|
|
Post by madonnabba on Mar 6, 2018 0:01:21 GMT
I know that Dancing Queen and Fernando are the biggest selling Abba hits but which one has outsold the other ? Does anyone know?
|
|
|
|
Post by gary on Mar 6, 2018 1:53:59 GMT
I’m pretty sure ABBA’s biggest selling single is Dancing Queen, followed by Fernando and Waterloo. However, I have seen it claimed that Fernando is top. I am sure Colin (onlyabba4me) will be able to tell you for certain.
Dancing Queen is definitely top in the UK, followed (I think) by Knowing Me Knowing You, Fernando and Super Trouper.
|
|
|
|
Post by gary on Mar 6, 2018 1:54:53 GMT
I’m pretty sure ABBA’s biggest selling single is Dancing Queen, followed by Fernando and Waterloo. However, I have seen it claimed that Fernando is top. I am sure Colin (onlyabba4me) will be able to tell you for certain.
Dancing Queen is definitely top in the UK, followed (I think) by Knowing Me Knowing You, Fernando and Super Trouper.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 6, 2018 13:04:23 GMT
There are various Chart Sites, that try to work out the World's 'Biggest Hit Singles' of each Year.
On the Global Charts Site, they have 6 ABBA Singles in their World Top 10's of the Year.
HERE ARE THE ABBA SINGLES IN THE GLOBAL CHARTS YEARLY TOP 10's
1)= Fernando -- 2nd for 1976
1)= Knowing Me, Knowing You -- 2nd for 1977
3).. Waterloo -- 3rd for 1974
4)= S.O.S. -- 4th for 1975
4)= Dancing Queen -- 4th for 1976
6).. Take A Chance On Me -- 5th for 1978
NOTES ON THE ABOVE LIST
A)... Dancing Queen would have been 1st for 1976, had all of its World Chart Top 10
Weeks been in that Year. However, several of them were in 1977 - when it returned
to the Top 10 & reached No.2. (It had reached No.1 in 1976).
B)... Take A Chance On Me is the only ABBA Song, in the List, not to have reached No.1,
in the Global Top 10. It Peaked at No.3. But it spent so long in the Top 10 - 23 Weeks
- that it ended up as 5th for 1978.
HERE ARE THE ABBA SINGLES IN THE TSORT (WORLD) YEARLY TOP 10's
1)... Dancing Queen -- 1st for 1976
2)... S.O.S. -- 2nd for 1975
3)... Waterloo -- 4th for 1974
4)... Fernando -- 5th for 1976
5)... Knowing Me, Knowing You -- 10th for 1977
NOTE -- 'The Winner Takes It All' just missed the Top 10 for 1980 - it was 11th.
As far as 'Official' ABBA History goes, their Global Top 5 Singles Are:
1).. Dancing Queen -- Over 6 Million in 1976 to 1977
2).. Fernando - 6 Million in 1976
3).. Waterloo - 5.5 million in 1974
4).. Chiquitita - 4 Million to 4.5 Million in 1979
5).. S.O.S. -- 4 Million
NOTES ON THE ABOVE LIST
A)... A Myth has arisen that 'Fernando' sold 10 Million, but that is far too many.
But it was their biggest European Single -- 18 Weeks at No.1 in the Pan-European
Charts. Way ahead of their next biggest European No.1 - 'Dancing Queen'. That
was No.1 for 10 Weeks.
B)... Although 'The Winner Takes It All' is regarded as one of their very best
Singles, it was not one of their biggest Global Sellers. It 'only' reached No.4
in their biggest mainland Europe Market - Germany. It was not huge in France,
or Australia & New Zealand. It sold about 3.2 Million. About 200,000 more than
'Money, Money, Money' & 300,000 less than 'Mamma Mia'.
|
|
|
|
Post by shoshin on Mar 6, 2018 19:00:16 GMT
For some reason Wikipedia doesn't even give Fernando a mention. ABBA is represented by DQ and Waterloo, with 5.35m and 5m respectively.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_singles
Surprisingly, according to Billboard ABBA's biggest US hit was Take A Chance On Me! They use a chart points system rather than raw sales, but interesting all the same.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 6, 2018 21:06:10 GMT
Shoshin - The Wikipedia 'Global Singles' List is full of mistakes. I would not take it too seriously. Their Site has a stupid 'Rule', that any claim
is a 'Fact', if you can Link to an Article that says it. Which is why they have 'Yes Sir I Can Boogie' by Baccara, on 18 Million Global Sales - just
because a Music Boss died in Germany, & it claimed those Sales in an Article about him. The Baccara Hit really sold about 5,500,000 Globally -
6 Million, if I'm generous. Yet, Wikipedia does not regard 'Fernando' as a Global Best Seller, & that sold a definite World 6 Million. (They used to
include it, but on too high Sales - 10 Million).
Wikipedia never used to include 'Dancing Queen' in their Global Best Sellers List. They gave it just 3 Million Sales. They were just its 1976 Sales,
but it sold well into 1977 - including over a Million in the USA. For Years Wikipedia refused to include 'Dancing Queen' in their List. The Baccara Hit
was not even a Hit in the World's 2 biggest Record Markets - the USA & Japan. It was No.1 in the Pan-European Chart, for 3 Weeks in 1 & 6 Weeks
in the other. Nor was it a Global Chart No.1 - No.2, for 2 Weeks. 'Fernando' was a Global No.1 for 6 Weeks, & a Pan-European No.1 for 18 Weeks.
It is obvious that it sold more copies than the Baccara Hit, in both Europe and Worldwide.
|
|
|
|
Post by madonnabba on Mar 7, 2018 1:00:21 GMT
I have often wondered about that claim about Yes sir I can boogie. I love the song but as it was not a major hit in the USA and did not finish in the (UK) top 10 end of year for 1977. Where did the song amass 18 million sales? Spanish territories??They were Spanish but I read that Spanish version of Chiquitita was the biggest selling single in 25 years in Spanish speaking territories . That was 1979.Boogie was released in 1977. So not sure where it sold 18 million.
|
|
|
|
Post by gary on Mar 7, 2018 1:01:11 GMT
Yet more errors - and they’re not even unknown ones!
Colin - I would be interested in knowing any sales statistics about The Name Of The Game. Its absence from your previous posts make it stand out like a sore thumb. I know we in the UK might think of it as one of ABBA’s biggest hits because it had four weeks at number one and is their sixth (?) biggest seller overall, but of course it was a relative flop in some other markets. How did it do on the Eurochart? And on the worldwide charts you mention?
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2018 1:44:51 GMT
Gary - 'The Name Of The Game' was not one of ABBA's biggest Global Chart Hits.
On one Global Chart Site it reached No.5 & was in the Top 10 for just 5 Weeks.
On the TSORT Global Chart Site it was the World's 29th 'Most Successful Hit' of 1977.
It did much better in the Pan-European Charts. In the 'Enhanced', (taken back to 1959),
Pan-European Chart it was No.1 for 7 Weeks. The 'Official' Pan-European Chart only began
on W/E 29th May 1976. In that Chart 'The Name Of The Game' was also No.1 for 7 Weeks.
It does not matter that it only actually reached No.1 in the UK. It was a Top 5 Hit in so
many places, that it out-scored a lot of 1977 Hits, that were No.1 in several European
Countries.
Of ABBA's 19 UK Top 10 Hits 16 reached the Global Top 10. The 3 that never entered that Top 10 were: 'Summer Night City',
'Voulez-Vous' & 'Lay All Your Love On Me' - but that Hit that only had a limited release anyhow. Of their many Pan-European
Chart Top 10 Hits, these Singles also failed to reach the Global Top 10 - 'Ring, Ring', 'Honey, Honey', 'I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do', '
Eagle', 'Head Over Heels' & 'The Day Before You Came'. These 2 ABBA Singles did not make either the Global or European Top 10's
- 'So Long' & 'Under Attack.
'Summer Night City' was a No.1 Hit, (1 Week), in the 'Official' Pan-European Chart & No.2 in the 'Enhanced', (taken back to
1959), Pan-European Chart. 'Does Your Mother Know' was No.1, (3 Weeks), in the 'Official' Pan-European Chart, and No.2
in the 'Enhanced' Pan-European Chart.
'I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do' & 'The Day Before You Came' both reached Number 2 in the Pan-European Charts. They achieved
that without being big Hits in the UK or Ireland.
|
|
|
|
Post by gary on Mar 7, 2018 10:52:58 GMT
Thanks Colin.
|
|
|
|
Post by madonnabba on Mar 7, 2018 12:45:11 GMT
Great knowledge on the charts. Very interesting. Would like to know where Abba are placed with their peers.
|
|
|
|
Post by chelseacharger on Mar 7, 2018 15:51:53 GMT
As Colin says, Wikipedia should be taken with a very large pinch of salt. On this and related issues, it seems very US-centric. The arguments about 'certified unit' sales and 'claimed sales' continues on the 'List of best selling music artists' topic. ABBA are accredited with 60.7m credited units alongside claimed sales of between 100 and 200m. hmm? Didn't Universal themselves give an award years ago for 360m sales? So who knows where they pluck these figures from. Compare those credited units with Country singer, Garth Brooks who is given 156.1m credited units which is near enough the 160m 'claimed'. He's very big in the USA and I suppose he's got the longevity of his recording career but really? On the same level with worldwide success? |
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2018 17:55:27 GMT
A lot of people, in the USA, are always surprised, when they hear how huge ABBA are outside their Country.
Some refuse to believe it. USA Music Critic - Robert Christgau - would not even accept that ABBA were great
at making Music. He said that Benny & Bjorn were really influenced by 'Advertising Jingles', when they wrote
ABBA Songs. He never gave any ABBA Album a score more than C. As a contrast, he did respect Boney M, &
he gave some of their Albums a B. (The same Boney M in which only 2 of the 3 Females sang on the Records
& the Guy also never sang on them. Their Manager & Producer - Frank Farian - sang the Male parts on their
Records. The Male person in Boney M, could not sing. He was just in the Group to do silly dances & to move
his lips, pretending to sing the Frank Farian parts).
As a contrast, the USA was crazy about Garth Brooks. That Country Singer sold 148 Million Albums there. That
is 2nd only to The Beatles - 178 Million. However, Garth was only big in one other Country - Canada. Outside
of the USA & Canada, I'd be surprised if Garth Brooks sold even 5 Million Albums, in the entire rest of the World.
He sold maybe 5 or 6 Million Albums in Canada. There are less than 36.5 Million Canadians & over 323 Million
people in the USA. Which is why he was big in Canada, but unable to sell even 10 Million Albums there.
When USA people hear that 'ABBA Gold' sold over 5.4 Million in the UK - the 2nd most ever - they laugh and say that it is very low & not
at all impressive. But, to sell the same proportion in the USA, it would have sold over to 26 Million, & been about the 3rd biggest USA
Album ever. Our UK Population is almost 5 times smaller than the USA's population, which is why over 5.4 Million Album Sales, for 'Gold',
is a huge number for the UK.
|
|
|
|
Post by madonnabba on Mar 7, 2018 19:10:37 GMT
Garth Brooke’s has sold that much in the USA. What an embarrassment for the USA.
|
|
|
|
Post by madonnabba on Mar 7, 2018 20:38:30 GMT
Robert Christgau? Never heard of him and who gives a hoot what he thinks? At least people throughout the world no who Abba are.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2018 21:31:54 GMT
Robert Christgau? Never heard of him and who gives a hoot what he thinks? At least one legendary American critic got it, the late Lester Bangs:  |
|
|
|
Post by madonnabba on Mar 8, 2018 10:19:27 GMT
Think he likes them! What’s there not to like?
|
|
|
|
Post by gary on Mar 8, 2018 22:46:28 GMT
And Boney M (much as I like quite a few of their singles) were pretty much a covers band, in addition to your other criticisms of them!
|
|
