Overlooked and underrated: 15 of ABBA’s absolute best deep tracks
Here are 15 of ABBA’s absolute best deep tracks that deserve more recognition, each worthy of placement on ABBA Gold alongside their biggest hits. *Note: In order to narrow down the list, no song that appeared in their greatest hits album ABBA Gold has been included, nor has any song that was included in either of the Mamma Mia!
movies or the stage show. At least one song from each of their albums appears here.For nearly five decades, we’ve been rushing to the dance floor the moment we hear the opening synths of an ABBA hit.From Ring Ring, 1973. By the time they won Eurovision in ’74, ABBA had actually already released a full-length album, Ring Ring.
Even though only a handful of songs have carried into their more popular catalog, “People Need Love” is a great display of the musical style that would become their signature: a strong synth, layered vocals between the men and women, and lyrics that could be read as corny but are incredibly earnest.From Waterloo, 1974. The song that could have been. “Hasta Mañana” was the other song that ABBA considered competing in Eurovision with (and we know how that turned out).
Even though it wasn’t nearly as wildly successful as its Napoleonic counterpart, this is a strong ABBA ballad that showcases their characteristic melancholy, and the start of their love affair with the Spanish language.From ABBA, 1975. ABBA always had a knack for taking seemingly random ideas or concepts (a historical battle, a type of spotlight, the name of a person) and creating a narrative around it.
