Roxette
Roxette was formed in 1986 by Per Gessle (1959-) and Marie Fredriksson (1958-2020). In 1986 they released Roxette’s debut album, Pearls of Passion, with tracks such as the hit Soul Deep, and in 1988 their major international breakthrough album Look Sharp! The album became No. 1 in 24 countries, with hits such as Dangerous, Dressed for Success, Listen to Your Heart and The Look.
Roxette received the Aftonbladet Rockbjörnen award for 1988, 1989, 1991 and 1992 in the category Swedish Group of the Year (Look Sharp! And Joyride), and in 1991 they received a Swedish Grammy as Pop Group of the Year.
After Abba, Roxette is Sweden’s best-selling group. The band has had four number 1 singles in the Billboard Hot 100 charts: The Look, Listen to Your Heart, It Must Have Been Love and Joyride.
In 1990, Roxette’s It Must Have Been Love was used for the soundtrack of the Julia Roberts /Richard Gere film Pretty Woman. The song reached No. 1 on the American Billboard chart, the album of the soundtrack sold more than 9 million copies, and by 2005, It Must have Been Love had been played 4 million times on US radio.
Roxette released the album Joyride in 1991. Apart from the title track, it included the hit Fading Like a Flower, and was followed in 1991-92 by the Crash! Boom! Bang! World Tour.
The album Rarities came out in 1995 with acoustic versions of Dangerous, Joyride and The look, and in 1996 they released the album Baladas en Español which included previously released Roxette songs, such as Listen yo Your Heart and It Must Have Been Love, sung in Spanish
In 1999, Roxette released the album Have a Nice Day with tracks such as Wish I Could Fly, Then in 2001 the album Room Service Tour, a 26 date European tour.
In 2002, Fredriksson was diagnosed with a brain tumour, for which she received treatment for three years. In 2004, she released an English solo album, The Change.
In 2011, Fredriksson and Gessle reformed Roxette and released the album Charmschool, with the hit She’s Got Nothing (But The Radio), wich was followed by a worldwide tour.
On December 9, 2019 Marie Fredriksson’s 17 year long battle with cancer came to an end and she sadly passed away. Her death caused a massive wave of grief and tributes allover the world by fans, media and fellow artists. Per Gessle wrote these words December 10, 2019:
Time goes by so quickly. It’s not that long ago we spent days and nights in my tiny apartment in Halmstad, listening to music we loved, sharing impossible dreams. And what a dream we eventually got to share!
Thank you, Marie, thanks for everything. You were an outstanding musician, a master of the voice, an amazing performer. Thanks for painting my black and white songs in the most beautiful colours. You were the most wonderful friend for over 40 years. I’m proud, honoured and happy to have been able to share so much of your time, talent, warmth, generosity and sense of humour. All my love goes out to you and your family. Things will never be the same.
Roxette’s legacy is forever written in the hearts of generations of music lovers around the globe; past, present and those to come.