Achi news desk-
It’s been 50 years since ABBA won a big battle with “Waterloo.”
Half a century ago on Saturday, the Swedish quartet won the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest with the peppy love song, which opens: “My my, at Waterloo, Napoleon surrendered, and I have met my fate in quite a similar way. “
He sang the song again on Saturday at Waterloo railway station in London — also named after the 1815 battle that defeated the French leader — where a choir gave the impression to commuters.
In the English coastal town of Brighton, where the 1974 competition was held, fans held a flashmob dance and a silent ABBA disco to mark the anniversary.
A woman holds an ABBA scarf, during a silent disco event outside the Brighton Dome, in Brighton, England, Saturday, April 6, 2024. Fans are celebrating 50 years since ABBA won their first major battle with ” Waterloo.” Half a century ago on Saturday, April 6, the Swedish quartet won the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest with the peppy love song.
(AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)
People dressed in costumes take part in a silent disco event outside the Brighton Dome, in Brighton, England, Saturday, April 6, 2024. Fans are celebrating 50 years since ABBA won their big fight first with “Waterloo”.
(AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)
ABBA’s Eurovision victory turned them into a pop juggernaut, by far the most successful band to win the music competition across the continent, which will hold its 68th edition in May in ABBA’s homeland, Sweden. The Eurovision final will take place on May 11 in Malmö, after Swedish singer Loreen won last year’s competition with “Tattoo.”
ABBA’s melodic disco pop sold hundreds of millions of records worldwide. The stage musical “Mamma Mia!” based on his songs at 25 years old and spawned two films.
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The band members have not performed together live for four decades, but a comeback album, “Voyage,” was released in 2021. Every day, fans attend a concert by digital “ABBA-tars” in the popular show ” Abba Voyage,” which opened in London in 2022.
Members of the Mark de Lisser Singers perform the iconic ABBA song ‘Waterloo’ at Waterloo Station in London, Saturday, April 6, 2024.
(AP Photo / Alastair Grant)
Members of the Mark de Lisser Singers perform the iconic ABBA song ‘Waterloo’ at Waterloo Station in London, Saturday, April 6, 2024.
(AP Photo / Alastair Grant)
In a message of thanks to fans on Saturday, the four members of the band said it was “a little bit dizzying and extremely humbling” to know that their songs have been passed down through the generations and “still resonate around the world. “
“Music that you discover and learn to love when you grow up or even later in life has a way of staying with you forever,” said Agnetha Faltskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. “We share that experience with you and knowing that our music has become a constant in your lives is a wonderful thing.”
A tribute concert called “Party for ABBA” was to be held in Stockholm on Saturday night featuring prominent Swedish artists, a 21 person band and a large choir. Organizers said it was a salute to a band that changed the Nordic country’s music scene “forever.”
Swedish public broadcaster SVT, which planned to broadcast the concert live on television and on its streaming service, said, “April 6, 1974 is considered by some to be Sweden’s national music day.”
& copy 2024 The Canadian Press
