Watch Pulp cover ABBA's "The Day Before You Came" with the BBC Concert Orchestra

"Pulp have always had a little ABBA in them - songs like "I Spy" and "Acrylic Afternoons" are indebted to the sweep, pulse and melancholy of the Swedish pop sensations' most nuanced creations. So it's less a surprise that they've now covered ABBA but it's taken them this long. So it came to be that Jarvis Cocker and the rest of Pulp joined the BBC Concert Orchestra at the Beeb's famed Maida Vale studios on Monday morning"

"It was part of BBC 2's Piano Room Series that also included performances of Pulp songs "Something's Changed" from Different Class and "Hymn of the North" from last year's fantastic comeback album, More. You can watch them play all three songs below. While at Maida Vale, Jarvis went to visit the studio where Pulp recorded their very first John Peel session way back in 1981 (when he was just 18). Check out photos from Jarvis' Instagram of that below."

Pulp's sound has long shown ABBA influences in songs such as "I Spy" and "Acrylic Afternoons", reflecting sweep, pulse and melancholy. Jarvis Cocker and Pulp joined the BBC Concert Orchestra at Maida Vale to perform a string-and-flute arrangement of ABBA's 1982 single "The Day Before You Came." The performance was part of BBC2's Piano Room Series and included Pulp performances of "Something's Changed" and "Hymn of the North." While at Maida Vale, Jarvis visited the studio where Pulp recorded their first John Peel session in 1981 and shared Instagram photos. Pulp announced 2026 tour dates in Australia and at European festivals.

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