“Money, Money, Money” by ABBA

ABBA’s “Money, Money, Money” is sung from both a practical and philosophical perspective. It is centered on a woman who works hard  “all night” and day. However, in the end, due to a heavy debt load, she finds herself broke and thus is suffering from a rather severe case of self-pity. By virtue of this, she has a “plan” to bag a “wealthy man”. She strongly believes that by doing so she “wouldn’t have to work at all” and instead would be able to chill all day. Simply put, she believes her only way to escape poverty and enjoy life is to get herself a wealthy man.

This is based on her belief that money is the key perpetual happiness. In fact she feels that just “a little money” would enable her to do much more than what is she currently capable of.

Later she comes to the conclusion that she eventually has to travel to “Las Vegas or Monaco” in order to “win a fortune in a game”. This is likely an allusion to gambling and perhaps a statement issued by the singer against the likelihood of her actually finding a rich man. And both of these aforementioned schemes are just her dreams of finding contentment in what she dubs as “the rich man’s world”.

Facts about “Money, Money, Money” 

• Benny Andersson together with Björn Ulvaeus wrote and produced “Money, Money, Money”.
• This track was dropped on the 1st of November 1976. It was actually released as a single from ABBA’s fourth studio album named Arrival. The hits “Dancing Queen” and “Knowing Me, Knowing You” were also released as singles from this album.
• In addition to appearing on Arrival, this track can also be found on other ABBA albums such as The Singles: First Ten Years and ABBA Gold: Greatest Hits.
• This track’s video was inspired by the 1992 musical drama film Cabaret. ABBA’s longtime collaborator, Lasse Hallström, directed the video.
• “Money, Money, Money” features in the 2008 film Mamma Mia! In the film, Donna Sheridan-Carmichael sings the song. Donna is played by American actress Meryl Streep.

How “Money, Money, Money” performed on the charts

This track did outstandingly great, becoming a chart-topper in countries like; France, Belgium, New Zealand, Australia, Mexico, and the Netherlands. It also made it into the top 3 hit songs on the chart list of UK, Switzerland, Austria, and Norway.

Cover versions of “Money, Money, Money”

Several artists have produced a variety of cover versions of “Money, Money, Money”. These artists include; The Nolans, Chug, Madness, E-Rotic, Afterworld, At Vance, Nils Landgren, and Stephanie St. James.

Aside being covered by many artists, this track has also been sampled numerous times. Some songs that have sampled “Money, Money, Money” include the following:  

• “To My Face” by Urbanzayy (Feat. Ish Williams)
• “Rich Man’s World (1%)” by Immortal Technique
• “Loadsamoney (Doin’ Up the House)” by Harry Enfield

Tech N9ne’s 2008 track titled, “Money” also interpolates this classic.