Ritchie Blackmore Instagram Live by revealing that his favorite band is the Swedish quartet ABBA. The band, known for hits like "Dancing Queen" and which inspired the musical Mamma Mia and several films, is considered by the Deep Purple and Rainbow to be the best of all time.
Discovering a musician's favorite band can give clues to their tastes and influences. But the question can often bring surprises like this one.
Richie recounted how he discovered his Rainbow bandmates' shared love of ABBA in a funny story: “We were in a castle in France trying to write 'Long Live Rock 'N' Roll' (by Rainbow). We were all very bored. Sitting around the fireplace – Cozy Powell , me and Ronnie James Dio – and we were getting a bit annoyed because we weren't coming up with any ideas. And Cozy said, 'Okay, I have to confess.' And we looked at him, because we were drinking, as always, and said, 'You have to confess what?' He said, 'Are you ready?' I said, 'Yes.' He said, 'I like ABBA.' And I said, 'Oh my God. I love ABBA.' And then Ronnie said, 'Yes. Me too.'"
ABBA Fan Club
Believe it or not, the metal world has many fans of the Swedish quartet. Corey Taylor of Slipknot , in a 2021 interview with the New York Times , declared his love for the band. “I remember listening to ABBA’s music. It seemed like it was always playing and it was clearly different from everything else. It had a lush, full-spectrum production that looked and sounded big. It was only four people, but those songs sounded like a thousand people were recording. The math didn’t add up for me,” the musician stated.
On the list of ABBA fans are Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters and Johannes Eckerstrom of Avatar . Another on the list is Gene Simmons of Kiss , who once said: “If I’m driving in my car and ABBA music comes on, I turn up the volume and that’s a sign of greatness. Undeniable songwriting. You simply can’t play it. That’s why I have to choose ABBA because it’s simply undeniable.”
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