In Polar Music International/Universal Music's continued quest for upgrading the ABBA catalogue and the solo recordings made by the individual members, the re-release of remastered versions of the solo albums made by Frida and Agnetha have long been on the cards. In the autumn of 2004, there was finally time to get to grips with those albums.

First out were the three albums Frida released on Polar: Frida ensam (1975), Something's Going On (1982) and Shine (1984). The plan was to remaster the albums, to add appropriate bonus tracks, and to give the entire packaging an overhaul. I gave the matter some thought and submitted suggestions for track listings, including bonus tracks - previous CD issues of these albums did not feature any bonus material.

Now that the albums have been released, the discerning fan may very well wonder why certain recordings known to have been made by Frida in the periods related to these albums - previously released or unreleased - were not included as bonus tracks. All I am able to reveal here is that there were certain restrictions that prevented us from including them. However, on the positive side is the release of the solo version of Here We'll Stay (originally a duet with Phil Collins). The song is a bonus selection on the Something's Going On remaster; to the best of my knowledge, it was previously unavailable on CD.

The design for the Frida remasters was created by Fredrik Hurtig of In Fine Style. Notably, lyrics for all songs on the Frida albums have been included - these were only featured on some of the previous CD issues of Something's Going On and Shine, and have never before been available on Frida ensam, not even at the time of its original vinyl album release. Through the generous contributions of ABBA fans Ian Cole, Pepe, Wouter Timmers and Björn Waldenström, the booklets also feature a selection of single sleeves appropriate to each album.

Read the In Focus essay on ABBA - The Site to learn more about the albums. And visit the discography section of the Frida fan site Twist In The Dark for even more background information about the albums (see links to the right).

The Frida remasters were released on May 2, 2005. On December 5, a box set entitled 4xCD 1xDVD - containing all three remasters plus Frida's 1996 album Djupa andetag - will be released. For further details about the individual remasters and the box set, see the "Track listings and ordering info" link under More info.