ABBA: Thank You for the Music, An All-Star Tribute was intended to be an American-British television special tribute to the Swedish band ABBA set for release in 2021 on NBC and BBC One. The special was later cancelled, as efforts switched to developing the ABBA Voyage concert residency.[1]
| ABBA: Thank You for the Music, An All-Star Tribute | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Special |
| Directed by | Johan Renck |
| Country of origin |
|
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Simon Fuller |
| Producer | Johan Renck |
| Running time | 120 minutes |
| Production company | XIX Entertainment |
| Original release | |
| Network | |
| Release | 2021 (cancelled) |
Premise
editIt would have featured appearances by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad and a performance of their new song "I Still Have Faith in You" by their digital avatars, and also included appearances by a variety of musical artists performing ABBA songs such as "Dancing Queen," "Mamma Mia," "The Winner Takes It All," and "Take a Chance on Me."[2]
Production
editOn April 27, 2018, it was announced that NBC and the BBC were co-producing a television special tribute to Swedish band ABBA. The special is set to be directed and produced by Johan Renck and executive produced by Simon Fuller. Production companies involved with the special include Fuller's XIX Entertainment.[3] On May 4, 2018, it was announced that the special had been titled ABBA: Thank You for the Music, An All-Star Tribute.[2][4][5]
Work on the TV special inspired the band to record new music, which later developed into their album Voyage, their first in 40 years.[6] According to Andersson, "I said, if we would have been doing this for real, going out on the stage, we would have added a couple of new songs to perform. And then I called the ladies and they said yes. [...] So we did that and I thought with the first two songs, it went so well and they could still sing and we could still produce music in the studio so we said maybe we’ll do a couple of others while we’re at it, and we ended up doing a whole album".[7]
In October 2021, it was confirmed that the special was scrapped, in favor of the upcoming ABBA Voyage concert residency.[8]
References
edit- ^ Petridis, Alexis (27 October 2021). "Super troupers! Abba on fame, divorce, ageing backwards – and why they've returned to rescue 2021". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 27 October 2021. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
- ^ a b Pedersen, Erik (4 May 2018). "NBC Sets ABBA Reunion/Tribute Special For December & Gives It A Title". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 4 May 2018.
- ^ White, Peter (27 April 2018). "ABBA To Reunite After 35 Years With NBC & BBC TV Special". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 4 May 2018.
- ^ Brockington, Ariana (4 May 2018). "TV News Roundup: 'Descendants 3' Adds Two More to Cast". Variety. Retrieved 4 May 2018.
- ^ Enos, Morgan (4 May 2018). "ABBA Tribute Special Coming to NBC in December". Billboard. Retrieved 4 May 2018.
- ^ Bloom, Madison (2 September 2021). "ABBA Announce First Album in 40 Years, Share New Songs: Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
- ^ Bronson, Fred (26 May 2022). "ABBA's Live 'Voyage' Show Is Doing Big Numbers in London: 'We've Sold 380,000 Tickets,' Benny Andersson Reveals". Variety. Retrieved 4 June 2022.
- ^ Petridis, Alexis (27 October 2021). "Super troupers! Abba on fame, divorce, ageing backwards – and why they've returned to rescue 2021". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 27 October 2021. Retrieved 28 October 2021.