ABBA's 40th Anniversary: I'm thankful for the music

40 years ago today, on April 6, 1974, four young and ambitious Swedish musicians fairly unknown outside their own country performed the song “Waterloo” at the Eurovision Song Contest in Brighton, UK, in front of millions of European viewers. They won the prestigious contest, becoming the first Swedish act to ever win and exposing their music to international audiences, which triggered their career and helped them become the legend that ABBA is today.
ABBA was formed when talented musicians Benny Anderson and Björn Ulvaeus became best friends and started making music together, asking their girlfriends Anni-Frid “Frida” Lyngstad and Agnetha Fältskog (respectively) to sing with them.  Realizing that the girls sounded better than they did, they started to compose songs in English for them to sing and the band was formed. They released their first studio album Ring Ring in 1973

under the name Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid, which was later shortened to ABBA, using the initial of each name. After they won the Eurovision Song Contest and the release of their second album Waterloo that same year, ABBA gained international fame and went on to become one of the most successful groups of all time, enjoying immense stardom and becoming a staple of the 70’s and disco music with their 8 albums and countless hits that helped define a decade. ABBA came to an end in the early 80’s, after only 10 years. Their legacy lived on and was revived in the early 90’s by the release of the compilation album ABBA Gold which introduced a whole

generation to their music (myself included). The late 90’s was marked by the opening of the smash Broadway musical Mamma Mia! which is based on the group’s music and has been adapted to a movie, released in 2008 and starring Meryl Streep.
I first became aware of ABBA when I watched Muriel’s Wedding, a film starring Toni Collette that was heavily influenced by the group’s music. I saw it on TV with my mom one night, back in 2004. My mom was delighted, remembering her youth as she heard those songs she knew so well, and I loved what I heard immediately. I asked her thousands of questions about ABBA but all she could tell me was what she remembered as a teenager in the 70’s. She had no idea what had become of them and I was eager to know more. I started asking every older person in my family and they all had something to say about ABBA. I heard at least five different stories about why they were no longer around, all of which involved tragic deaths, which we all know is not true. Around that time I asked my dad, who lived in the US, to buy me an ABBA CD, and he bought me the legendary ABBA Gold. Yes, I’m proud to be part of the "Gold" generation of fans, those who knew ABBA because of this compilation album. In my opinion it’s a must in every young fan’s collection.
I listened to ABBA Gold over and over for almost two years, I knew it by heart, all those incredible hits that included “Mamma Mia”, “Dancing Queen”, “Take a Chance on Me”, “Waterloo”, “Super Trouper”, “One of Us”, my favorite at the time “Knowing Me, Knowing You”, and many others. And then something magical happened: I got internet! I remember searching for ABBA online, reading the song lyrics and their translation (I didn’t speak English then), and reading their biography on Wikipedia. The internet also made it easy for me to find their whole discography, and watch all the videos in that new thing called YouTube. It was a magical time, there was so much to see and listen to, and I spent many, many sleepless nights absorbing their music. Every video was like magic!

I was hypnotized as I memorized every detail of Agnetha’s and Frida’s faces, and I fell in love with them deeply. Their voices took me to a place I had never been before and I felt an extreme sense of joy. It was like a drug, but it didn’t harm me or keep me from anything; it added color to my everyday life and enhanced my life. I had been searching for a style of music to like and I had finally found the perfect fit for me.
Years passed and my love for ABBA only grew. Of course I listened to other things, but they were my main soundtrack for my teenage years. Once I moved to the US it was possible to finally find their records and start my collection. Today, I own their discography in CD, digital, and LP formats, as well as the solo stuff from Agnetha and Frida. In December 16, 2007, I got a chance to watch the stage musical Mamma Mia! at the Boston Colonial Theater (coincidently, it was Benny’s birthday), and it was a magical experience that took my love for ABBA to a whole new

level, and also triggered my then-new addiction to stage musicals. When the movie finally came out in 2008 I saw it in the theater with my mom, and I watched as the world fell in love with ABBA once again.
Being a fan of ABBA only brought good things into my life, most importantly the friendships. When I was searching for ABBA stuff online I counted with the help of many incredible people who I met on the way and with whom I spent my nights in chat rooms discussing the music and the videos and the pictures and everything. It was incredible to have found people my age who were as obsessed with ABBA as I was, and I learned a lot with them. They were people from many different corners of the planet, and they were responsible for some amazing memories. Even after the years passed, I kept my friendship with many of them, and got to meet some personally, too.
I am nothing but grateful for everything the amazing talent of Agnetha, Björn, Benny and Frida has created. I am the luckiest fan in the world and ABBA will always, always be my number one.
And, as cheesy as it may be, I simply must say THANK YOU FOR THE MUSIC!


Watch ABBA performing "Waterloo" at the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest: