Did you know this about ABBA?

Strangely, cos it's way beyond the call of duty on a lipsynched video, Benny isn't pretending there. It's possible, though unlikely, that his right hand isn't actually connecting with the strings, but his left hand is correct all the way through, albeit that they are very simple chords. Benny (like Bjorn) is even strumming a fair approximation of the descending intro line that crops up a few times in the song, which isn't predominantly a guitar part. What's also interesting, for a number of reasons, is that the key of the recorded song that we are hearing is a semitone higher than the chord shapes that we are seeing them play.

Just been watching a documentary all about the UK's biggest selling single of all time (with the exception of a couple of charity efforts). The narrator pointed out that eventually it was knocked off number 1 by another extraordinary band: ABBA. He also drew attention to a strange coincidence, something that both songs had in common.

Do you know what the coincidence was?

I can answer some ABBA Questions, (from this Thread), and also add some 'fresh' ABBA Facts:

1)... The reason why 'Dancing Queen' entered the UK Charts rather low, & then had a small
rise in Week 2, is due to some kind of change that was made on the main UK TV Chart Show
- 'Top Of The Pops'. The day it was shown was changed, (in August 1976), & this affected
the way several Hits behaved in the Singles Chart, Many Hits were affected - not just
'Dancing Queen'.

In the W/E 21st August 1976 Chart, ABBA entered the Top 50 at No.23 & Rod Stewart went in
at No.22 with 'The Killing Of Georgie'. In Week 2 ABBA rose just 7 places to No.16 & Rod rose
just 4 places to No.18. In Week 3 ABBA jumped to No.1, but Rod only rose to No.8. It took his
Hit 5 Weeks to reach its Peak of No.2.

'Dancing Queen' actually entered the UK Charts even lower than No.23. The UK Singles Chart
was a Top 50 at the time, but there were 10 'Breakers' just under the Top 50 each Week. They
were really No.51 to No.60, but they were numbered No.1 to No.10.

The ABBA Hit entered the 'Breakers' on W/E 14th August 1976. It was not even at No.1 in the
List - it had only sold enough to be 6th! Which was really No.56.

So, its real UK Chart entry was at No.56 - then No.23 - then No.16 - then No.1 - for 6 Weeks.

2)... It sold 850,000 to 860,000 UK copies in the 1970's, but 'only' 770,000 of them were in 1976.
Which is why it was 'only' the UK's 4th Best Selling Single of 1976. 'Save Your Kisses For Me',
by Brotherhood Of Man, was 1st - with over a Million sold, 2nd was 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart'
by Elton John & Kiki Dee. That sold around 889,000. 3rd was 'Mississippi' by Dutch Group Pussycat.
That sold around 849,000. Since then the ABBA Hit has outsold all 3 of the UK Hits, that outsold
it in 1976.

3)... ABBA were well known for having a lot of UK Top 5 Hits that entered the Top 50 very low.
This included some of their No.1's. 'Mamma Mia' started off at No.43, 'Fernando' at No.44 and
'Knowing Me, Knowing You' at No.48. Ironically, their highest entering UK Hit did not get to
No.1. That was 'Chiquitita', which went in at No.8 & reached No.2.

4)... Yes, on W/E 31st January 1976, 'Mamma Mia' replaced Queen's 'Bohemian Rhapsody' at No.1,
in the UK. As has been said, the Queen Hit uses the words 'Mama Mia' in it. So, we do have a big
coincidence there. (Although Queen did not spell it quite the same way - as you can see).

5)... By the way, when 'Mamma Mia' did not move from No.29, on W/E 3rd January 1976, there was a
good reason for it. The UK Chart Compilers used to take a Week's Holiday every January, so there
were no Charts published for the 1st Week in January - Singles or Albums. Each Year, the final Chart
of December was repeated - to fill the 'Gap' of the missing Chart. So, everything in the 1st January
Chart was always at exactly the same Position, as they were in the final December Chart. (Some
Countries just leave a 'Gap' there - even if no Charts are published for Weeks. New Zealand do that,
& it cost ABBA dearly. The NZ Charts took a 7 Week 'Break' from December 1976 to February 1977.
ABBA were at No.1 with 'Dancing Queen' & 'Arrival' at the time - so both were cheated out of 7 Weeks
at No.1. Plus 'Money Money Money' was at No.2 & it lost 7 Weeks at No.2. 'The Best Of ABBA' was at
No.2 & that lost 7 Weeks at No.2. In the UK, we'd have filled the 'Gaps' by repeating the final Chart
of (Mid) December 1976, for 7 Weeks. We'd never allow any Act to lose 7 Weeks of Positions).

6)... There was actually a 2nd coincidence with ABBA No.1's. On W/E 29th November 1980, ABBA rose
from No.2 to No.1, in the UK, with 'Super Trouper'. It replaced Blondie's 'The Tide Is High'  at No.1.
That fell to No.2. The UK Singles Chart began on W/E 15th November 1952. Since then, there has
been 1,332 different No.1 Singles. Hardly any of them have anything about No.1 Hits in their lyrics.
But, on W/E 29th November 1980, both the ABBA Hit at No.1 & the Blondie Hit at No.2 had mentions
of No.1's in them. 'Super Trouper' had 'Feeling like a Number 1'. 'The Tide Is High' had, 'I'm Gonna Be
Your Number 1'. A huge coincidence, as only about 4 or 5 UK No.1 Singles mention No.1's in any way.

7)... Eminem;s 'Revival' Album became his 8th UK No.1  Album - in a row - on W/E 28th December 2017.
He became only the 3rd Act to manage as many as 8 consecutive No.1 Albums, in the UK. The other 2
are Led Zeppelin, (1970 to 1979), & ABBA, (1976 to 1982). A coincidence is that Led Leppelin's 8th UK
No.1 Album - 'In Through The Out Door' - was recorded at ABBA's Polar Studio's, in late 1978.

8)... The biggest selling ABBA Song in the USA is not even performed by ABBA. It is a cover of
'Hasta Manana', by Debby Boone. She had it as the 'B' Side of her 1977/1978 No.1, 'You Light
Up My Life'. The Single spent 10 Weeks at No.1, sold over 3 Million, (USA alone), & was the USA's
Best Selling Single of the 1970's. Which means that the 'B' Side also sold over 3 Million. That's far
more than any ABBA Single there.

9)... The biggest selling Benny & Bjorn Song in the USA, is also not by ABBA. The Group never
recorded it. It is the cover of 'I Know Him So Well', on Whitney Houston's 'Whitney' Album, from
1987. It is a Duet between Whitney & her Mum, Cissy. That Album was the 1st by a Female to
enter at No.1 there. It was No.1 for 11 Weeks & sold over 9,550,000, in the USA alone. So, the
Benny & Bjorn, (& Tim Rice), Track on it, is their biggest selling Song in the USA.....

10)... Yes, in November 1980 'Super Trouper' was the 1st UK Album to gain a Million 'Advance Orders'.
The UK Album Chart started on W/E 28th July 1956, & it took until ABBA, in 1980, for it to happen.
However, it took no-where near as long for it to be broken again - exactly 4 Years. In November 1984,
'Welcome To The Pleasure Dome', by Frankie Goes To Hollywood, had around 1,150,000 UK 'Advance
Orders'. The 'UK Album Advance Orders Record', has been broken several times, since then.

Here I show both songs references to Number Ones.

Super Trouper - ABBA - (1980)

Link:

www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/abba/supertrouper.html

The Tide Is High - Blondie - (1980)

Link:

www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/blondie/thetideishigh.html

I think 'Bright Lights Dark Shadows' relates this story. That both the West Bay Singers and Anni-Frid Lyngstad both progressed from the same regional final but they didn't actually meet or recall each other as Frida had performed much earlier in the day.   At one point Bjorn's group were going to not bother waiting any longer but they were one of the last acts to get their chance.  The West Bay Singers then won in the big final with Frida one of the runners up.   This was the occasion that Stig's business partner, Bengt Bernhag talent spotted the boys and got them signed to Polar. 

Wait.. So Frida and Björn almost certainly met before she met Benny or Benny met Björn or Björn met Agnetha?
 
I wonder if there's any record of Hep Stars and Agnetha being on the same bill during 1968/69? Is there a feasible counterfactual narrative in which the same ABBA emerges except..

ABBA wasn't the first Swedish group with a member named Agneta to use the member's initials to form the group's name.
MAK les soeurs (Margareta, Agneta, Karin) released an album and several singles on the Cupol label in the late 60s.

In that case, he should've named one of his sons Bjorn or Benny instead of naming them all George.