtainable, for some years. For this reason, it did not appear on the 1994 4-CD box-set Thank You for the Music
. In 1999, a CD box-set of singles was released. The 1974 single remix was included, but had been mastered from a vinyl single as the master tape was still not available. However, in 2001, The Definitive Collection was released which finally included the 1974 single remix sourced from the master tape. It was later revealed on Carl Magnus Palm's website that Polar Music
had acquired the single master tapes from Epic Records
in the UK. This had presumably occurred between 1999 and 2001.
English Version
English Version
English Version (Swedish Single)
German Version
English Version (Dutch Single)
On the 5th December 2010 on a poll on British channel ITV1 for The Nations Favourite ABBA song Ring, Ring (1974 version) was voted #25.
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...
, which gave the group their big break in several European countries (although the rest of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
would be introduced to ABBA the following year). "Ring Ring" was originally written in Swedish 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!...
, along with their manager Stig Anderson
Stig Anderson
Stig 'Stikkan' Erik Leopold Anderson was born in Hova, Sweden, and is best known as the manager of the pop group ABBA.- Polar Music:Anderson was the founder of the Polar Music record label in 1963...
, and the translation into English lyrics was helped by Neil Sedaka
Neil Sedaka
Neil Sedaka is an American pop/rock singer, pianist, and composer. His career has spanned nearly 55 years, during which time he has sold millions of records as an artist and has written or co-written over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collaborating mostly with lyricists Howard...
and Phil Cody. The Swedish version reached #1 in the Swedish charts.
The song tells of a lover waiting all alone by the telephone for the object of their desire to call.
History
After the success of "People Need LovePeople Need Love
"People Need Love" is a song recorded in March 1972 by Swedish pop grup ABBA, at the time known as 'Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid'. The song was on the group's first album, Ring Ring, released in 1973.-The song:...
" in 1972 by Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid (as the group was then known), the group's manager, Stig Anderson
Stig Anderson
Stig 'Stikkan' Erik Leopold Anderson was born in Hova, Sweden, and is best known as the manager of the pop group ABBA.- Polar Music:Anderson was the founder of the Polar Music record label in 1963...
, realised the potential of coupling the vocal talents of the women with the writing talents of the men. It was then decided that the quartet would record an LP. This eventually turned out to be the album Ring Ring
Ring Ring (album)
-2001 re-release:Ring Ring was remastered and reissued in 2001 with three bonus tracks :-2005 re-release:...
.
Andersson, Ulvaeus and Anderson were invited to submit a song for the Swedish selection process in order to choose their entry for the 1973 Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...
. After several days, Andersson and Ulvaeus came up with the tune for the Swedish version of "Ring Ring", with the working title "Klocklåt" (Clock Tune). Stig Anderson wrote the lyrics with the intention of making a "poppy" song, trying to remove the pomp and circumstance surrounding the Eurovision Song Contest at the time.
After this, the song had been retitled "Ring Ring". To make it more accessible to a universal audience, Anderson asked American songwriter Neil Sedaka to pen the lyrics for an English version, together with his songwriting partner, Phil Cody.
On January 10, 1973, the song was recorded at the Metronome Studio in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
. Michael B. Tretow
Michael B. Tretow
Bo Michael Tretow is a swedish record producer and audio engineer, Musician and composer, best known for his work with Swedish pop group ABBA , and with the musical Chess. Tretow experimented with different recording techniques, and played an essential part in creating the famous "ABBA-sound"...
, the studio engineer, collaborated with Andersson and Ulvaeus over many of their subsequent singles and albums. Tretow had read a book about record producer Phil Spector
Phil Spector
Phillip Harvey "Phil" Spector is an American record producer and songwriter, later known for his conviction in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson....
, famed for his "Wall of Sound
Wall of Sound
The Wall of Sound is a music production technique for pop and rock music recordings developed by record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios in Los Angeles, California, during the early 1960s...
" treatment to the songs that he produced. While Spector used several musicians playing the same instruments in the same recording studio at the same time, this was far too expensive for this case. Thus, Tretow's solution was to simply record the song's backing track twice, in order to achieve an orchestral sound. By changing the speed of the tape between the overdubs, making the instruments marginally out of tune, this increased the effect. This was unlike anything that had been done before in Swedish music.
However, when Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid performed "Ring Ring" in the Swedish heats on 10 February 1973, they only finished third. Nevertheless, the song fared much better in the Swedish charts, both in its Swedish and English language incarnations, where it hit number one and number two respectively.
It was only now the quartet decided that performing as a group was a serious and realistic idea. They toured Sweden, and despite the failure of "Ring Ring" to represent the country at the 1973 Eurovision Song Contest, they began to prepare themselves for 1974's competition, with "Waterloo".
Reception and other versions
Though "Ring Ring" did not get the opportunity to represent SwedenSweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
in the 1973 Eurovision Song Contest, the subtitled Swedish Version ("Bara Du Slog En Signal") performed extremely well in the Swedish charts, giving the quartet their first #1 hit. The English version did almost as well, peaking at #2 in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
and Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, and reaching the Top 10 in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
) charts. (On the official South African year-end chart for 1974, "Ring Ring" was placed 13th; while its successor "Waterloo" was placed as the 14th best selling singles for that year). It did, however, top the charts in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, becoming the first of 16 chart-toppers for ABBA in that country. It was the group's first release in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in October 1973, but failed to chart, selling only five thousand copies. A remixed version of the song reached #32 in June 1974 (after the #1 success of "Waterloo"), and would later hit #7 in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
during the height of "ABBAmania". A second remixed version, different than but based on the one released in the UK, was included as a bonus track on the original U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
release of the Waterloo
Waterloo (album)
* 1974 Polar Music International AB, Stockholm, Sweden.* The original album release of Waterloo in 1974 with Polar.-CD re-issues, bonus tracks:...
album. A German language version of the song was also recorded, and was released in what was then West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
, but failed to chart. A Spanish version was also recorded (with lyrics by Doris Band), but this was not released until the 1993 CD compilation Más ABBA Oro in selected countries, and internationally on the 1999 edition of ABBA Oro: Grandes Éxitos
ABBA Oro: Grandes Exitos
Oro: Grandes Éxitos is a greatest hits compilation album by ABBA, first released by Polydor in the United States in 1993, in which the songs are sung in Spanish. This album is the Spanish equivalent of their Gold: Greatest Hits album, originally released as Gracias Por La Música in early 1980...
.
The master tapes of the 1974 remix were presumed missing, or at least unobtainable, for some years. For this reason, it did not appear on the 1994 4-CD box-set Thank You for the Music
Thank You for the Music (album)
-Disc 2:-Disc 3:-Disc 4:-Personnel:ABBA*Benny Andersson - synthesizer, keyboards, vocals*Agnetha Fältskog - vocals*Anni-Frid Lyngstad - vocals*Björn Ulvaeus - acoustic guitar, guitar, vocalsAdditional personnel*Ulf Andersson - saxophone...
. In 1999, a CD box-set of singles was released. The 1974 single remix was included, but had been mastered from a vinyl single as the master tape was still not available. However, in 2001, The Definitive Collection was released which finally included the 1974 single remix sourced from the master tape. It was later revealed on Carl Magnus Palm's website that Polar Music
Polar Music
Polar Music is a Swedish record company founded in 1963 by Stig Anderson and his friend Bengt Bernhag. The first act that it signed was the Hootenanny Singers featuring Björn Ulvaeus. Polar eventually gained prosperity producing Ulvæus' next group, international superstars ABBA...
had acquired the single master tapes from Epic Records
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...
in the UK. This had presumably occurred between 1999 and 2001.
Track listings
Swedish Version- A. "Ring Ring (Bara Du Slog En Signal)"
- B. "Åh vilka tider"
English Version
- A. "Ring Ring" (English Version)
- B. "Rock'n Roll BandRock'n Roll Band"Rock'n Roll Band" is a song by Swedish pop group ABBA "Rock'n Roll Band" is a song by Swedish pop group ABBA "Rock'n Roll Band" is a song by Swedish pop group ABBA (still credited as "Björn & Benny, Anna & Frida" from the album Ring Ring.In the USA, the song was released as single by Playboy...
"
English Version
- A. "Ring Ring" (English Version)
- B. "Merry-Go-RoundEn Karusell"En Karusell" was originally released as a single A-side credited to Björn & Benny. It failed to enter Svensktoppen , but the B-side of the single, "Att finnas till", lay on that chart for three weeks....
"
English Version (Swedish Single)
- A. "Ring Ring" (English Version)
- B. "She's Just My Kind Of Girl"
German Version
- A. "Ring Ring" (German Version)
- B. "Wer Im Wartesaal Der Liebe StehtAnother Town, Another Train"Another Town, Another Train" was a song recorded by Swedish pop group ABBA at KMH Studios.The song was released as a 7" vinyl single in Japan in 1973 to promote the group's debut album Ring Ring...
"
English Version (Dutch Single)
- A. "Ring Ring" (English Version)
- B. "She's Just My Kind Of Girl" (Even though it says "Rock ´n´ Roll Band" on the record)
Chart positions (Swedish and English versions)
| Chart (1973) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
92 (First), 7 (1976 re-release) |
| Austrian Singles Chart Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... |
2 |
| Belgian Singles Chart | 1 |
| British Singles Chart | 32 |
| Dutch Singles Chart Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 is a weekly music chart, which started as the "Veronica Top 40", because the offshore radio station Radio Veronica was the first to introduce it. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" until 1974, when the station was forced to stop broadcasting... |
5 |
| French Singles Chart | 82 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 17 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
2 |
| Rhodesian Singles Chart | 12 |
| South African Singles Chart | 3 |
| Swedish Singles Chart | 1 (Swedish) 2 (English) |
Official versions
- "Ring Ring (Bara Du Slog En Signal)" (Swedish Version)
- "Ring Ring" (English Version)
- "Ring Ring" (English Version) - (1974 Remix) / (Single Version) / (U.S. Remix 1974)
- "Ring Ring" (German Version)
- "Ring Ring" (Spanish Version) - Previously unreleased
- "Ring Ring" (Medley of Swedish, Spanish and German Versions)
Cover versions
- Magnus UgglaMagnus UgglaPer Allan Magnus Claësson Uggla is a Swedish artist, composer, actor, and occasional radio host known for his satirical lyrics. He is a member of the Swedish nobility and a descendant of several European rulers, among which John III of Sweden and Gustav Vasa...
recorded a rock version of the song in 1979. - A Swedish country band called Nashville Train (which included some of ABBA's own backing band members) covered the song in the 1970s on their album ABBA Our Way.
- Swedish alternative rock band SatorSator (band)Sator is a Swedish rock band. The band was founded in Borlänge and have released 7 albums. They notably released a song about a disgruntled Baby Doc Duvalier complaining about his fortunes, called "Baby Doc Holiday"...
recorded a cover of the song for the 1992 Swedish tribute album ABBA: The Tribute, released on the Polar MusicPolar MusicPolar Music is a Swedish record company founded in 1963 by Stig Anderson and his friend Bengt Bernhag. The first act that it signed was the Hootenanny Singers featuring Björn Ulvaeus. Polar eventually gained prosperity producing Ulvæus' next group, international superstars ABBA...
label. - Swedish studio musicians The Black Sweden included a cover of the song on their ABBA tribute album Gold. The beginning of this version includes a riffRIFFThe Resource Interchange File Format is a generic file container format for storing data in tagged chunks. It is primarily used to store multimedia such as sound and video, though it may also be used to store any arbitrary data....
from the Judas PriestJudas PriestJudas Priest are an English heavy metal band from Birmingham, England, formed in 1969. The current line-up consists of lead vocalist Rob Halford, guitarists Glenn Tipton and Richie Faulkner, bassist Ian Hill, and drummer Scott Travis. The band has gone through several drummers over the years,...
song "Breaking the LawBreaking the Law"Breaking the Law" is a song by British heavy metal band Judas Priest, originally released on their 1980 album British Steel. The song is one of the band's better known singles, and is recognized by its opening guitar riff.-Music video:...
". - The 1995 New Zealand compilation AbbasalutelyAbbasalutelyAbbasalutely is a compilation album released in 1995 by New Zealand recording label Flying Nun Records as a tribute album to ABBA.-Track listing:-External links:*...
includes a cover by Breast Secreting Cake. - A eurodanceEurodanceEurodance is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1980s or early 1990s primarily in Europe. It combines many elements from House, Techno, Hi-NRG and especially Italo-Disco...
cover version can be found on the 1999 album ABBAdance by Angeleyes. - Studio 99 released two versions of the song on their ABBA tribute albums, one performed in the traditional ABBA style & the second being more of a dance-oriented techno mix.
- Australian rock band Audioscam covered the song on their 2008 album Abbattack. Samples from the album can be heard on their official MySpaceMySpaceMyspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
page.
In popular culture
- The song features in the film "ABBA: The MovieABBA: The MovieABBA: The Movie is a 1977 film about the pop group ABBA's Australian tour. It was directed by Lasse Hallström, who directed most of the group's videos. The film has become a cult film among ABBA fans...
" (1977), during a girl's ballet class.
On the 5th December 2010 on a poll on British channel ITV1 for The Nations Favourite ABBA song Ring, Ring (1974 version) was voted #25.