ABBA
In The Beginning...
While at a professional low point, Benny and Björn were
hired by Stig Andersson to write music for his new company, Polar music.
They turned out Lycka, the first album to feature songs by Benny,
Björn, Anni-Frid and Agnetha. Inspired by the warm reception to Hej
Gamle Man, the quartet decided to try signing English pop music.
Not counting on a great response, Agnetha and Anni-Frid
continued their solo careers, while Benny and Björn wrote songs for Polar.
One of those songs was for Swedish singer Lena Andersson to sing in the
Eurovision Song Contest. She placed third.
The group decided that People Need Love would be
their first attempt at an English single. They quickly realized that the
female half of the band were the better singers. They went on to perform
Santa Rosa at the 1972 Japanese Song Festival, finishing well.
After making waves in Sweden with He is Your
Brother, Benny and Björn were asked to come-up with an entry for the
Swedish heats of the Eurovision Song Contest. Enlisting the help of Stig
Anderson, they produced Ring Ring. The song met rave responses
from the audience, on February 10, 1973, but the judges chose another song
instead. In the uproar that followed, it was decided that the following
year, the public would choose the song to represent their country.
Ring Ring was released in both Swedish and English,
doing well in Europe, Africa, and Australia. It was around this time that
Anni-Frid, Benny, Björn and Agnetha became ABBA. It is unknown who came up
with the idea of using each member's first initial: one story credits the
media; another the band's manager, Stig Anderson. Either way, a legend was
born.
The 1974 Song for Sweden competition was won by ABBA,
with their Swedish song Waterloo. On April 6, 1974, Sven-Olof Waldoff
stood before the Eurovision orchestra wearing a Napoleonic hat and cape.
As the music began, four young Swedes took the stage and preceeded to
perform a flawless rendition of Waterloo, complete with new English
lyrics.
Needless to explain to anyone who has heard the song, ABBA
won and were whisked off to "Top of the Pops", where they began a historical
musical career that would span a decade.
HOME