ABBA

ABBA (1972?1983) was a Swedish pop music group. They remain the most successful Swedish music act and were one of the most popular groups in the world. Estimates of ABBA's total worldwide sales vary from 140 to 500 million (there seems to be no reliable source for this information) which could make them the second most successful band of all time after The Beatles.

Eurovision and after

They tried Eurovision again in 1974, now inspired by the growing glam rock scene in the UK and tracks like Wizzard's "See My Baby Jive." Working on "Waterloo", an unashamedly glam-style pop track produced with Michael B. Tretow's wall of sound approach. Now far more experienced, they were better prepared for the contest and had an album's worth of material released when the show was held in Brighton, England. The song won hands down and catapulted them into British consciousness for the first time. Now they had a catchy name, ABBA, and people could buy the whole album (Waterloo) straight away.

Related Topics:
Eurovision - 1974 - Glam rock - UK - Wizzard - Brighton, England

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"Waterloo" was a UK hit, ABBA's first number one. It was released in the US, reaching #6. Momentum was hard to maintain and follow-up singles did not do nearly as well. The group was overstretched and unable to promote the songs convincingly in any one country. Moreover, most of their material was still heavily derivative. It wasn't until "SOS", a song originally written by Benny and Björn for one of Agnetha's solo projects, that ABBA scored another UK top ten. "SOS" consolidated ABBA's presence in the UK and they were no longer regarded as a one-hit wonder.

Related Topics:
US - One-hit wonder

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Wide success came in 1975 with every release charting solidly and several more number one hits including "Mamma Mia." The band even released a somewhat hubristically titled Greatest Hits album despite having had only five Top 40 hits in the UK and the US. This album included "Fernando" (an earlier version had been a Swedish-language hit single for Anni-Frid and included on her 1975 Benny-produced solo LP Frida Ensam). Becoming one of ABBA's best-known tracks, "Fernando" did not appear on the Swedish or Australian releases of Greatest Hits. In Sweden the song would wait until 1982's The Singles-The First Ten Years to appear in an English-language version credited to ABBA; the track was later included in the Australian release of their 1976 album Arrival.

Related Topics:
1975 - Mamma Mia - 1976 - Arrival

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Arrival represented a new level of accomplishment in both songwriting and studio work for ABBA. Hit after hit flowed from it: "Money, Money, Money", "Knowing Me, Knowing You" and "Dancing Queen", their most enduring and definitive hit. By this time ABBA were widely popular in the UK, most of Western Europe and Australia (who in a way almost "adopted" ABBA as their own) but still had only moderate recognition and airplay in the US and "Dancing Queen" remains the only number one ABBA ever achieved there.

Related Topics:
Dancing Queen - Australia

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By this time the ABBA sound was synonymous with European pop and was widely copied by groups like Brotherhood of Man and later, Bucks Fizz. Some felt it was necessary to copy ABBA's sound and two girl/two boy approach to win Eurovision and the notion seemed validated when Brotherhood of Man won in 1976 and Bucks Fizz took the prize in 1981.

Related Topics:
Brotherhood of Man - Bucks Fizz - 1981

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Meanwhile in 1977 ABBA followed up Arrival with their more complex The Album which was released to coincide with ', a feature film of their Australian tour. This album was less well-received by the critics but hits flowed from it: "Take a Chance On Me" and "The Name of the Game" both topped the UK charts. This album also carried the well-known "Thank You for the Music" which was later released in the UK as a single (1983) and had been a B-side of "Eagle" in territories where that song was released as a single.

Related Topics:
1977 - The Album

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