This is a list of songs that were either recorded or written by Swedish pop group ABBA, but which – for various reasons – were never released during the band's active years (1972–1982; 2016–2021). Some of the songs were later released in their entirety or in parts on the track "ABBA Undeleted" (included in the 1994 box set Thank You for the Music), while other songs were released as part of solo projects.
Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid era
1972 "Den Stora Kärleken"
ABBA era
1974 "Ricky Rock 'N' Roller" is a song recorded during the recording sessions for ABBA's self-titled album in 1974. The Swedish rock star Jerry Williams recorded and released it as a single after ABBA had decided their version was unsuitable for release. An excerpt of the demo of the song was released on the box set Thank You for the Music.Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - The Complete Recordings Sessions, page 44. Verulam Publishing Ltd (October 13, 1994). . .Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - Människorna Och Musiken, page 171. Tiden Stockholm (1996). . "Here Comes Rubie Jamie" is the working title of a song recorded in 1974, which had acquired the name "Terra Del Fuego" by the time the lyrics were recorded. The song is unique in that it is the only studio recording to feature lead vocals by all four ABBA members. An excerpt of the song (where only Benny and Frida are heard) was released on the box set Thank You for the Music. The excerpt was particularly edited so as not to include the chorus, as it is said that Björn and Benny violently dislike it. This explains why it is not named after its original title, but named to not refer to the chorus.Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - The Complete Recordings Sessions, pages 45 & 50. Verulam Publishing Ltd (October 13, 1994). . . "Baby" is the early demo version of "Rock Me" recorded in 1974 with the lead vocals by Agnetha. An excerpt of this song was released on the box set Thank You for the Music.Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - The Complete Recordings Sessions, page 47. Verulam Publishing Ltd (October 13, 1994). . . "Didn't I" is the title of a demo of the song worked on before "Baby".Palm, Carl Magnus (2024): ABBA on Record, page 379-384. . "Radio 1 Jingle" is a short re-recording of "Waterloo" with different lyrics. It was sometimes used for the BBC radio 1 as a theme song. "A Funny, Funny Way" is the possible title of a demo of a song recorded in September 1974.Palm, Carl Magnus (2024): ABBA on Record, page 378. .
1975 "To Live with You" is an attempt to record the song "Lycka" (previously released by Björn and Benny for their first album by the same title, and also recorded by Frida on her debut album) in English. The demo recording dates from 1975, and was later released on the remastered CD of Björn and Benny's Lycka album in May 2006.Njörn Ulvaeus & Benny Andersson: Lycka (2006 re-issue) Palm, Carl Magnus, liner notes. Polar Music/Universal Music "Dancing Queen" (early version) is a demo version with an additional verse. It can be heard in footage of the Dancing Queen recording session from Mr. Trendsetter, a 1975 Swedish documentary.Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - The Complete Recordings Sessions, pages 53, 54, 55. Verulam Publishing Ltd (October 13, 1994). . .Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - Människorna Och Musiken, page 172. Tiden Stockholm (1996). . This footage is included on the DVD of the Arrival deluxe edition. The extra verse consists of: "Baby, baby, you're out of sight / Hey, you're looking alright tonight / When you come to the party / Listen to the guys / They've got the look in their eyes". The song then resumes with: "You're a teaser, you turn them on". "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" (early version) is a demo version with an extra verse. This verse is: "Let's get together, every day we'll be better / I love you, I do, I do, I do, I do, I do / Leave it or take it, I believe we can make it / Don't you too? I do, I do, I do, I do, I do". "Tango" is an early version of "Fernando" with Swedish lyrics. An excerpt was included in the ABBA Undeleted medley on the 1994 box set Thank You For the Music.Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - The Complete Recordings Sessions, pages 53,54. Verulam Publishing Ltd (October 13, 1994). . . A completed version of the song with the same lyrics was released in 1975 by Frida on her solo album "Ensam". "I Want You" is an Arrival-era demo recorded in 1975. Parts of this demo was later used for the intro to "Does Your Mother Know".
1976 "Funky Feet" is a song recorded during the Arrival sessions that was ultimately dropped due to its similarity to "Dancing Queen". The song was later recorded by Svenne & Lotta, Australian group The Studs, Alcazar, and the Swedish ABBA tribute band Arrival,Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - Människorna Och Musiken, page 174. Tiden Stockholm (1996). .Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - The Complete Recordings Sessions, page 60. Verulam Publishing Ltd (October 13, 1994). . . A section from the beginning of the song was later re-used for the 1982 track "I Am the City". "National Song" is a short track recorded for the Australian TV commercial of the National appliances. It is a re-recording of "Fernando" with new lyrics, using the backing track from the song. "Monsieur, Monsieur" is the title of the early demo version of "My Love, My Life" with lead vocals by Agnetha.Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - The Complete Recordings Sessions, pages 61,62. Verulam Publishing Ltd (October 13, 1994). . . "Memory Lane" is a third title of "Why Did It Have to Be Me"/"Happy Hawaii" that is said to have been recorded but never released. Benny and Bjorn said it was lacking something.Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - The Complete Recordings Sessions, pages 61, 62. Verulam Publishing Ltd (October 13, 1994). . . "Gypsy Girl" was an alternative name for "Money, Money, Money" with different backing vocals. A demo was recorded but the title was changed back to "Money, Money, Money".
1977 "I Am an A" is a song written for the band's European and Australian tour with lyrics written by all four members, jokingly depicting themselves as A, B, B and A. The song was never considered for a studio version, but parts of the chorus was later reused in "Free as a Bumblebee", and as that song never progressed beyond the demo, the chorus later surfaced during the Chess songwriting sessions as the 1985 UK No. 1 hit "I Know Him So Well".Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - The Complete Recordings Sessions, page 67, 71. Verulam Publishing Ltd (October 13, 1994). . .Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - Människorna Och Musiken, page 175. Tiden Stockholm (1996). . "Get On the Carousel" is another song from ABBA's 1977 tour, written for the mini-musical The Girl with the Golden Hair. The song was considered too weak to progress further, but the chorus surfaced as a melody line in "Hole in Your Soul" (the part "...ahaa-, the songs you sing are too romantic..."). "Get On the Carousel" appears in ABBA: The Movie. "Scaramouche" is a demo instrumental recording from 1977. Some parts surfaced in the recording sessions for "Chess" and resulted in a melody line in the track "Merano". An excerpt of this song was released on the box set Thank You for the Music.ABBA: 'Thank You For the Music (4-CD box set), liner notes by Michael B. Tretow, Polar Music/PolyGram, 1994.Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - Människorna Och Musiken, page 176. Tiden Stockholm (1996). . "Billy Boy" is the early version of "Take a Chance on Me". An excerpt of the track was released on the box set Thank You for the Music.Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - The Complete Recordings Sessions, page 72. Verulam Publishing Ltd (October 13, 1994). . . "Golden Dreams and Golden Lies", "Love for Me Is Love Forever" a.k.a. "Yippee Yay", "Big John" and "Joanne" are early versions of "Move On".Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - The Complete Recordings Sessions, page 71. Verulam Publishing Ltd (October 13, 1994). . .Palm, Carl Magnus (2024): ABBA on Record, page 394-395. . "I Believe in You" is a song recorded on July 19, 1977. It has never been publicly released. "High on Your Love" is the first version of the song "Hole in Your Soul", recorded in August 1977.Palm, Carl Magnus (2024): ABBA on Record, page 397. .
1978 "Free as a Bumblebee" a.k.a. "Svantes Inferno" is a demo recorded in 1978 with lead vocals by Björn and Benny, released on the box set Thank You For The Music. Part of the chorus was later reused in "I Know Him So Well" from the musical Chess.Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - The Complete Recordings Sessions, page 77. Verulam Publishing Ltd (October 13, 1994). . .Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - Människorna Och Musiken, page 178. Tiden Stockholm (1996). . "Mountain Top"/"Dr.Claus Von Hamlet Nos. 1, 2 and 3" are several demos recorded in 1978. The composition underwent several changes and [fun] demo titles during the sessions. At one point the demo featured lyrics and vocals by Björn entitled "Mountain Top", and another instrumental attempt ("Part I"), and later reworking "Part 2" (with lead vocals by Agnetha and Frida) was released on the box set Thank You for the Music. Parts of the composition would re-surface in the June 1980 demo "Burning My Bridges", but eventually the song was defined as a 'schottis' and put aside until Benny made his first instrumental folk album Klinga Mina Klockor in 1987, where it was named "Lottis Schottis".Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - The Complete Recordings Sessions, pages 76, 80. Verulam Publishing Ltd (October 13, 1994). . . "Summer Night City" (early mixes) according to Michael B. Tretow, there are over 30 different mixes of the song preserved on old tapes, some which are very different from that which was later released as a single. One version was released on the 1994 box set Thank You for the Music, with an instrumental string introduction. This version (in an improved edit) was released on the 2005 release The Complete Studio Recordings and again on the 2010 "Deluxe" edition of the Voulez-Vous album.Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - The Complete Recordings Sessions, pages 77, 78. Verulam Publishing Ltd (October 13, 1994). . . One working title for an early version of "Summer Night City" was "Kalle Skändare", while Carl Magnus Palm suggests one title for another complete version would be "You're a Night Demon".Palm, Carl Magnus (2024): ABBA on Record, page 402. . "Just a Notion" (1978 version) is a track recorded in September 1978. Although progressing beyond the demo stage, Benny and Bjorn went off it pretty quickly, deeming it to be “unmixable” and therefore leaving it unreleased. However a snippet of a rough mix by Michael B. Tretow was released on the box set Thank You for the Music in 1994. A complete version was recorded by cover band Arrival, which occasionally featured original ABBA bass player Rutger Gunnarsson as a special guest, and was included on their 1999 album First Flight. This recording features a full set of lyrics (which are identical to those which ABBA used), unlike the small snippet of the released ABBA version. Carl Magnus Palm has also confirmed that the verse included in the "ABBA Undeleted" medley is in fact the second verse of the song.Palm, Carl Magnus: ABBA - The Complete Recordings Sessions, page 79. Verulam Publishing Ltd (October 13, 1994). . . It was released on October 22, 2021 for the album Voyage, two weeks before the album release. Benny recorded a new backing track with drums and guitars, but the vocals are from the 1978 version. "Crying Over You" is a demo recorded in 1978 with lead vocals by Björn. An excerpt of the track was released on the box set Thank You for the Music.