ABBA - ABBA

ABBA's self-titled third album, released in 1975, is where the Swedish group stopped being a Eurovision story and became a worldwide pop phenomenon.

Fresh from Waterloo's win, Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus took the producers' chair and began building the polished, layered sound that would define the band. With Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad's voices blending into one shimmering instrument, every chorus feels engineered for maximum lift and maximum singalong.

"Mamma Mia" is the obvious headline, its ticking marimba hook and bubbling energy still impossible to resist. "SOS" might be even better, a heartbreak song dressed in gleaming keyboards and a soaring chorus, and "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" leans into a dreamy, saxophone-led sway.

Deeper cuts like "Bang-A-Boomerang" show off their knack for bright, playful hooks, and the rest of the album finds the band trying on rock, reggae and theatrical pop with cheerful confidence, a hint of the range to come.

It is the sound of a band finding its voice, and for listeners who know these songs from hits collections, hearing them in their original album setting is a real treat. Put it on at the next gathering and watch the whole room start singing.