Ranking the ABBA albums: from “Ring Ring” to “Voyage”

As someone who’s been a fan since age two (thanks to my dad’s cassettes), I’ve laughed, cried and danced with these records all my life. So here’s a deeper dive: every ABBA album ranked, from the naff to the bloody brilliant.

Now, let’s be honest: being an ABBA fan in the mid-90s wasn’t exactly “cool”. This was before Mamma Mia! made them trendy again. Back then, they were still considered naff Eurotrash with dodgy costumes, cringeworthy dance moves, and far too many sequins. I took my fair share of playground mocking for daring to declare my love of Waterloo over Blur or Oasis. But here’s the thing: strip away the flares and glitter boots, and what’s left is pure brilliance. Benny and Björn’s genius hooks. Agnetha and Frida’s soaring, glorious, gut-punch vocal delivery. Michael Tretow’s experimental production tricks that gave their records that rich, otherworldly sheen. Critics sneered in the 70s, wrote them off as pop fodder in the 80s… and yet here we are, decades later, when it’s officially “cool” to love ABBA. Some of us, of course, never stopped.

So here it is: from worst to best, my definitive ranking of ABBA’s nine studio albums.

9. Ring Ring (1973)

Where it all began… sort of. To call this ABBA’s “debut” is generous. At this point, Benny and Björn were tinkering about in the studio, asked their girlfriends to sing on “Hej Gamle Man”, and accidentally created pop’s greatest band. “People Need Love” was the first official single by all four, and it’s a sweet curiosity – but the album itself? A stylistic jumble sale. Rock, pop, folk – everything’s thrown in and not all of it sticks. About a third is solid gold, another third is “fine, I suppose”, and the rest is best left to completists. Oh, and it wasn’t even released in the UK until 1992. Iconic beginnings, but a bit of a dog’s dinner.

Hidden Gem: Ring Ring’s title track – irresistibly catchy and the first glimpse of ABBA’s hitmaking sparkle.

8. Waterloo (1974)

Their first major international release and the first album release that was credited to “ABBA”. Fresh off their Eurovision victory, ABBA finally became ABBA – an actual band. “Waterloo” the song is, of course, a glitter-soaked pop thunderbolt. But the album itself is still Ring Ring’s messy cousin, albeit better produced thanks to Michael Tretow’s wizardry. There are genuine gems tucked in – “What About Livingston” is a camp, fun, singalong bop and “Hasta Mañana” is achingly pretty – but overall, it’s more “fun scrapbook” than cohesive masterpiece. Still, compared to most Eurovision winners’ careers, this is practically Shakespeare.

Hidden Gem: Dance (While the Music Still Goes On) – a melancholy 60’s throwback; before they knew they were good at it.

7. Voyage (2021)

The prodigal Swedes return, 40 years older, but still sounding unmistakably themselves. I never thought I’d live to see it, and for the sheer joy of having a new ABBA album in 2021, I played it into the ground. The singles, “I Still Have Faith in You” and “Don’t Shut Me Down”, are modern classics. But once the euphoria wore off… it’s good, not great. A few tracks are fine, a few are forgettable, and “Little Things” is so teeth-rottingly sweet I nearly had to call my dentist. What makes Voyage extra special though is how it’s tied to the ABBA Voyage live show in London – the artwork, the themes, the sense of resurrection. I’ve seen it 11 times already, with visits 12 and 13 booked in. Honestly, it never gets old.

Hidden Gem: Keep an Eye on Dan – catchy, dramatic, and slightly unhinged in the best ABBA way.

6. Super Trouper (1980)

This is where I risk angering the ABBA gods. Yes, it was their most pre-ordered album ever. Yes, the singles – “Super Trouper” and “The Winner Takes It All” – are majestic. But as an album? It sometimes feels like ABBA in autopilot mode. A little too polished, a little too safe. “The Piper” is borderline unlistenable, but swap it out for b-side “Elaine” and suddenly it’s stronger. Don’t get me wrong: it’s still excellent, but stacked against their peak, it’s a bit… samey. Think of it as the pop equivalent of a reliable Volvo: dependable, but hardly thrilling.

Hidden Gem: On and On and On – ABBA doing glam rock disco synth pop crossover swagger. Yes, really.

5. ABBA (1975)

Now we’re talking. This is the album where ABBA found their sound. “SOS” and “Mamma Mia” are titanic pop moments, but the deep cuts sparkle too – “Hey Hey Helen” rocks harder than people give it credit for, and “I’ve Been Waiting for You” is heartbreak wrapped in a melody. Poor Björn gets lumbered with the dreary “Man in the Middle”, but if you sub in b-side “Crazy World”, the whole thing is solid as a rock. Bloody brilliant, actually.

Hidden Gem: I’ve Been Waiting for You – understated, gorgeous, and devastatingly sad.

4. Arrival (1976)

This is ABBA going full pop juggernaut. “Dancing Queen”, “Knowing Me, Knowing You”, “Money, Money, Money” – all here, all flawless. The album is remarkably consistent, with standouts like “Tiger” and the underrated “That’s Me”. Yes, “Dum Dum Diddle” is naff (and sounds like a rejected advert for chewing gum), but it’s forgivable in an otherwise bulletproof set. If this were most bands, it would be their magnum opus. For ABBA, it’s only fourth best. That tells you everything.

Hidden Gem: That’s Me – sharp, witty and a perfect slice of mid-70s ABBA attitude.

3. Voulez-Vous (1979)

ABBA do disco – and they do it with style. Voulez-Vous is wall-to-wall bangers, from the glitterball drama of the title track to the aching vulnerability of “I Have a Dream”. 1979 was a peak year: this album, Greatest Hits Vol. 2, and their biggest ever world tour. Oh, and if you count the double A-side singles, ABBA managed six Top 5 hits in the UK that year, spending longer on the singles charts in 1979 than any other act. Not too shabby for a bunch of Swedes in sequins.

Hidden Gem: If It Wasn’t for the Nights – should have been a single, one of their very best.

2. The Album (1977)

A leap forward, released to coincide with “ABBA: The Movie” (no, not Mamma Mia!). Where Arrival perfected pop, The Album stretched it further. “Take a Chance on Me” is as playful as pop gets, while “The Name of the Game” and “Eagle” are sweeping, ambitious, almost prog in their scope. “Eagle” being probably my favourite ABBA song ever. There’s a maturity here, a willingness to experiment without losing accessibility. It’s bold, emotional, and endlessly rewarding. The only downside? It makes you wish ABBA had gone even further into their weird, experimental side.

Hidden Gem: Move On – part folk ballad, part power anthem, part ABBA at their most adventurous.

1. The Visitors (1981)

And finally, their masterpiece. ABBA’s swan song, released as the band were crumbling personally and professionally, and all the better for it. It’s moody, mature, haunting. Songs like “The Visitors” and “Soldiers” are darker than anything they’d attempted before, while “When All Is Said and Done” and “One of Us” are heartbreak in stereo. Commercially, it didn’t soar like its predecessors, but artistically, it’s ABBA at their peak. Poised, poignant, and powerful. Put simply: bloody marvellous.

Hidden Gem: I Let the Music Speak – theatrical, dramatic, and heartbreakingly overlooked.

Final Thoughts

ABBA’s journey is extraordinary: from the chaotic beginnings of Ring Ring to the haunting brilliance of The Visitors, they shaped modern pop with more artistry than critics were willing to admit at the time. They were once dismissed as kitsch, but now they’re revered as pop masters – and rightly so.

Their cultural footprint is enormous. Mamma Mia! turned their catalogue into a theatrical juggernaut, the ABBA Voyage show has redefined live music with its dazzling digital avatars, and new generations keep discovering them, usually via “Dancing Queen” blaring out at weddings or TikTok. Forty years after their supposed farewell, ABBA remain timeless, unstoppable, and – whisper it – genuinely cool.

ABBA’s music has now entered the digital age in more ways than one: as avatar versions of themselves, they’ll continue performing long after the rest of us have gone to bed. It’s not just nostalgia – it’s proof that their songs are eternal. Long live ABBA.