Abba Singles Reviewed [out-of-date]

Ring Ring (1973)
Fantastic, hard to believe it wasn't successful over here. One of the catchiest songs they ever made - and that's certainly saying something, considering all their records are catchy! A

Waterloo (1974)
This won 'em the Eurovision song contest; rightly so. A classic, and and music fan knows it's one of the best songs all of all-time, and again one of Abba's best and catchiest. A

Honey Honey (1974)
Bah.. unreleased here, I acn see why really, a rather bad song - probably Abba at their worst. C

So Long (1975)
Another flop, unbelievably.. I love this one, and it has a fantastic chorus. Slightly different beat to their other songs, but regardless, a classic. A

I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do (1975)
Not as catchy as many of their other songs.. but otherwise, pretty much standard Abba! Great vocals, perhaps a little underrated - hardly one of their best though. B

SOS (1975)
The beginning of their re-entry into chart domination of the mid-'70's in the UK. Along with Mamma Mia and Waterloo, this is one of those songs that pretty much everyone knows is by Abba! And for some reason I particularly love the instruments in this one. A+

Mamma Mia (1975)
One of those that everyone knows is Abba - deservedly a number one, and as usual, very catchy. On par with Waterloo in quality - very well done, although perhaps overrated as it gets so much more attention than other, perhaps even better songs of theirs. A-

Fernando (1976)
Fantastic ballad. Full stop. Different for Abba, perhaps, but another personal favourite, and put together beautifully. A+

Dancing Queen (1976)
This is pretty good, I'll admit - catchy, you can dance to it, great lyrics, very famous - but it's overrated. Very overrated, and as GC said, overplayed. Great tune I admit, but it's annoying to hear this played so many more times than some of their lesser-known great hits. Good video too. B+

Money Money Money (1976)
Another everyone knows, surprisingly didn't reach number one.. excellent song though, and if anything, underrated in comparison to Dancing Queen and Waterloo. And, who wouldn't love a song about money?! A+.

Knowing Me, Knowing You (1977)
Yet another underrated song, and in my opinion quite meaningful. The better of Abba's 1977 releases, in my opinion, and even today doesn't get the recognition it deserves. Useless note: whenever trying to get someone hooked on Abba, I use this song. A+

The Name Of The Game (1977)
The most complicated of their 9 #1's here - and that made it brilliant! I also find this fits all moods - happy, sad, lonely.. Not sure why, mind. Graet song. A-

Take A Chance On Me (1978)
One of my personal favourites. The catchiest of their songs ever, surely. The guys in the background give this song an added, extra, great depth. A+, horribly underrated!

Eagle (1978)
No.. no.. no.. Don't like this at all. One of a scarce few I usually skip.. too slow, boring and pretty bad, unfortunately. I wonder how the British public would have recieved it, had it been released here. C

Summer Night City (1978)
Like the above, a boring, uncatchy an all-around bad Abba song. Number 5?! Why?! Damn the record-buying public of 1978, this is another I usually skip over. C-

Chiquitita (1979)
Not as catchy as many other Abba releases, but stilly technically a great song, and nice to listen to. I don't consider it one of their best, but it's about 10 steps up from their last recording (SNC). A

Does Your Mother Know (1979)
Another personal fave of mine too. I wish this had been #1, it's very catchy and listenable, and if I'm bored I quite often stick it on repeat. In my opinion, another defining Abba song, and easily another A+.

AngelEyes (1979)
Voulez-Vous (1979)
Don't really like Angeleyes at all, pretty boring compared to the more well-known Voulez-Vouz. That said, neither are defining moments in Abba's career, and personaly I don't find either all that catchy. Perhaps good to dance to, but not as good as many other Abba songs.
AngelEyes: C+
Voulez-Vous: B

Gimme Gimme Gimme (A Man After Midnight) (1979)
Hmm, too much aimed at the females for my liking! It's catchy, and the chorus is goddamn insanely memorable, I'll admit that, but still no match for some of their earlier classics. Perhaps bordering on the A - B border. A-/B+

I Have A Dream (1979)
Kicks Westlife's cover-versions' ass. Slower than your typical Abba song, but I find it very memorable, and is another personal favourite. It's quite moving and meaningful, but doesn't lose the catchy edge Abba had come to be known for.. yet another underrated classic, not to be missed out on. A+

The Winner Takes It All (1980)
This is another song of Abba's that reached no. 1, deservedly so - it's meaningful, powerful, slow, memorable, almsot tear-inducing (in a good way! ) and above all *different*. I can't really think of much else to say on this one, GC already explained it all, but - it's just fantastic. If you like ballads, and haven't heard this, try it - you won't be disappointed, I guarantee.

Super Trouper (1980)
The chorus to this one has a very powerful feel alongside its catchiness; I can't explain it, but at times it doesn't even sound like a pop song due to it being so well-made.. not cheesy in the slightest. Quite underrated, again, though it seems to well-known enough for my liking. Good video, too. A

Lay All Your Love On Me (1980)
Bah.. don't like this one. Nothing like anything else Abba had done before or have done since, much too "dance-ey", and not really well thought-out in my opinion. Seemed too basic, and I didn't even like the vocals.. I haven't heard it in a while, so my opinion might change - but until then, this goes down as one of their worst. C-

On And On And On (1980)
Better than the A-side (Lay All Your Love On Me) that preceded it, but still unmemorable and really quite boring.. C

One Of Us (1981)
A very sad, depressing, touching song, that I assume was about the band's real-life personal marriage problems and so forth.. underrated (I've used taht word so much!) again, and yet 8another* personal favourite! I think on one or two occasions on listening to this a tear has emerged from my eye, as the mood of the song is so depressing.. perhaps not one for those who prefer Abba's usual blend of catchy, upbeat, memorable pop.. that said, I still love this one, so maybe that doesn't apply to everyone. A+

When All Is Said And Done (1981)
Whoo.. yet another underrated song - even some people who consider themselves Abba fans don't know it! Uplifting, and perhaps the exact opposite to One Of Us. Great. A-

Head Over Heels (1981)
Don't really like this one, it's low chart posuition was in my opinion deserved. Not as low as songs such as Summer Night City, but all the same, definitely not one of the best at all. B-

The Visitors (1981)
About the Soviet invaders.. unusual to say the least. Underrated, as although not really my cup of tea, it pretty much flopped - unfortunately. Well done to Abba for trying this song. B+

The Day Before You Came (1982)
Love this one, it's one of the best records they've made - and some of the best lyrics of any song ever. Fantastic vocals, and the lyrics tell a lovely story - to top it off, great backing music. It didn't do too well in the charts - very unfortunate as it deserves a lot more recognition. Quite an uplifting song, to be honest. A+

Under Attack (1982)
This song was the penultimate song to be recorded, and the last one released before the group disbanded. The song isn't all that good, and the electro-pop sound or image does not suit ABBA at all. A lot of the lyrics are hard to make out and don't sound like what they're written as. Good song, but poor recording. The video is also very poor. Set in a warehouse, it has no real plot, and the group members look very disinterested, wishing they were somewhere else instead.

Thank You For The Music (1983)
Failed in the charts, but is now one of their most famous records. It's one of their greatest records in terms of lifetime achievement, and was an excellent bow out for the group. All the elemts of classic Abba songs - catchy chorus, excellent lyrics, great backing music, fantastic vocals - just an all-around great song. In 1999, over here a tribute to Abba called "Thank Abba For The Music", containing clips from this song and several others of theirs, by Steps, B*Witched, Cleopatra, and Tina Cousins was released, reaching #4 in the singles charts.A+