200 MOST RECOMMENDED ALBUMS: #9. Continues next week.

THE CAFFE` LATTE`

200

MOST RECOMMENDED ALBUMS

Some are the best selling, while others may be obscure, but the albums listed here are all worthy of a listen. No compilation/ best of sets. Only exceptional live albums included. This is a personal listing of the albums I enjoy the most to this day.

#9

THE VISITORS: ABBA

 [1981] 

By 1981, the frenzy surrounding ABBA was dissipating. On 'The Visitors', the Swedish group was exploring new sounds and musical directions. The pop attitude of preceding LP 'Super Trouper' gave way to the possibilities offered by innovative technology. Benny Andersson adapted the burgeoning synth pop to fit the mature and darker themes on 'The Visitors'. Although this is the final studio album released by ABBA, at the time the band still expected to exist beyond 1981. The album kicks off with the title track. where Andersson shines on the synthesizer. "Head Over Heels" and "When All Is Said And Done" follow, brimming with trademark ABBA hooks. "Soldiers" and "I Let The Music Speak" are more serious songs. Bjorn Ulvaeus wraps his sad lyrics for "One Of Us" around an upbeat mood. Agnetha Faltskog delivers an emotional "Slipping Through My Fingers" that is just as moving as her execution on the dramatic classic "The Winner Takes It All". ABBA never issued another LP after 'The Visitors', but the album features hints of where the band was heading musically. The 2 couples were no longer together. Lyrically, the cheesy ABBA trademark sound was superceded by adult issues such as war, breaking up and finding love in the classifieds. Later editions of the album included bonus tracks which add more depth to this often underrated recording from Sweden's most significant musical export.

Highlight tracks:

* Head Over Heels

* Slipping Through My Fingers

* I Let The Music Speak

* The Visitors

* Soldiers