It must have been love: Six Marie Fredriksson hits to listen to today
Fans were mourning the death of Roxette star Marie Fredriksson on Tuesday. Here are six hits to remember her with.
It Must Have Been Love
This song, with its iconic lyrics "It must have been love, but it's over now", will feel especially poignant for fans today. It was originally released in 1987, but became more famous as part of the 1990 movie Pretty Woman.
Listen To Your Heart
Per Gessle, who wrote this mega hit together with Mats Persson, one of the members of his other band Gyllene Tider, described it as: "The Big Bad Ballad. This is us trying to recreate that overblown American FM-rock sound to the point where it almost becomes absurd. We really wanted to see how far we could take it."
Sparvöga
Fredriksson wrote and recorded Sparvöga (or Sparrow Eye in English) in 1989. For more of her work in Swedish, we also recommend Ännu Doftar Kärlek and Tro. The lyrics encourage the listener to seize the day and dare to dream big: "Du lilla sparvöga, flyg över ängarna. Dröm dina drömmar så länge du känner liv." ("Little sparrow eye, fly over the meadows. Dream your dreams as long as you feel life.")
Milk And Toast And Honey
One of Roxette's more recent hits, Milk And Toast And Honey was released in 2001, the year before Fredriksson was diagnosed with a brain tumour. She later wrote in her autobiography that she was starting to feel disillusioned with the work, and often felt ignored by the male production team. She and Gessle decided to take a break shortly afterwards. It is a beautiful song nonetheless, and the duo later reunited in 2009.
The Look
This was Roxette's first of four number ones on the US Billboard Hot 100. It is impossible to listen to it without humming the "La-la-la-la-la-she's got the look" line all day, but that's not a bad thing.
Dressed For Success
In the liner notes for the group's compilation album Don't Bore Us, Get To The Chorus, Fredriksson remembered that the recording of this hit was not a success, although the song itself was:
"I was so mad when I did it. Everything about that session went wrong, we argued about the arrangement, we changed the key, I was dead tired of the song when I went in to do a guide vocal. Did it in one blast and suddenly realized, 'hmm... this is it'."
You can almost hear the anger in her voice when you listen to the song.
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It Must Have Been Love
This song, with its iconic lyrics "It must have been love, but it's over now", will feel especially poignant for fans today. It was originally released in 1987, but became more famous as part of the 1990 movie Pretty Woman.
Listen To Your Heart
Per Gessle, who wrote this mega hit together with Mats Persson, one of the members of his other band Gyllene Tider, described it as: "The Big Bad Ballad. This is us trying to recreate that overblown American FM-rock sound to the point where it almost becomes absurd. We really wanted to see how far we could take it."
Sparvöga
Fredriksson wrote and recorded Sparvöga (or Sparrow Eye in English) in 1989. For more of her work in Swedish, we also recommend Ännu Doftar Kärlek and Tro. The lyrics encourage the listener to seize the day and dare to dream big: "Du lilla sparvöga, flyg över ängarna. Dröm dina drömmar så länge du känner liv." ("Little sparrow eye, fly over the meadows. Dream your dreams as long as you feel life.")
Milk And Toast And Honey
One of Roxette's more recent hits, Milk And Toast And Honey was released in 2001, the year before Fredriksson was diagnosed with a brain tumour. She later wrote in her autobiography that she was starting to feel disillusioned with the work, and often felt ignored by the male production team. She and Gessle decided to take a break shortly afterwards. It is a beautiful song nonetheless, and the duo later reunited in 2009.
The Look
This was Roxette's first of four number ones on the US Billboard Hot 100. It is impossible to listen to it without humming the "La-la-la-la-la-she's got the look" line all day, but that's not a bad thing.
Dressed For Success
In the liner notes for the group's compilation album Don't Bore Us, Get To The Chorus, Fredriksson remembered that the recording of this hit was not a success, although the song itself was:
"I was so mad when I did it. Everything about that session went wrong, we argued about the arrangement, we changed the key, I was dead tired of the song when I went in to do a guide vocal. Did it in one blast and suddenly realized, 'hmm... this is it'."
You can almost hear the anger in her voice when you listen to the song.
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