Just watched the Steve Coogan/Rob Bryden film The Trip, in which they sing the Abba song "The Winner Takes it All", and had to admit to myself that that is actually a very well-written song. It certainly seems heart-felt, the way "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" does.

No one here can claim to know what was motivating a songwriter at the moment of creation (although reams of speculation have been published analyzing, say, Bob Dylan's work). All that counts is whether the song speaks to you, engages you on some level. If it engages many, it becomes a commercial success; if it engages few, it may still be an artistic success. The two are not the same; neither are they mutually exclusive.