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Post by jj on Dec 21, 2020 7:35:19 GMT
Has anyone else noticed a correlation between ABBA's record sales and their two tours?
Both of the albums that were released after their 1977 and 1979 tours (The Album and Super Trouper, respectively) were huge sellers and produced four number one singles in the UK.
Conversely, Voulez-Vous and The Visitors were big sellers, but not massively so, as The Album and Super Trouper were.
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Post by Alan on Dec 21, 2020 9:14:19 GMT
That was quite normal for the time though. Tours in those days were to promote albums. Tours would barely break even, or at most make a very small profit (this has been said about ABBA’s). The increased album sales were therefore the payback.
Obviously now the exact opposite is the case... albums don’t sell and they exist purely to promote tours (which are lucrative, hence the high ticket prices).
The pattern wasn’t like that completely though. Arrival was a huge seller (in the UK, I think their best-selling studio album) but its initial release didn’t follow a tour. Its sales were helped by the 1977 tour though. This doesn’t appear to be the case with Voulez-Vous, however, even though many of the songs on that album were performed at the 1979 concerts. Record sales were split between that album and Greatest Hits Vol 2. Perhaps the release of the latter hampered Voulez-Vous’s prolonged success.
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Post by jj on Dec 21, 2020 9:58:41 GMT
Even as I pressed "Create Post" I thought "the exception is Arrival". I'm not surprised it was spotted!  You're perfectly right.
But I'm guessing the reason the Arrival album had sold so well already, even before they'd ever toured, was simply down to the sheer explosion of interest in ABBA, mostly due to their novelty and the amazing discovery by the general public, only a year before, that they had produced many, many infectiously melodic songs - as evidenced on their Greatest Hits album of 1975/76, a massive seller practically overflowing with catchy pop songs and wonderful, lush sounds.
ABBA had all the following things in their favour: They were new, or at least they'd been newly re-discovered (and what hide, what infernal cheek!! this was a group that was bucking a revered trend of Eurovision one-hit wonders from non-English countries that disappeared forever! how dare they! and isn't that really quite amazing?!); they were photogenic and striking to look at; they had original-looking videos airing on tv; they had two extremely attractive singers with clear, vibrant voices that jumped out of radio speakers to almost stop traffic; and their recording techniques and production were impeccable.
I think this explosion of interest in ABBA, off the back of their Greatest Hits album, and with the amazing SOS single closely followed by the chart-toppers Mamma Mia and Fernando, helped create the massive anticipation for Arrival, which was basically their first studio album as established, known, superstars with a track record already. There was enormous curiosity in, and excitement for, any new stuff this suddenly huge group had just produced.
And as you say, their 1977 tour kept Arrival in the top 10 best-selling albums for many months afterwards, further bolstering its already big sales, even catapulting it once again into the number one position.
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Post by gazman on Dec 22, 2020 15:31:28 GMT
In the UK at least, I would have thought that it was 'Greatest Hits Volume 2' that benefitted more from sales following the 1979 tour, rather than 'Super Trouper'...
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2022 13:07:34 GMT
I also think it was Greatest Hits Vol 2 that benefitted from the 79. It was released around that time. Its release about 6 months after Voulez Vous - so killing off any chance for revival.
Arrival was released in autumn. In the UK it was a bit a a slow seller. It hit #1 for a week in January but didn't have its long stay at #1 until Knowing Mw Knowing You. It was that single rather than the tour that revived Arrival.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2022 13:16:10 GMT
Has anyone else noticed a correlation between ABBA's record sales and their two tours?
Both of the albums that were released after their 1977 and 1979 tours (The Album and Super Trouper, respectively) were huge sellers and produced four number one singles in the UK.
Conversely, Voulez-Vous and The Visitors were big sellers, but not massively so, as The Album and Super Trouper were.
The Album and Super Trouper had #1 singles, Voulez Vous and The Visitors didn't. That's the correlation I see. Arrival, their biggest seller had their top two selling singles. |
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Post by gary on Jul 8, 2022 18:05:24 GMT
I also think it was Greatest Hits Vol 2 that benefitted from the 79. It was released around that time. Its release about 6 months after Voulez Vous - so killing off any chance for revival. Arrival was released in autumn. In the UK it was a bit a a slow seller. It hit #1 for a week in January but didn't have its long stay at #1 until Knowing Mw Knowing You. It was that single rather than the tour that revived Arrival. Not sure that Arrival was a slow seller in its early weeks. Although it only spent one week at number one early on, it was at number two for six weeks and spent a few more weeks in the top five. But yes, it was Knowing Me, Knowing You that led it to spend nine consecutive weeks at number one. I think KMKY was pretty important in cementing ABBA as a major albums act. And they never topped Arrival sales-wise. |
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Post by undertheappletree on Feb 26, 2023 10:47:01 GMT
I think Greatest Hits Vol 2 benefited more from the 1979 Wembley Arena Concerts/Publicity, it was a huge seller over the Christmas Period especially; jostling for the number 1 Position with Rod Stewart for many weeks at the time.
l bought the LP at the Venue, they had stacks of them, opening the brand new Gatefold it had an amazing unique scent to it. Incidentally on my profile photo, that is me kneeling down in the aisle, in Denim. I did make it to the front of the stage eventually on this, my second night.
For a while now The Album Voulez vous' is trending, as the best 'Studio' Seller popping in and out of Various Countries Album Charts
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You're perfectly right.