The Bridge | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 30 October 1995 | |||
Recorded | 1994–1995 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 59:30 | |||
Label | Mega, Arista | |||
Producer |
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Ace of Base chronology | ||||
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Singles from The Bridge | ||||
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The Bridge is the second album by Swedish pop music group Ace of Base. It was composed during 1994 and 1995, and released in Europe on 30 October 1995. It is the only Ace of Base album to feature sizable writing, production, vocal, and harmony contributions by all four band members.
The album was preceded by the singles "Beautiful Life" and "Lucky Love", which had varied levels of success. Both songs reached the top of the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart and "Beautiful Life" peaked at number 15 on the US Billboard Hot 100, "Lucky Love" reaching number 30. Following the release of the album, "Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry" was released as the third and final single from the album but failed to become a hit due to a lack of promotion.
"I wanted some old friends who are producers on a very low level... I wanted to give them a chance to be on this record. But things didn’t turn out at all the way I wanted to and there was no time to redo it. It taught me a lot about how you’re supposed to act when you are in the position of commanding the ones you’re working with; that you have to command as well."
—Linn Berggren talks about working on the album. [3]
On January 1, 1994, The Sign album and single hit number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Inspired by the band's success, Jonas penned the first song of what would become The Bridge while returning from vacation in the Canary Islands. The song was "Beautiful Life". Jonas hoped to incorporate gospel elements into the song, which was composed retaining the band's original club-friendly beat. [4]
Because the band was still promoting their previous album, work on The Bridge was infrequent during much of 1994. In April 1994, an obsessed German fan broke into the Berggren family home and threatened both Jenny and her parents at knifepoint. [5] Jenny would later use this experience as a source of inspiration in writing and composing the track "Ravine" for The Bridge.
For the album, Jonas and Ulf each separately composed a half-dozen songs. Instead of working together, as they had done on their previous album, Jonas and Ulf produced separately with different producers. Jonas' songs were recorded mainly at Cheiron Studios in Stockholm, while Ulf's tracks were created at Tuff Studios in Gothenburg. Ulf continued to work with John Ballard and StoneStream (Björn Stenstrom). In Stockholm, Jonas worked with producer Max Martin and vocalist Jeanette Söderholm. [3] He also worked with Denniz Pop who had previously collaborated with the band on the hits "All That She Wants" and The Sign".
"I think production-wise it's far better than the first one. The sound is very crisp and poppy still, you can tell that they have grown up. It's more mature and complete. On the first album we had a lot of techno dance and the reggae pop tunes which were the big hits. On this album there are many directions because all four members of the band are writing. It's a nice combination of those four individual songwriters and I would say all four of them have come up with hits. (...) They are still pretty much the same four people from a little town in Sweden. They still like to be in their own city and hang around with their old friends and do whatever they did before, which I think is very nice."
—International product manager Mikkel Bagger talking to Music & Media about the album. [6]
For the first time, Jenny and Linn also composed and produced songs. Their tracks were recorded mainly at Tuff Studios. Jenny mainly wrote and composed her pieces and relinquished production duties. Linn, on the other hand, took an active role in both writing and production and received production credits on the album. Linn worked with producers Zal and Radiant as well as previous collaborators Tommy Ekman and Per Adebratt. Although Linn would continue to receive writing credits on the band's later release, Da Capo , The Bridge is the only Ace of Base album which features production from her. "Lapponia", a track produced by Linn which was submitted and rejected for inclusion on The Bridge, would later be re-submitted for the band's following album, where it was yet again rejected.
By the turn of the year, the band had recorded enough demos to present to their three major record companies. Ulf and Jenny appeared on VH1's Lift Ticket to Ride and mentioned the band's new recordings.
Despite having writing and production credits on three tracks on The Bridge, Linn expressed dissatisfaction with the album. Douglas Carr of StoneStream believed the album should have been more successful, stating "The album had some really potential hits on it [and] the singles should have been bigger than it was". Claes Cornelius of Mega Records thought the album was "a better record" and "more varied" than their first album but also noted that The Bridge had less commercial appeal. [3]
"Lucky Love" was released as the first single from the album in Europe on 2 October 1995. The song was a success, reaching the top twenty in thirteen countries and the number one spot in Sweden and Finland. The accompanying music video was directed by Rocky Schenck.
"Beautiful Life" was released as the album's first single in North America on 24 October 1995. It was released as the second single from the album in Europe on 20 November. The colorful music video for the song was directed by Richard Heslop. The video included computer-generated bubbles which whisked the band from place to place. Arista Records insisted that the bubbles be removed for the North American release. Both versions of the video were released in Europe. To support the release, the band appeared in Canada and Mexico and performed in several Latin America countries. "Beautiful Life" was a success in the United States, peaking at number 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 [7] and becoming their second single in a row to reach the number one spot on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. The song went on to peak at number 3 in Canada [8] and at number 15 in the United Kingdom.
An acoustic version of "Lucky Love" was released as the album's second single in North America on 6 February 1996. This version was accompanied by a new music video shot in January in the Hampton Court House. [9] This release was not as successful as their previous efforts and only reached number 30 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming their first release to miss the top twenty. It did, however, manage to become the band's third and final number one hit in a row on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. In Canada, the song peaked at number 6.
"Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry" was released worldwide as the third and final single from the album. It was released in Europe on 11 March 1996 and in the United States on 30 July. The music video for the song was directed by Richard Heslop, who had previously directed the band's video for "Beautiful Life". Similar in composition to "Beautiful Life", the video includes computer-generated imagery and mirror effects designed to make the video feel like a funhouse. Arista Records was dissatisfied with the piece and decided not to release a video to accompany the single release in North America. The song received little promotion and failed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100.
Though no further singles from the album were released, promotional releases of "My Déjà Vu" appeared in France and Scandinavia in late 1996. In 1998, Polydor released a limited-release single-track promotional disc of "Angel Eyes". This was the very last Bridge release, and was packaged with the Southeast Asia version of Flowers.
Ace of Base appeared at several concerts around the world during 1996, including their second-largest performance ever at Viña del Mar, Chile, where the band performed in front of 20,000 fans. They also appeared in South-East Asia, where by some fan accounts, they performed poorly. At one point, lead singer Linn flew home. The band appeared the following year in April at the World Music Awards, where they accepted the award for Best Selling Scandinavian Artists of 1996. There, Jenny performed a solo, lip-synced rendition of "Ravine". [3]
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Baltimore Sun | (positive) [11] |
Cash Box | (positive) [12] |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Entertainment Weekly | B [14] |
Los Angeles Times | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Music & Media | (positive) [16] |
Q | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Spin | (7/10) [17] |
Upon its release, The Bridge received generally mixed reviews from music critics. Many critics noted the departure in sound from their first album, with Q calling it "altogether bigger, deeper, darker, more accomplished effort than its rather half-baked predecessor" and Spin noting that the songs on The Bridge were "far more sophisticated than their pop pedigree would suggest." Music & Media stated that "there's no denying Ace of Base knows how to write unassuming, catchy pop for the masses. Jim Farber of Entertainment Weekly believed the album had "more textured production" than The Sign.
In contrast, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that the album "sounds like the same record on the surface", but also noted that the album featured "an improved sense of songwriting" and "tightly constructed pop songs that are better written than they appear". Despite giving The Sign a higher rating in his review of the album, he noted that The Bridge had songs that were "overall better than the ones on The Sign." Jean Rosenbluth of the Los Angeles Times was more critical in her review, noting that the "inscrutable liner notes are more entertaining" than the album itself.
The Bridge is certified platinum in the United States, where the album peaked at 29 and spent 29 weeks on the chart. 5 million copies of the album were sold worldwide. [19]
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Beautiful Life" | Joker |
| 3:40 | |
2. | "Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry" | Joker | Joker |
| 3:16 |
3. | "Lucky Love" |
| Joker |
| 2:51 |
4. | "Edge of Heaven" |
|
|
| 3:49 |
5. | "Strange Ways" | Linn Berggren | L. Berggren |
| 4:16 |
6. | "Ravine" | Jenny Berggren | Jenny Berggren |
| 4:40 |
7. | "Perfect World" |
|
|
| 3:57 |
8. | "Angel Eyes" |
| Joker |
| 3:13 |
9. | "Whispers in Blindness" | L. Berggren | L. Berggren |
| 4:11 |
10. | "My Déjà Vu" | Joker | Joker |
| 3:22 |
11. | "You and I" |
| Joker | Joker | 4:05 |
12. | "Wave Wet Sand" | Jenny Berggren | Jenny Berggren | Joker | 3:18 |
13. | "Que Sera" |
|
|
| 3:47 |
14. | "Just 'n' Image" | L. Berggren | L. Berggren |
| 3:07 |
15. | "Lucky Love" (acoustic version) |
| Joker |
| 2:52 |
16. | "Experience Pearls" | Jenny Berggren | Jenny Berggren |
| 3:57 |
17. | "Blooming 18" |
| Joker |
| 3:38 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
18. | "Love for Sale" | 3:05 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
15. | "Experience Pearls" | Jenny Berggren |
| 3:57 |
16. | "Blooming 18" |
|
| 3:38 |
17. | "Beautiful Life" (Vission Lorimer club mix) |
|
| 7:02 |
18. | "Lucky Love" (Armand Van Helden house mix) |
|
| 11:22 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Beautiful Life" |
|
| 3:39 |
2. | "Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry" | Joker |
| 3:14 |
3. | "Lucky Love" (acoustic version) |
|
| 2:52 |
4. | "Edge of Heaven" |
|
| 3:49 |
5. | "Strange Ways" | L. Berggren |
| 4:16 |
6. | "Ravine" | Jenny Berggren |
| 4:39 |
7. | "Perfect World" |
|
| 3:55 |
8. | "Angel Eyes" |
|
| 3:13 |
9. | "Whispers in Blindness" | L. Berggren |
| 4:10 |
10. | "My Déjà Vu" | Joker |
| 3:22 |
11. | "Wave Wet Sand" | Jenny Berggren | Joker | 3:18 |
12. | "Que Sera" |
|
| 3:47 |
13. | "Just 'n' Image" | L. Berggren |
| 3:07 |
14. | "Experience Pearls" | Jenny Berggren |
| 3:57 |
15. | "Blooming 18" |
|
| 3:38 |
16. | "Lucky Love" (original version) |
|
| 2:52 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Beautiful Life" |
|
| 3:39 |
2. | "Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry" | Joker |
| 3:14 |
3. | "Lucky Love" (acoustic version) |
|
| 2:52 |
4. | "Edge of Heaven" |
|
| 3:49 |
5. | "Strange Ways" | L. Berggren |
| 4:16 |
6. | "Ravine" | Jenny Berggren |
| 4:39 |
7. | "Perfect World" |
|
| 3:55 |
8. | "Angel Eyes" |
|
| 3:13 |
9. | "My Déjà Vu" | Joker |
| 3:40 |
10. | "Wave Wet Sand" | Jenny Berggren | Joker | 3:18 |
11. | "Que Sera" |
|
| 3:47 |
12. | "Just 'n' Image" | L. Berggren |
| 3:07 |
13. | "Experience Pearls" | Jenny Berggren |
| 3:57 |
14. | "Whispers in Blindness" | L. Berggren |
| 4:10 |
15. | "Blooming 18" |
|
| 3:38 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Beautiful Life" |
|
| 3:39 |
2. | "Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry" | Joker |
| 3:14 |
3. | "Lucky Love" (original version) |
|
| 2:51 |
4. | "Edge of Heaven" |
|
| 3:49 |
5. | "Strange Ways" | L. Berggren |
| 4:16 |
6. | "Ravine" | Jenny Berggren |
| 4:39 |
7. | "Perfect World" |
|
| 3:55 |
8. | "Angel Eyes" |
|
| 3:13 |
9. | "Whispers in Blindness" | L. Berggren |
| 4:10 |
10. | "My Déjà Vu" | Joker |
| 3:22 |
11. | "Wave Wet Sand" | Jenny Berggren | Joker | 3:18 |
12. | "Que Sera" |
|
| 3:47 |
13. | "Just 'n' Image" | L. Berggren |
| 3:07 |
14. | "Experience Pearls" | Jenny Berggren |
| 3:57 |
15. | "Blooming 18" |
|
| 3:38 |
Region | Date | Label |
---|---|---|
Europe | 30 October 1995 | Mega / PolyGram |
United States | 14 November 1995 | Arista |
United Kingdom | 20 November 1995 | London Records 90 |
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Canada (Music Canada) [41] | 2× Platinum | 200,000^ |
Denmark (IFPI Danmark) [42] | Platinum | 50,000^ |
Finland (Musiikkituottajat) [43] | Platinum | 59,097 [43] |
France (SNEP) [44] | Platinum | 300,000* |
Germany (BVMI) [45] | Gold | 250,000^ |
Japan (RIAJ) [46] | 2× Platinum | 500,000 [47] |
New Zealand (RMNZ) [48] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
Poland (ZPAV) [49] | Gold | 50,000* |
Russia | — | 5,000 [50] |
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [51] | Gold | 50,000^ |
Sweden (GLF) [52] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland) [53] | Platinum | 50,000^ |
United States (RIAA) [54] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
Summaries | ||
Worldwide | — | 5,000,000 [19] |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |
rolling stone ace of base album guide.
Ace of Base is a Swedish pop group, formed in 1987, originally consisting of siblings Jonas, Linn, and Jenny Berggren, with Ulf Ekberg.
Malin Sofia Katarina Berggren is a Swedish singer-songwriter, best known as a former member of the pop music band Ace of Base. Having been interested and involved in music since her childhood, she formed the band in 1987, along with her sister Jenny, her brother Jonas and their friend Ulf Ekberg. Before forming Ace of Base, Malin sang in her church's choir. She was born in Gothenburg, Sweden.
"Cruel Summer" is a song by English girl group Bananarama. It was written by Bananarama and Steve Jolley, Tony Swain, and produced by Jolley and Swain. Released in 1983, it was initially a stand-alone single but was subsequently included on their self-titled second album a year later. The song reached number eight on the UK Singles Chart in 1983 and the group appeared on the BBC's Top of the Pops that summer, and after its inclusion in the 1984 film The Karate Kid, it reached number nine on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Jonas Petter Berggren is a Swedish musician and singer-songwriter and record producer, also known as Joker. He started writing songs when he was seven, and continues to write for the Swedish band Ace of Base, which he is a founding member of, as well as other bands. He was born in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Happy Nation is the debut studio album by Swedish pop group Ace of Base. It was initially released in Denmark on 2 November 1992 by Mega Records. During development of the record, the group was heavily influenced by a Jamaican reggae band residing in a nearby studio. For a release in North America, Japan and some Latin American countries, the album was retitled The Sign with a heavily revised track listing and three new tracks. To coincide with this, Happy Nation was reissued with the new tracks in other territories as Happy Nation . In 1995, Guinness Book of World Records named the LP the best-selling debut studio effort in music history, at more than 19 million copies sold worldwide. By 1998, Happy Nation/The Sign had sold approximately 21 million units including 9 million in the US alone. Happy Nation/The Sign is one of the best-selling albums of all time.
Jenny Cecilia Petrén,, professionally known as Jenny Berggren and Jenny from Ace of Base is a Swedish mezzo-soprano singer and former lead singer in the Swedish pop band Ace of Base. Since 1995, she has also been writing songs and performing solo. In 2010, she released her debut album My Story.
"The Sign" is a song by Swedish group Ace of Base from their first North American studio album, The Sign (1993), and their re-released debut studio album, Happy Nation (1992), titled Happy Nation . The song was released by Arista and Mega as a single in Europe on 1 November 1993 and the US on 14 December 1993. It was written by band member Jonas Berggren, who also produced the song with Denniz Pop and Douglas Carr. "The Sign" is a techno-reggae, Europop, and pop ballad with lyrics describing a couple contemplating the state of their relationship.
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"Lucky Love" is a 1995 song recorded by Swedish group Ace of Base. It is taken from their second album, The Bridge (1995). The song became their fifth worldwide single, and was the first single from the album to be released in Europe; the acoustic version of the song was the second single in the United States and Canada. "Lucky Love" also became the group's first number-one hit in Sweden and it also peaked at number-one in Finland. The single peaked within the top 10 in Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Hungary, Israel, Spain, and Zimbabwe. The song's lyrics describe the feeling of being a teenager in love and never forgetting that feeling.
"Beautiful Life" is a song by Swedish band Ace of Base, released on October 20, 1995 from their second album, The Bridge (1995). In North America, it was the first single released from the album; in Europe, it followed "Lucky Love" as the second single. Co-written by band member Jonas Berggren and produced by him with Denniz Pop and Max Martin, the single reached number 15 on both the US Billboard Hot 100 and the UK Singles Chart in December 1995. It reached number one on the Canadian RPM Dance/Urban chart and Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play chart. In 2017, BuzzFeed ranked "Beautiful Life" number 51 in their list of The 101 Greatest Dance Songs Of the '90s.
"Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry" is a song by Swedish band Ace of Base, released as a single on 11 March 1996. It was the third single taken from the band's second album, The Bridge (1995). In Europe, the song peaked at number six in Hungary, number 12 in Denmark and number 17 in Finland. In the US, it reached number six on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. And in Canada, it peaked at number 53 on the Canadian Hot 100 chart.
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"Happy Nation" is a song recorded by Swedish group Ace of Base from their debut album with the same name (1992). It was first released in Scandinavia in December 1992 by Mega Records and later released twice in the UK. The first appearance was in October 1993, when it peaked at number 42, it re-entered the chart twelve months later at number 40. "Happy Nation" reached number-one on the singles charts of Denmark, Finland, France in 1993 and 1994. Its music video was directed by Matt Broadley. In 2008, the song was remade by Ace of Base for a remix kit.
"Living in Danger" is a song recorded by Swedish group Ace of Base. It was released in October 1994 by Arista and Mega as the seventh and final single from the group's debut album, Happy Nation and fourth single from their American debut release, The Sign (1993). Written by bandmembers Jonas Berggren and Ulf Ekberg, the single peaked at number 20 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and also topped the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart in December 1994. On the US Cash Box Top 100, it peaked at number ten. The single later reached number 18 on the UK Singles Chart in January 1995. Its music video was directed by Matt Broadley and filmed in Stockholm, Sweden. Ace of Base performed the song on the first ever MTV Europe Music Awards in Berlin, Germany in 1994. Q Magazine included "Living in Danger" in their list of the "1001 Best Songs Ever" in 2003.
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All That She Wants is a limited-run documentary television series produced by Viaplay, and directed by Jens von Reis. The series explores the meteoritic rise of Swedish pop group Ace of Base; the highs and the lows, and where they are today. Former lead singer, Linn Berggren, breaks her silence in the form of a letter after 20 years in seclusion away from the public eye. Interviewees include American record producer Clive Davis and Haitian rapper and musician Wyclef Jean. The series premiered in Australia on SBS On Demand 3 April 2024. It became available on 1 May 2024 through other broadcasters in other territories and on Viaplay.