I wouldn't say I'm a massive Abba fan, but I love to jive along to Dancing Queen whenever I hear it. I just can't help it. When I knew I was coming to Stockholm, I made sure to include the Abba Museum in my itinerary.
It's quite small!! That's my first impression of the Abba Museum when I first saw it. Had it not been for the sign I would have thought I'd gone to the wrong building. Luckily, that didn't dampen my spirits, size doesn't always matter, right 😉? I was so happy to arrive at the Abba Museum at last.
Then I got another little shock at the ticket office. I hadn't pre book tickets as I read online it wasn't that busy, you can just walk in. I can't remember the exact price of the tickets, might have been something like SEK350/£25. But, if you pre book on-line it was about 20% cheaper. What the...!!!?? 20% is quite a big difference. I stepped back outside immediately and booked the tickets online from my mobile saving 20%, and got in 10 minutes later 😁. Abba here I come!!
The main exhibition area was a level down from the entrance and was a lot bigger than the outside. Never judge a book by its cover they say.
50th anniversary
This year is the 50th anniversary of Abba winning the Eurovision and the first exhibit is a tribute to this major milestone that changed the landscape of Swedish music and pop music in general. All the original outrageous outfits worn by the members during that evening were on display, as was the custom made star shape guitar that Bjorn played during the contest. It was pretty surreal seeing a part of pop history.
The night that changed everything
The next exhibit were two cars in a park. I thought that was very random, but apparently that's how things started for the band. The night that changed everything was lit up on the wall.
Abba may have propelled onto the global music platform when they won the Eurovision, but they were already quite famous as individual artists in Sweden before their win. The night that changed everything refers to one evening when the two guys Bjorn and Benny, each with their own bands at that time, bumped into each other in the park. Later that evening they were at the same party and ended up played music together all night. They discovered a common love of music and developed a bond and a partnership that would last for decades. The rest is history as they say.
Before coming to the museum, I didn't know any of this. I thought it was great how the museum was curated, giving fans an insight into how the band started, and how and why it took them to where they ended.
The journey
There were a lot of exhibits inside the museum, donated by the band members themselves and some from those who worked closely with them over the years. This is the studio setup where Abba produced a lot of their music. On the left hand side there are various booths where visitors can go in and do a sing along. It was exactly how you see it on TV, artists stand in an enclosed booth recording their vocals facing the studio outside. I had a go, and took a video of my sing along - to Dancing Queen of course!!! It was really fun, but I won't torture you with my singing, you deserve better 😄
The Goldroom is like the creme de la creme of Abba. A lot of the band's original outfits were on display. If you're a fan of Abba, you'll know their outfits are always very whacky. I was looking at them thinking, only Abba can get away with wearing them!! There was also an area showcasing all the records made and the awards received by the band over the decade they were together. The accolades came from all over the world, a true testimony as to how popular they were around the world.
My favourite item in the museum is this jukebox. Imagine how cool it would be to have a jukebox at home, let along one filled with Abba hits. This is on my shopping list if I ever win the lottery.
Breaking up is never easy
And all good things must come to an end. After nearly a decade of Abba's global success, and the divorce between the two couples, the band announced in 1982 they were taking a break. It was quite sad when I got to this part of the museum. It took me back to Pinmapple's decision from a couple months earlier to call it a day. When you've had a good run, especially a successful one, but get to a stage you know you can't carry on, it's very heartbreaking to put a stop to things, but you know that's for the best. In Abba's case, they didn't formally breakup, more like, let's do our own stuff for a change and see how things go.
Luckily for Abba fans, we still get to see Abba in different forms after the breakup. There was the Mama Mia musical and film, I've seen both and they were an absolute fantastic experience, especially the musical. Then there's the ABBA Voyage, a 3D concert with the band on stage virtually. It's only available in London so I'm seriously considering to go see it sometime.
Anyway, back to the Abba Museum, the last item I want to show you are these puppets. They were used in the last Abba video released in 2004. It's a very creative way to perform, without performing, if you know what I mean. If you don't check out the video below, it's a great one.
If you're an Abba fan, I would highly recommend a visit if you're ever in Stockholm.
