Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)

History

"Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)" was written and composed by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, with the lead vocal sung by Agnetha Fältskog. Agnetha, as the narrator, weaves the image of a lonely young woman who longs for a romantic relationship and views her loneliness as a forbidding darkness of night, even drawing parallels to how the happy endings of movie stars are so different from her own existence.

The song was recorded at Polar Music Studios in Stockholm, Sweden, in August 1979, and was ready for release in October of that year, in conjunction with the group's tour of North America and Europe.

Originally, ABBA had recorded another song, "Rubber Ball Man", which was planned as a single. It featured the typical "ABBA-arrangement" with both Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad on lead vocals and the use of classical strings. This song was also performed by the group during rehearsals for its 1979 tour as "Under My Sun". However, the group felt that "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!", with its disco sound, would be a better choice, and thus, "Rubber Ball Man" remained nothing more than a demo.

Single version

The single version of this song, which was released in its full length of 4:48 everywhere else in the world, was released in the United States and Canada in an edited format, being just 3:36 in length. This was done by removing the first half of the opening instrumental, the first four of the eight bars of the instrumental bridge between the second and final chorus, and fading the song out early. It is believed the edit was done by Atlantic, ABBA's North American record label and not Polar, hence the reason why it was available only in the USA and Canada. This single version has never appeared on any commercial CD issued by Polar/Universal to date and along with the US promo edit of "Chiquitita", it marked the only time Atlantic ever commercially released an edited version of an ABBA single while they had the North American rights to release ABBA recordings.

The single was never released by Polar Music in the group's native Sweden, instead being featured on the Greatest Hits Vol. 2 album, which did get a Swedish release. While Polar released the single in neighbouring Norway, Denmark, and Finland, copies of these versions were not made available in the Swedish record stores, who thus arranged to import copies of the United Kingdom version on Epic Records. Sales of these imports were sufficient for the single to reach no. 16 on the sales chart in Sweden.

Spanish version

"¡Dame! ¡Dame! ¡Dame!" is the Spanish-language version of the song. The song was released as a single to promote Gracias Por La Música in Latin America and other Spanish-speaking countries.

Reception

"Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)" was another highly successful song for ABBA. It hit no. 1 in Belgium, Finland, France, Ireland, and Switzerland, while reaching the Top 3 in Austria, Germany, The United Kingdom, The Netherlands, and Norway. It also proved to be ABBA's most successful song in Japan, hitting no. 17.

Charts and certifications

Music video

The music video was directed by Sebastian Reed, and it was filmed in Sweden.

The video starts with the boys entering a warehouse, where they find a crystal ball. Inside, there is an "alternate world" where they perform the song. Part of the video also features the band at a bowling alley where they play a few games against each other.

The video had high rotation on several music channels, but it was not as successful as the first singles.

The version of the song used on the video is the Radio Version, which is shorter and includes different beats and sounds to the album version.

Releases

European 2-track CD single

1. "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" [Radio version] – 3:45
2. "A*Teens Medley" [Pierre J's Radio Mix] – 3:54

European maxi CD

1. "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" [Radio version] – 3:45
2. "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" [Extended version] – 6:02
3. "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" [Earthbound Late Show Remix] – 5:04
4. "A*Teens Medley" [Pierre J's Full Length Mix] – 8:19

Mexican CD single

1. "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" [Radio version] – 3:45
2. "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" [Spanish version] – 3:43

Japanese maxi CD

1. "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" [Radio version] – 3:45
2. "A*Teens Medley" [Pierre J's Radio Mix] – 3:54
3. "Mamma Mia" [Spanish version] – 3:46
4. "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" [Spanish version] – 3:43

1 Track CD'

1. "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" [Radio version] – 3:45

Charts

Critical reception

Writing for Rolling Stone, Brittany Spanos felt that "working with producer Mark Taylor who helped seal Cher’s legacy with the game-changing “Believe” in the late Nineties, she finds subtle changes that update ABBA classics without totally stripping them of the catchiness that made those songs beloved hits well beyond their heyday. “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight),” “SOS” and “Mamma Mia” are given just enough of a knob turn that they’re transformed from upbeat FM radio pop into club bangers, pulsating with every beat."^[35]

Track listing

Charts

Track listings

CD single

1. "Gimme ! Gimme ! Gimme ! (A Man After Midnight)" – 3:30
2. "Brigitte Bardot" (remix edit) by Jean-Pascal Lacoste – 3:01

Charts

Sampling

In 2005, this song was sampled by Madonna, who used it on her worldwide hit "Hung Up". Madonna is said to have sent a letter to Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus asking to use the song as a sample,^[50] since the Swedish songwriting duo are reluctant to let other artists sample their material. It was only the second time that an ABBA track had been officially sampled, the first being the Fugees in 1996 with their hit "Rumble in the Jungle", sampling part of 1977's "The Name of the Game".