Me and I
"Me and I" is a song from ABBA's 1980 album Super Trouper. As with much of ABBA's 1980s output, the song features use of a synthesizer, and some have classified the song as synthpop. Anni-Frid Lyngstad handles the lead vocals.
| "Me and I" | |
|---|---|
| Song by ABBA | |
| from the album Super Trouper | |
| Released | 1980 |
| Recorded | 1980 |
| Length | 4:54 |
| Songwriter(s) | Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus |
| Producer(s) | Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus |
Background
Recording began on 8 September 1980 and finished on 25 September 1980.[1] The track acquired the following two working titles: "Jackass" and "Piccolino". It is the last song on the first side of Super Trouper.
In the book Bright Lights, Dark Shadows by Carl Magnus Palm, he wrote the following:
"Bjorn's maturity as a lyricist was showcased in songs like 'The Winner Takes It All', and the hidden gem, 'Me and I', featuring an Eartha Kitt-inspired lead vocal by Frida, showed a hitherto secluded side of Björn's imagination. Its split personality theme - I am to myself what Jekyll must have been to Hyde - combined with Frida's forceful delivery put a welcome darker spin on ABBA's largely bright and wholesome universe. It was a more literal version of broodiness that colored songs like 'SOS' and 'Knowing Me, Knowing You'."
In the early 1980s the instrumental segment of this song was used as theme music to BBC television coverage of bowls.
Critical reception
Abba - Uncensored on the Record described it as a "comparatively rarely heard song from the Super Trouper album".[2] Bright Lights Dark Shadows: The Real Story of Abba described it as "the hidden gem" of the Super Trouper album.[3]
Performances
The song has been performed twice, first on the ABBA TV special, Dick Cavett Meets ABBA in 1981. The live rendition is included on the Thank You for the Music box set released in 1994.
The second time was in 2016 in the 50th anniversary of Benny and Bjorn's friendship, along the two men were Frida and Agnetha. They performed this song along with "The Way Old Friends Do" and "Does Your Mother Know".
References
- Palm, Carl Magnus (1 September 2000). From Abba to Mamma Mia!: The Official Book. ISBN 9780823083176. Retrieved 11 March 2014.
- Tobler, John (4 January 2012). Abba - Uncensored on the Record. ISBN 9781908538239.
- Palm, Carl Magnus (1 September 2008). Bright Lights Dark Shadows: The Real Story of Abba. ISBN 9781847724199.
