Madonna 'begged' Abba for sample

Madonna wrote a "begging" letter to Abba for a sample

Madonna has admitted that she wrote a grovelling letter to Swedish superstars Abba asking if she could sample their music on her latest single.

Gimme Gimme Gimme features on new track Hung Up, only the second time Abba have allowed another act to use their work.

"I had to send my emissary to Stockholm with a letter begging them and telling them how much I love their music," she told Attitude magazine.

"They never let anyone sample their music. Thank God they didn't say no."

Songwriters Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus have only allowed one other act to sample one of their tracks before, when the Fugees used part of The Name Of The Game on their 1996 track Rumble In The Jungle.

Madonna said: "They had to think about it, Benny and Bjorn. They didn't say yes straight away."

Andersson told last weekend's Sunday Telegraph that he and Ulvaeus said yes because "we admire Madonna so much and always have done".

"She has got guts and has been around for 21 years. That is not bad going," he added.

"Hung Up is really good. If it wasn't any good we would not have said yes. It is a wonderful track - 100 per cent solid pop music.''