The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Set To Lay All Its Love On ABBA

The 2010 list of Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inductees has been announced, and on it are several artists that shouldn’t come as much of a surprise: Jimmy Cliff, Genesis, the Hollies, the Stooges. And then there’s ABBA. Wait, ABBA?

“I’m surprised. It’s quite wonderful,” Benny Andersson of the legendary Swedish group tells Rolling Stone. “I didn’t think this would happen, because we were a pop band, not a rock band.”

Actually, it shouldn’t be too shocking. ABBA-sampling Madonna found herself inducted two years ago.

The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame ceremony goes down March 15, 2010, at New York’s Waldorf Astoria. But as Andersson explains it, you shouldn’t hold your breath waiting for all four ABBA members to reunite and perform together. Or should you?

“I believe that a band that is inducted to the Hall is supposed to do a performance, but I don’t think we can do that.  Agnetha [Fältskog] is not flying, so I don’t know how she’s going to get to New York. And we haven’t done anything together in 30 years. It’s a difficult one. But, again, but you should never say never, you know?

“The people who are really fond of ABBA for what we did, I think we are doing them a favor by not going out. We all feel the same. It’s been too long of a time. It’s been almost 30 years. There is no reason. I can’t understand the bands that reunite, because there will always be a reason, whether it be economic reasons or the fun of it… being on the stage again. We don’t have that.”

It’s hard to believe it’s been 17 years since the band’s hits collection Gold was first released. And between the ’00s phenomenon that was Mamma Mia! and the Hall Of Fame induction, the ABBA gravy train will likely keep on plowing full steam ahead.

Here’s ABBA performing “Waterloo” at the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest, which the melodic quartet went on to win: