AGNETHA & FRIDA -THE INTERVIEWS: JANUARY 2009
Agnetha and Frida: "Thank you for the Rockbjörnen"
Abba girls Agnetha and Frida together again for top Swedish music award
Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad, the female half of Abba, made a surprise visit to the Stockholm rock venue Cirkus last night to be presented with Rockbjörnen, the prestigeous annual music prize awarded by the Swedish daily newspaper Aftonbladet.
The two women were greeted with a massive roar of applause as they stepped onto the stage to receive the prize for “lifetime achievement”.
“We’re feeling really nostalgic tonight,” said an emotional Agnetha.
When Swedish journalist and music critic Per Sinding-Larsen announced that Abba had won the award the crowd gasped in expectation.
Then, after a dramatic pause, the two women emerged from the wings.
When the applause showed no sign of dying down, Anni-Frid, 63, was forced jokingly to appeal for calm. “Now you really must be quiet,” she said.
Agnetha, 58, is only rarely seen in public nowadays but last night she made an exception for the readers of Aftonbladet.
And she was in sparkling good mood.
“So many shared memories”
“For the most part, we’ve been chatting about money tonight,” she joked when asked what she and Anni-Frid had found to talk about during their surprise get-together.
But then she added:
“No, actually we’ve been getting nostalgic together. The two of us have so many shared memories. And we feel enormously proud, but humble that a new generation is listening to our music all over again. You never get tired of it. We’ve never had time to become blasé. We’re just as nervous tonight as when we used to go on stage all those years ago.”
“It’s fantastic”
Anni-Frid, clutching her own Rockbjörn, or Rock Bear in english, broke in: “It’s fantastic after 35 years to still be appreciated by people all over the world.”
When Sinding-Larsen asked if they had any amusing memories of their time in Abba, the two women started laughing.
“We can’t go into that here,” said Anni-Frid. “But they were mostly concerned with a washing basin and wigs. That’ll have to be an Aftonbladet picture puzzle.”
At the party after the gala the main topic of conversation among guests was the surprise appearance… expecially that of Agnetha Fältskog.
ABBA were reunited for pictures at the première of the film of “Mamma Mia!” this summer, but it has been a good many years since Agnetha could be persuaded to take centre stage in public.
Agnetha and Frida: "We didn’t fight" Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Agnetha Fältskog say they are very happy that the world is once again saying “Thank You For The Music”.
They say they’ve enjoyed the renewed success and recognition Abba has had lately and are proud of the fact that Meryl Streep and other stars are singing their songs.
But they won’t be making any new records.
“I’ve rather lost touch with music,” says Agnetha.
The couple happily toasted each other with champagne after their tumultuous reception at a gala evening in Stockholm last night when they were reunited to receive the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet’s Rockbjörnen award for “Lifetime achievement”.
They obviously still get on very well with each other and clearly enjoyed the chance to reminisce about the old days.
They were asked how they felt about the success of the film version of “Mamma Mia!”
Agnetha: We feel incredibly proud that the music never seems to die. A new generation likes it and that gives you great hope.
“Joy and togetherness”
Frida: We often get asked how things were with Abba Björn and Benny are generally thought of as the geniuses behind the band, but all the creative work was really done in the studio. We were a group of people. And it wasn’t just the four of us. Other musicians and technicians helped to create the Abba sound. We worked on all the details. All the harmonies.
Agnetha: We did everything ourselves. It was a lot of work.
Frida: That often gets forgotten. The creative work took place in the studio, spread over many, many hours. A fantastic amount of joy and togetherness went into creating our sound.
What did you think of the public’s reaction to your appearance here tonight?
Agnetha: Unbelievable. Such warmth!
Frida: I would like to put the record straight on one thing. A lot has been written about how Agnetha and I fought and quarrelled with each other. There is absolutely no truth in that. Of course, we competed… but to good effect.
Agnetha: No, we didn’t fight. But we have to live a whole lot of such misinterpretations.
“It feels like yesterday”
Frida: Abba wasn’t just about two married couples, you know. It was a little as though Agnetha and I were also married to one another!
Agnetha: We supported one another. Say, if one of us had a cold or felt under the weather…
Frida: We were extremely considerate towards one another.
How long is it since you last met privately?
Agnetha: An awfully long time ago.
Frida: Though it feels like yesterday.
Agnetha: Yes, sometimes I dream about Frida. And sometimes about Benny and Björn, though in different ways.
Frida: It’s a complex process. We have experienced so much and had such unbelievable lives, both professionally and privately. We are going to be dealing with this throughout our lives. It’s not something you can file away and forget. We were reminded of that tonight. We think of it with pride.
Agnetha: Yes, there are so many different feelings.
And it’s just the two of you who really know what you went through.
Agnetha: Exactly. And as women, we experienced it in a special way.
Frida: More emotionally.
Agnetha: Speaking for myself, I sometimes suffered enormously from a bad conscience and longing for my children. It’s like Frida says, there were many mixed feelings and contrasts with Abba. Such as tours when we lived a life of luxury, then came home to washing up and cooking.
“Dreams of Abba”
Have you any thoughts of recording again?
Frida: I was just thinking of asking Agnetha about cutting a new record.
Agnetha: A double CD… ha ha ha ...
You made an album a few years ago.
Agnetha: It’s difficult to feel motivated today. I have so many other things to do. I’ve entered a new phase in life. I’m a grandmother. So’s Frida. Abba is always there, though. I dream about Abba. It won’t ever go away. But one lives from day to day. I’ve come further and further away from music.
But you wrote so many songs…
Agnetha: Yes, and I sometimes still write. But nowadays I just file them away. Composing is part of me. And I still get ideas for new lyrics. But from that stage to actually doing something...
Frida: It’s a giant step. Almost impossible to take.
Agnetha: You can get the ideas and put them together – that’s fine. And working in the studio is fun. But then... then comes the question of releasing the final product.
Frida: That’s it. That’s what you’re afraid of. Promotion and travelling – you don’t want to do that anymore.
Agnetha: You’re just too old… haven’t got the strength.
They like Robyn
Do you listen to much music nowadays?
Agnetha: There’s an awful lot really good music, and an awful lot of really bad music. I think Laleh is really good… and Robyn.
Frida: I’ve liked Robyn ever since she started recording. I always said that girl would be big.
The spotlight was mostly on you two in Abba. Then all the talk was of A and A. Lately it’s been mostly B and B.
Agnetha: Of course – they compose the music.
Frida: But we really should do something to even things up.
Agnetha: Exactly. Could you please arrange a picture of the two of us?
I think that can be arranged.
Agnetha: Joking aside, we all four of us feel enormously proud, humble and thankful for what we’ve been able to give.
Photos & Information: Aftonbladet