# People Need Love

"People Need Love" is the debut single recorded in March 1972 by Swedish pop group ABBA, at the time known as Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid. The song was on the group's first album, Ring Ring, released in 1973.
"People Need Love" first charted in Sweden at number 20 in late July 1972, then in August it peaked at number 17 for two weeks on the Kvällstoppen chart, staying on the chart for four weeks in total.

## Composition

As with the majority of ABBA songs, "People Need Love" was written and composed by the two male band members, Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus. It was engineered by Michael Tretow who aimed to create a Phil Spector-like wall of sound on the recording. The song begins in the key of B major and modulates up to C♯ major for the final chorus.
Although their debut album did not bring them to global attention, it follows some standards of ABBA's style. The ballad is about what people can give each other to make their lives easier and create a better world.

## Reception

The basic aim of the "People Need Love" single was not to promote the quartet, since all four individuals had other commitments and did not have the time to form a permanent group (an example of this is the crediting; the single in most of the territories is credited to "Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid"), but to promote the "Björn & Benny" duo, which was the singing and songwriting partnership of the two men.The women were simply guesting on the new "Björn & Benny" single.
Andersson discussed about the song “After a period of slipping and sliding through the Swedish cabaret scene for far too long, we were all extremely inspired by entering the Metronome studio (with Michael B. Tretow!) to record what we thought to be a real pop tune. It came out better than we had expected and gave us confidence for the future.”
"People Need Love" made the top 20 of the combined Swedish singles and albums chart. It was the foursome's first charting record in the United States, where it peaked at No. 114 on the Cashbox singles chart and No. 117 on the Record World singles chart. The Playboy Records U.S. release was credited to "Bjorn & Benny (with Svenska Flicka)", and according to ABBA's manager Stig Anderson, could have been a much bigger American hit, if not for the limited distribution resources of the label that was unable to meet the demand from retailers and radio programmers.
At the time of the single's release, the Ring Ring album had not been planned, since there was no intention to form a permanent group. However, the song was included on the album the following year. Although recorded earlier than most of the album, it can retroactively be considered the lead single from Ring Ring.
In the Netherlands and Belgium, the single had its release in August 1973 as the follow-up to the highly successful single "Ring Ring". However, it performed rather badly, reaching only No. 47 on the Radio Noordzee Top 50 from the Dutch service of Radio North Sea International.
Record World magazine noted the "pleasant sound" and suggested that this could be the "label's first major hit".

## Track listing

* A. "People Need Love" - 2:45
* B. "Merry-Go-Round (En karusell)" - 3:24

## Personnel

* Agnetha Fältskog – lead and backing vocals
* Anni-Frid Lyngstad – lead and backing vocals
* Björn Ulvaeus – acoustic guitar, lead and backing vocals
* Benny Andersson – piano, keyboards, lead and backing vocals

### Additional musicians

* Ola Brunkert – drums
* Mike Watson – bass
* Janne Schaffer – electric guitar

## Charts

Chart performance for "People Need Love" :
| Chart (1972-1973) | Peak position |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40 Tipparade) | 21 |
| Sweden (Kvällstoppen) | 17 |
| Sweden (Tio i topp) | 3 |
| US Top 100 Looking Ahead (Cash Box) | 114 |
| US Singles Chart (Record World) | 117 |

## Release history

| Region | Date | Title | Label | Format | Catalog |
| Sweden, Denmark | 1 Jun 1972 | "People Need Love" / "Merry-Go-Round" | Polar | 7-inch vinyl | POS 1156 |
| Austria, West Germany | Jul 1972 (Re-released Dec 1972) | "People Need Love" / "Merry-Go-Round" | Polydor | 7-inch vinyl | 2041 369 |
| Canada, Philippines, USA | Sep 1972 | "People Need Love" / "Merry-Go-Round" | Playboy Records | 7-inch vinyl | P 50014 |
| France | 10 Oct 1972 | "People Need Love" / "Merry-Go-Round" | Vogue | 7-inch vinyl | 45. V. 4148 |
| New Zealand | 1972 | "People Need Love" / "Merry-Go-Round" | Family | 7-inch vinyl | FAY 1053 |
| South Africa | 1973 | "People Need Love" / "Merry-Go-Round" | Sunshine | 7-inch vinyl | SUN 1 |
| Europe | 19 May 2023 | "People Need Love" / "Merry-Go-Round" | Polar | 7-inch vinyl, picture disc | 00602448459435 |

## Covers

On 5 January 1973, German group Zwei Mal Zwei released a German-language cover titled "Liebe Ist Gut" (Translation: "Love is Good").
Spanish singer Bruno Lomas released a Spanish-language cover titled "Venga el amor" (Translation: "Come Love") in 1973.
In 1973, Finnish singer Matti Esko released a Finnish-language cover titled " Tarvitaan Mies, Tarvitaan Nainen" (Translation: "Need a Man, Need a Woman") on the album Aikaa Sulta Pyydän.
In June 1974, Swedish group Pastellerna released the song as a single in Swedish language, titled "Ingenting mer och ingenting mindre" (Translation: "Nothing More And Nothing Less"). "Ingenting mer och ingenting mindre" peaked in 4th place in the Svensktoppen charts on 4 August 1974. The B-side of the song was a Swedish-language cover of "He Is Your Brother". Both songs were released on the album, Närbild in 1975.