''Shine'' is the fourth studio album by Swedish singer

Anni-Frid Lyngstad Princess Anni-Frid Synni Reuss, Countess of Plauen (born Anni-Frid Synni Lyngstad on 15 November 1945), also known by her nickname "Frida", is a Norwegian-born Swedish singer, songwriter and environmentalist, who is best known as one of the foun ...

, and her second international solo album as Frida. It was first released in September 1984 and has since been re-released several times, mainly in the digitally remastered form in 2005 with bonus tracks. ''Shine'', alongside the accompanying promotional videos and clips, is included in '' Frida – 4xCD 1xDVD''. This album has never been officially released in the United States, but was issued in Canada by WEA. This is Lyngstad's last solo English language studio album to date.

Recording history

After the success of ''

Something's Going On ''Something's Going On'' is the third solo album by Swedish singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad (Frida), one of the founding members of the Swedish pop group ABBA, and her first album recorded entirely in English. Her previous two albums had been recorded ...

'',

Phil Collins Philip David Charles Collins (born 30 January 1951) is an English singer, musician, songwriter, record producer and actor. He was the drummer and lead singer of the rock band Genesis and also has a career as a solo performer. Between 1982 and ...

was to produce again for Frida's next album, but as

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

formed part of his other commitments, producer

Steve Lillywhite Stephen Alan Lillywhite, (born 15 March 1955) is a British record producer. Since he began his career in 1977, Lillywhite has been credited on over 500 records, and has collaborated with a variety of musicians including new wave acts XTC, Bi ...

took over his role. Recording began on 1 February 1984, at the Studios de la Grande Armée,

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

, France. The producer was

, and at only 29 years of age, he was already known for his work with

Peter Gabriel Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...

, the

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

and U2 amongst others. Lilywhite's then-wife

Kirsty MacColl Kirsty Anna MacColl (10 October 1959 – 18 December 2000) was a British singer and songwriter, daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl. She recorded several pop hits in the 1980s and 1990s, including " There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears H ...

co-wrote three songs that made the album, as well as a fourth recorded at the sessions and used as a B-side. At the time of recording, both ''Something's Going On'' and ''Shine'', Lyngstad wanted to distance herself from the "typical ABBA pop-sound" and try new directions. Lillywhite managed to give Lyngstad an even more modern and complex soundscape than

had done on her previous album. In ''

Frida – The DVD ''Frida – The DVD'' is a Swedish documentary film that covers the singing career of Anni-Frid Lyngstad, also known as Frida, one of the four members of Swedish pop group ABBA, on her life from her beginning days as a dansband singer through her A ...

'', when speaking about ''Shine'' and its failure to recreate the success of its predecessor, Lyngstad herself said "that maybe this album became a bit too modern for its time".''

Music

''Shine'' features songwriting contributions from musicians such as Stuart Adamson,

, Simon Climie (of

Climie Fisher Climie Fisher were a British pop duo formed by vocalist Simon Climie and former Naked Eyes keyboardist Rob Fisher. In 1987–88, they had two international hit singles: " Rise to the Occasion" and " Love Changes (Everything)". Career Simon Cl ...

fame), and

Pete Glenister Pete Glenister is an English guitarist, songwriter and producer, known for his work with Alison Moyet and Kirsty MacColl. He has also worked with a number of other artists including Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Bruce Foxton, Terence Trent D'Arby, Bros, ...

, a frequent co=writer and producer of

Alison Moyet Geneviève Alison Jane Ballard ( ; born 18 June 1961) is an English singer noted for her powerful bluesy contralto voice. She came to prominence as half of the duo Yazoo (also known as Yaz), but has since mainly worked as a solo artist. He ...

's music. The ''Shine'' album is also unique as it saw the debut of Lyngstad as a songwriter in both "Don't Do It" and "That's Tough", the latter also features her son Hans Fredriksson as co-writer. (Frida also wrote "I Don't Wanna Be Alone" during this period). The track "Slowly" was written by

Benny Andersson Göran Bror Benny Andersson (; born 16 December 1946) is a Swedish musician, singer, composer and producer best known as a member of the musical group ABBA and co-composer of the musicals ''Chess'', ''Kristina från Duvemåla'', and '' Mamma M ...

and

Björn Ulvaeus Björn Kristian Ulvaeus (; born 25 April 1945) is a Swedish singer, songwriter, producer, a member of the musical group ABBA, and co-composer of the musicals '' Chess'', '' Kristina från Duvemåla'', and ''Mamma Mia!'' He co-produced the films ...

ABBA ABBA ( , , formerly named Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid or Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida) are a Swedish supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The grou ...

. The lead single from the album was the title track, "Shine". In some countries "Twist in the Dark", "Come to Me (I Am Woman)" and "Heart of the Country" were released as singles. ''Shine'' reached the Top 10 on the album charts in Sweden and Norway, and the Top 30 in the Netherlands and Switzerland.

Track listing

Side 1 # "Shine" (Kevin Jarvis,

Guy Fletcher Guy Edward Fletcher (born 24 May 1960) is an English multi-instrumentalist, best known for his position as one of the two keyboard players in the rock band Dire Straits from 1984 until the group's dissolution, and his subsequent work with Dire ...

, Jeremy Bird) – 4:39 # "One Little Lie" (

Simon Climie Simon Climie (born 7 April 1957) is an English songwriter/producer and the former lead singer of the UK duo Climie Fisher. Biography Climie was born in London. Beginning his career primarily as a songwriter/session musician, Climie found him ...

) – 3:44 # "The Face" (

Daniel Balavoine Daniel Xavier-Marie Balavoine (; 5 February 1952 – 14 January 1986) was a French singer and songwriter. He was hugely popular in the French-speaking world in the early 1980s; he inspired many singers of his generation such as Jean-Jacques Gol ...

, Kirsty MacColl) – 3:40 # "Twist in the Dark" ( Andee Leek) – 3:43 # "Slowly" (

) – 4:34 Side 2 # "Heart of the Country" ( Stuart Adamson) – 4:38 # "Come to Me (I Am Woman)" (Eddie Howell, David Dundas) – 5:04 # "Chemistry Tonight" (

, Simon Climie, Kirsty MacColl) – 4:56 # "Don't Do It" (Anni-Frid Lyngstad) – 4:37 # "Comfort Me" (Pete Glenister) – 4:28

2005 remaster bonus tracks

"That's Tough" (Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Hans Fredriksson, Kirsty MacColl) – 5:03
"Shine" (Extended Mix) (Kevin Jarvis, Guy Fletcher, Jeremy Bird) – 6:31

Personnel

– lead vocals, backing vocals *

Tony Levin Anthony Frederick Levin (born June 6, 1946) is an American musician and composer, specializing in electric bass, Chapman Stick and upright bass. He also sings and plays synthesizer. Levin is best known for his work with King Crimson (since 1 ...

– bass guitar *

– electric and acoustic guitar *

– keyboards, synthesizers,

harpsichord A harpsichord ( it, clavicembalo; french: clavecin; german: Cembalo; es, clavecín; pt, cravo; nl, klavecimbel; pl, klawesyn) is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. This activates a row of levers that turn a trigger mechanism ...

, backing vocals *

Mark Brzezicki Mark Michael Brzezicki ( , ; born 21 June 1957) is an English musician, best known as the drummer for the Scottish rock band Big Country. He has also played with the Cult, Ultravox, From the Jam, Procol Harum, Rick Astley, the Crazy World of ...

– drums * Marc Chantreau – percussion *

Rutger Gunnarsson Johan Rutger Gunnarsson (12 February 1946 – 30 April 2015) was a Swedish musician, bass guitarist, guitarist, arranger and producer. He was closely associated with the pop group ABBA. Career Gunnarsson grew up in Ledberg parish. His career began ...

– bass on "Shine" and "Chemistry Tonight" *

– backing vocals

Production

– producer * Howard Gray –

sound engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproductio ...

* Frédéric Delafaye – assistant engineer * David Edwards – studio coordinator * Thomas Johansson – album coordinator * Görel Hanser – album coordinator *

Stikkan Andersson Stig Erik Leopold Anderson (25 January 1931 – 12 September 1997), better known as Stikkan Anderson, was a Swedish music manager, lyricist and music publisher. He was the co-founder of Polar Music, and is best known for managing the Sw ...

– executive producer * Heinz Angermayr – cover photos * Cay Bond – styling * Digitally recorded and mixed at Studios de la Grande Armée, Paris France * Remastered in 2005 by Henrik Jonsson of Masters of Audio, Stockholm

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shine (Frida Album) 1984 albums Anni-Frid Lyngstad albums Albums produced by Steve Lillywhite