SOS (ABBA Song)

"SOS" is a song by Swedish pop group ABBA. It was released in June 1975 as the fifth single from their self-titled 1975 album.

It was released with "Man in the Middle" as the B-side. Agnetha Fältskog, who sang lead, recorded the song in Swedish on her 1975 solo album ''Elva kvinnor i ett hus''. "SOS" was ABBA's first major worldwide hit since " Waterloo".

History

"SOS" (working title; "Turn Me On") was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson and was recorded at Glen Studio in Långängen, Sweden on 22–23 August 1974. The title itself was coined by Stig, though the lyrics he provided were re-written by Ulvaeus. "SOS" was among the first of three songs recorded for the group's 1975 album, ''ABBA'' and the opening track of their classic Greatest Hits LP released at the end of the same year.

The song opens with a piano intro, followed by the first verse sung by Fältskog. Biographer Carl Magnus Palm described it as 'Agnetha's first 'heartbreak classic, wherein the tear-filled vocal delivery, her trademark, would blend a pop melody, with a dash of melancholy. The song features a heavy influence from the Wall of Sound instrumentation of Phil Spector and the melodies of the Beach Boys.

Lyricist Ulvaeus has said that, after three years of trying to figure out what style would define them, ABBA found its identity as a pop group with the release of "SOS".BBC documentary "The Joy of ABBA", produced by Ben Whalley (2013). While Palm described it as 'pure ABBA'.

During the band's first visit to the United States, ABBA performed "SOS" on the long-running television programs ''American Bandstand'' and ''Saturday Night Live'' on 15 November 1975. The promotional video was directed by Lasse Hallström and released in the same year, along with the single.Sheridan, Simon. ''The Complete ABBA'', London, England, Titan Books, 22 May 2012. Retrieved 30 September 2017. The video and three others (for "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do", " Mamma Mia" and "Bang-A-Boomerang"), were completed in two days for a total cost of Kr 50,000 (£5,500). The video was uploaded to YouTube on 8 October 2009, on the AbbaVEVO channel, and has 65 million views as of September 2021.

The song is also featured in the concert film '' ABBA: The Movie'' (1977) and ''Live at Wembley Arena,'' released in 2014.

Reception

"SOS" marked a significant turnaround in ABBA's fortunes and returned them to the Top 10 in many countries. Reaching #6 and #4 respectively, "SOS" started a run of 18 consecutive Top 10 hits for ABBA in the UK and Ireland. "SOS" reached #1 in Australia, Belgium, France, West Germany (where it spent 7 weeks at the top), New Zealand and South Africa, and was a Top 3 hit in Austria, the Netherlands, Norway, Italy (where it became ABBA's most successful hit), Mexico, Rhodesia and Switzerland. The song also became ABBA's second Top 20 hit in the United States, peaking at #15.

As of September 2021, it is ABBA's 19th-biggest song in the UK, including both pure sales and digital streams.

Chicago radio station WLS, which gave "SOS" much airplay, ranked the song as the 61st biggest hit of 1975. It peaked at number six on their survey of 22 November 1975.

"SOS" has been recorded and performed in concert by several prominent artists, including John Frusciante, Peter Cetera, Chris deBurgh, Cher, Portishead, Fozzy, and Canadian rock group Headstones. Erasure covered SOS and three other Abba songs on their 1992 E.P. ''Abba-Esque'', reaching number one in the UK singles chart.

Ray Davies of The Kinks said that he was taken with the song after seeing the group perform it on the BBC
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