"Knowing Me, Knowing You"
Artwork for Scandinavian release, also used for other releases in different layouts
Single by ABBA
from the album Arrival
B-side"Happy Hawaii"[1]
Released14 February 1977[1]
Recorded23 March 1976
StudioMetronome, Stockholm, Sweden
GenreEuropop, soft rock
Length4:00
LabelPolar (Sweden)
Epic (UK)[1]
Atlantic (US)
Songwriter(s)Benny Andersson
Björn Ulvaeus
Stig Anderson[1]
Producer(s)Benny Andersson
Björn Ulvaeus[1]
ABBA singles chronology
"Money, Money, Money"
(1976)		 "Knowing Me, Knowing You"
(1977)		 "That's Me"
(1977)
Music video
"Knowing Me, Knowing You" on YouTube

"Knowing Me, Knowing You" is a song recorded by Swedish pop group ABBA,[2] released in February 1977 as the third single from the group's fourth album, Arrival (1976). It was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson, with Anni-Frid Lyngstad singing the lead vocals. During recording sessions, it had the working titles of "Ring It In" and "Number 1, Number 1".

Background

"Knowing Me, Knowing You" was recorded in 1976 at the Metronome Studios in Stockholm and was released as a single in February 1977, becoming one of the group's more successful hits. The B-side was "Happy Hawaii", an arrangement of another ABBA song, "Why Did It Have to Be Me?", but with a different lead vocalist and lyrics. "Knowing Me, Knowing You" was one of the early ABBA songs to deal with the break-up of a relationship. It predates the divorces of the ABBA members as well as further break-up songs to come: "The Winner Takes It All", "One of Us" and "When All Is Said and Done". Group member Benny Andersson named "Knowing Me, Knowing You" as one of ABBA's best recordings in a 2004 interview, along with "Dancing Queen", "The Winner Takes It All" and "When I Kissed the Teacher". "Conociéndome, Conociéndote" is the Spanish-language version of the song. It was included in the compilation Oro: Grandes Éxitos released in 1993 and Gracias Por La Música released in 1980.

Reception

"Knowing Me, Knowing You" proved to be one of ABBA's more successful singles, hitting #1 in West Germany (ABBA's sixth consecutive chart-topper there) and the United Kingdom,[3] Ireland, Mexico and South Africa,[4] and reaching the top 3 in Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands and Switzerland. It was a top 10 hit in Australia, Canada, France, New Zealand and Norway. In the United States, it became ABBA's sixth top 20 single, peaking at #14 on the Hot 100 and reaching #7 on Billboard's AC chart.

In the UK, "Knowing Me, Knowing You" was one of the biggest singles of 1977.[5] It also began a second run of three consecutive #1 singles for ABBA (followed by "The Name of the Game" and "Take a Chance on Me"), the group having had three consecutive #1 hit singles in 1976. As of September 2021, it is the group's third-biggest song in the country with 1.02 million chart sales, made up of pure sales and streams.[6]

By September 1979 in West Germany "Knowing Me, Knowing You" had sold over 300,000 copies.[7]

Billboard reviewed the song and described it as a "melodically energetic but sad worded ditty about a romantic breakup."[8] Cash Box called it "a softly rocking record that combines memorable pop hooks in their distinctive reverb-soaked ambiance" and said that it has "a sound agreeable to just about any top 40 station."[9] Record World said that "Its chorus is a mighty hook, capping another superb melody."[10]

"Knowing Me, Knowing You" continues to be regarded as one of ABBA's finest songs. In 2017, Billboard ranked the song number four on their list of the 15 greatest ABBA songs,[11] and in 2021, Rolling Stone ranked the song number two on their list of the 25 greatest ABBA songs.[12]

Music video

The music video for "Knowing Me, Knowing You" depicts the band against various colored backdrops singing while facing each other, turning away as a new line is sung. At the end of the video, the band's female members are seen walking away through thick snow. The video was directed by future Academy Award nominee Lasse Hallström, and most other videos of the band were directed by him.[13]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Knowing Me, Knowing You"
  • Andersson
  • Anderson
  • Ulvaeus
4:02
2."Happy Hawaii"
  • Anderson
  • Andersson
  • Ulvaeus
4:26

Personnel

  • Anni-Frid Lyngstad – lead vocals
  • Agnetha Fältskog – backing vocals
  • Björn Ulvaeus – guitar, backing vocals
  • Benny Andersson – keyboards, synthesizer
  • Rutger Gunnarsson – bass, string arrangements

Charts

Sales and certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[39] Gold 75,000^
Kenya — 10,000[40]
Portugal — 20,000[41]
United Kingdom (BPI)[42] Gold 973,000[43]
West Germany — 300,000[7]
Yugoslavia — 30,000[44]

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Cover versions

  • A cover recorded in 1977 by the Top of the Poppers appears on the 2002 compilation album Knowing Me, Knowing You.
  • The Paraguayan singer Perla recorded a Spanish version, Conociendonos Mas for the 1977 album Relaciones Internacionales.
  • Czech singer Věra Špinarová recorded a Czech version, Slunečné pobřeží (meaning Sunny Beach in Bulgaria), in 1977.
  • The French conductor Franck Pourcel recorded an instrumental version for his 1978 album Pourcel meets Abba.
  • British singer Cilla Black recorded a cover for her 1980 album Especially for You.
  • Swedish pop group A-Teens included the song as a bonus track on the Japanese edition of their debut album The ABBA Generation.
  • Danny Wilson recorded a live version of the song, which was released on their bonus album Three-In-A-Bed Romp in 1991. The instrumental solo is played on an accordion.
  • Danish indie/electronica band How Do I included a cover of the song on their 1991 album Submarine
  • Danish singer Sanne Salomonsen recorded her cover of the song for the 1992 Swedish tribute album ABBA – The Tribute, released on the Polar Music label.
  • American power pop band Wondermints included a cover of the song on their 1996 album Wonderful World of the Wondermints.
  • Marshall Crenshaw released a live version on his 1994 album "Live …My Truck Is My Home".
  • Evan Dando, former lead singer of The Lemonheads, recorded an acoustic version of the song on the album ABBA: A Tribute – The 25th Anniversary Celebration released in 1999.
  • Right Said Fred covered the song on the German album ABBA Mania, which was a tie-in to a TV special in Germany.
  • Swedish musician Nils Landgren included a rendition of the song on his 2004 tribute album Funky ABBA.
  • A version by Swedish heavy metal band Tad Morose was included on the ABBA tribute compilation ABBAMetal (also released as A Tribute to ABBA).
  • The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra recorded an instrumental version of the song.
  • Richard Clayderman played an instrumental version on his album The ABBA Collection.
  • In 2016, former The Mission-guitarist Mark Thwaite released a cover of the song, featuring Ville Valo, lead singer of HIM.
  • Australian singer Angie McMahon covered the song on triple j's Like a Version program in 2019.
  • Swiss singer Richard Gyver released an electro-pop cover of the song in October 2020 together with a music video very much inspired by Lasse Hallström's original work for the ABBA promotional footage; replicas of the ABBA kimono outfits are worn by mannequins in the video.
  • South African Pop/R&B girlband covered the song on their 3rd Base album in 2008.

Live cover performances and appearances in other media

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "ABBA - Knowing Me, Knowing You (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs. 1977. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
  2. ↑ Abba singing knowing me, knowing you, retrieved 27 August 2021
  3. 1 2 Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 338–9. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  4. ↑ "South Africa". Home.zipworld.com.au. 5 January 2014. Archived from the original on 13 February 2015. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
  5. ↑ "UK-Charts - 1977". uk-charts.co.uk. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
  6. ↑ UK Official Charts ABBA's Official Top 20 biggest songs
  7. 1 2 Spahr, Wolfgang (8 September 1979). "Abba The World". Billboard. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  8. ↑ "Top Single Picks" (PDF). Billboard. 7 May 1977. p. 88. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
  9. ↑ "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. 7 May 1977. p. 22. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  10. ↑ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. 7 May 1977. p. 1. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  11. ↑ Benjamin, Jeff (14 August 2017). "ABBA's 15 Best Songs: Critic's Picks". Billboard. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
  12. ↑ Sheffield, Rob (2 September 2021). "The 25 Best ABBA Songs, Ranked". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
  13. ↑ "Knowing me Knowing you/ABBA Lasse Hallström". indielisboa. Archived from the original on 22 December 2017. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  14. ↑ David Kent (2006). Australian Charts Book 1993—2005. Australian Chart Book Pty Ltd, Turramurra, N.S.W. p. 10. ISBN 978-0-646-45889-2.
  15. ↑ "Austrian Charts > ABBA". austriancharts.at Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 November 2020.
  16. ↑ "Ultra Top - Belgian Charts". Ultra Top. Retrieved 3 November 2020.
  17. ↑ "ABBA - KNOWING ME, KNOWING YOU". Single Top 100. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  18. ↑ "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 12 October 2016.
  19. ↑ "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 12 October 2016.
  20. ↑ Pennanen, Timo (2021). "ABBA". Sisältää hitin - 2. laitos Levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla 1.1.1960–30.6.2021 (PDF) (in Finnish). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 8. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  21. ↑ "The Irish Charts > ABBA". IrishCharts.ie. Retrieved 3 November 2020. Note: User must define search parameter as "Abba".
  22. ↑ "Hits of the World". Billboard. 19 March 1977. p. 70. Retrieved 17 July 2021 – via Google Books.
  23. ↑ "ABBA - KNOWING ME, KNOWING YOU" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  24. ↑ "Official Top 40 Singles". RIANZ. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  25. ↑ "Norwegian Charts > ABBA" (in Norwegian). norwegiancharts.com Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 November 2020.
  26. ↑ http://home.zipworld.com.au/~callisto/zimbabwe.html Archived 8 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2017-09-23.
  27. ↑ "SA Charts 1965–March 1989". Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  28. ↑ "Charts". Hit Parade. Retrieved 3 November 2020.
  29. ↑ "Hot 100 - ABBA". Billboard. Retrieved 3 November 2020.
  30. ↑ 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.
  31. ↑ "Offizielle Deutsche Charts: ABBA". GfK Entertainment (in German). Offizielle Deutsche Charts. Retrieved 3 November 2020.
  32. ↑ "Kent Music Report No 183 – 26 December 1977 > National Top 100 Singles for 1977". Kent Music Report. Retrieved 8 January 2022 – via Imgur.com.
  33. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Forum - 1970 (ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts)". Australian-charts.com. Archived from the original on 2 June 2016. Retrieved 12 October 2016.
  34. ↑ "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 12 October 2016.
  35. ↑ Swiss Year-End Charts, 1977
  36. ↑ Hunter, Nigel; Scaping, Peter, eds. (1978). "Top 100 Singles in 1977". BPI Year Book 1978 (3rd ed.). London, England: The British Phonographic Industry Ltd. pp. 216–17. ISBN 0-906154-01-4.
  37. ↑ "Top 100 Hits of 1977/Top 100 Songs of 1977". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 12 October 2016.
  38. ↑ Billboard, 24 December 1977.
  39. ↑ "ABBA the World - Canada". Billboard. 8 November 1979. p. ABBA-8. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 3 November 2020.
  40. ↑ "ABBA the World - Kenya". Billboard. 8 November 1979. p. ABBA-18. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 3 November 2020.
  41. ↑ Fernando, Tenente (8 November 1979). "ABBA the World - Portugal". Billboard. p. ABBA-30. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 3 November 2020.
  42. ↑ "British single certifications – ABBA – Knowing Me, Knowing You". British Phonographic Industry.
  43. ↑ Myers, Justin (22 April 2019). "ABBA's Official Top 20 biggest songs". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 3 November 2020.
  44. ↑ "ABBA fenomen ili fenomenalna ABBA". Džuboks. No. 33. April 1977. p. 5. Retrieved 3 November 2020 – via Popboks.
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