Where are those happy days, they seem so hard to find
I tried to reach for you, but you have closed your mind
Whatever happened to our love?
I wish I understood
It used to be so nice, it used to be so good
(Chorus)
So when you're near me, darling can't you hear me
S. O. S. (Somebody help me)
The love you gave me, nothing else can save me
S. O. S.
When you're gone
How can I even try to go on? (ohh)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on?
You seem so far away though you are standing near
You made me feel alive, but something died I fear
I really tried to make it out
I wish I understood
What happened to our love, it used to be so good
So when you're near me, darling can't you hear me
S. O. S. (Y-O-U)
The love you gave me, nothing else can save me
S. O. S. (Don't make this hard)
When you're gone
How can I even try to go on? (Go on)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on? (Carry on)
So when you're near me, darling can't you hear me (ah, yeah)
S. O. S. (yeah yeah yeah)
The love you gave me, nothing else can save me
(You gave me all the love I needed)
S. O. S. (ooh baby)
When you're gone
How can I even try to go on?(I can't go on)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on? (I can't carry on)
When you're gone (oh yeah!)
How can I try to go on? (Someone help me)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on? (I know I can)
So when you're near me, darling can't you hear me (I can still hear you)
S. O. S.
The love you gave me, nothing else can save me
(Don't make this hard for me, baby)
S. O. S.
When you're gone (When you are gone)
How can I even try to go on? (ooh ooh oh)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on? (Can't carry on)
(Ohhhhhhhhhh, yeah!)
So when you're near me, darling can't you hear me (ah ah)
S. O. S. (oh oh)
The love you gave me, nothing else can save me
(Nothing else can save me)
S. O. S.
When you're gone
How can I even try to go on? (like that)
When you're gone (like that-at)
Though I try how can I carry on? (like that)
So when you're near me (like that), darling can't you hear me
(Can't you hear me?)
S. O. S. (uh uh)
The love you gave me (ah ah ah), nothing else can save me
S. O. S.
When you're gone (ohh)
How can I even try to go on? (Gotta try)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on? (Gotta carry on)
So when you're near me, darling can't you hear me
(So when you're near me, yeah)
S. O. S. (Somebody help me)
The love you gave me (your love can save me), nothing else can save me
S. O. S. (Cause you on my mind)
When you're gone (I've got me losing it)
How can I even try to go on? (Someone come and rescue me)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on? (Cause you on my mind)
So when you're near me (all of the time), darling can't you hear me
S. O. S.
The love you gave me, nothing else can save me
(You got me looking for you)
S. O. S.
When you're gone (I will not lose myself)
How can I even try to go on?
When you're gone (Don't make me lose myself)
Though I try how can I carry on?
So when you're near me, darling can't you hear me
(Your love might be testing me)
S. O. S. (I don't wanna lose it)
The love you gave me, nothing else can save me (no no)
S. O. S.
When you're gone
How can I even try to go on? (ohh)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on? (I try to carry on)
I tried to reach for you, but you have closed your mind
Whatever happened to our love?
I wish I understood
It used to be so nice, it used to be so good
(Chorus)
So when you're near me, darling can't you hear me
S. O. S. (Somebody help me)
The love you gave me, nothing else can save me
S. O. S.
When you're gone
How can I even try to go on? (ohh)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on?
You seem so far away though you are standing near
You made me feel alive, but something died I fear
I really tried to make it out
I wish I understood
What happened to our love, it used to be so good
So when you're near me, darling can't you hear me
S. O. S. (Y-O-U)
The love you gave me, nothing else can save me
S. O. S. (Don't make this hard)
When you're gone
How can I even try to go on? (Go on)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on? (Carry on)
So when you're near me, darling can't you hear me (ah, yeah)
S. O. S. (yeah yeah yeah)
The love you gave me, nothing else can save me
(You gave me all the love I needed)
S. O. S. (ooh baby)
When you're gone
How can I even try to go on?(I can't go on)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on? (I can't carry on)
When you're gone (oh yeah!)
How can I try to go on? (Someone help me)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on? (I know I can)
So when you're near me, darling can't you hear me (I can still hear you)
S. O. S.
The love you gave me, nothing else can save me
(Don't make this hard for me, baby)
S. O. S.
When you're gone (When you are gone)
How can I even try to go on? (ooh ooh oh)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on? (Can't carry on)
(Ohhhhhhhhhh, yeah!)
So when you're near me, darling can't you hear me (ah ah)
S. O. S. (oh oh)
The love you gave me, nothing else can save me
(Nothing else can save me)
S. O. S.
When you're gone
How can I even try to go on? (like that)
When you're gone (like that-at)
Though I try how can I carry on? (like that)
So when you're near me (like that), darling can't you hear me
(Can't you hear me?)
S. O. S. (uh uh)
The love you gave me (ah ah ah), nothing else can save me
S. O. S.
When you're gone (ohh)
How can I even try to go on? (Gotta try)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on? (Gotta carry on)
So when you're near me, darling can't you hear me
(So when you're near me, yeah)
S. O. S. (Somebody help me)
The love you gave me (your love can save me), nothing else can save me
S. O. S. (Cause you on my mind)
When you're gone (I've got me losing it)
How can I even try to go on? (Someone come and rescue me)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on? (Cause you on my mind)
So when you're near me (all of the time), darling can't you hear me
S. O. S.
The love you gave me, nothing else can save me
(You got me looking for you)
S. O. S.
When you're gone (I will not lose myself)
How can I even try to go on?
When you're gone (Don't make me lose myself)
Though I try how can I carry on?
So when you're near me, darling can't you hear me
(Your love might be testing me)
S. O. S. (I don't wanna lose it)
The love you gave me, nothing else can save me (no no)
S. O. S.
When you're gone
How can I even try to go on? (ohh)
When you're gone
Though I try how can I carry on? (I try to carry on)
song info:
Verified yes
LanguageEnglish
GenrePop
Rank−
Duration00:02:35
Charts
Copyright ©Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
WriterAdam Anderson, Scott Hoffman, Theo Hutchcraft
Lyrics licensed byLyricFind
Added
Last updatedMarch 23rd, 2023
About"SOS" was the third single from Swedish pop group ABBA's self-titled 1975 album, their third for Polar Music and their second for Epic and Atlantic. It was released with "Man in the Middle" as the B-side. Agnetha Fältskog, who sang lead, recorded the song in Swedish on her 1975 solo album Elva kvinnor i ett hus. "SOS" was ABBA's first major worldwide hit since "Waterloo".
"SOS" (working title; "Turn Me On") was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson and was recorded at Glen Studio in Långängen, Sweden on 22–23 August 1974. The title itself was coined by Stig, though the lyrics he provided were re-written by Ulvaeus. "SOS" was among the first of three songs recorded for the group's 1975 album, ABBA.
The song is unique among pop songs of the period, opening with an unaccompanied classical keyboard in a subdued D-minor key. Unlike most ABBA tracks that preceded it, the vocal begins with an emotional solo performance by Fältskog. The descending chords and ominous Minimoog synthesizer melody line of the introduction set the tone for Fältskog's vocals, sounding almost as if she were breaking down in tears. The song then transitions to a rock chorus in a major key, dominated by a distorted electric guitar and full vocals.
Despite the song's catchiness, it was passed over as the lead single from the album; the track "So Long" was chosen instead. "So Long" was chosen primarily because it had the same uptempo beat as their 1974 hit single, "Waterloo".
Lyricist Ulvaeus has said that, after three years of trying to figure out what style would define them, ABBA found its identity as a pop group with the release of "SOS".
The song was the subject of one of the first pioneering music videos produced by director Lasse Hallström for the band. Much of the video is filmed from an overhead camera, as if from a tower or lighthouse, with the bandmates' faces sometimes distorted, as though shot through a prism.
During the band's first visit to the United States, ABBA performed "SOS" on the long-running television program American Bandstand on 15 November 1975.
ABBA performs the song live in the concert film ABBA: The Movie, Hallström's first English-language feature film, filmed during the band's tour of Australia in 1977.
"SOS" marked a huge turnaround in ABBA's fortunes, most notably in the UK and Ireland, where it returned the group to the Top 10 for the first time since "Waterloo". Reaching #6 and #4 respectively, "SOS" started a run of 18 consecutive Top 10 hits for ABBA in the UK and Ireland. "SOS" reached #1 in Australia, Belgium, France, West Germany (where it spent 7 weeks at the top), New Zealand and South Africa, and was a Top 3 hit in Austria, the Netherlands, Norway, Italy (where it became ABBA's most successful hit), Mexico, Rhodesia and Switzerland. The song also became ABBA's second Top 20 hit in the United States, peaking at #15 (due to the single charting in the U.S. before "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do", whereas elsewhere "SOS" charted afterwards).
Chicago radio station WLS, which gave "SOS" much airplay, ranked the song as the 61st biggest hit of 1975. It peaked at number six on their survey of 22 November 1975.
"SOS" is one of the most-covered of ABBA's songs. It has been recorded and performed in concert by several prominent artists, including John Frusciante, Peter Cetera, Chris deBurgh, and Portishead.
The track has a number of music industry devotees. The Who guitarist Pete Townshend has said "SOS" is one of the best pop songs ever written, adding that when he first heard the song he "was transported by it".
Ray Davies of The Kinks said that he was taken with the song after seeing the group perform it on the BBC television show Seaside Special.
American singer-songwriter and former Czars frontman John Grant has called "SOS" "one of the greatest pieces of music ever made", adding that Agnetha Fältskog's "perfect" lyrical interpretation and emotional delivery is "a beautiful thing".
British conductor and producer Charles Hazlewood called the song's "supersonic" transition from an acoustic D-minor key to an electric rock motif "absolutely genius".
ABBA's performance of "SOS" on American Bandstand in 1975 has been included on lists of the most significant performances in the show's 31 seasons by several reviewers and critics. Bill Lamb put the song at number five, as did Alicia Diaz Dennis and Andres Jauregui.
To date the song is the only Hot 100 single (or #1 single in Australia) in which both the title and the credited act (and also the musical genre) are palindromes.
"SOS" (working title; "Turn Me On") was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson and was recorded at Glen Studio in Långängen, Sweden on 22–23 August 1974. The title itself was coined by Stig, though the lyrics he provided were re-written by Ulvaeus. "SOS" was among the first of three songs recorded for the group's 1975 album, ABBA.
The song is unique among pop songs of the period, opening with an unaccompanied classical keyboard in a subdued D-minor key. Unlike most ABBA tracks that preceded it, the vocal begins with an emotional solo performance by Fältskog. The descending chords and ominous Minimoog synthesizer melody line of the introduction set the tone for Fältskog's vocals, sounding almost as if she were breaking down in tears. The song then transitions to a rock chorus in a major key, dominated by a distorted electric guitar and full vocals.
Despite the song's catchiness, it was passed over as the lead single from the album; the track "So Long" was chosen instead. "So Long" was chosen primarily because it had the same uptempo beat as their 1974 hit single, "Waterloo".
Lyricist Ulvaeus has said that, after three years of trying to figure out what style would define them, ABBA found its identity as a pop group with the release of "SOS".
The song was the subject of one of the first pioneering music videos produced by director Lasse Hallström for the band. Much of the video is filmed from an overhead camera, as if from a tower or lighthouse, with the bandmates' faces sometimes distorted, as though shot through a prism.
During the band's first visit to the United States, ABBA performed "SOS" on the long-running television program American Bandstand on 15 November 1975.
ABBA performs the song live in the concert film ABBA: The Movie, Hallström's first English-language feature film, filmed during the band's tour of Australia in 1977.
"SOS" marked a huge turnaround in ABBA's fortunes, most notably in the UK and Ireland, where it returned the group to the Top 10 for the first time since "Waterloo". Reaching #6 and #4 respectively, "SOS" started a run of 18 consecutive Top 10 hits for ABBA in the UK and Ireland. "SOS" reached #1 in Australia, Belgium, France, West Germany (where it spent 7 weeks at the top), New Zealand and South Africa, and was a Top 3 hit in Austria, the Netherlands, Norway, Italy (where it became ABBA's most successful hit), Mexico, Rhodesia and Switzerland. The song also became ABBA's second Top 20 hit in the United States, peaking at #15 (due to the single charting in the U.S. before "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do", whereas elsewhere "SOS" charted afterwards).
Chicago radio station WLS, which gave "SOS" much airplay, ranked the song as the 61st biggest hit of 1975. It peaked at number six on their survey of 22 November 1975.
"SOS" is one of the most-covered of ABBA's songs. It has been recorded and performed in concert by several prominent artists, including John Frusciante, Peter Cetera, Chris deBurgh, and Portishead.
The track has a number of music industry devotees. The Who guitarist Pete Townshend has said "SOS" is one of the best pop songs ever written, adding that when he first heard the song he "was transported by it".
Ray Davies of The Kinks said that he was taken with the song after seeing the group perform it on the BBC television show Seaside Special.
American singer-songwriter and former Czars frontman John Grant has called "SOS" "one of the greatest pieces of music ever made", adding that Agnetha Fältskog's "perfect" lyrical interpretation and emotional delivery is "a beautiful thing".
British conductor and producer Charles Hazlewood called the song's "supersonic" transition from an acoustic D-minor key to an electric rock motif "absolutely genius".
ABBA's performance of "SOS" on American Bandstand in 1975 has been included on lists of the most significant performances in the show's 31 seasons by several reviewers and critics. Bill Lamb put the song at number five, as did Alicia Diaz Dennis and Andres Jauregui.
To date the song is the only Hot 100 single (or #1 single in Australia) in which both the title and the credited act (and also the musical genre) are palindromes.
Album Details
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