Your presentation and esp the intro part gave me goosebumps.For me, "THE ALBUM" and "THE VISITORS" are their best work lyricwise.Bjorn created a philosophical and a self testimonial piece of art in 1977 and 1981 respectively.I totally agree about "TFTPOO".Despite it's supposedly humouristic story,there's a a small tragedy hidden underneath.Deals with existential issues,devastation of lonenliness and lack of interest in someones desperate and empty life.I've heard a demo of this song while in the making ,where Bjorn sings lyrics even more hard and painful during recording sessions.And finally you end this video with a beautiful healing outro with "DSMD" echoing.You are so keen on arousing emotions and give us chills from past Abba memories.We older fans have so deep,loving bonds with them ever since our pre-teen life.

THIS IS THE MOST UNDERRATED ALBUM OF ALL TIME 🤔🤔🤔🤔

I absolutely love how you are putting all these different things in perspective. It didn't dawn on me that the album is virtually bookended...It begins and ends with Frida, from paranoia and anxiety to full acceptance of her fate. It makes me appreciate this album all over again. What a masterpiece this is.

"The Visitors" is a masterpiece! I can not choose one favourite song, because everything fits together and the whole album is a full and nrealry complete story.

The Visitors is my favourite original album. My two fave Abba songs are One of Us and When All is Said and Done. This is truly a masterpiece. The deluxe edition with dvd and demo medley is just amazing. The artwork is incredible and the album is the most beautiful up to that point. Now a tie with Voyage for the best ABBA album.

I was 19 when I bought "The Visitors", and I remember it as if it were yesterday. Considering ABBA were not one of the most popular groups here in the States, I was surprised to see quite a lot of "promotion" in stores here for this album. There was one store, in particular, that was a department store, and in the "music" section, there were hung, cardboard posters from the ceiling, with "The Visitors" album cover, that read: "ABBA: THE VISITORS - THE NEW ALBUM".

The visitors appeared on my birthday, November 30th. A day to never forget. I still remember how I rode my bike to 2 villages to pick up the album. I remember the store owner telling me he didn't put the store's advertising sticker on the cover because he suspected I'd rather not. I remember the way home with my bike took forever. I remember running to my room and starting to listen. And I remember very well the feeling I had when I heard "I let the music speak" for the first time. OMG...have listened to that at least 5 times in a row without listening to the next songs. I still feel how I felt then. Still one of my favorite Abba songs after all these years. And thank you....finally someone who also says that "Two for the price of one" is a good song. Makes you happy every time. Thanks again for this nice video. Great job again. Congrats. Keep doing this.

It took me five times to hear the second track as i kept repeating the mesmerizing, atmospheric, totally encapsulating, sound of The Visitors.

Their best album by a mile. This is the album I’ve listened to the most of any artist. One of Us and soldiers are master pieces.

i can remember embracing it with the same enthusiasm i had done for every one of their albums. In time, and repeat listenings, the darker themes emerged, as it became more apparent that the light of ABBA was going out. Over the years, as much as i love them, i've often thought it was a good thing that they didn't carry on rather than risk making something bad. But, now i'm so happy that 'new spirit' has arrived and a whole new album to love just as much as all the others. They have filled my life with magic and i am eternally grateful.

I love your reviews. They give so much insight into the music of ABBA. I liked the album The Visitors from the beginning. My personal favorite is I Let The Music Speak. It shows in a wonderful way what music can do. „… where beauty will defeat the darkest day.“ The whole album is a masterpiece. Something that many didn't realize at first. I think it’s the same with Voyage. A lot of critics are negative about the album, as something ABBA shouldn't have released. But many of them will also realize later what ABBA has actually delivered. Their songs are still played when some of today's stars are already forgotten.

The Visitors is my favourite album ❤️ And I’ve been a ABBA fan since 1975, 6 years old 🥰

Absolute classic Album . One for a good pair of headphones to pick up all the intricate detail . I think I’ll be listening to it in full on this special.Day Also my birthday. Great present !

The Visitors was an album that needed to grow on you. We expected the upbeat songs of their previous albums. The Visitors told us without saying it that Abba was leaving us. It is an album composed by a masterpiece after a masterpiece when it comes to the songs. I let the music speak is just haunting almost like a piece of classical music written in the 20 century, Soldiers is an incredible song. Two for the price of one is a song that I found fun and even though not many people like it, for me it has all the ingredients of an excellent Abba song. I love the entire album. But it took me some time to discover it by paying individual attention to every single song.

THIS IS ONE OF MY ALL TIME FAVORITE "ABBA" RECORDINGS. THEY REALLY GREW MUSICALLY FROM THEIR FIRST ALBUMS. WHAT TALENT THEY ALL HAVE !

it’s such a masterpiece of an album. I’ve been an ABBA fan since 1975 and love all their music, but as far as albums go, its cohesiveness makes it distinctive from the rest. Every single song on it is outstanding. I don’t remember feeling that it was different from their previous albums, it just felt like a progression. In recent years I’ve listened to it more than to any of their other albums. I feel the same about Voyage to a great extent.

I was one of those who was there in 1981. For me 'One Of Us', 'When All Is Said And Done' and 'Head Over Heels' were pure ABBA, and had they come a little earlier, or if ABBA had still been interested in being ABBA, would have been bigger hits than they actually were. The lack of visiblility from ABBA certainly limited the promotion but their minds were on other this. 15 days after the album release Benny & Bjorn met for the first time with Tim Rice to progress their ambition of writting a musical. Frida had also decided she would be recording a solo album in early 1982 with Phil Collins and Agnetha had agreed to act in a Swedish movie. As an album The Visitors is like a time capsule from 1981, full of pain, sadness and fear...pehaps of the future. 'Soldiers' for me instantly reminds me of the fear of the coldwar situation and the arms race, 'When All Is Said And Done' captures so much sadness, while 'One Of Us' is full of regret. Perhaps the most obvious thing about the album its its heavy leaning toward musical theatre. 'Head Over Heels' is as theatrical as 'Money Money Money' was and 'I let The Music Speak' could easily have been a 'Chess' song had it not been recorded by ABBA. 'Like An Angel Passing through My Room' is the perfect closing track, thoughtful and reflective. Certanly for me ABBA had peeked with 'Super Trouper' but, even if it was nowhere near its predecessor in terms of sales, it was still a fine album.

Your videos are really superb. So insightful and always give me something new to think about. ABBA certainly are my favourite group of all time but I will confess that The Visitors is not my favourite album of theirs (but obviously better than anything anyone else has released!) I have to be in a certain "mood" to really enjoy this album: but when that happens, it does fill me with joy. I will say too that in a funny way, the release of Voyage somehow strengthens The Visitors. Now that it is not their final album, The Visitors has a different historical context now, and to me, that makes it even stronger. Happy 40th birthday to an amazing album.

Great video. Their masterpiece. Dark, theatrical yet euphoric in places, capturing anxieties and the uncertainty brought about by the Cold War and the Reagan-Brezhnev interface (all we talked about in school was the threat of nuclear war), as well as feelings of persecution, sorrow, calling it a day etc Frida has said she had to undergo vocal training for two weeks to be able to sing the title track, and in doing so to resemble the sound of a sitar. “I let the music speak” is genius, and for me tells a story of mental ill health and escapism through music. The vocal arrangements on “Head over heels” are outstanding. When ABBA released “The day before you came” a little later, I so wished it had been the tenth track on the original LP (the one jigsaw piece to have turned this perfection into more than perfection). The album was a bold step by the group: commercially not their biggest success but artistically their best.

I love “Two For The Price Of One” as well. That’s not a popular opinion, so, I was glad to hear you also like it as well. “Soldiers” is another of my favorites on this album which is also not that popular a choice among ABBA fans. But for me the title track “The Visitors” is a masterpiece which blows me away as much today as when I first heard it as a first year college student living away from home for the first time ever. I was captured by the sounds, the mood, the tension and the build up to the portion in the song when they sing “cracking up” and the energy of the song has by that point almost reached a panic with the swirling synths and electronic drums creating an epic early 80s synthpop banger. I didn’t really focus on the lyrics that much initially. It was not long after that I recall hearing “The Visitors” in a club with friends from college and again being completely mesmerized by the sound and it was an extended club version which was even more amazing. For me personally, while I recognize the album is regarded as ABBA’s finest and I appreciate the beauty of the songs and the pristine production, it’s not my first choice of ABBA albums if I were to choose one to play from beginning to end. But, I do appreciate the artistic and creative achievement the album represents in the scope of ABBA’s career and I think it represented a particular moment when ABBA achieved what had been elusive to them and that is artistic credibility, and positive recognition from critics and other artists as well. So, it’s a very important album in that regard. Out of curiosity, how do you view “Voyage” in comparison to “The Visitors”? I’ve heard some say it feels like “Voyage” is part 2 of “The Visitors”

Thank you for your thoughtful and fun videos. They are a joy to watch! I remember listening to "The Visitors" for the first time literally the day the LP came out. I was a bit shocked and rather surprised by the maturity of the songs and their - new - sound. A very sophisticated ABBA presented itself - so very different - a huge step up from even the previous album. Perhaps the new digital studio enhanced this impression, but I do remember marveling at that new, perfect, digital sound. The album just - sounded - stunningly, even on my so-so record player. The title track, "The Visitors", due to its fascinatingly distorted sound, and especially "I Let The Music Speak" for having 3-5 melodies in just one song being like its own mini musical, were my favorite tracks back then. But I loved all songs in one form or other. I also distinctly remember reading/hearing the word "embers" for the first time, wondering what it really means and whether one should be using it in singular or plural... To my even bigger surprise, all the songs that came after - including B sides - I liked even more than the album. I really love "Should I Laugh Or Cry" and "You Owe Me One". These two together with "Cassandra", "Under Attack" and of course "The Day Before You Came" are still among my very top favorite ABBA songs. I like them better than many of their big hits like "Dancing Queen", "Knowing Me, Knowing You", "Does Your Mother Know" or "I Have A Dream". So back then I was really looking forward to this much more mature ABBA. Could not wait to hear more - and then they decided to take a break... With "Voyage" I really feel that this is a continuation. One can sense the gap, as if a few albums are missing, but one can also sense that it still moved into the same direction as "The Visitors" already paved. Stunning. After such a long time. In a way, one can say that I finally did get the continuation I had hoped to hear for so long. Because of the perhaps "darker" (I would say "more mature") songs from 1981/82, I started to appreciate the very early songs more. The lightness they had in those early days is such a fantastic contrast - yet these are still typical ABBA songs. So perhaps not surprisingly, my second favorite ABBA album after "The Visitors" is "Ring Ring". I really appreciate the breadth and contrast ABBA managed to create in their song portfolio over the years. "Voyage" so perfectly fits into this portfolio as a new puzzle piece. And dare we hope that there might still be the odd EP or specialty single release coming up from here on... ? p.s. Back then I strongly felt that "The Visitors" and the later singles were all years ahead of their time. That they would be fully appreciated only in years to come. I have the very same feeling about "Voyage". I sense that ABBA are still ahead of their time...

The Visitors is their best album. Lyrically stronger than before it is a stunning piece of work.

Absolutely the most artful, deepest and lyric-wise album of ABBA! It includes very personal songs relating to the torments of their private lives as well as the first song that presents a credo of a song-writer in "I Let The Music Speak". The tracks with solos performed by Frida stand out as masterpieces of the Album - The Vistors, I Let The Music Speak or Like An Angel Passing Through My Room are absolutely awesome!

Such a mature and personal album. Love it.

For a long time i can't hear "The Visitors" often, because evrytime i felt very sad, knowing that was their last album. The mood, the sound and of course the lyrics were so heartbreaking for me, goosbumping and lot of tears at most of the songs.... when i closed my eyes during listening the album i saw they how they walked out of our lives as in the end-sequence of the video "Under Attack" and i was screaming in silence "Come back, Come back". now....40 years later the unbelievabble miracle has come to us, bring an new album, new songs and of course more bittersweet feelings..but the miracle to feeling immediatly young if listening to ABBA is their greatest Gift to us....

"This is where beauty meets the darkness of the day. This is the Visitors." Hej, hej. That's sums it up perfectly BB! It has earned it's place as my favorite ABBA album. "The Visitors" paved the way for all of Benny and Bjorn's 80's and 90's output and their comeback songs from VOYAGE.

Possibly my all time favourite ABBA LP. A real work of art, with some of the most beautiful and tragic lyrics ever written.

I also described The Visitors as ABBA’s masterpiece just yesterday. My favourite album of theirs. I love the sound of the early 80’s, the drum and synths sound amazing. Beautifully written and performed.

The Visitors as a song is my absolute favourite, dark and mysterious, sad with a beautiful chorus. The album is the most complete picture and a showcase of four very talented people. I remember a dj saying ABBA had taken it up a few notches artistically and I couldn't agree more with him, played on a radio station that usually ignored ABBA 's music. The cover fits the whole album so well and I love how Julius Kronberg's art had been used to illustrate the mood of the songs. Incredible.

Thank you for these great videos! I was a young adult when “The Visitors” came out. I had a subscription to Billboard Magazine so I had kept up with the details about the album’s release. I thought that “When All Is Said And Done” was a great choice for first single here in the US. Even though it is one of their best songs, It disappointingly only reached #27 on the Hot 100 Singles chart. However, in the dance clubs, the song “The Visitors” was massively popular and would easily fill the dance floor, the same way that “Lay All Your Love On Me” did. The variety of song styles on that album really showed how ABBA had grown as artists and human beings. I often wondered how interesting a follow up to TV in 1983 or 1984 would have sounded. I was also fascinated that the album was recorded digitally. There was a definite difference to the sound compared to earlier albums.. The transients were sharper but the cymbals sounded harsh. Many years later I read that Benny, Bjorn, and Michael Tretow also felt the sound was too clinical, so they took the digitally recorded multitracks and transferred them to analogue tape to “humanize” them. Also, the LP master lacquers were done at the Cutting Room in Stockholm from the final master tape and sent to many major music markets around the world, including the US. They wanted to give everyone the best sound they could. That was the first that I remember something like that ever being done. Finally, in 1983, this album was one of the first 5 CDs I had ever bought. The other four were “ABBA GH Vol. 2”, “Super Trouper”, Michael Jackson “Thriller”, Barbra Streisand “Guilty.” I bought these five titles a few months before I got my first CD player!! I have many wonderful memories of when this album first came out. I am still in awe and amazed that we now have “Voyage!”

I can remember that i loved immediately all the album. It was something completely new and wonderful.

It's one of the best albums of all time by anyone without question. ❤️ When I first heard it when it was released I was blown away, it was way ahead of its time.

My favourite album of all time, and I've heard thousands of other great records since then. I was 13, when it came out, and it captured me from the very first moment. For many years I thought, that no one else loved this LP that much and that it was almost forgotten compared to the big ABBA-albums like "Arrival". But during the last 20 years, this album gets the attention it always deserved. You did a great job of highlighing what makes this album special!

I listened to it for the first time on Christmas Day 1981 as a 16 year old. I’d received Super Trouper for my birthday in March and was blown away by the perfection and variety so was eagerly anticipating the new album. I’m sure it took a few listens to grow on me, I played it probably daily that summer (here in Australia) and especially loved the title track. I couldn’t understand why it wasn’t big news here and the singles One Of Us and When All Is Said And Done barely charted. I remember early in 1982 playing it for a skeptical mate and he agreed the title track was a “good song” but then Head Over Heels was back to their old style. I bought One Of Us as a single so discovered Should I Laugh Or Cry on the B side and have often thought that should have followed The Visitors on the album, but they were clearly at pains to alternate between Frida and Agnetha so had to have Björn on the odd one out! I have often thought the title track should have been the lead single here, rockier songs did better here three times: Rock Me, Does Your Mother Know and On and On and On were all top 10 hits, the latter being their last Top 10 in Australia early in 1981.

I was a young teen when The Visitors came out and I distinctly recall how disappointed I was with it as it certainly upended our usual expectation that it was going to be chock-full of upbeat numbers. We were not prepared for the full on Scandinavian melancholy and the group grappling with much darker themes. The melodies, arrangements and production were still exquisite as ever though. I had to catch up and appreciate their growing sophistication and wisdom. I am glad that the album now is rightly seen as ABBA in prime form by many fans. Soldiers along with Army Dreamers by Kate Bush are my all time favorite antiwar pop songs. I let the music speak is one of the most beautiful melodies Benny has ever written.

I remember buying The Visitors on cassette. At the time my family and especially myself and my sister were going through very hard times. So I saved my pocket money ( as I always did to buy a new ABBA album) I was shocked hearing Frida's beautiful voice. I didn't understand the meaning behind the title song. But I played and played this album. Only as I grew up I did grasp the meaning behind so many of songs. Sadly I think Australia had burnt them. There wasn't much happening on TV nor in the fan club. We had new music to listen to( mostly bad in my opinion). The Visitors remains the most played album I own ( except Voyage). The art work is truly sublime, up there with Voulez-Vous. I was chatting to another friend who does online reactions, he agrees with me, that The Visitors is a masterpiece. These fabulous 4 I can now see how tired they were. So I guess like so many fans, we were shocked, but also very, very grateful for this wonderful album.

You perfectly expressed my opinions and feelings about THE VISITORS album. Mystic, moody and full of wonders.

I love watching your videos, even they are older ones. When someone who dosen`t know ABBA asks me what ABBA is I would say: Listen to ABBA Gold and listen to The Visitors, then you know who ABBA is. The Visitors is their best album ever.

Wonderful and heartfelt reflection of one of my favorite albums by any artist. Thank you so much! I remember being only 9 years old when it was released (first pop album ever to appear on CD!!! But I bought vinyl :)), and I was completely mesmerized and in love with every songs. It wasn't until I had reached adulthood that I really appreciated and understood the deeper meaning of Björns wonderful lyrics, yet the music captured my heart completely and told a story even a child could grasp ...the beauty was there from the beginning. Agnetha's and Frida's remarkable interpretations brought it to life and the emotions sunk deep into my heart like something I had to cherish and treasure.

I was on winter break from my second year in college. I happened upon the new ABBA album, The Visitors, in a mall in Las Cruces, New Mexico. I had to drive 70 miles back to my parents' house to hear it. I remember listening to the title track over and over again, very pleased with the direction the group appeared to be going. Shortly thereafter, I began hearing it (and two tracks from Super Trouper) in the dance clubs. It was the height of my club going years to hear The Visitors BLASTING from dance floor speakers. I also like When All Is Said and Done and Soldiers. And Like An Angel is one of my all time favorite recordings ever. That song I played for music major friends a decade later as ABBA was beginning to quietly get its due.

In the grip of this cold December you and I have reason to remember

I love this album. Every song. Two for the price of one is absolutely fantastic song. I love the sound, the beat, the chorus, the way it all comes together with the funny lyrics. I`ll always remember the first time I listened to The Visitors in my uncles car at the summer house of my grandparents. That sound when the first song started, so mysterious and different from anything I had ever heard from them. Fantastic album. A complete album. Thank you so much for your work. Always a pleasure to hear your thoughts about this amazing group.

I remember very well when I bought the album back in 1981. Such a fantastic album. I still love "The Visitors". Thank you, ABBA.

My favorite album of all time. The addition of Day Before you Came and Cassandra and others on The Deluxe make it even better in my opinion.

Thanks for your thoughts. Yes it's their masterpiece album. And it's my favourite too. It's like ABBA grew up. Guess it's like Agnetha has said about the breakup being a natural thing. Though we're all scared we spread our wings and leave the safety of the nest. Lets hope their family reunion is a long and happy one. They really do still have a lot to offer as a group.

I remember this very day so well - studying as an exchange student in Germany. Couldn't wait to go to the local record store to "preview" the new album and ended up listening to the entire album in the store! It was fixating and so different than any of ABBA's previous works. It was a dreary day outside and the music fit so well with that day, but honestly I was filled with total elation of 9 new ABBA songs.

very underrated album. I suppose because they were coming to an end. They are INCREDIBLE.

I was 14 when The Visitors came out. The dark sound and the lyrics, both foreboding and foreshadowing, made me think the end of ABBA was near. I like how Frida was given I Let The Music Speak as a way to showcase her mezzo soprano voice in all its splendour. Soldiers makes me think it’s about a missile roaring out of its silo. 1981 was a dark year.

The Visitors is a masterpiece, and thanks again for your superb videos.

Brilliant on point as usual! The Visitors is such a fantastic, visionary Album and still as relevant as it was 40 years ago. When it was released I liked it a lot, but over the years and with getting older I absolutely loved it, the atmosphere and the darkness.Masterpiece!!!

ABBA's album "The Visitors" is absolutely amazing, in fact, it is a work of art. Six of the nine songs are fabulous and three are good.

Excellent presentation again as always!

Who ever thought that we would ever get a new album from them after The Visitors. I was there and my brother bought it me for Xmas when it came out and when he was out I carefully unwrapped it and sneaked in a few listens and was blown away! Don’t forget there was no you Bobby or MTV or anything else to get our hands on! Great video Sir.

Great video on The Visitors, indeed an album on which most opinions differ.... I think I got it on the first day it was released as I got Voulez Vous and Super Trouper. Couldn't have waited until Christmas.... I heard the title on the radio SWR3/SWF3 a few days before when the radio dj said, wow a new ABBA album and the opening track is surprinsingly splendid.. yep, those were the days... It was indeed a very different sound compared to the songs of Super Trouper. I must admit i never really clicked with the album. Not in 40 years. I missed and still miss foremost the most the warmth of the arrangements. I did not mind the melancholic mood because i think to a certain degree there always had been a melancholic side to many ABBA songs, but of course not that obvious. I missed and miss some organic instruments on songs like When All Is Said And Done and maybe - though of course not an album track - on Should I Laugh Or Cry.... or Like An Angel Passing Through My Room. You could tell from the pictures, from the videos that they were not "that happy" that there was something going on that eventually could lead to the break up.....but it was more of a feel than knowing of course. And I was somehow not okay with the European singles choices. At the time i did not even know that other songs had been chosen for the US and Australia.... Head Over Heels was not my choice and not my cup of tea at all. I respect of all the meaningfull and haunting songs on The Visitors they or the record company chose HOV as follow up instead of When All Is Said And Done... I thought they messed it up. HOV did not represent the album for me, even if i had my issues with the album, HOV was not "bringing old ABBA vibes back". Two For The Price Of One, oh boy, the chorus is actually brilliant, musically, but the verses do nothing to me.. not contentwise, not his singing style... actually You Owe Me One has imo a similiar chorus structure, like a canon singing. Again the verses are somewhat odd with You Owe Me One...Slipping Though my Fingers is beautiful, but i do not like too much Agnetha's studio vocals. I like her vocals on Dick Cavett much better. This could have been a single as well. Overall it was too dark and cold for my taste and i missed the piano. So it might be a masterpiece, objectively seen, but it doesn't go to my heart as other albums. Whereas Voyage for my taste is a better mix of maturity, sincereness and warmth. Better balanced. But The Visitors belong rightfully to ABBA's legacy, though i never thought of Like An Angel as their swan song when the year after they came up with The Day Before You Came, Cassandra and Under Attack... the end of the Under Attack video gave me more of an idea... OK that' that... they're gone.

The Visitors is my favourite ABBA album and I love Two for the price...

For me each and every album released by ABBA are chapters of their life story in song and music ,they have a story to tell and it's ALIVE ,yes still alive.The VISITORS gave me a dark intense chapter of their story beautifully haunting but very deep and emotionally demanding. And the ticking of the clock at the end of LIKE AN ANGEL PASSING THROUGH MY ROOM the last sounds of ABBA at that time ,I thought it was the end the final moment in time,but it kept ticking for 40years in my ears ,not counting DOWN but counting UP to VOYAGE the clock was ticking on to a NEW album a new chapter in their lives and time has no prison it passes and evolves to create surprise ecstacy and suspended belief in the beautiful and COMPLETE story that is ABBA.YES the VISITORS was always thought to be their last album BUT it is only another intense chapter in their life VOYAGE .

At the time of the Visitors release, I was employed at an FM Radio Station CHFM in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The title track was on Heavy rotation there. Subsequentley I went to vacation in Florida USA and had an early portable CD Player. This Entire Album was all I listened to Every Day at the Beach, and Poolside. It was Bored into my Brain & I Love it to This Day.

The Visitors is a masterpiece. I bought the album back in November or December of 1981. Each song was spectacular in different ways. I think I'll go revisit it whilst driving in my car.

super trouper and the visitors are my favorite albums...mature,cold northern sound ,a bit electronic ..voyage is the perfect follow

Brilliant , sensitive analysis .. I salute you !!

It was 1982 when my cousin came home with the cassette, and I heard When All Is Said And Done. I was 9. I adored it. And then, the rest of the album. What a trip. I still can't get enough of Head Over Heels, and all the other songs. So cool and artfully played. Thank you, Bobby's Brother, for your awesome channel and this great video. Rutger Gunnarsson and Ola Brunkert RIP

My favorite songs in this album are "When All Is Said And Done" and "The Visitors". The Visitors chorus is sublime and reminds me a lot of the chorus in Summer Night City which is also one of my favorite ABBA songs ever.

Thank you so much for your birthday celebration of one of the greatest pop albums in music history! For me, this is the best music album of all time! I compare the elegance of this masterpiece with the elegance of the picture of Mona Lisa! So much genres, maturity, bittersweet melancholy! ABBA were political, avant-garde and also minimalistically raw (in Like An Angel Passing Through My Room) on this record. It was their split album, but they were on the zenith of their skills while recording this gem. This record is just perfect! Happy Birthday to The Visitors, and thank you for this magical music, ABBA 💛

The visitors is my favorite album.. great review

I remember getting it as a Christmas present in 1981 when I was 15 years old. I had to keep taking it back to the shop to have it replaced (about 3 times) because the record kept jumping in the same place on the first track. Good days!

Great review. I remember distinctly getting this album Christmas 81. I think, in all honesty, it was perhaps too “grown up” for me at the time (I was 12). As I grew older, I recognised the absolute genius behind it. Don’t get me wrong, I loved it at the time, I just don’t think I appreciated it as much as I did when I got older. It’s certainly their most accomplished album. My 2nd favourite after Arrival. Genius

I remember that very first time listening to this record on a cassette my cousins had brought me from Sweden. It sure sounded like anything else I had ever heard from them. I personally have always loved Two for the price of one. Björn`s vocals, the harmonies, the beat, the light hearted lyrics about a "mama`s boy" looking for a woman in his life, finding that add saying "two for the price of one". To me it means that she has a daughter, too. And that humorous ending about meeting his mother. Such a feel good song that sounds awesome.

Thank you Bobby for another fabulous video of Abba. We love to hear your thoughts and opinions.

I got Visitors on release day! :) It became my favourite album. The title track so apt for the years of the Cold War, and Soldiers was like a soundtrack to Richard Adams novel Shardik. The other tracks are all highlights of ABBA's perfect productions. I guess I'll just have to go listen to it again, now.

The first track was the one that resonated the most, I could feel the fear of the doorbell (still have the same fear, years later) that one develops with age. After your insight, I have come to see this album in a different light. I never really thought of it as the last one...somewhere deep inside, I hoped for a next one...but then, all fans always do...

Very well said and defined of this outstanding group of great Musicians.. Awesome! Thank you!

Here in the UK 'The Visitors' was No.1 for three weeks from December 15th 1981 to January 5th 1982.

"Soldiers" could have been written yesterday. So relevant and important in it's message today perhaps more than back then. ABBA always ahead of it's time. Truly masters of song writing. "The Visitors" album is my favorite"

Love The Visitors LP, such a progression, a page turner that left me in awe and wonder on what the follow up album would be like (which sadly did not happen). The song Day Before You Came and Under Attack should have been on this classic LP. Amazingly Voyage LP easily picks up after The Visitors, even the cover artwork blends in.

You’re my favourite ABBA expert. Much love

I totally agree with your comments. I only recently listened to The Visitors for the first time, and loved it immediately. A very different sound from ABBA, but still superb.

I KNEW slipping through my fingers and when all is said and done were analogue I just needed someone to confirm it. Gives them a richer sound. Slipping through my fingers is my second favourite abba track ever. Dancing Queen first.

A beautiful commentary for a beautiful album. I was 10 when I bought this album, and I can still remember where I bought it, reading all the album back on the bus on the way home, and listening to it for the first time. Your video just gave me a glimpse of those moments, so thank you! . From the the title track encapsulating the disturbing time of the 80's cold war (which was frightengly real at the time), to the uplifiting "Me and I", this is an album which uniquely caught all those feelings in that period. I agree, this album is a masterpiece, and a wonderful capture of that time. The best thing is you can put it on today and every song is just as relevant... Thank you for celebrating this albums importance in musical history for a timeless piece of art. It will forever have special memories for me...my brother (now parted) loved it too... so it is a bond for those times.

Yet another outstanding presentation, Bobby! Definitely befitting ABBA’s masterwork. I’m happy to see that I’m not alone in this feeling. I wasn’t aware of Benny’s quote about “The Visitors” album having “some sort of concept,” but that was certainly my impression when it was released. All of ABBA’s other albums were little variety shows, including “Super Trouper.” This one seemed to come from one mind, reflecting one mood. Your comment about making it through hard times also rings true for me. I obtained my copy of “The Visitors” in January 1982. My parents had gotten into a very big fight (my Dad’s fault), so I was able to slyly slip the cassette into the cart when Dad and I did our weekly shopping at a big box store. This new album somehow provided armor for the dark period that I was going through. A goth album of sorts. ABBA had become Siouxsie and the Banshees for people who wear colors! As a youngster who was starting to follow the charts at the time, I can tell you that “When All Is Said and Done” briefly cracked the U.S. Top 40. I may have heard it on Los Angeles radio once or twice. A local Adult Contemporary FM station played the title track occasionally and I’ve often wondered if it would have been a better choice as a single. Unfortunately, ABBA’s fortunes were fading fast in America and there wasn’t likely anything they could have done to have a Number One. So, in addition to recording a goth album, they had become a cult band!

Wonderful video and comments Bobby Brother, once again. Love the Mix at the beginning too

I was there and rushed out to buy it. In the grip of that cold December, I listened to the album over and over. Unlike you, I have never particularly enjoyed Two for the Price of one, and I've been listening to it for 40 years! My favourite songs on this album are When all is said and done and Like an angel passing through my room. I enjoy The visitors much more now than then, and always did like Head over heels. Soldiers and I let the music speak are wonderful pieces, but One of us and Slipping through my fingers are lower down on my preference list. That said, it's a brilliant album throughout apart from Two for the price of one, and I think that even now it remains my favourite Abba album. In fact When all is said and done and Like an angel are probably my two favourite Abba tracks. Great stuff as always Bobby's Brother. Edit... I went to listen to Two for the price of one. It sounds like a crossover between Abba and the Carry on film franchise, with cheap innuendo. Alice Whiting's name seems to have been created to rhyme with 'exciting'. The music is good, the chorus is catchy and the women's voices are lovely as always. The musical outro reminds me of a circus and this adds to the general light-hearted tone. I can see that the singer is sad and lonely, but more than that he seems interested in 'exciting' times with not one but two women. I hear more melancholia in Dancing Queen than in this track, and I still feel that this is the worst track they ever recorded (apart from Medley perhaps). I even prefer King Kong Song to this (actually I like King Kong Song! Should I laugh or cry would have been great instead of Two for the price of one, but just my opinion.

Best album ever... ;)

I can remember it like it was yesterday, getting this album for Xmas in 1981 and finding it at first very dissapointing. It had been preceeded by 'One Of Us' as a single which was a pretty business as usual ABBA hit but the album was so dark and strange. Thankfully over the years I've grown to love it and it's now my favoruite, especially the expanded CD version with 'The Day Before You Came' inlcuded, making it a true masterpiece. Great video, take care.

Hello And thankyou again for your thoughtful video 👋 I really appreciate your hard work makeing them👍This is my fave album from Abba maybe because of its maturity or maybe because One of us was my first ABBA single I was givin on Xmas day 1981 I was 9 yrs old and I still remember it vividly 🤶 I appreciate the mini masterpieces within this album I still adore Should I laugh or cry it’s my second fave ABBA song ever

As know now I am an original super trouper all the way back from 74 living in Brighton at the time of there erou win and always been a huge fan!!but visitors is there masterpiece and I have always loved Fridas vocals especially!!!!

I remember the family discussions well the winter The Visitors was released. I was13 years old and although I couldn't quite appreciate the depth of the relationship turmoil, the dark tone of the album appealed to my angst of adolescence. I played it constantly trying to uncover the meaning behind the tracks but in retrospect, I can say it's an album that grew more meaningful as I began to experience life. It remains one of my all time favourite albums! Thank you for your thoughtful posts!

I was 11 in the November of 1981 and the arrival of this work - please remember at age 11 I did not have access to international pop media press in my small town - was a complete surprise and upon first listening an AWAKENING. I was literally never again to view pop music the same way.

The Frida-sung title track, ’The Visitors’, dealt with the fate of dissidents in the Soviet Union of the time. It opens the album in an eerie oral mood defined by synthesiser; Frida the narrator unfolds in a voice of hollow resignation a story of torment and paranoia about real or imagined visitors. The concerted throb and pulse of bass and drums build the tension slowly until it is released into the relief of a characteristically well-crafted Abba chorus. Billboard 1981

i queued up at the local record store that morning I was 13. Day off School!! AWESOME album, my fave still

best- THX!!

This, once again, reminds me why I am always looking forward to your next video! I first really became aware of "The Visitors" as an album when watching the 2013 BBC documentary "The Joy of ABBA". Up until that point, I had only listened to isolated tracks, like "One of us", "Head over heels" and "Two for the price of one". When I first heard in that programe that this album had songs dealing with the Cold War, as well as saw the artwork, I was hooked! The dark and beautiful atmosphere was so fascinating to me, and when I heard the synth on the title track, I got goosepumps and still do! This is truly a masterpiece, which makes it even more significant that Björn referred to "Voyage" as its follow-up! And what a follow-up it is!!!

Thank you for the words around 6:59 - I needed to hear these...

Good show! I,m still obsessed by this album. Since 1981 there isn’t a week passed that I dint play this album

Very interesting video, thank you. It makes the whole ABBA story seem even more epic. It makes me feel good and gives me hope that they have recorded a new album. It seems silly but it comforts me in these dark times

The harmonies on 2ftpo1 are out of this world 🌎

great review of this album, i love abba so much

I have thoroughly enjoyed your posts and observations , thank you ! Well l remember hearing this (as you had suggested) at Christmas that year -my Mum bought it for me … I was of course much younger and some of the deeper meanings of the songs l couldn’t appreciate it the same way as l do today ..one life to experience it and one life to live it ah? …if only that was the case . I certainly recall feeling the sadness of divorce and starting afresh with all the anxieties of the future when l heard ‘One Of Us’ the lead single in the UK. ‘Soldiers’ was heart felt too as l was reminded of the distress the world was in at that time ( when hasn’t it been ! ) and what it meant all those years before when my Grandfather fought in the war .. The theatrics of I Let The Music Speak & Like An Angel Passing Through My Room was unlike anything l had heard from ABBA or Infact any artist before at that time …these tracks were/are sumptuous and atmospheric. Both tracks emulated a kind of longing and loneliness at the same time …something l could even identify with back then. Yes , l remember feeling ABBA had come full circle when l heard The Visitors album for the first time …but clearly they hadn’t quite done so -had they? 🥰

I can only remember that around 1983 I've heard, One Of Us , was at my school closing party . I was 7 or maybe 8. Wasn't aware of the visitors album until probably 1990.

I remember buying it and racing home to play it! On first few listens, I didn’t like it! I was disappointed as I was expecting another “Super Trouper” type album. But, the more I listened, the more I warmed to it! The lyrics were great and the sound so different! Years later, it has grown to become one of my very favourites - in fact, in 2020, it was the album I had listened to the most on Spotify and “One of Us” my most listened to song that year! Interesting too that they seems to be more “serious” covers of songs from the LP than any other Abba LP! Interestingly, my initial couple of listens to Voyage was similar reaction and now, again, I can’t stop listening to it!!

wonderful review,,,thanks!