Peak
13
Weeks
12
Score
1,769
Chart Year
1976
ABBA member Anni-Frid 'Frida' Lyngstad originally recorded the song in Swedish on her solo album Frida Ensam (meaning Frida Alone) in 1975. ABBA then recorded an English version the following year. The song does not appear on any studio album, only greatest hits collections. Bjorn Ulvaeus (from 1000 UK #1 Hits by Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh): "That lyric is so banal and I didn't like it. It was a love lyric, someone who loved Fernando, but I inherited the word 'Fernando' and I thought long and hard, what does Fernando tell me? I was in my summerhouse one starry evening and the words came, 'There was something in the air that night' and I thought of two old comrades from some guerrilla war in Mexico who would be sitting in the porch and reminiscing about what happened to them back then and this is what it is all about. Total fiction." This was the biggest selling single in Australian chart history until it was overtaken by Elton John's "Candle In The Wind '97." The working title was "Tango." This song also reached #1 in Australia, Austria, Belgium, France, Hungary, Ireland, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, South Africa, Switzerland and West Germany. >> The male members of ABBA - Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus - wrote this song. The group's manager Stig Anderson also got a songwriting credit of it, which he did on many of their songs. ABBA's manager, Stig Anderson, sold the use of the song to electronics giant National for $1 million in 1976. It was adapted with a new lyric ("There's so much more to National. So much more than just the many, many things we make for you") and performed by the band for use in a series of five television commercials promoting the National brand. ABBA's Benny Andersson was disgusted, "That did it for me," he said. "We've never sold another song again." (Source ABBA The Official Photo Book) A Mexican man named Fernando Gongora claimed that he provided the title to this song. According to Gongora, in 1974 he was working at the El Matador hotel in Acapulco when a minor earthquake hit. (These quakes are common to the area, but freak out tourists.) In Gongora's account, Abba was staying in the hotel and ran to their balcony, where they were going to jump into the swimming pool below. Gongora told them that the earthquake had stopped, and they should not jump. "I told them 'I'm Fernando,' they told me 'we're ABBA,'" he said in the Long Beach newspaper Beachcomber. "They told me some day I'm going to hear from the them. Many times, people would send you a postcard, thanks, we appreciate you or your service. A friend from Canada called me. 'Fernando, did you hear the song 'Fernando.'' When I heard it, I knew they thought I helped save their life before they jumped. They were using my name, 'can you hear those drums Fernando?' That's the noise of the earthquake." >> This features prominently in the Malcolm in the Middle episode "Water Park" (2000), when Dewey's elderly babysitter (Bea Arthur) entertains him with the song, then has to be taken away in an ambulance.
Can you hear the drums, Fernando? I remember long ago another starry night like this In the firelight, Fernando You were humming to yourself and softly strumming your guitar I could hear the distant drums And sounds of bugle calls were coming from afar They were closer now, Fernando Every hour, every minute seemed to last eternally I was so afraid, Fernando We were young and full of life and none of us prepared to die And I'm not ashamed to say The roar of guns and cannons almost made me cry There was something in the air that night The stars were bright, Fernando They were shining there for you and me For liberty, Fernando Though we never thought that we could lose There's no regret If I had to do the same again I would, my friend, Fernando If I had to do the same again I would, my friend, Fernando Now, we're old and grey, Fernando Since many years I haven't seen a rifle in your hand Can you hear the drums, Fernando? Do you still recall the fateful night we crossed the Rio Grande? I can see it in your eyes How proud you were to fight for freedom in this land There was something in the air that night The stars were bright, Fernando They were shining there for you and me For liberty, Fernando Though we never thought that we could lose There's no regret If I had to do the same again I would, my friend, Fernando There was something in the air that night The stars were bright, Fernando They were shining there for you and me For liberty, Fernando Though we never thought that we could lose There's no regret If I had to do the same again I would, my friend, Fernando Yes, if I had to do the same again I would, my friend, Fernando If I had to do the same again I would, my friend, Fernando
| Week | Chart Date | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sep 4, 1976 | 53 | 73 |
| 2 | Sep 11, 1976 | 37 | 89 |
| 3 | Sep 18, 1976 | 29 | 97 |
| 4 | Sep 25, 1976 | 23 | 103 |
| 5 | Oct 2, 1976 | 18 | 108 |
| 6 | Oct 9, 1976 | 16 | 110 |
| 7 | Oct 16, 1976 | 14 | 112 |
| 8 | Oct 23, 1976 | 13 | 113 |
| 9 | Oct 30, 1976 | 13 | 113 |
| 10 | Nov 6, 1976 | 37 | 89 |
| 11 | Nov 13, 1976 | 59 | 67 |
| 12 | Nov 20, 1976 | 59 | 67 |