My mum had this album on vinyl when I was growing up and, being an ABBA fan from a young age, I listened to it fairly religiously. Benny and Bjorn were just such skilled songsmiths. They could come up with tricky little ideas, but they mostly just favoured strong and simple songs. It’s not on this album, but I saw an interview with them where they singled out “ the winner takes it all” as one of their stronger compositions exactly because it is a song built more or less around just one repeating melodic motif.
Obviously the ’hits’ from this album are all good. “Knowing me and Knowing you”, “Money Money Money” “Dancing Queen” and gently anthemic album closer “Fernando” are all memorable earworms that are possibly even popping back into your head just from reading the song titles. Outside of the hits though, the other tracks are just as enjoyable. Whether it’s the playful “When I kissed the teacher”, the slightly cheesy “Dum dum diddle” or my personal favourite “Tiger” which switches from poppy glam rock to the subdued, almost childlike melodic bridge sections.
The tracks with Benny and/or Bjorn singing are enjoyable too, but the group really shines when Agnetha and Frida are on the mics, creating the classic ABBA sound.
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