A great CD, 12 Jan 2006

By	Kurt A. Johnson (Marseilles, Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews

The musical tells the story of Sophie, who wants her father to walk her down the aisle during her forthcoming wedding. However, her mother doesn't really know who her father is. And so, armed with the names of her mother's three lovers of twenty years ago, Sophie is off to find her dad!

First and foremost, I must say that the musical is fantastic, and you really should see it live. It's a great experience. But, second best is this great CD. Taking the original stage cast's recordings, it has a very nice sound, and it is very nice to hear the old ABBA classics redefined by such excellent talent. I think that this is a great CD, and I highly recommend it to everyone!

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Thank you, again, for the music, 5 Jan 2003

By	Joseph Haschka (Glendale, CA USA) - See all my reviews

Bjorn Ulvaeus, one of the original ABBA four, has brought twenty-four of his group's hits to life in one of the most rousing live theater spectaculars one could hope to witness. Since it had to accommodate such a diverse selection of lyrics, the plot, such as it is, had to be flexible. In brief, Sophie, soon to be married, lives with her mother, Donna, in a seaside hotel/taverna owned by the latter on an unspecified sun-drenched shore. Unbeknownst to Mom, Sophie has invited to her wedding three of the former's long-ago boyfriends, one of whom she suspects is her father after sneaking a peek in her mother's diary. (Donna never married, and has never revealed to her daughter her paternal origin.) The storyline is loose, but who cares. It works splendidly as a vehicle for the songs.

Several of my personal favorites from ABBA's original repertoire are omitted from MAMMA MIA! - "Fernando", "Waterloo", and "When I Kissed the Teacher" to name but three. I guess the musical's producers had to make some hard decisions somewhere. However, those that are included leave the listener little room for regret. As a young and talented cast belt out on the CD such favorites as "Thank You for the Music", "Chiquitita", "Honey, Honey", "Dancing Queen", "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!", "Take A Chance On Me", "S.O.S.", "Knowing Me, Knowing You", and the title song "Mamma Mia", you'll likely be remembering, if you saw it live, how you danced in the aisles. This may be hard to believe, but the orchestration of MAMMA MIA! is so excellent that this tribute to ABBA comes out more vibrant and electric than the original recordings.

See the on-stage performance if you can, then buy this disk. If you can't attend, then purchase the CD anyway. Like me, you may be transported in memory back to some of the best times of your life.

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