…In the Rich Man’s World

ABBA often gets criticized for making music that possesses a lack of, shall we say, timelessness. And yet, one of their most trapped-in-the-70s-musically songs, “Money, Money, Money,” contains lyrics that continue to be more salient than any other about NYC existence.

As Anni-Frid laments, “I work all night, I work all day, to pay the bills I have to pay/Ain’t it sad?,” we’re given a portrait of our own Midtown lives, forced into submission by the need for money. Released during the height of New York’s bankruptcy, 1976, it’s unfortunate that the city would pull itself out of being morally and financially lax to become even richer circa the Bloomberg era, ousting anyone not willing to work corporate or with a trust fund.