IKEA. Volvo. The sauna. Sweden is famous for a lot of things, but one of the most popular is the iconic musical super-group ABBA. They were on top of the charts all over the world from the mid-1970s. Then, in 2008, they were back in the news and charts with the success of the film and musical Mamma Mia.
ABBA ruled the music world from the mid-to-late 1970s to the early 1980s. The group dominated charts worldwide, releasing numerous hit singles and albums. Estimates of ABBA’s total worldwide sales vary from 360 to 400 million (360 million albums in 1999), which makes them the second most successful band of all time after The Beatles. They were the first act from the European mainland to become a regular fixture in British, American and Australian charts, and their success subsequentlyopened the doors for many other European acts. ABBA left their legacy as very successful musicians who were responsible for globalising Swedish music.