Every New Zealand #1 single…
9
Fernando
Topped the NZ chart: from 4 June 1976 for 9 weeks
1976 was the year of ABBA in New Zealand. The Swedish quartet topped the singles chart for 15 of 45 possible weeks (back then the NZ chart took breaks for Christmas, summer, and Easter).
The compilation The Best of ABBA was also massively successful the same year. It topped the charts for 18 weeks. It’s tied with Dire Straits’ Brothers in Arms as the best-selling album ever in New Zealand.
‘Fernando’ was the most successful of ABBA’s four number-one hits of 1976, topping the charts for 9 weeks. Less than 40 singles have sold more than 10 million physical copies, and ‘Fernando’ is in that elite group.
‘Fernando’ was first recorded by ABBA member Anna-Frid for her 1975 solo album. It was written by the songwriting team of Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus. The following year it was rerecorded by ABBA. It was a non-album track, added to some editions of 1976’s Greatest Hits and to the Australian and New Zealand editions of Arrival.
Interestingly, the lyrics in Swedish and English are completely different – in Swedish it’s a song of consolation for a heartbroken bartender.
Let’s toast to the others,
English translation of Swedish lyrics for Fernando
Who found eternal love and the faith within every song,
Or should we toast to each other?
Will you drink to the happiness I used to have?
It’s true, the beautiful fairytales never, ever last.
‘Fernando’ doesn’t make my list of best 10 ABBA songs. It doesn’t have the bittersweet nuance of their very best work. But it’s great anyway – particularly the euphoric chorus.
ABBA became overexposed in New Zealand and Australia in the mid-1970s. 1977’s ABBA: The Album was their last number-one record, even though 1981’s The Visitors is their artistic peak. They became terminally uncool, the height of kitsch until time allowed their virtues to shine more clearly.
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Aphoristic Album Reviews is almost entirely written by one person. It features album reviews and blog posts across a growing spectrum of popular music.
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Graham Fyfe has been writing this website since his late teens. Now in his forties, he's been obsessively listening to albums for years. He works as a web editor and plays the piano.
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I love ABBA, but agree that Fernando tips over into slightly too much sentimentality…
But it’s still really good, I think.
Just linked over to your top 10 – I believe your #11 would be my current #1!
Cool choice – that one’s so pretty.
I know Abba are ridiculed by some folks. And while they were different than say Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple or Pink Floyd, all bands I dig as well, I’ve always thought Abba had many well-crafted pop songs, and their vocals were pretty decent. That said, I also agree with you “Fernando” isn’t among my favorite Abba tunes either – unlike some I recognized on your top 10 list.
John Paul Jones used ABBA’s synth on In Through the Out Door. I think ABBA kept getting better through until the early 1980s, but less people were listening. And the two vocalists sound great together.
I know I’m not speaking for all Zep fans here, I’ve always loved that synth on “In Though the Out Door”. That said, I had no idea it was ABBA’s synth!
ABBA became overexposed everywhere I think. This is probably my least favorite 70s hit by them but it’s still better than many pop songs at the time.
They were uncool through the 80s…I remember them as a punch line along with John Travolta, John Denver, and disco….but that changed in the 90s somewhat except for Denver.
I’ve heard John Denver songs a couple of times this week – a busker was playing ‘Annie’s Song’ at the market, while my daughter was humming ‘Country Roads’ (they sing a Maori translation at school). Doesn’t mean he’s not uncool, though.
That guy gets hammered and rather unfairly. No he wasn’t the hippest guy in the room…that is obvious but…he did write some good songs.
Country Roads is a good one.