Album of the Week: Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again Soundtrack
You voted for it, now it’s time for us to fulfil our half of the deal. Need I say anymore? Here is our Album of the Week, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.
Here We Go Again. Whether you love musicals, or you hate them, there is no escaping the infectious charm of Mamma Mia! that is taking the world by storm for a second time. Ten years ago (where has the time gone?), the original musical rom-com celebrating the work of beloved Swedish pop group ABBA was released, following Sophie Sheridan as she tries to find her father before her wedding. After invading her mother’s privacy by reading her diary, the 20-year-old bride-to-be invites three men that might be her father, without telling her mother or her fiancé. Naturally, hilarious antics and misunderstandings, of shakespearian proportions, ensue.
After becoming one of the highest grossing movie musicals of all time, it is no surprise that they decided to make a second film. This time around, the story looks back at a young Donna, Sophie’s mother, revealing how she met the three men from the first film: Bill, Harry, and Sam. If this wasn't enough, we’re treated to an acting performance from Cher, who plays Sophie’s maternal grandmother. Sequels are notorious for their diminished quality, but with Here We Go Again already receiving better reviews than its predecessor, it looks like this accompanying musical release could be the soundtrack to the summer, not just to the film.
Having covered many of ABBA’s fan favourites in the first film, it was always going to be intriguing to find out which songs were to going be used in this second instalment. Delving deeper into the lesser-known tracks from the band’s discography, the album begins with the ‘hidden gem’ ‘When I Kissed The Teacher’, which describes the story of a student whose crush on her teacher overcomes her, leading to an inadvertent kiss. The song is characterstically upbeat with 70s charm, and, although Lily James’ voice lacks the rich tone of the original four, it is still surprisingly strong. Following this is ‘I Wonder (Departure)’, an emotional ballad written as part of the band’s mini-musical, entitled: ‘The Girl With The Golden Hair’, which they performed during their 1977 world tour. Also sung by James, her voice, along with the production, makes this track sound more like a classic musical number than a pop song adaptation.
When you think of ABBA, generally cheesy 70s pop music comes to mind. This, however, is not true of the song ‘Why Did It Have To Be Me?’, which sounds like a rockabilly version of ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You’, just with less romantic lyrics. Very little has changed in the Mamma Mia! version, but a lacklustre vocal performance from Josh Dylan, who plays a younger Bill, does have to be made up for by the onscreen chemistry between him and Lily James. Another deeper cut from ABBA’s discography that makes it onto the soundtrack is ‘Andante, Andante’, having only been released as a single in four countries. The song itself is a beautiful marriage between a ballad and a catchy pop tune, with the simple arrangement on the soundtrack version doing great justice to the original.
The soundtrack does feature some notable ABBA tracks, however, and it’s not all about the unfamiliar songs; for example, ‘Fernando’ appears in the listing, sung by Cher who can’t help but make it her own with that unmistakable voice of hers. We also get a repeat of a classic, ‘Dancing Queen’, this time sung by the whole cast, instead of just Donna and her two friends, Rosie and Tanya.
Unsurprisingly — if you saw his performance in the first film — Pierce Brosnan doesn’t appear on many of the songs on this soundtrack, but luckily for him we have a whole host of new cast members, some of which make you wish he featured just a little more. ‘Waterloo’, for example, showcases the vocal ‘talent’ of Hugh Skinner, who plays a young Harry. The scene shows him to be equally as bumbling as his older counterpart, making for an endearing rendition which almost compensates for his lousy singing ability.
Although there are some excellent vocal performances on this soundtrack — see Meryl Streep’s version of ‘The Day Before You Came’, for reference — this is not what Mamma Mia! is all about. It is about celebrating a legendary band, which, against all better judgement, have captured the hearts of many over the decades since they first hit the scene. It is about singing along to songs which invoke a nostalgia for well-loved music, as well as for the original film for younger viewers. Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again might not be a cinematic masterpiece, but it is a whole lot of fun.
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