100 Greatest: No.1 Singles & Greatest Albums (BJÖRN)

Filmed: early 2000

Location: London, UK?

Broadcast: Channel 4, UK

Release status: Unreleased

Shown in: UK

Additional information

Björn was featured in two separate programmes which were obviously filmed at the same time.  The text in blue below was used in both programmes.

  1. 100 Greatest No.1 Singles 
    Dancing Queen was placed in 4th position. Björn said of the song: The first time we actually performed it was at the Opera House in Stockholm in front of the King and Queen of Sweden dressed in some kind of 16th Century clothes or something like that. Oh, I must have looked more ridiculous than ever. The queen flattered herself with thinking that we wrote it for her but it’s not the case. It’s very, very uplifting, it’s sort of 100% positive. In the beginning the critics were, you know, not very fond of us. I think they thought we were the most ridiculous group ever. I’m constantly amazed by the fact that 25 years, almost 30 now after the event, ABBA is still around in such a way. I mean every day a couple of people come up to me and say Thank You For The Music - something original like that.”

    Other commentators on the song were presenter Kate Thornton and members of New Order.

    The 100 Greatest No.1 singles - Channel 4:
    1. Imagine - John Lennon
    2. Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen
    3. Hey Jude - The Beatles
    4. Dancing Queen - ABBA
    5. Every Breath You Take - The Police
    6. Stand By Me - Ben E King
    7. The Drugs Don't Work - The Verve
    8. Don't Look Back in Anger - Oasis
    9. Groovejet (If This Ain't Love) - Spiller
    10. (Everything I Do) I Do It For You - Bryan Adams
    11. Nothing Compares 2 U - Sinead O'Connor
    12. Millennium - Robbie Williams
    13. Like A Prayer - Madonna
    14. House of the Rising Sun - The Animals
    15. I Heard It Through The Grapevine - Marvin Gaye
    16. Tainted Love - Soft Cell
    17. I'm A Believer - The Monkees
    18. You Really Got Me - The Kinks
    19. A Whiter Shade of Pale - Procol Harum
    20. If You Tolerate This, Then Your Children Will Be Next - Manic Street Preachers
    21. I Will Survive - Gloria Gaynor
    22. Firestarter - The Prodigy
    23. Billie Jean - Michael Jackson
    24. What A Wonderful World - Louis Armstrong Orchestra
    25. Praise You - Fatboy Slim
    26. Gangsta's Paradise - Coolio
    27. Space Oddity - David Bowie
    28. Going Underground - The Jam
    29. Ready or Not - Fugees
    30. Good Vibrations - The Beach Boys
    31. Bridge Over Troubled Water - Simon And Garfunkel
    32. Careless Whisper - George Michael
    33. I Will Always Love You - Whitney Houston
    34. Voodoo Chile - Jimi Hendrix Experience
    35. Do They Know It's Christmas? - Band Aid
    36. House of Fun - Madness
    37. Make Me Smile (Come Up And See Me) - Steve Harley And Cockney Rebel
    38. Come On Eileen - Dexy's Midnight Runners
    39. Heart of Glass - Blondie
    40. Relax Frankie Goes To Hollywood
    41. Should I Stay or Should I Go - The Clash
    42. (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction - Rolling Stones
    43. Back for Good - Take That
    44. It's Like That - Run DMC vs Jason Nevins
    45. Ghost Town - The Specials
    46. Another Brick in the Wall Part II - Pink Floyd
    47. No Matter What - Boyzone
    48. Mr Tambourine Man - The Byrds
    49. Wuthering Heights - Kate Bush
    50. Oh Pretty Woman - Roy Orbison
    51. Don't You Want Me - The Human League
    52. Love Is All Around - Wet Wet Wet
    53. Video Killed The Radio Star - Buggles
    54. You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' Righteous Brothers
    55. Merry Xmas Everybody - Slade
    56. Night Fever - The Bee Gees
    57. Brimful Of Asha - Cornershop
    58. Get It On - T-Rex
    59. You'll Never Walk Alone - Gerry And The Pacemakers
    60. Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick - Ian Dury And The Blockheads
    61. True - Spandau Ballet
    62. You're The One That I Want - John Travolta And Olivia Newton-John
    63. YMCA - Village People
    64. Baby Love - The Supremes
    65. Maggie May - Rod Stewart
    66. It's Not Unusual - Tom Jones
    67. He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother - The Hollies
    68. Jailhouse Rock - Elvis Presley
    69. There Must Be An Angel - Eurythmics
    70. West End Girls - Pet Shop Boys
    71. I Feel Love - Donna Summer
    72. World in Motion England - New Order
    73. San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear…) - Scott Mackenzie
    74. Albatross - Fleetwood Mac
    75. Without You - Nilsson
    76. Red Red Wine - UB40
    77. I'm Not In Love - 10cc
    78. The Fly - U2
    79. The Most Beautiful Girl In The World - Prince
    80. Reach Out (I'll Be There) - Four Tops
    81. I Just Called To Say I Love You - Stevie Wonder
    82. That'll Be The Day - Buddy Holly and the Crickets
    83. Do You Really Want To Hurt Me? - Culture Club
    84. The Tears Of A Clown - Smokey Robinson And The Miracles
    85. Hello - Lionel Richie
    86. I Should Be So Lucky - Kylie Minogue
    87. Jealous Guy - Roxy Music
    88. Je T'Aime (Moi Non Plus) - Jane Birkin And Serge Gainsbourg
    89. The Model / Computer Love - Kraftwerk
    90. Strangers In The Night - Frank Sinatra
    91. Back To Life (However Do You Want Me) - Soul II Soul
    92. Something In The Air - Thunderclap Newman
    93. Israelites - Desmond Dekker And The Aces
    94. Brass In Pocket - The Pretenders
    95. (We're Gonna) Rock Around The Clock - Bill Haley And The Comets
    96. Ride On Time - Black Box
    97. Rivers Of Babylon / Brown Girl In The Ring - Boney M
    98. The Young Ones - Cliff Richard and the Shadows
    99. I Believe - Frankie Laine
    100. Mull Of Kintyre - Wings


       
  2. 100 Greatest Albums
    Arrival was placed in 28th position. Björn commented: "Writing songs, Benny and I never really thought about who would sing it and how. We never thought of, you know, could Frida sing this, could Agnetha sing this, that's something we found out later whether that was possible or not! Sometimes the range was impossible, but then again we had two to choose from like in a song like Money, Money, Money, the verse is very, very low so Frida does that. The chorus is very high, so Agnetha does that. We used to write on a little island outside Stockholm in those days, we had both summer houses on that island so we used to get together in the morning in a little cottage with a piano and bang away ... and I remember writing Dancing Queen, that was in the mid-70s I think - 75, 76. The first time we actually performed it was at the Opera House in Stockholm in front of the King and Queen of Sweden. The queen flattered herself with thinking that we wrote it for her but it’s not the case."

    The 100 Greatest Albums - Channel 4:
    1. OK Computer - Radiohead
    2. The Joshua Tree - U2
    3. Nevermind - Nirvana
    4. Thriller - Michael Jackson
    5. The Dark Side of the Moon - Pink Floyd
    6. Definitely Maybe - Oasis
    7. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - The Beatles
    8. Like a Prayer - Madonna
    9. Appetite for Destruction - Guns N' Roses
    10. Revolver - The Beatles
    11. Automatic for the People - R.E.M.
    12. The Beatles [The White Album] - The Beatles
    13. A Night at the Opera - Queen
    14. Parachutes - Coldplay
    15. (What's The Story) Morning Glory? - Oasis
    16. Jagged Little Pill - Alanis Morissette
    17. Led Zeppelin IV - Led Zeppelin
    18. Urban Hymns - The Verve
    19. Are You Experienced? - The Jimi Hendrix Experience
    20. The Queen Is Dead - The Smiths
    21. Imagine - John Lennon
    22. The Bends - Radiohead
    23. Exodus - Bob Marley, Bob Marley & The Wailers
    24. The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses
    25. Bridge Over Troubled Water - Simon & Garfunkel
    26. Debut - Björk
    27. The Doors - The Doors
    28. Arrival - ABBA
    29. Off the Wall - Michael Jackson
    30. Rio - Duran Duran
    31. Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols... - the Sex Pistols
    32. The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars - David Bowie
    33. Pet Sounds - The Beach Boys
    34. Closer - Joy Division
    35. Let It Bleed - The Rolling Stones
    36. Parklife - Blur
    37. Born to Run - Bruce Springsteen
    38. Lady Sings the Blues: The Billie Holiday Story, Vol.4 - Billie Holiday
    39. Elephant - The White Stripes
    40. Paranoid - Black Sabbath
    41. Specials - The Specials
    42. Exile On Main Street - The Rolling Stones
    43. Songs for Swingin' Lovers! - Frank Sinatra
    44. London Calling - The Clash
    45. The Fat of the Land - The Prodigy
    46. Velvet Underground & Nico - Velvet Underground
    47. Brothers in Arms - Dire Straits
    48. Doolittle - Pixies
    49. I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You - Aretha Franklin
    50. The Libertines - The Libertines
    51. Pills Thrills & Bellyaches - Happy Mondays
    52. Horses - Patti Smith
    53. Tommy - The Who
    54. Transformer - Lou Reed
    55. Blood on the Tracks - Bob Dylan
    56. Sign 'O' the Times - Prince
    57. No Angel - Dido
    58. Moon Safari - Air
    59. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road - Elton John
    60. All Mod Cons - The Jam, Bruce Foxton, Paul Weller
    61. Grace - Jeff Buckley
    62. Rumours - Fleetwood Mac
    63. Play - Moby
    64. Blood Sugar Sex Magik - Red Hot Chili Peppers
    65. Synchronicity - The Police
    66. Blue - Joni Mitchell
    67. Super Fly - Curtis Mayfield
    68. Complete Sun Sessions - Elvis Presley
    69. Speakerboxxx/The Love Below - OutKast
    70. Different Class - Pulp
    71. Trans-Europe Express - Kraftwerk
    72. Blue Lines - Massive Attack
    73. Odelay - Beck
    74. Songs in the Key of Life - Stevie Wonder
    75. Hounds of Love - Kate Bush
    76. Fear of Music - Talking Heads
    77. The Marshall Mathers LP - Eminem
    78. What's Going On - Marvin Gaye
    79. Faith - George Michael
    80. Saturday Night Fever - Soundtrack
    81. Screamadelica - Primal Scream
    82. A Love Supreme - John Coltrane
    83. Forever Changes - Love
    84. Graceland - Paul Simon
    85. Five Leaves Left - Nick Drake
    86. Bat Out of Hell - Meat Loaf
    87. Dusty in Memphis - Dusty Springfield
    88. 3 Feet High and Rising - De La Soul
    89. Is This It - The Strokes
    90. One Step Beyond - Madness
    91. I've Been Expecting You - Robbie Williams
    92. After The Gold Rush - Neil Young
    93. It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back... - Public Enemy
    94. Parallel Lines - Blondie
    95. Hotel California - The Eagles
    96. Sex Machine: The Very Best of James Brown - James Brown
    97. A Grand Don't Come for Free - The Streets
    98. Searching for the Young Soul Rebels - Dexys Midnight
    99. Every Picture Tells a Story - Rod Stewart
    100. Dare - The Human League

Thanks to Patrick Smith.

Got any information to add?
Spotted a mistake?
Contact me at abbaontv@yahoo.co.uk