I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do

"I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do"
Single by ABBA
from the album ABBA
B-side "Rock Me"
Released April 1975
March 1976 (US)[1]
Format 7" single
Length 3:18
Label Polar (Sweden)
Epic (UK)
Atlantic (US)
CRI Records (China)
Writer(s) Benny Andersson
Björn Ulvaeus
Stig Anderson
Producer(s) Benny Andersson
Björn Ulvaeus
ABBA singles chronology
"So Long"
(1974)
"I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do"
(1975)
"Bang-A-Boomerang"
(1975)
Music video
"I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" on YouTube

"I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" was a hit single for Swedish pop group ABBA, and was their next major worldwide hit after "Waterloo". It was the second single to be released from their ABBA album, and one of the last songs to be recorded for the album. The song was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and their manager Stig Anderson, and was released in April 1975 with "Rock Me" as the B-side.

The song was recorded on 21 February 1975 at Glen Studio, and was inspired by the European "schlager" music of the 1950s, and also by the saxophone sound of American 1950s orchestra leader Billy Vaughn.

History

The song's release came shortly after their previous single, "So Long", performed disappointingly in terms of charts and sales. After the release of "Waterloo", ABBA were having difficulty establishing themselves as an act with longevity. "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do", in many cases, put ABBA firmly back in the spotlight. With a rousing saxophone tune and homage to 1950s Schlager music, "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" became a significant improvement on the international charts, although it made little impact in Britain. The song's popularity was boosted, particularly in Australia, by the release of a promo clip shown on television. The song, presumably because of its title as much as the sentiment, is popular at weddings and featured in Muriel's Wedding when the ABBA-mad title character gets married.

Reception

This song was a sizeable hit in a number of countries. "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" was the song that sparked "ABBA-mania" in Australia, becoming ABBA's first chart-topper there. With "Mamma Mia" and "SOS" to follow, this gave the group a run of 14 consecutive weeks at the top of the Australian charts. "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" also topped the charts in France, New Zealand, Switzerland and South Africa and hit the Top 5 in Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria and Rhodesia (all in 1975). The song also reached No.15 in the United States in early 1976. A notable exception to the song's success was in the UK Singles Chart, a market that ABBA was aiming to conquer, where the single stalled at No.38.[2] Thus, the musical direction taken in the song was not used again for some time. This marked the only time that an ABBA song had more success in the United States than in Britain. Later in 1975, ABBA would find success in the UK with SOS, which would cement the group's success in Australia and elsewhere. Despite the song's UK chart performance, in 5 December 2010 on a British poll of The Nations Favourite ABBA song, the song was placed at #23.

Track listing

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (1975–76) Peak
position
Australian Singles Chart 1
Austrian Singles Chart 4
Belgian Singles Chart 2
UK Singles Chart[2] 38
Canadian Adult Contemporary (RPM)[3] 6
Canadian Singles Chart (RPM) 12
Dutch Singles Chart 3
French Singles Chart 5
German Singles Chart 6
New Zealand Singles Chart 1
Norwegian Singles Chart 2
Rhodesian Singles Chart 5
South African Singles Chart 1
Swiss Singles Chart 1
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 15
U.S. Billboard Easy Listening 8
US Cashbox Top 100 Singles[4]
19

Year-end charts

Chart (1975) Rank
Australia[5] 13
New Zealand[6] 6
Chart (1976) Rank
Canada[7] 132
U.S. (Joel Whitburn's Pop Annual)[8] 120
U.S. (Cash Box)[9] 95

Preceded by
"Ding-A-Dong" by Teach-In
Swiss Singles Chart number-one single
23 May 1975 – 20 June 1975
Succeeded by
"Only You Can" by Fox
Preceded by
"Love Will Keep Us Together" by The Captain and Tennille
Australian Kent Music Report number-one single
13 October 1975 – 27 October 1975
Succeeded by
"Mamma Mia" by ABBA

Cover versions

References

  1. Strong, M. C. (1995). The Great Rock Discography. Edinburgh: Canongate Books Ltd. p. 1. ISBN 0-86241-385-0.
  2. 1 2 Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 12/3. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  3. "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  4. Downey, Pat; Albert, George; Hoffmann, Frank W (1994). Cash Box pop singles charts, 1950–1993. Libraries Unlimited. p. 1. ISBN 978-1-56308-316-7.
  5. "Australian Chart Book". Austchartbook.com.au. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  6. "Top Selling Singles of 1975 | The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Nztop40.co.nz. 1975-12-31. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  7. "Top Singles – Volume 26, No. 14 & 15, January 08 1977". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
  8. Whitburn, Joel (1999). Pop Annual. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 380. ISBN 0-89820-142-X.
  9. "Ingmar Nordströms saxparty | Svensk mediedatabas". SMDb.kb.se. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
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