Italy - Additional Information

Week to Week Charts

At the end of each year, the top singles and albums for the year were compiled based on sales. Below are the year-end positions for the ABBA material that made it into the year-end charts. Please note that on the Hit Parade Italia web site, things are slightly different. What they do is - if a record appears in the weekly chart for some weeks at the end of a year and further weeks at the beginning of the following year they put it only into the top 100 of its most successful year, but considering the sales of the 2 years it charted! As such some items on that site have a higher end of year placing, but only featured in one year rather than two. I haven't used their format, to keep this page in common with the others on this site.

1974 singles: Waterloo was number 45 for the year.

1976 singles: Dancing Queen was number 65 for the year.
1976 singles: Fernando was number 18 for the year.
1976 singles: SOS was number 4 for the year.

1977 singles: Dancing Queen was number 89 for the year.

1980 singles: The Winner Takes It All was number 88 for the year.

1981 singles: The Winner Takes It All was number 58 for the year.

1982 singles: I Know There's Something Going On was number 56 for the year.

1983 singles: I Know There's Something Going On was number 53 for the year.

1985 singles: One Night In Bangkok was number 39 for the year.

1976 albums: Greatest Hits was number 51 for the year.
1976 albums: ABBA was number 30 for the year.

1977 albums: Arrival was number 31 for the year.

1978 albums: ABBA - The Album was number 88 for the year.

1981 albums: Super Trouper was number 37 for the year.

1982 albums: The Visitors was number 81 for the year.
1982 albums: Something's Going On by Frida was number 78 for the year.

1992 albums: Abba Gold was number 27 for the year.

1993 albums: Abba Gold was number 54 for the year.

2001 albums: The Definitive Collection was number 71 for the year.

Reviews

CHIQUITITA – ABBA – 45 giri, "TV SORRISI E CANZONI", Spring 1979.

Gli Abba, ovvero le quattro galline dalle uova d’oro (hanno venduto e continuano a vendere milioni di dischi in tutto il mondo), hanno costruito un altro pezzo da classifica. “Chiquitita” ha melodia, sound e carica al punto giusto. Non mancano neppure le schitarrate tipicamente mediterranee. Anche il retro, “Lovelight”, è un bel pezzo che avrà sicuramente successo.

(Title translates to - Chiquitita - ABBA - Single)

Abba, that is the four gooses that lay the golden eggs (they have sold and they still keep on selling millions of records all over the world), have built another chart track. “Chiquitita” has melody, sound and energy in the right amount. There is also the typical sound of Mediterranean guitars. The backside, “Lovelight”, is a good track as well and it will surely be successful.

GLI ABBA, PRODOTTO D’ESPORTAZIONE, from "FAMIGLIA CRISTIANA", Summer 1979.

Nella bilancia svedese del commercio con l’estero, gli Abba sono una voce consistente. Conquistata l’Inghilterra e gli altri paesi dell’Europa attraverso l’Eurovisione, il quartetto è diventato una vera industria il marchio fa vendere la loro musica, buona per tutte le occasioni. Inossidabili, metallici, perfetti, gli Abba in “Voulez-vous” (33 giri, “Epic”), hanno raccolto dieci canzoni disparate, piene di fantasia e di ritmo, ciascuna delle quali può diventare un bestseller, riconciliando il grosso pubblico con la musica leggera. E’, insomma, un perfetto esempio di musica pop per gli Anni Ottanta, nonostante qua e là si noti qualche segno di stanchezza.

(Title translates to - ABBA - An Export Product)

In the Swedish balance of international payments, Abba are a substantial item. After the conquest of United Kingdom and all other European countries with the Eurovision Song Contest, the quartet has become a real industry - they sell their music, which is good for all occasions, under their trademark. The stainless, metallic, perfect Abba get together in “Voulez- vous” (long playing, “Epic”) ten different songs full of fantasy and rhythm - each one of them is a potential best seller - reconciling the big audience to light music. It is, in short, a perfect example of pop music for the Eighties, although here and there, some signs of tiredness can be noticed.

Accreditations

In Italy, a Gold accreditation is 50,000 copies sold.

Abba Gold - Gold x 4
The Definitive Collection - Gold

Key to Abbreviations:

Date: The year in which the single or album charted.
Title: The title of the single or album.
HP: The highest position the item reached in the charts.
TI: Amount of months in the chart.

Abba:

Italian Singles

Date	Title	HP	TI
07/74	Waterloo	15	03
02/76	SOS	02	06
07/76	Fernando	04	04
12/76	Dancing Queen	11	01
01/81	The Winner Takes It All	13	02

Italian Albums

Date	Title	HP	TI
05/76	ABBA	11	03
11/76	Greatest Hits	19	01
03/77	Arrival	12	04
??/78	ABBA - The Album	25	??
03/81	Super Trouper	10	03
??/82	The Visitors	23	??
12/92	Abba Gold	02	03
2001	The Definitive Collection	21	??

Frida:

Italian Single

Date	Title	HP	TI
12/82	I Know There's Something Going On	06	03

Italian Album

Date	Title	HP	TI
??/82	Something's Going On	21	??

Chess:

Italian Single

Date	Title	HP	TI
04/85	One Night In Bangkok	11	03

Maintained by Trent Nickson.
Last updated: 3 October 2007.