I’ve always loved this song. But why? I feel it has something to do with (as is the case with a lot of Abba songs) the high pitch of Agnetha and Frida’s vocals giving a euphoric quality but interested to hear any other analyses.
Do I like the idea of a musicologist’s study of Abba?
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The simplistic repetitive melody.
The competing harmonies
The slightly stilted, yet accurate phrasing of the lyrics.
They hit on a formula, and repeated it to ongoing success.
The song peaks in the chorus where they sing the title lyric, and they’re singing in thirds which is about the most satisfying harmony known to Western ears. The lyric is positive and, as my Mum would say, it’s got a good neat. Musically it’s got a kind of old fashioned sound to it, a bit of nostalgia for the old folks (to quote Frank Zappa – possibly the first time this has ever been done in an Abba review).
My musicological two bobs worth…
What he said
Possibly my least favourite ABBA song, because it sounds like pure dansband to me.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dansband
Agree with you @Locust. They wrote a lot of great songs but this isn’t one of them.
I’m in this camp. It’s relatively rare to read anyone raving about Abba other that a specific song or two, that’s because if you listen to the albums or even some of the singles, you have basically got oompah music. Problem is, their high points are very high…
Not having that. They probably never made their Sgt Pepper, but the albums, especially the later ones, are pretty consistent and classy.
Interesting points. @Locust – each to their own, I think the points made above will apply to Abba in general although we’ll all have our favourites 🙂
Not sure about that particular song, apart from the reassuring yet retro, even for its time, 6/8 feel. However, it’s been stated before by musicologists that the two ABBA voices have an almost uniquely pleasing blend of soprano (Agnetta) and mezzo-soprano (Frida). Add that to a brilliant tune and arrangement, as they did so often, and you’ve got magic in a bottle. Also note that ABBA tribute acts always fall some way short of this.
“I always fancied the blonde one out of ABBA. Bjorn, I think his name was” – Mark Radcliffe