"I Have a Dream" is a song by Swedish pop group

ABBA ABBA ( , , formerly named Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid or Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida) are a Swedish supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The group's ...

. It was released in December 1979 as the sixth and final single from the group's sixth studio album, '' Voulez-Vous''.

Anni-Frid Lyngstad Princess Anni-Frid Synni Reuss, Countess of Plauen (born Anni-Frid Synni Lyngstad on 15 November 1945), also known by her nickname "Frida", is a Norwegian-born Swedish singer, songwriter and environmentalist, who is best known as one of the foun ...

sang lead vocals. It was a major hit, topping the charts in many countries and peaking at No. 2 in the UK over the Christmas week of 1979. Twenty years later, Irish pop group

Westlife Westlife is an Irish pop vocal group formed in Dublin, Ireland in 1998. The group currently consists of members Shane Filan, Mark Feehily, Kian Egan, and Nicky Byrne. Brian McFadden was a member, until he left in 2004. The group temporarily di ...

released a version that reached No. 1 in the UK over the Christmas week of 1999.

Overview

The song was written by

Benny Andersson Göran Bror Benny Andersson (; born 16 December 1946) is a Swedish musician, singer, composer and producer best known as a member of the musical group ABBA and co-composer of the musicals ''Chess'', '' Kristina från Duvemåla'', and '' Mamma M ...

and

Björn Ulvaeus Björn Kristian Ulvaeus (; born 25 April 1945) is a Swedish singer, songwriter, producer, a member of the musical group ABBA, and co-composer of the musicals ''Chess'', '' Kristina från Duvemåla'', and '' Mamma Mia!'' He co-produced the films ...

circa March 1979 and was taken from the group's 1979 album, '' Voulez-Vous''.

sang the lead vocals. It was released as a single in December 1979 with a live version of "

Take a Chance on Me "Take a Chance on Me" is a song by Swedish pop group ABBA, released in January 1978 as the second single from their fifth studio album, '' ABBA: The Album'' (1977). Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad share the lead vocals on the verses an ...

" as the B-side. The recording includes a final chorus by the children's choir from

Stockholm International School Stockholm International School (SIS) provides an international education in English to approximately 700 students aged 3–18 in the heart of Sweden's capital. Offering the International Primary Curriculum and International Baccalaureate Middle ...

. In the UK, "I Have a Dream" was held off the No. 1 spot by

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...

's "

Another Brick in the Wall "Another Brick in the Wall" is a three-part composition on Pink Floyd's 1979 rock opera '' The Wall,'' written by bassist Roger Waters. "Part 2", a protest song against corporal punishment, and rigid and abusive schooling, features a chil ...

", which also features a children's choir. "I Have a Dream" is included on the '' ABBA Gold: Greatest Hits'' album as well as in the '' Mamma Mia!'' musical. In the UK, the single was issued in a lavish gatefold sleeve, intended as a souvenir for UK fans who had attended the Wembley concerts (the live recording of "Take a Chance on Me" being from one of them). The inner gatefold made use of the pyramid/mountain/iceberg designs similar to those used in the inner sleeve of '' Greatest Hits Vol. 2''. The inner gatefold was effectively an advert for ABBA's existing albums released in the UK, but the back cover featured a message from ABBA themselves regarding the Wembley concerts, together with their signatures. The front cover used the same live photo of ABBA as the worldwide release, but artwork and fonts were different. This was only Epic's second picture sleeve for an ABBA single. As of September 2021, it is ABBA's 12th-biggest song in the UK, including both pure sales and digital streams. The live version of "Take a Chance on Me" on the B-side was one of three mixes of the same recording to be issued. Released soon after the concerts, this version is thought to be the genuine recording. A very slightly extended version, featuring spoken introductions from the group, was used as the B-side in Australia. This extended version has been released internationally on the deluxe edition of '' ABBA: The Album''. Finally, a third mix was included on '' ABBA Live'' issued in 1986.

Personnel

–

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

and

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...

Agnetha Fältskog Agneta Åse Fältskog (born 5 April 1950), known as Agnetha Fältskog (), is a Swedish singer, songwriter, and musician. She first achieved success in Sweden with the release of her 1968 self-titled debut album. She later achieved internatio ...

– backing vocals *

–

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

, backing vocals *

–

synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

, backing vocals

Additional musicians

Ola Brunkert Ola Brunkert (15 September 1946 – 16 March 2008) was a Swedish drummer who was one of the main session drummers for the pop group ABBA. Brunkert and bassist Rutger Gunnarsson are the only two side musicians to appear on every ABBA album, not cou ...

–

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

Janne Schaffer Jan Erik Tage "Janne" Schaffer (born 24 September 1945) is a Swedish songwriter and guitarist. He is best known for his work as a session guitarist for ABBA but he has also recorded with artists such as Bob Marley, Johnny Nash, Art Farmer and To ...

–

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gui ...

sitar The sitar ( or ; ) is a plucked stringed instrument, originating from the Indian subcontinent, used in Hindustani classical music. The instrument was invented in medieval India, flourished in the 18th century, and arrived at its present form in ...

* International School of Stockholm Choir –

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

Rutger Gunnarsson Johan Rutger Gunnarsson (12 February 1946 – 30 April 2015) was a Swedish musician, bass guitarist, guitarist, arranger and producer. He was closely associated with the pop group ABBA. Career Gunnarsson grew up in Ledberg parish. His career began ...

– bass

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

Cristy Lane version

American

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

and

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

artist

Cristy Lane Cristy Lane (born Eleanor Johnston; January 8, 1940) is an American Christian and country music singer. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, she had a series of hits on the North American country charts with songs like " Let Me Down Easy", " I Just ...

notably covered "I Have a Dream" in 1980. Lane had several years of commercial success in the country music market with songs like " Let Me Down Easy", " Penny Arcade" and "

Simple Little Words ''Simple Little Words'' is a studio album by American Christian and country artist Cristy Lane. It was released in September 1979 via United Artists Records and LS Records. It contained ten tracks. It was the fourth studio effort of Lane's music ...

". In 1980, she recorded the religious-themed " One Day at a Time", which became a number one hit and brought Lane to the attention of Christian music listeners. With a similar theme, Lane recorded "I Have a Dream" in October 1980, shortly after the success of "One Day at a Time". The track was cut at LSI Studios and was produced by

Jerry Gillespie Jerry Wayne Gillespie (born Decatur, Alabama) is an American country songwriter. He co-wrote " Do You Love as Good as You Look", a #1 song in 1981 for The Bellamy Brothers and wrote " Heaven's Just a Sin Away", a #1 country hit in 1977 for The K ...

, with assistance from executive producer Don Grierson. In the same recording session, the songs "Rio Grande" and "You Make It Easy" were also cut. Lane's cover was released as a single in December 1980 via

Liberty Records Liberty Records was a record label founded in the United States by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Al Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revival ...

and

LS Records LS Records is an American record label. It was founded by Lee Stoller in 1975. History In the mid 1970s, Lee Stoller chose to sign country music act, Daniel Willis, as the label's first artist. Willis was later dropped from the label after having ...

. It was backed by the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

, "Rio Grande", and was released as a 7" vinyl record. "I Have a Dream" spent multiple weeks on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

chart between December 1980 and early 1981 before peaking at number 17. It was Lane's final top 20 hit single on the chart in her music career. It also became her second single to chart in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, where it reached number 34 in 1981. The song was later released on her 1981 studio album of the same name. The album included the original single's B-side as well. Lane's cover received a positive review from ''Billboard'' magazine in their December 1980 issue. Reviewers described the track as having "a rich south of the border undercurrent" while praising its production, calling it "crystalline."

Track listing

7" vinyl single * "I Have a Dream" – 3:52 * "Rio Grande" – 3:05

Charts

Westlife version

Irish

boy band A boy band is loosely defined as a vocal group consisting of young male singers, usually in their teenage years or in their twenties at the time of formation. Generally, boy bands perform Love song, love songs marketed towards girls and young ...

released a cover of "I Have a Dream" in December 1999, twenty years after ABBA's original release. The song became the group's fourth UK number-one single. The release was a double A-side with "

Seasons in the Sun "Seasons in the Sun" is an English-language adaptation of the 1961 Belgian song "Le Moribond" (in English "The Dying Man") by singer-songwriter Jacques Brel with lyrics rewritten in 1963 by American singer-poet Rod McKuen, portraying a dyi ...

" in UK and Ireland and "

Flying Without Wings "Flying Without Wings" is a song by Irish boy band Westlife, released on 18 October 1999 as the third single from their self-titled debut studio album (1999). It is the band's fourth-best-selling single on both paid-for and combined sales in th ...

" in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, and a triple A-side in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

with both "Seasons in the Sun" and "Flying Without Wings" included. The release became the UK's Christmas number-one single of 1999, beating

Cliff Richard Sir Cliff Richard (born Harry Rodger Webb; 14 October 1940) is an Indian-born British musican, singer, producer, entrepreneur and philanthropist who holds both British and Barbadian citizenship. He has total sales of over 21.5 million s ...

's charity single "

The Millennium Prayer "The Millennium Prayer" is a song recorded by English singer Cliff Richard, in which the words of the Lord's Prayer are set to the tune of " Auld Lang Syne". It was released in November 1999 as a charity single in the lead-up to the new millenni ...

" into the No. 2 spot. Westlife's remix version of "I Have a Dream" was later included on their second studio album '' Coast to Coast'' in 2000. It then extended its peak into January 2000 and spending 17 weeks on the UK chart. The song was the 26th best-selling single of 1999 in the UK and it was also the final number one single of the 1990s. In 2001, as part of a

UNICEF UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Devel ...

fund-raising campaign, the song was re-recorded with additional vocals by Indonesian child singer, Sinna Sherina Munaf. The song has received a Platinum sales certification in the UK for over 707,000 copies (as of 30 November 2021) sold across physical, digital, and streaming equivalent sales. It is the band's second-best-selling single for both paid-for and combined sales.

Music video

The music video for the Westlife version of "I Have a Dream" features the band exiting out of a car and into a dark street where a group of children are. The children start singing with the band members and play with toys lying nearby before the band head back to the car and drive away. As of 2019, the video has reached 34 million views on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

Track listings

* United Kingdom. Ireland # "I Have a Dream" (Single Remix) – 4:06 # "Seasons in the Sun" (Single Remix) – 4:10 # "On the Wings of Love" – 3:22 * Australia # "Flying Without Wings" - 3:35 # "I Have a Dream" (Remix) - 4:06 # "Seasons in the Sun" (Single Remix) - 4:10 # "Flying Without Wings" (Video) - 3:40 * Netherlands # "Flying Without Wings" - 3:35 # "I Have a Dream" (Remix) - 4:06

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

Other cover versions

*In 1983, Greek singer

Nana Mouskouri Ioanna "Nana" Mouskouri ( el, Ιωάννα "Νάνα" Μούσχουρη ) (born 13 October 1934) is a Greek singer. Over the span of her career, she has released over 200 albums in at least twelve languages, including Greek, French, English, Ger ...

recorded a French cover of this song entitled "Chanter La Vie" for her album ''Quand on revient''. She also recorded an English version, which was released as a single in 1986 and included on her 1990 album ''Alone'',as well as a German version of the song, "Ich leb´im Traum" - "I live in a dream". * In 1985, Croatian singer Tereza Kesovija recorded a cover of the song entitled "Pronađi put" with lyrics in Croatian by Željko Sabol for her album of the same name *In 1987, a recording by the

dansband (; "dance band"), or in Norwegian and Danish, is a Swedish term for a band that plays ("dance band music"). ' is often danced to in pairs. Jitterbug and foxtrot music are often included in this category. The music is primarily inspired by ...

Streaplers Streaplers is a Swedish musical group, founded 1959 in Kungälv as a pop group and later developed into a dansband. Original members were Gert Lengstrand (vocals), Bjarne Lundquist, Göran Liljeblad, Håkan Liljeblad och Lars Larsson. The group m ...

, with lyrics in Swedish by

Ingela Forsman Ingela Birgitta "Pling" Forsman (born 26 August 1950 in , Sweden) is a Swedish lyricist in popular music. As a student Forsman attended the Adolf Fredrik's Music School in Stockholm. 1981–2009, 33 of her songs have competed in the Swedish M ...

, "Jag har en dröm", was Number 1 on the Swedish

Svensktoppen ''Svensktoppen'' () is a weekly record chart airing at Sveriges Radio. Until January 2003, the songs had to be in the Swedish language. Svensktoppen has aired since 1962, except for the years 1982-1985. The last years before the January 2003 cha ...

radio chart for 17 weeks from 31 May – 6 December of that year. *In 1994, Hawaiian singers the Makaha Sons covered this song on their album ''Ke Alaulau'' *Swiss chef/singer Dan Daniell recorded a cover as a duet with original ABBA member

for his album ''Lieber Gott'' *In 2004, Irish singer

Daniel O'Donnell Daniel Francis Noel O'Donnell, MBE (born 12 December 1961) is an Irish singer, television presenter and philanthropist. After rising to public attention in 1983, he has since become a household name in Ireland and Britain; he has also had cons ...

covered the song for his double album ''Songs of Inspiration/I Believe'' *In 2005, Irish folk music duo Foster & Allen have covered the song for their album ''Sing The Number 1's'' *In 2005, a duet version was recorded by German celebrity

Barbara Schöneberger Barbara von Schierstädt (; born 5 March 1974) is a German television presenter, actress and singer. Early life Schöneberger is the only child of clarinet player Hans Schöneberger and his wife Annemarie. She studied sociology, art history and ...

and American singer Sydney Youngblood for the German ''ABBA Mania'' compilation, which coincided with a TV special *In 2006, Italian-American singer

Al Martino Al Martino (born Jasper Cini; October 7, 1927 – October 13, 2009) was an American singer and actor. He had his greatest success as a singer between the early 1950s and mid-1970s, being described as "one of the great Italian American pop croone ...

included a cover of the song for his album ''Come Share The Wine'' *In 2006, German

AC/DC AC/DC (stylised as ACϟDC) are an Australian Rock music, rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm Young, Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and Heavy metal ...

tribute band Riff Raff recorded a cover in AC/DC style for their album ''Rock 'N' Roll Mutation Vol. 1: Riff Raff Performs ABBA'' *In 2007,

Connie Talbot Connie Victoria Elizabeth Talbot (born 20 November 2000) is an English singer. In 2007, she was the runner-up of the first series of ''Britain's Got Talent''. She then signed with Rainbow Recording Company and released her debut album '' Over t ...

covered the song on '' Over The Rainbow'' *In 2008, the song was covered in a jazz/

lounge music Lounge music is a type of easy listening music popular in the 1950s and 1960s. It may be meant to evoke in the listeners the feeling of being in a place, usually with a tranquil theme, such as a jungle, an island paradise or outer space. The rang ...

style by American group BNB on the album ''Bossa Mia: Songs of ABBA'' *The song is featured in the '' Mamma Mia!'' musical as a recurring musical theme sung by the character of Sophie. At the beginning of the musical, the context of the song is interpreted that Sophie dreams about her real father coming to the wedding when she sends the invitations, to her potential fathers, away. At the end, Sophie sings this song when she and Sky set off the Island to go around the world. The context of the song is used in this case as Sophie, now knowing what she really wants, hopes to achieve her dream as she goes around the world with Sky. The two contexts are also differentiated by distinct production, the first being an orchestral segment, and the second having a

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

-influenced

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

instrumentation. **It is featured in the trailers for both the

film adaptation A film adaptation is the transfer of a work or story, in whole or in part, to a feature film. Although often considered a type of derivative work, film adaptation has been conceptualized recently by academic scholars such as Robert Stam as a dial ...

as well as its

sequel A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the same ...

. The song, covered by actress

Amanda Seyfried Amanda Michelle Seyfried ( ; born December 3, 1985) is an American actress. Born and raised in Allentown, Pennsylvania, she began modeling at age 11 and ventured into acting at 15, with recurring roles as Lucy Montgomery on the CBS soap opera ...

in the movie, is also included on the first film's soundtrack. It is also featured in the 2018 sequel, ''

Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again ''Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again'' is a 2018 British-American jukebox musical romantic comedy film written and directed by Ol Parker, from a story by Parker, Catherine Johnson, and Richard Curtis. It is the sequel to the 2008 film ''Mamma Mia!'' ...

'', performed by

Lily James Lily Chloe Ninette Thomson (born 5 April 1989), better known by her stage name Lily James, is an English actress. She studied acting at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and began her career in the British television series ''Ju ...

. *A version by

Hannah John-Kamen Hannah Dominique E. John-Kamen (born 7 September 1989) is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Yalena "Dutch" Yardeen in the Syfy television series ''Killjoys'' (2015–2019), Ornela in the sixth season of the HBO series '' Game ...

features prominently in episode 2, season 1 of the British TV show ''

Black Mirror ''Black Mirror'' is a British anthology television series created by Charlie Brooker. Individual episodes explore a diversity of genres, but most are set in near-future dystopias with science fiction technology—a type of speculative fictio ...

'' entitled "

Fifteen Million Merits "Fifteen Million Merits" is the second episode of the first series of the British science fiction anthology series ''Black Mirror''. It was written by the series creator and showrunner Charlie Brooker and his wife Konnie Huq and directed by Euro ...

References

{{Authority control 1979 songs 1979 singles 1980 singles 1999 singles ABBA songs Bertelsmann Music Group singles Christmas number-one singles in the United Kingdom Cristy Lane songs Dutch Top 40 number-one singles European Hot 100 Singles number-one singles Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Liberty Records singles LS Records singles Number-one singles in Scotland Number-one singles in Switzerland Polar Music singles Protest songs RCA Records singles Songs about dreams Songs written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus Streaplers songs UK Singles Chart number-one singles Westlife songs