‘Fernando’ could easily be a European folk song. DQ is just a great pop record any way one looks at it. What qualities of great pop music does it lack? It’s catchy and exuberant but with an underlying sense of melancholy - not to mention that it’s quite musical when looked at on the page.
If you can regard “Dancing Queen” as anything but an abomination of the lowest order, there is no point continuing this discussion. I wonder if years of treacle overdoses have affected your auditory center.
Success in achieving pop music perfection hardly qualifies one as an artist. Boy George and Tiny Tim have had pop hits. It’s not a particularly high esthetic bar.