Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, Agnetha Fältskog, Anni-Frid Lyngstad.
All stars on their own, long before they assembled an acronym.
In 1972 they were ‘Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid’.
Björn & Benny forged a fertile partnership after leaving starlines The Hep Stars and the Hootenanny Singers. Agnetha & Anni-Frid were fine solo singers on their own, signed to major companies (not the boys’ own label Polar Music). Then, there were two couples.
Their first release as quartet (or double couple) was ‘People Need Love’ in June 1st 1972.
A strange melange of Three Dog Night harmonies, Elton John melodies and early Carpenters rapture.
‘People Need Love’ fell restlessly between eccentric chamber pop, bubblegum and AOR. Four voices blending spontaneously – something they would only infrequently try after the rousing success of ‘Waterloo’. ABBA had great composers, formidable singers who complemented each other, exchanged roles. Here ‘Björn & Benny’ go on autopilot and ‘Agnetha & Anni-Frid’ steal the show. It took some time for Stig Andersson to break them outside Sweden, where this lovely number reached #3 on charts.
ABBA was not a pluralist unit. They were ecletics, but their songs’ structures remained anchored on obsessive hooks. No surprise they were a perennial staple in 1970s Karaoke craze. B-Side ‘Merry Go Round (En Karusell)’ showed early signs of the trend. A huge hit for the quartet…In Japan.
First in the endless stream of dual language singles, this time explicitly a ‘Björn & Benny’ number complemented by the sly backup of ‘Agnetha & Anni-Frid’, with noticeable Folk roots, where orchestral flourishes (‘The Girl with the Golden Hair‘?) fall behind, and get stacked by rigid bubblegum mores. That it tanked in Sweden was reason enough to rethink proceedings. Maybe next time girls would sing and boys, accompany.
They already had their own recording company. World acclaim was a matter of time.
Tracklist:
8.5 People Need Love
7.5 Merry Go Round (In Karoussel)
Check out ABBA‘s debut here: ‘People Need Love‘ / ‘Merry Go Round (In Karussel)‘
Carlos Frederico Pereira da Silva Gama
delubravestra 