ABBA - Mamma Mia

What this video is

Released in 1975, this promotional clip emerged at a pivotal moment in ABBA's career — before MTV and the globalised music video format existed, ABBA and Hallström were among the earliest acts to systematically use purpose-made promo films to substitute for live appearances on international television programmes. The clip's role in breaking the song in Australia, where repeat screenings on the television programme…

Why it matters

A foundational artifact of the mid-1970s European pop promo tradition and an early exemplar of the music video as a global distribution mechanism. The clip demonstrates the pre-MTV model in which a single filmed performance could substitute for live television appearances across multiple…

The director

Lars Sven 'Lasse' Hallström (born 2 June 1946, Stockholm, Sweden) is a Swedish film director. He first became known for directing almost all of ABBA's music videos between 1974 and 1982, and also directed the 1977 feature film ABBA: The Movie. He came to…