ABBA - The Piper Lyrics






They came from the hills
And they came from the valleys and the plains
They struggled in the cold
In the heat and the snow and in the rain
Came to hear him play
Play their minds away

We're all following a strange melody
We're all summoned by a tune
We're following the piper
And we dance beneath the moon...
We're following the piper
And we dance beneath the moon for him
And we dance beneath the moon
Sub luna saltamus

They came from the south
From the west and the north and from the east
They waited for the man
Like a parish is waiting for the priest
Longed to hear him play
Play their minds away

We're all following a strange melody
We're all summoned by a tune
We're following the piper
And we dance beneath the moon...
We're following the piper
And we dance beneath the moon for him
And we dance beneath the moon
Sub luna saltamus

He gave them a dream
He seduced everybody in the land
The fire in his eyes
And the fear was a weapon in his hand
So they let him play
Play their minds away

We're all following a strange melody
We're all summoned by a tune
We're following the piper
And we dance beneath the moon...
We're following the piper
And we dance beneath the moon for him
And we dance beneath the moon





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ABBA The Piper Comments
  1. J.... M....

    I thought I knew them all (the songs of Abba) but not this one (-how come-but better late than never)

  2. L.... C....

    Excellent song

  3. S.... F....

    More relevant than ever, this dire warning about the seductive, soul sapping lure of fascism. I write from the Brazil of Bolsonaro, thinking about the America of Trump, the Philippines of Dutarte, the Turkey of Wharshisname, the ...

  4. T.... R....

    Some say, its about the piper of Hameln, but this maybe refers to the Childrens Crusade in 1212...

  5. K.... N....

    I'm Vietnamese, who is listening now 11Nov2019

  6. S.... G....

    Such a personal /distinguished voice - Frida !

  7. s.... R....

    Я очень люблю АВВА!

  8. R.... V....

    The piper of Hameln.

  9. J.... W....

    Loving the 1970s Swedish clothing rather out there lol but ABBA will always rule

  10. A.... B....

    I hate this

  11. r.... b....

    tirolés¨

  12. Y.... S....

    I m from Israel my dream to meet ABBA I have been in Sweden several times since I'm 18 now im45 I love that's heroes cause I feel my self same like them the world is happiness journey and the lions of kingstone show the world what life is knowledge and all one feeling

  13. M.... H....

    Nice medieval-like song...:-) Abba was a band of many faces...

  14. N.... W....

    1:03-1:14 is magical.
    Out of this world.

  15. E.... L....

    Detta är min favorit sång av ABBA😻

  16. L.... G....

    Criminally underrayed

  17. M.... S....

    Love that medieval feel of this song

  18. G.... P....

    I just love their misuc lyrics and everything about ABBA

  19. b.... b....

    their music is literally cure for the soul. No matter which type of a bad mood has gotten hold of you there is one of ABBA's greatest hits that will cure it. For me voulez-vous, piper, move on, and lay all your love on me (and sometimes take a chance on me, and knowing me knowing you) have always worked to cure my depression, anger, or whatever other bad mood I was having at the moment.

  20. m.... b....

    They came from the hills.
    And they came from the valleys and the plains.
    They struggled in the cold In the heat and the snow and in the rain.
    Came to hear him play.
    Play their minds away.
    We're all following a strange melody.
    We're all summoned by a tune. We're following the piper.
    And we dance beneath the moon. We're following the piper.
    And we dance beneath the moon for him.
    And we dance beneath the moon. Sub luna saltamus.

    They came from the south.
    From the west and the north and from the east.
    They waited for the man.
    Like a parish is waiting for the priest.
    Longed to hear him play.
    Play their minds away.
    We're all following a strange melody.
    We're all summoned by a tune. We're following the piper.
    And we dance beneath the moon. We're following the piper.
    And we dance beneath the moon for him.
    And we dance beneath the moon. Sub luna saltamus.
    He gave them a dream.
    He seduced everybody in the land. The fire in his eyes.
    And the fear was a weapon in his hand.
    So they let him play.
    Play their minds away.
    We're all following a strange melody.
    We're all summoned by a tune. We're following the piper.
    And we dance beneath the moon. We're following the piper.
    And we dance beneath the moon for him.
    And we dance beneath the moon And we dance beneath the moon

  21. D.... A....

    ABBA ABBA ABBA!!! So glad i got the opportunity to hear u when i was kid!! Today's so called artistes are so fake!! Empty barrels!!

  22. C.... R....

    Nice 💃

  23. R.... J....

    fevereiro 2019

  24. E.... G....

    Agnetha e Frida o melhor dueto feminino da historia da musica mundial...

  25. P.... T....

    Hitzzzx

  26. C.... B....

    Here "they go again" with a great song !

  27. C.... C....

    TIME TO PAY THE PIPER!!!!

  28. J.... B....

    Mi mejor grupo favorito que es ABBA. Son maravillosos.

  29. P.... S....

    Most beautiful song about death.

  30. F.... F....

    manuel what a staggering set of WONDERFUL images you've put here !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    Marvellous, thanx so much. And, these two GODDESSES... not enough words for them.

    F.... F....

    FRANCESCO FISSORE + Thanks for visiting. I really appreciate your support and comments!

  31. v.... ....

    If you look up the word harmonies you should find ABBA.

  32. t.... ....

    In my opinion, this is one of ABBA's greatest creations.
    It's probably inspired by the story of The Pied Piper of Hamelin, but it's also reminiscent of one of our Swedish folk tales
    about Näcken, who is an evil water spirit in the shape of a man, who seduces people with his violin playing and leads
    entire villages on a merry dance, down into the lake, where they drown.

    I suppose there's also a touch of The Red Shoes in the song. I mean, a pair of magical shoes that forces their wearer
    to dance until they die, well, it seems to fit the theme of evil magic, mind control and music.

    Anyway, what's great about the song is that it manages to be both suitably ominous in the verses and deliriously catchy
    in the chorus. Which is necessary ina song about playing people's minds away.
    You need a really strong melody to convey what it might be like to be hypnotized by the Piper, and this song does that
    extremely well. And it even throws in the "Sub luna Saltimus" line, which is Romanian for "Under the month of Saltimus".

    Why Romanian? I don't know. Let's dance!

    t.... ....

    @teppolundgren you've misinterpreted it. The reason I've said "with or without" was because, regardless of why the lyrics have been written like that, the song is still a masterpiece worth listening to

    t.... ....

    @bla bla I never said it wasn't. I was trying to make sense of your rather cryptic comment. And now you've written another one...

    t.... ....

    @teppolundgren sorry. Just ignore them :)

    t.... ....

    Why is this song missing in the film Mamma Mia? Making the advert for the film a lie (all your favorite ABBA songs). How did they manage to forget it? There was a scene with bagpipes, so why is The Piper not there?

    t.... ....

    They sing the piper but as someone said before there are the famous Swedish "Näcken" who played the fiddle and made children and adults to drown in streams, rivers, and lakes, that is similar.
    But there is also the second Swedish tale in the "Hårgalåten/Horgalåten" where the youngsters in a village playing music, dancing and having fun when suddenly a new musician with a violin shows up at the door and starts playing and everybody feel an urge to dance and they can't stop after they starts to dance, only a girl who can't walk or stand up on her legs sees his goat hoves on the floor because she sits on the floor, she tries to warn them but nobody listning to anything else than the music, then it becomes Sunday morning and the church Bells start to ring for people to come to the church, the fiddler then gets all dancing people to follow him up on a mountain instead, they even passes the church on their way there but nobody can stop him taking them with him, when the reaches the top of the mountain they form a ring and dances that way untill they dances so hard that their flesh rubbes of and only their skelletons continious to dance, after a while it's only their skulls left still dancing in that ring.
    That was a myth the church spread in the county Hälsingland because of the low amount of youths interrested in going to church and instead playing music and dance the area was also known to live with great sexual fredom that the church thought was a great sin, it was also an area with several different cultural groups living in it, rich farmers in one area, poor people livin in the wild forrest, a nomadic people "South Sami people" moving from Norway coast to Swedish coast several times a year, a group of Finns that moved in 100 years earlier with a animistik and at some parts something similar to a voodo cultur with animistic spirit, and last in the period between 1700-1800 Stockholm collected their street childrens every year and in the winter they put them on sleeds and drove them up there to dump them there, and before that the population in early Medivial time had killed the missionaries that tried to baptise them, natives got angry when them missionaries teared down their Temples, one missionary they drowned became a Saint, a Saint we still untill this day celebrate at Lucia celebration, just so "we all should know who did it" just as a reminded, from 1650-1980 the name of that county was use as "Go to hell" "7uck y0u" statement "Go to Hälsingland" was synoniomus older people still use it untill arround the millenialshift.
    But the church used this so long ago to warn about music they dont like, long before (200-300 years) they attacked rock music.

  33. E.... Z....

    .....ETERNAMENTE....ABBA...

  34. D.... ....

    sometimes sounds like a Christmas song this, the arrangement is so current it's still done today

  35. N.... N....

    ABBA = my love = part of my life....Ever....never found such voices....absolutely NUMBER ONE

  36. �.... �....

    МОЯ ЛЮБИМАЯ ПЕСНЯ МНОГО ЛЕТ... КОГДА ОНИ БЫЛИ ВМЕСТЕ.... ПЕЛИ ПРЕВОСХОДНО...МНЕ КАЖЕТСЯ ИХ ТАК И НЕ ПРЕВЗОШЛИ...

  37. M.... E....

    Saudades e muitas saudades da Banda ABBA.

  38. K.... Y....

    Unbelievable xxxx

  39. A.... M....

    ABBA YOUNG FULL OF ENERGY AND AMBITION 🎻🎤

  40. S.... 1....

    I've started listening ABBA 1977 when I was 10 years old still listening today never gets fed up.

    S.... 1....

    of course. Their music is quality, and quality music is evergreen, so....

  41. N.... B....

    Underated....why?

  42. T.... ....

    Is it about the Pied Piper of Hamelin? Is it about the Children Crusade?

    T.... ....

    Its about hitler-like dictatorship  and people who are blind enough to follow, as B. Ulvaeus explained years later. They deliberately made it sound "medieval' to hide its true meaning.

    T.... ....

    @SK E G
    thank you for sharing,i didn't know that-sub luna saltamus,happy christmas!!

    T.... ....

    Thanks, same.

  43. A.... J....

    And we dance beneath for him and we dance beneath the moon.

  44. P.... C....

    Nicely done! 👍🏻

  45. O.... K....

    Grandes musicos , con mayor preparacion musical que los Beatles....

  46. m.... ....

    Björn, Anni-frid, Benni und Agnetha sind die BESTEN!!!!!! Danach kommt lange Zeit NICHTS!!!!!!!

    m.... ....

    Sardou rouge

  47. A.... F....

    I love this song

  48. j.... W....

    oh man ...sie sind einfach die Größten. Ja warum...super Professionale...ich hab öfter dran gedacht als Vergleich zu den Beatles...aber wer sich die Klavier CD von Benny anhört wird bestimmt-nochmal diese besondere Magie erleben können...Hej mit dem neuen Titel im Dezember wird jetzt nichts verkackt...ich drück euch die Daumen...bitte

    j.... W....

    jörg Wagner, wir hoffen, dass die 2 neuen Titel eine Art musikalische "Eier legende Wollmilchsau" werden...

  49. �.... �....

    Видеоролик прекрасный! Много знаю песен ABBA, но эту первый раз слышу! Браво!🌺🌼🌾🍁🌿🍀

  50. N.... R....

    Greatest group ever!!

    N.... R....

    without a doubt

  51. n.... n....

    Como eram lindos é cantavam bem😋

  52. c.... C....

    Прекрасная песня и мелодия!!!

  53. d.... K....

    What a wonderfull time.ABBA was and is great.Thanks🙌

  54. J.... f....

    I KNOW WHY ABBA PUT THIS UP .............................................................. ) Jennie

  55. M.... R....

    This beautiful, transfixing song is actually very deep and dark, and one of their best. From the Wikipedia entry: "The song is loosely based on the famous story of The Pied Piper of Hamelin.[1] It is regarded by some ABBA fans as being very different from the more mainstream songs they had recorded until this time. In particular, the dark lyrics dealing with the seduction by fascistic leaders and a somewhat medieval sound (drums, flute, choral) are not seen in their earlier songs."

    M.... R....

    My favorite of ABBA. Making the advert for the film Mamma Mia a lie (all your favorite ABBA songs). How did they manage to forget it? There was a scene with bagpipes, so why is The Piper not there?

  56. y.... w....

    Thanks you ABBA for all the beautiful music !!!

  57. y.... w....

    The most high quality pop band of all times !!!

  58. y.... w....

    Beautiful voices , music , songs , letters , lyrics , message , ......................... , they are so all perfect , high quality and level group always . ABBA the greatest forever .

  59. y.... w....

    Since childhood my favourite group and all their songs and music . I love the ABBA group since the 70's years decade .

  60. y.... w....

    Long live ABBA music , the better forever !!!

  61. m.... v....

    ஜ●●●●●●●□════ஜ۩۞۩ஜ════□●●●●●●●ஜ
    ஜ▐║▓▒▒▒▒░▓( ❤️ *ᗅᗺᗷᗅ* ❤️ )▓░▒▒▒▒▓║▌ஜ
    ஜ●●●●●●●□════ஜ۩۞۩ஜ════□●●●●●●●ஜ

    m.... v....

    manuel velasquez leiton mi

    m.... v....

    Manuel Velasquez, very pretty work !

  62. L.... P....

    One of my favourite songs from all of their albums. I also like Just Like That which wasn't officially released.

  63. M.... ....

    wonderful, beautiful collection of pictures

  64. f.... 1....

    mann, ich wünschte es wäre gestern ,das hatte noch stil !

  65. �.... �....

    noone of pipers had even a dream to honorise him a best way as here was

  66. m.... ....

    Google the history of the piper story. Educate yourself ;-)

  67. g.... ....

    Abba had great songs but this one was something else. Its brilliant and in a sense completely differente from the rest. Maybe their only openly political song ...

    g.... ....

    Don't forget "The Visitors" and "Soldiers".

  68. M.... S....

    the intro sounds a bit like Chris de Burgh´s "Sailing away"...anyway brilliant masterpiece!

    M.... S....

    ABBA - The Piper (1980).
    Chris de Burgh - Sailing away (1988)

    M.... S....

    @manuel velasquez leiton good point OP :)

  69. U.... U....

    the piper...the whistleblower...the voice of music from ancient times.....the whisper of a genius ever after.....

  70. F.... G....

    Great video and great music! Viva ABBA for ever!!

  71. �.... �....

    Since childhood favorite music !!!

  72. K.... B....

    Warum hört man dieses Lied nie im Radio?
    In ewiger Liebe!!!

    K.... B....

    Die haben ihre 2 Lieder die sie ab und zu mal spielen und das reicht jenen. Und dann gehen so großartige Lieder leider unter. Gut, dass es andere Quellen gibt.

    K.... B....

    gerade gehohrt bei rsa sachsen ,ein schönes lied!

    K.... B....

    eine gute Frage...warum ?

    K.... B....

    Hoffnung, Zuversicht und Liebe sind verpönt in einem System das möglichst schnell in den Abgrund rasen soll.

    K.... B....

    In Hamburg bei 90,3 spielen sie es regelmäßig. Daher kenne ich das Lied auch 😍

  73. V.... S....

    LOVE ABBA MUSIC ( GREAT )

  74. l.... P....

    ich habe das Lied das erste mal beim Weihnachtsmarkt gehört wo ABBAdoubles gesungen haben und ich habe es geliebt

  75. �.... �....

    Dear Abba (Agnetha, Annie-Fried, Bjorn and Bennie), thanks for everything you have done. Tack!

  76. D.... Z....

    Yessssssss...it is one of the best parts of ABBA :)

  77. a.... c....

    yes i remeber this

  78. a.... r....

    One of my favorites from Abba.

  79. j.... g....

    long live ABBA

  80. J.... A....

    Esse quarteto é muito genial 👍👏👌

  81. f.... ....

    A wonderful melody and all the ABBA group members are fantastic artists