One of Us Lyrics — Mamma Mia!

Song Overview

Personal Review

“One of Us” always hits like a late-night voicemail you wish you could unsend. ABBA’s December 1981 single capped their imperial run, climbing to No 3 in the UK even as the quartet was quietly dissolving. Onstage, Siobhán McCarthy turns the synth-folk lament into a raw open letter to Sam. Hilton McRae answers with exasperated soft-rock warmth, and suddenly an ABBA breakup ballad mutates into estranged ex-spouses arguing over wedding logistics. Koch’s pit band swaps Benny’s mandolins for bouzouki sprinkles, yet keeps the jaunty reggae-kissed bass that makes the sadness curiously danceable.

Song Meaning and Annotations

ABBA wrote the lyric from the vantage of the leaver who now aches to return. In Mamma Mia! the tables flip: Donna, abandoned years earlier, finds Sam back on the island poking at her daughter’s future. Lines like “One of us is crying / one of us is lying in her lonely bed” resonate deeper when sung beside the very man who sparked them. Harmonically, Andersson & Ulvaeus land the word “crying” on the major third—a bright note under a dark thought—making remorse glint like broken glass. Donna’s furious monologue that follows (“Don’t bloody patronise me … I’m free, I’m single and it’s great!”) weaponises the song’s polite sorrow into spitfire comedy.

“One of us is lonely, one of us is only / Waiting for a call.”

The cast album’s string quartet slides into a half-step descent under “lonely,” mirroring the feeling of sinking through bedsheets at 2 a.m. Billboard ranked the ABBA original fifth-best in their 2017 list, praising its “heartbreaking chorus that still lifts.”

Verse Highlights

Opening Verse

Donna catalogues “great romances” she skipped; the melody hops downward each time, like marking lost opportunities on a calendar.

Chorus Twist

The reggae-lite bounce feels almost cheerful until the vocal leaps a sixth on “lonely,” stretching the word like a pulled thread.

Dialogue Intercut

Sam’s questions about Sophie’s fiancé land over suspended-fourth chords—tension with no easy resolution.

Song Credits

• Featured: Siobhán McCarthy (Donna), Hilton McRae (Sam)
• Producers: Nicholas Gilpin, Martin Koch
• Composers/Lyricists: Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus
• Release Date: October 17 1999 (cast) / December 7 1981 single
• Genre: Folk-pop / Musical theatre
• Length: 3 min 53 sec (cast) / 3 min 55 sec (ABBA)
• Instruments: bouzouki, electric bass, Rhodes piano, mandolin-style plucks, brushed kit
• Mood: rueful, defensive
• Label: Polydor / Decca
• Poetic Meter: predominantly trochaic tetrameter soft-broken by syncopation
• Copyrights: © 1999 Littlestar Ltd.; ? 1999 Polydor Ltd. (UK)

Songs Exploring Themes of Regret & Second Chances

“Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” – The Police
Sting wraps longing in tropical chords the way ABBA wraps it in faux-calypso mandolins. Both narrators rehearse phone calls they may never make.

“Back to December” – Taylor Swift
Swift’s country-pop apology mirrors Donna’s frustration; each singer rewinds bad choices in first-person confession.

“If I Could Turn Back Time” – Cher
Cher belts over stadium snare cracks; Donna confesses over island strings. Same plea, different oceans.

Questions and Answers

How high did ABBA’s “One of Us” climb in the UK?

It peaked at No 3 on 19 December 1981, their final UK Top-3 hit.

Did it chart in the United States?

It missed the Hot 100 but reached No 7 on Billboard’s Bubbling Under chart.

Was it ABBA’s last German No 1?

Yes—the song topped the German charts in December 1981, their ninth and final German chart-topper.

Notable cover versions?

Pandora (1995 Euro-dance), A*Teens (1999 teen pop) and Cher (2018 disco-orchestra) have all covered the track.

Why is the mandolin prominent in the original?

Benny layered multiple mandolins to soften the synth beds, creating the folk-lilt that sets “One of Us” apart from other ABBA singles.

Awards and Chart Positions

• UK Singles Chart: No 3 (Dec 1981)
• German Singles: No 1 (Dec 1981)
• Billboard Bubbling Under: No 7 (Feb 1982)
• Billboard 2017 list: #5 greatest ABBA songs

How to Sing?

Range: Donna A3–E5; Sam G2–C4.
Breath: Sustain the ascending five-note pickup (“They passed me by”) on one exhale to keep phrases legato.
Tempo: 92 BPM; let the off-beat mandolin pulses guide your syncopation.
Tone: Whispered onset on “crying” then bloom into vibrato; contrast with crisp consonants on “picture clear” to underline anger.