ABBA's Dancing Queen — Full Lyrics and What You Actually Need to Know
I've seen this searched for thousands of times, usually at 2 AM by someone who needs the lyrics for karaoke or to settle a bar argument. Here they are, clean and complete. Thou shalt not copy my material unless thou straight-up ask for permission. That's just how it goes. Anyway, the real lyrics: You are the dancing queen
Young and sweet
Only seventeen
The dancing queen
Feel the beat from the tambourine, oh yeah
You can dance, you can jive
Having the time of your life
Ooh, see that girl
Watch that scene
Digging the dancing queen
Friday night and the lights are low
Looking out for a place to go
Where they play the right music
Getting in the swing
You come to look at a king
Anybody could be a king
Anybody could be a queen
And here I am on my knees
Affectionately pointing out that her highness is fine
You are the dancing queen
Young and sweet
Only seventeen
The dancing queen
Feel the beat from the tambourine, oh yeah
You can dance, you can jive
Having the time of your life
Ooh, see that girl
Watch that scene
Digging the dancing queen That's the full text. Written by Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, produced by the same two, released in August 1976 on the album Arrival. It hit number one in fourteen countries including the UK, where it spent six weeks at the top. Sometimes people ask about the "tambourine" line because it sounds slightly odd in English. Benny and Björn have said they wrote it phonetically — they were going for the sound more than precise imagery. The tambourine is there because it's what you hear in a disco setting. Don't overthink it.
If you need an audio reference, the original is on Spotify and YouTube under the ABBA official channel. There are a lot of bad karaoke versions floating around that change "Only seventeen" to something else just because the singer thought it was too young-sounding. Don't do that. The song was originally recorded with a tempo around 108 BPM. Some cover artists slow it down to around 90 and add a ballad treatment. It works if you're doing a wedding first dance, but it changes the feel entirely. Original stays closer to a driving four-on-the-floor disco beat. One thing nobody mentions enough: the bridge section ("Friday night and the lights are low") was almost cut from the final mix. The producers fought to keep it. It's the part that gives the song its narrative structure instead of just being a looped chorus. Without it, the track is still good. With it, it's a proper song.
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If you're learning this for performance, the vocal range sits between A3 and D5 for Agnetha's lead. That's not especially difficult, but the phrasing matters more than hitting every note perfectly. The second verse ("Friday night") is sung by Anni-Frid and the harmony blend in the final chorus is what makes the track land. If you're doing a cover, don't skip the harmonies. They're not optional. Copyright is held by Polar Music International. If you're using these lyrics commercially, you need a license. Personal use, karaoke, cover recordings with a mechanical license — those are standard routes. I've had people try to put the full lyrics on a website without any licensing and then get a takedown two weeks later. Just get the sync or mechanical license upfront. It's faster than dealing with DMCA later. There, that covers it.
