Benny and Bjorn from ABBA now look like Donald Fagen and Walter Becker from Steely Dan.

Forty years later, they’re releasing a new album on November 5th called “Voyage.” Two of the singles are out today.

It’s cash in to go with their new tour, represented by avatars made by Industrial Light and Magic, a hologram-esque experience.

The album will include a Christmas song, as well. So the cash in is well planned. Good for them.

Their fans have Stockholm Syndrome!

Here are Steely Dan’s Becker and Fagen long ago. And the picture to the side is what they’ve become. ABBA is Reeling in the Years.

Live from Stockholm, ABBA put on a worldwide event for their superfans. They are a rare breed, certainly.

Two new songs, videos– “Don’t Shut Me Down” and “I Still Have Faith in You.”

The group debuted their first new song since 1982, “I Still Have Faith In You,” a ballad mostly sung by the women.

There’s a video made from animated avatars of themselves from years ago. A little creepy.

ABBA Makes their big announcement Thursday at 12:45pm right here via Youtube. New Music? New tour of avatars? Anyone speaking to each other? We’ll get the whole story all together. ABBA fans will go crazy. People who speak Hebrew will think we’re discussing their fathers. Should be fun!

In the meantime, the brilliant Steve Leeds, now a big deal at Sirius XM, told me about booking ABBA on their first American TV show in 1976. He was working at Atlantic Records where they’d been signed by Jerry Greenberg. All Steve could get them on originally was “Wonderama,” the beloved New York kids show hosted then by Bob McAllister. The rest is history.

Here’s the clip:

Lots of new music news in addition to the release of Sting’s single, “If It’s Love.”

Elton John has made a whole new album to go along with his hit single “Cold Heart” with Dua Lipa. “The Lockdown Sessions” is a collection of 16 songs, all Elton John collaborations, with some of the biggest, most exciting artists in the world today including: Brandi Carlile, Charlie Puth, Dua Lipa, Eddie Vedder, Gorillaz, Lil Nas X, Miley Cyrus, Nicki Minaj, Rina Sawayama, SG Lewis, Stevie Nicks, Stevie Wonder, Surfaces, Years & Years, Young Thug, and more.

Release date is October 22nd.

Elton says: “The last thing I expected to do during lockdown was make an album. But, as the pandemic went on, one‐off projects kept cropping up. Some of the recording sessions had to be done remotely, via Zoom, which I’d obviously never done before. Some of the sessions were recorded under very stringent safety regulations: working with another artist, but separated by glass screens. But all the tracks I worked on were really interesting and diverse, stuff that was completely different to anything I’m known for, stuff that took me out of my comfort zone into completely new territory. And I realised there was something weirdly familiar about working like this. At the start of my career, in the late 60s, I worked as a session musician. Working with different artists during lockdown reminded me of that. I’d come full circle: I was a session musician again. And it was still a blast.”

Tracklist:
Tracklist

1. Elton John & Dua Lipa – Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)

2. Elton John, Young Thug & Nicki Minaj – Always Love You

3. Surfaces feat. Elton John – Learn To Fly

4. Elton John & Charlie Puth – After All

5. Rina Sawayama & Elton John – Chosen Family

6. Gorillaz feat. Elton John & 6LACK – The Pink Phantom

7. Elton John & Years & Years – It’s a sin (global reach mix)

8. Miley Cyrus feat. WATT, Elton John, Yo-Yo Ma, Robert Trujillo & Chad Smith – Nothing Else Matters

9. Elton John & SG Lewis – Orbit

10. Elton John & Brandi Carlile – Simple Things

11. Jimmie Allen & Elton John – Beauty In The Bones

12. Lil Nas X feat. Elton John – One Of Me

13. Elton John & Eddie Vedder – E-Ticket

14. Elton John & Stevie Wonder – Finish Line

15. Elton John & Stevie Nicks – Stolen Car

16. Glen Campbell & Elton John – I’m Not Gonna Miss You