Summer Night City

"Summer Night City"
Single by ABBA
from the album Greatest Hits Vol. 2
B-side"Medley (4:22)"
Released6 September 1978 (Sweden)
Recorded1978
Genre
Length3:34 (single edit)
4:14 (with original intro)
LabelPolar
Songwriters
Producers
  • Benny Andersson
  • Björn Ulvaeus
ABBA singles chronology
"Eagle" / "Thank You for the Music"
(1978)
"Summer Night City"
(1978)
"Chiquitita"
(1979)

"Thank You for the Music"
(1992)

"Summer Night City"
(1993)

"Happy New Year"
(1999)
Music video
"Summer Night City" on YouTube

"Summer Night City" is a song recorded by the Swedish recording group ABBA, written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus as a tribute to their hometown of Stockholm. It was released on 6 September 1978, via Polar Music, as a standalone single; it was the group's second non-album single after "Fernando". While it was recorded during sessions for the group's then-upcoming sixth studio album Voulez-Vous (1979), it was scrapped from the album. It was, however, included on the group's compilation album Greatest Hits Vol. 2, a year after its release. Both Andersson and Ulvaeus have shared dislike of the song, due to being unsatisfied with the final mix.

While "Summer Night City" was a chart success, it proved less so than previous hits. It charted within the top ten in thirteen countries, and topped the charts in Finland, Ireland, and Sweden, the group's last number one hit in their native country for over 40 years until "Don't Shut Me Down" in 2021. A planned US release was cancelled, the second ABBA single to be shelved following "Eagle", and charted poorly in Canada. It was featured as a bonus track on both the 1997 and 2001 CD re-issues of Voulez-Vous and as the full-length version with the original intro on the 2010 re-issue. It is featured on More ABBA Gold: More ABBA Hits.