"The Visitors" | ||||
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Single by ABBA | ||||
from the album The Visitors | ||||
A-side | "Head over Heels" | |||
Released | April 1982 | |||
Format |
7" single 12" single |
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Recorded | 22 October 1981 at Polar Music Studios | |||
Genre | Electronic, art rock | |||
Length | 5:49 | |||
Label | Polar Music | |||
Writer(s) |
Benny Andersson Björn Ulvaeus |
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Producer(s) | Benny Andersson Björn Ulvaeus |
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ABBA singles chronology | ||||
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"The Visitors" (originally "Den första", meaning "The First"), is a 1981 song by the Swedish pop group ABBA. It is the title track from the band's studio album of the same name, and was released as the second single in the United States in April 1982. The lead vocal was performed by Anni-Frid Lyngstad.
The official stated theme is a protest against the mistreatment of political dissidents in the Soviet Union at the time, as ABBA seemed to input political issues into their lyrics in the final days of the group. Ulvaeus has stated that at the time of release he preferred that the song should have a sense of mystery so did not explain the exact meaning.
In 1982, the album The Visitors was banned in the Soviet Union, possibly due to the band allowing a video of "When All Is Said and Done" to be shown in the United States Information Agency television special, Let Poland Be Poland, along with a spoken message from Ulvaeus and Andersson, broadcast via satellite around the world on 31 January 1982. The show, which also featured Frank Sinatra, Paul McCartney, Orson Welles, Henry Fonda, UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and US President Ronald Reagan, was a public protest against the then-recent imposition of martial law in Poland. However, ABBA's segment was not included in the broadcast, the official reason given being time restraints. However, it is likely that the segment was omitted because Ulvaeus and Andersson exemplified, in addition to Poland, US-supported dictatorships Chile and El Salvador as countries where citizens' human rights are routinely violated.
"The Visitors" was released as the album's second (and final) single in the US instead of "Head over Heels," which remained as the B-side.