It’s important to admit when you’re wrong. And though I once bristled at the notion that there could ever be such a thing as a “wrong” musical opinion, I have since come to accept that there is, in fact, such a thing. I know because I had one: I was colossally wrong about the song “Dancing Queen” by Abba.
I’m happy I can admit it, maybe even a touch proud of myself for not digging in my heels and hating this song for even a second longer than I had to (unlike some friends I know who are still holding out). To me, looking back, the weirdest part is that I ever felt I had to hate something so clearly irresistible.
In a way, I blame the time and place where I grew up. The mid-1970s, when “Dancing Queen” came out, was a time when there were very strict lines being drawn between cultural camps. As a kid who liked punk rock, this tune was situated deep in enemy territory, at the intersection of pop and disco.
I am, perhaps, a bit skeptical by nature, but scanning the horizons of my memory — seeing what I saw around me from about the mid-70s ...
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