Placeholder Image

Subtitles section Play video

  • Agnethaltskog got her break through at the end of the 60's with self-composed ballads like "Jag var så kär" and "Omrer vore guld".

  • She took the Swedish peoples heart and hit the charts.

  • Björn Ulvaeus began his career in the folk group Hootenanny Singers.

  • The records are released via Stig "Stikkan" Andersons records company POLAR.

  • In 1969 Björn and Agnetha became a couple. Three years later they recorded their first pop song together with Benny and Frida - "People Need Love".

  • Benny Andersson was through the 60's a long-haired pop idol i Swedens most popular band "Hepstars".

  • With songs like "Cadillac" and "Sunny Girl" did they reach the top of the charts and perform in the Swedish folk parks.

  • Already in 1966 Björn and Benny became best friends and started to write songs together.

  • Anni-Frid Lyngstad or better known as Frida had her break through in a talent competition.

  • In 1969 Frida and Benny became a couple and the year after they co-operated with Björn and Agnetha in a show.

  • As a pop group they had their big break through in 1973 with the song "Ring Ring".

  • The year was 1974 and the date the 6 of April and the place was Brighton in England.

  • In glitter costumes Agnetha, Björn, Benny and Frida almost jumped on the stage and performed "Waterloo".

  • ABBA won the Eurovision Song Contest and had their internationally break through. Manager Stig Anderson was praised by artist from all over the world.

  • A number of hit songs came - for example "Honey Honey", "So Long", "Mamma Mia" and "SOS".

  • In Australia the groups video was shown on TV and the country was hit by the so-called ABBA fever.

  • In 1976 was ABBA one of the worlds most popular groups.

  • They traveled to Australia and made a TV show which was seen by so many viewers - actually more than the moon landing some years earlier.

  • In Europe every single record they released became an enormous success.

  • ABBA dominated the top charts with songs like "Fernando", "Dancing Queen" and "Money, Money, Money".

  • Followed them albums such as "Greatest Hits" and "Arrival" on its menu of gold records.

  • In 1977 the group toured around Europe and then Australia.

  • That tour was portrayed in Lasse Hallström's "ABBA The Movie".

  • In the spring 1977 ABBA reached the USA charts #1 for the first and only time with "Dancing Queen".

  • During the summer and fall 1977 ABBA recorded the album "ABBA - The Album".

  • On the album were songs like "The Name Of The Game", "Take A Chance On Me" and "Thank You For The Music".

  • ABBA needed a lot more time in the recording studio and the next album "Voules-Vous" was first released in the spring of 1979.

  • This album had radio hit songs like "Chiquitita", "Does Your Mother Know" and "I Have A Dream".

  • During the fall 1979 ABBA toured around North-America and continued around Europe too.

  • They also had yet another single success with "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!".

  • In March 1980 ABBA went on their last tour and it was in Japan.

  • It was also the year of the album "Super Trouper".

  • It had hit songs like "The Winner Takes It All".

  • ABBA was more popular than ever,

  • but at the same time the ABBA members felt they wanted to go on with their own different music apart from ABBA.

  • Then in 1981 came the last ABBA album "The Visitors".

  • And the final ABBA song came the year after with the single "The Day Before You Came".

  • Then it was time for Agnetha, Björn, Benny and Frida to go separate ways.

  • Frida made some solo albums after ABBA, but has more been working for environment projects.

  • Even Agnetha recorded solo albums. "My Colouring Book" from 2004 came after a long break away from the limelights.

  • Benny has recorded under his own name and together with Orse Spelmän and Benny Anderssons Orkester (BAO).

  • But most of the time in co-operation with his friend Björn.

  • With "Chess" a dream was born - to write a musical.

  • Chess was written together with lyrics writer Tim Rice and was presented in 1984

  • on a double album (LP) and a concert tour.

  • Two years later the musical had its premiere in London and has since been played in many countries.

  • In the year 2002 the Swedish version of "Chess" had its premiere on Circus in Stockholm and had around half a million visitors.

  • In the fall 1995 had Benny and Björn's first Swedish language musical premiere on Malmö's Music Theatre.

  • It was "Kristina från Düvemåla", which was based on Vilhelm Moberg's novell "Utvandrarna".

  • After playing in Malmö and Gothenborg, the musical had its premiere on Cirkus in Stockholm in 1998.

  • All in all "Kristina från Düvemåla" has had about 1 million visitors.

  • An English version is now on its way to the USA.

  • Björn and Benny say, that "Mamma Mia" is the musical they didn't know they had written.

  • It was the theatre producer Judy Craymer who got the idea to make a musical using the songs of ABBA.

  • Manuscript writer Catherine Johnson got the solution by writing a new story.

  • So on the 6 of April 1999 "Mamma Mia" had its premiere in London

  • on the exact day - 25 years after ABBA's victory in Brighton on the Eurovison Song Contest.

  • And it became the beginning of a success no one ever dare dream of.

  • Today the musical is played all around the world and in different languages.

  • And now in Sweden in Swedish.

  • Morsayo

Agnethaltskog got her break through at the end of the 60's with self-composed ballads like "Jag var så kär" and "Omrer vore guld".

Subtitles and vocabulary

Click the word to look it up Click the word to find further inforamtion about it