A Potted History - ABBA

Okay here goes another back flip into my childhood, this is for all the 40 somethings out there, love them, loathe them or ridicule them, you cant deny they were an International pop phenonenon - erm phenomenomenon - oops fermonominononum. Look you can see im having problems here so i will spell it out phonetically....

Fow-Nom-E-Non......

They were a pop group, okay !


Early years:
The reason behind ABBA's phenomenal popularity lay in their roots as a Swedish supergroup of sorts. In the late Sixties, Bjorn Ulvaeus was a member of the popular folk act The Hootenanny Singers, while Benny Andersson was already well-known as part of the Hep Stars, the country's biggest pop covers act. The pair met in 1966 at a party and collaborated on and off for five years, but it was during the late Sixties that they met their respective spouses: Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid "Frida" Lyngstad, both already established solo artists, fell in love with Bjorn and Benny (respectively) within months of each other.

Success:
Oddly enough, the four didn't work together as a full-time unit until 1972, when "People Need Love," clumsily credited to "Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid," became a hit in their native country, signaling they should combine their talents permanently. Manager Stig Anderson had referred to them as "ABBA" in business dealings, and a nationwide poll also indicated fan preference for the acronym, so it stuck. The group finally achieved fame across Europe with two appearances at the Eurovision Song Contest -- "Ring Ring," which placed third in 1973, and "Waterloo," which won the grand prize the following year.

Later years:
"Waterloo" also introduced them to the US, and although they remained much more popular in Europe, the group achieved monumental worldwide success throughout the decade. As might be expcted, however, the success took a toll on the group's two marriages, and by 1982, they decided to go their separate ways as performers. The two female leads went on to some solo success, while Bjorn and Benny created a popular musical (1984's "Chess") and continued to write and produce for other acts. Although they remain cordial, the four have declined any offers of a reunion, despite resurging popularity in the last ten years.

Other facts:
Shared their name with a national fish-canning company, who graciously allowed them to use it

Only the Volvo car company made more money for Sweden during the group's existence

The group's 1981 hit "The Visitors" was later revealed to be written in response to grassroots movements to overthrow Soviet domination in European countries

The hugely popular Broadway musical Mamma Mia! is based around their songs

A boy/girl group called A*Teens enjoyed sustained popularity in the late Nineties by covering only Abba songs

In 2000, business interests offered the group one billion dollars for one hundred reunion shows