Travelling: Songs from Studios, Stages, Hotel Rooms and Other Strange Places | ||||
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Studio album with live tracks by | ||||
Released | 23 March 2012 | |||
Recorded | 1993–2011 | |||
Studio | Various
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Genre | Pop rock | |||
Length | 54:36 | |||
Label |
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Producer |
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Roxette chronology | ||||
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Singles from Travelling | ||||
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Travelling: Songs from Studios, Stages, Hotel Rooms and Other Strange Places is the ninth studio album by Swedish pop duo Roxette, released on 23 March 2012 by Roxette Recordings and Capitol. It is a direct sequel to their 1992 album Tourism . Unlike that album, which was recorded in numerous locations all over the world during the "Join the Joyride! Tour", Travelling was primarily recorded in Swedish studios in-between legs of "The Neverending World Tour". The album also contains three live recordings and four studio re-recordings of older songs, two of which were previously unreleased.
Vocalist Marie Fredriksson was more involved in the production of the album than she had been on its predecessor, 2011's Charm School , which songwriter Per Gessle credited to the band's extensive touring schedule. "It's Possible" was released as the album's first and only commercial single on 16 March, although "Touched By the Hand of God" and "Lover, Lover, Lover" were issued as promotional and airplay-only singles, respectively. The release of the former song as a commercial single was cancelled when a Bassflow remix of "The Sweet Hello, The Sad Goodbye" – an outtake from their 1991 album Joyride – was released as a single on 26 June.
The album was a critical success upon release, with several reviewers commending the quality of Gessle's songwriting and describing it as a better record than its predecessor. Despite this, it was not as successful commercially as their other studio albums, peaking at career-low chart positions on several national record charts, including in Austria, Switzerland and the duo's home country, where the album received its only known certification, from the Swedish Recording Industry Association.
Travelling is a direct sequel to Roxette's 1992 album Tourism . The duo's main songwriter Per Gessle explained: "It's the same idea as we used on Tourism back in 1992, which was to record an album on the road—to capture the positive energy [of a live band. Travelling is] not a record that is written or produced to top the charts. We didn't think 'Let's have three singles on this one'. It's just got a great vibe, from start to finish." [1] Unlike Tourism, which consisted of songs recorded in numerous studios, stadiums, arenas, nightclubs and hotels all over the world during the "Join the Joyride! Tour", [2] Travelling was primarily recorded in Sweden in-between legs of "The Neverending World Tour", with the exception of four tracks. [3]
The album contains three live recordings: a version of "Stars" performed during a soundcheck at the Dubai World Trade Centre on 20 May 2011, "She's Got Nothing On (But the Radio)" recorded live at Citibank Hall in Rio de Janeiro on 16 April 2011, and an orchestral performance of "It Must Have Been Love" from their Night of the Proms set at the Rotterdam Ahoy in November 2009. [3] "Turn of the Tide" was recorded in hotel rooms in Sun City and Cape Town. [3] The song was first demoed in September 1997 during sessions for their 1999 album Have a Nice Day , [4] while "The Weight of the World" had previously appeared as a b-side to "A Thing About You" in 2002. [5] "Touched By the Hand of God" was formerly the title track to Charm School . [N 1] Vocalist Marie Fredriksson described the latter as her favourite song on the album. [7]
Fredriksson was more involved in the production of Travelling than she had been on 2011's Charm School—the duo's first studio album since she was diagnosed with a brain tumour in 2002. Gessle said: "Marie was away for such a long time that when we did Charm School, nobody knew at the time what capacity she [could] actually [be involved]. But the more the touring went on, the better that she became and it just feels that there are certain songs on Travelling that she's just so much more into. It just felt right [this time]." [1] The album contains a new recording of "See Me", [8] a track which Fredriksson composed in 1993 during sessions for Crash! Boom! Bang! (1994) that was later released as a b-side to their 1999 single "Salvation". [5] Travelling also contains a new version of "Perfect Excuse", a track from Gessle's 2008 solo album Party Crasher which initially featured vocals from Helena Josefsson. This new version features vocals from both Fredriksson and Josefsson. [9]
The record was originally named Tourism 2, although the title went through several revisions before release – including 2rism and T2 − on the insistence of their record label. Gessle said: "It was actually our record company which didn't like the idea, because they said people are gonna get confused and they'll mix it up with Tourism number one. Personally, I didn't get that. So then we said, 'OK, how about T2?'. But they said no because a title with a number wasn't good, and I asked 'What about Adele's 21 ?' They didn't answer that one." Gessle chose Travelling as its new title, "instead of having these quarrels all the time ... But we kept the same [Tourism] subtitle: Songs from Studios, Stages, Hotelrooms & Other Strange Places." [9]
Travelling was preceded by lead single "It's Possible" on 16 March 2012. The track performed well in the United Kingdom, where BBC Radio 2 named it their 'Record of the Week'. [10] Its music video was released on 3 April, and was directed by David Nord and Boris Nawratil. [11] "Touched By the Hand of God" was issued as a promotional single in Europe from the beginning of June. [12] However, its planned release as a commercial single was cancelled; a Bassflow remix of "The Sweet Hello, The Sad Goodbye" – an outtake from their 1991 album Joyride – was released as a single on 26 June. [5] [13] "Lover, Lover, Lover" was released as a promotional single in Germany in September. [5]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Aftonbladet | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Dagens Nyheter | (2/4) [16] |
Gaffa | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Hallandsposten | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Laut.de | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Nerikes Allehanda | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Spin | (8/10) [21] |
Svenska Dagbladet | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Sydsvenskan | (3/5) [23] |
The album received generally positive reviews, with several publications praising the quality of Gessle's songwriting, such as Svenska Dagbladet which said that his "love for pop history shines through". [22] Anders Gustafsson of Dalarnas Tidningar wrote: "Charm School was an incredibly charmless piece of plastic. ... [but] the cramp seems to have been released [on Travelling]. Anyone who expected a similarly hopeless, dated-sounding album should hang their heads in shame. The sound is not as muddy as it was last time, but above all else, the songs are so much better." [24] Anders Jaderup of Sydsvenskan also complimented the production: "It's a way of working that obviously suits the band, and that's the point—Roxette sounds like a band again; like a passionate group of musicians, not – as on last year's sad Charm School – a carefully-calculated studio product." He described "Excuse Me, Sir, Do You Want Me to Check on Your Wife?" as an album highlight, saying it has "something very unusual for Roxette: a lyric with a story to tell." [23] Gaffa commended the inclusion of country and folk influences, and said: "Something happens to Per Gessle when he works with Marie Fredriksson. He lifts higher than he does on his own. The music reproduces almost by itself in your brain, like a disease, whether one wants it to or not." [17]
International critical reception was mainly positive as well. Nick Mason of FasterLouder called the album "immensely enjoyable", [25] and a writer for The AU Review complimented Gessle for "still [writing] some damn fine, extremely catchy pop music". They went on to say that the album showed "a deeper sense of emotion and passion" than other modern pop music, elaborating: "There's a strong leaning towards The Beatles' early catalogue, and also fellow countrymen champions of pop gold ABBA." [26] A writer for The Hindu expressed a similar sentiment: "What sets Roxette apart from their counterparts is their writing, which is as passionate as their splendid pop hooks." They summarised by saying of the album: "Existing fans are bound to like it, new listeners won't have too much to dislike. The good news is that Travelling is definitely more charming than Charm School." [27] Monsters and Critics praised the diversity of material found on the record: "In the new songs, Beatles fan [Per Gessle] lets his love for '60s pop and '70s classic rock run wild: 'Me & You & Terry & Julie' captivates with a Motown soul-organ pop refrain and a Kinks reference, while 'Lover, Lover, Lover' is reminiscent of Albert Hammond's evergreen 'It Never Rains in Southern California'." [28] In a brief review, Barry Walters of Spin said: "Now that their Scandinavian students call the pop shots, these '80s throwbacks finally sound contemporary." [21]
It also received some mixed reviews. Dagens Nyheter praised Fredriksson's vocals, particularly on "Perfect Excuse", but said: "It may be symptomatic that a novelty orchestral version of 'It Must Have Been Love' appears to be one of the album's strongest tracks." [16] Although Nerikes Allehanda complimented the newly composed songs, they called some of the older songs "inadequate" and said they "should have remained the b-sides and outtakes they once were". They summarised by writing: "Overall, this is really an album for the already-inaugurated Roxette fans." [20] Oberösterreichische Nachrichten claimed the album lacked memorable hooks, [29] while Jan Andersson of the Göteborgs-Posten rated the album 2 out of 5 and criticised it for being too similar to the band's earlier work, writing: "How does Travelling sound? You know how it sounds. There are strings and swing-in-axes, straddled power pop with ringing Tom Petty guitars, and big radio ballads." [30]
The record was not as commercially successful as the duo's preceding studio albums. Prior to its release, Gessle criticised Capitol Records for the lack of promotion the album was receiving in certain territories, saying: "Yeah, I don't know, sometimes you're hot, sometimes you're not. ... Well, considering the latest reception with Charm School, I mean, there's no indication [that Capitol promotes Roxette in Australia]. We sold 100,000 concert tickets there but only a thousand copies of Charm School. And it's the same with the UK, we sold 13,000 tickets in London at Wembley Arena, but Charm School has sold 3,000 copies in the UK. So, you know, someone is not doing their job right!" [9]
It debuted at number eight on the Swedish Albums Chart before peaking at number seven on its second week, making it the lowest-charting studio album of the duo's career in their native country. [31] It ended 2012 as the 76th best-selling album of the year in that country, [32] and was certified gold by the Swedish Recording Industry Association for shipments in excess of 20,000 units. [33] The album peaked at a career-low number twelve on the Swiss Hitparade, far below their previous or subsequent studio albums, which all peaked within the top two. [34] It is also their only studio album to peak outside the top ten of the Austrian Albums Chart, where it reached number fifteen. [35] The set did peak within the top ten of two other countries: the Czech Republic and Germany. [36] [37] In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number 143. [38]
All lyrics are written by Per Gessle; all music is composed by Gessle, except "See Me" by Marie Fredriksson
No. | Title | Recorded | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Me & You & Terry & Julie" | Tits & Ass Studio (June 2011); Aerosol Grey Machine and Atlantis Studios (2011) | 3:45 |
2. | "Lover, Lover, Lover" | Tits & Ass Studio (August 2011); Aerosol Grey Machine and Atlantis Studios (2011) | 3:59 |
3. | "Turn of the Tide" | Tits & Ass Studio (September 1997); Cape Town and Sun City (May 2011); Aerosol Grey Machine (2011) | 4:10 |
4. | "Touched By the Hand of God" | Tits & Ass Studio (September 2009); Aerosol Grey Machine and Atlantis Studios (2011) | 3:48 |
5. | "Easy Way Out" | Aerosol Grey Machine (2011) | 3:38 |
6. | "It's Possible" (Version One) | Tits & Ass Studio (July 2011); Aerosol Grey Machine and Atlantis Studios (2011) | 2:38 |
7. | "Perfect Excuse" | Aerosol Grey Machine and Atlantis Studios (2011) | 3:40 |
8. | "Excuse Me, Sir, Do You Want Me to Check on Your Wife?" | Tits & Ass Studio (October 2009); Aerosol Grey Machine and Atlantis Studios (2011) | 4:15 |
9. | "Angel Passing" | Aerosol Grey Machine (2011) | 2:46 |
10. | "Stars" (Live) | Dubai World Trade Centre (20 May 2011) | 3:35 |
11. | "The Weight of the World" | Tits & Ass Studio (October 1998); Polar Studios (June 2002) | 2:52 |
12. | "She's Got Nothing On (But the Radio)" (Live) | Citibank Hall (16 April 2011) | 4:41 |
13. | "See Me" | EMI Studios and Capri Digital Studios (1993); Aerosol Grey Machine (2011) | 3:48 |
14. | "It's Possible" (Version Two) | Tits & Ass Studio (July 2011); Aerosol Grey Machine and Atlantis Studios (2011) | 2:44 |
15. | "It Must Have Been Love" (Live from Night of the Proms) | Rotterdam Ahoy (18–24 November 2009) | 4:17 |
Total length: | 54:36 |
No. | Title | Recorded | Length |
---|---|---|---|
16. | "Me & You & Terry & Julie" (Demo) | Tits & Ass Studio (9 June 2011) | 2:46 |
17. | "Charm School" ("Touched By the Hand of God" Demo) | Tits & Ass Studio (10 September 2009) | 2:07 |
Total length: | 59:29 |
Credits adapted from the liner notes of Travelling. [3]
Musicians
Additional musicians and technical personnel
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Sweden (GLF) [33] | Gold | 20,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
Region | Date | Format | Label | Catalog # | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Australia | 23 March 2012 |
| 50999 440653–2 4 | [5] | |
New Zealand | |||||
Europe | 26 March 2012 | ||||
United Kingdom | 2 April 2012 | ||||
Russia | 6 April 2012 |
|
| 50999 464402–2 8 | |
United States | 5 June 2012 |
| 50999 440653–2 4 | [21] | |
Canada | 12 June 2012 | [48] | |||
Roxette was a Swedish pop rock duo, consisting of Marie Fredriksson and Per Gessle. They are Sweden's second-best-selling music act after ABBA.
Per Håkan Gessle is a Swedish singer, songwriter and guitarist. He is best known as the male half and primary songwriter of the pop rock duo Roxette, which he formed with Marie Fredriksson in 1986 and which was disbanded after her death in 2019. The duo achieved international success in the late 1980s and early 1990s with their albums Look Sharp! (1988) and Joyride (1991), and topped the charts in the US four times, most notably with "It Must Have Been Love" which was featured in the film Pretty Woman. Prior to the formation of Roxette, he had a successful career in his native Sweden as the frontman for Gyllene Tider. The band released three number-one albums during the early 1980s but disbanded shortly after their fourth album, The Heartland Café (1984).
Look Sharp! is the second studio album by Swedish pop rock duo Roxette, released on 21 October 1988 by EMI, two years after their debut Pearls of Passion (1986). It was recorded at EMI Studios in Stockholm and at Trident II Studios in London between March and September 1988. The album was an immediate commercial success in Sweden, debuting at number one and eventually being certified 6× platinum there.
Pearls of Passion is the debut studio album by Swedish pop duo Roxette, originally released on cassette and vinyl on 31 October 1986 in Scandinavia and Canada. The album was remastered and released on CD on 31 October 1997, with several previously unreleased bonus tracks. It was remastered and re-released again in 2009.
Tourism: Songs from Studios, Stages, Hotelrooms & Other Strange Places is the fourth studio album by Swedish pop duo Roxette, released on 28 August 1992 by EMI. Despite often being mistaken for a live album, the record was described by Roxette in its liner notes as a "tour album": the band recorded the majority of its material in numerous recording studios in between live dates of their worldwide Join the Joyride! Tour. The album contains three live concert recordings, while another track was recorded live in an empty nightclub in São Paulo. A further two songs were recorded in Buenos Aires' Alvear Palace Hotel.
Have a Nice Day is the sixth studio album by Swedish pop duo Roxette, released worldwide from 22 February 1999 by Roxette Recordings and EMI. Recorded over an 18-month period in studios in Sweden and Spain, the album was produced by Marie Fredriksson, Per Gessle, Clarence Öfwerman and Michael Ilbert, and was their first studio album since Crash! Boom! Bang! in 1994. The album was not released in the US, as the duo were no longer signed to a label there. A deluxe edition was released in Spanish-speaking territories and, in Arabian regions, the naked babies on the cover were digitally removed, due to religious concerns.
Room Service is the seventh studio album by Swedish pop duo Roxette, released worldwide from 2 April 2001. A planned release in the United States failed to materialise, as the duo's label there, Edel Records America, had been disbanded the previous month due to financial difficulties. Marie Fredriksson was not as involved in the album's production as she had been on previous records, taking part in the composition of just two songs. The album was remastered and reissued with bonus tracks in 2009.
Don't Bore Us - Get to the Chorus! Roxette's Greatest Hits is the first greatest hits compilation album by Swedish pop duo Roxette, released on 30 October 1995 by EMI. The record contains the duo's four number ones from the US Billboard Hot 100 chart: "The Look", "Listen to Your Heart", "It Must Have Been Love" and "Joyride", and a further two which reached number two on the chart: "Dangerous" and "Fading Like a Flower ". It also includes four newly recorded tracks, three of which were released as singles: "You Don't Understand Me", "June Afternoon" and "She Doesn't Live Here Anymore". The album's title is based on a quote from Motown-founder Berry Gordy.
The Ballad Hits is the second greatest hits compilation album by Swedish pop duo Roxette, released on 4 November 2002 by Roxette Recordings and Capitol Records. It was the first of a two-part series of "best of" albums released by the duo in quick succession, and was followed by The Pop Hits in March 2003. Two new songs were recorded specially for The Ballad Hits: lead single "A Thing About You" and "Breathe". The album was a commercial success upon release, and has been certified gold or platinum in a number of territories.
The Pop Hits is the third greatest hits compilation album by Swedish pop duo Roxette, released on 24 March 2003 by Roxette Recordings and Capitol Records. It was the second in a two-part series of "best of" albums released by the duo in quick succession, and was preceded by The Ballad Hits in November 2002. The album was not as commercially successful as its predecessor, although it did peak within the top twenty of various Scandinavian record charts. It was also certified gold in Brazil.
Gun-Marie Fredriksson was a Swedish singer, songwriter, pianist, and lead vocalist of pop-rock duo Roxette, which she formed in 1986 with Per Gessle. The duo achieved international success in the late 1980s and early 1990s with their albums Look Sharp! (1988) and Joyride (1991), and had multiple hits on the Billboard Hot 100, including four number ones.
Den sjunde vågen is the second studio album by Swedish singer-songwriter Marie Fredriksson, originally released on 17 February 1986 on LP and Cassette by EMI Sweden, with a CD release following on 29 October 1986. The album was a commercial success upon release, peaking at number six and spending almost three months on the Swedish Albums Chart. "Den bästa dagen" and "Silver i din hand" preceded the album as single releases: the b-sides from these singles served as bonus tracks when the record was later issued on CD.
A Collection of Roxette Hits: Their 20 Greatest Songs! is the fourth greatest hits compilation album by Swedish pop duo Roxette, released on 18 October 2006 by Roxette Recordings and Capitol to celebrate 20 years since the release of their debut album, Pearls of Passion. It was issued in conjunction with a six-disc box set, The Rox Box/Roxette 86–06. The duo recorded "One Wish" and "Reveal" in June 2006, their first songs recorded as a duo since vocalist Marie Fredriksson's brain tumour diagnosis four years earlier.
Charm School is the eighth studio album by Swedish pop duo Roxette, released on 11 February 2011 by Roxette Recordings and Capitol. It was their first studio album since 2001's Room Service, and their first since vocalist Marie Fredriksson's brain tumour diagnosis in 2002. "She's Got Nothing On " preceded the album as its lead single, which became the duo's highest-peaking single in almost two decades in territories such as Austria, Germany and Switzerland. The song also entered Billboard's Adult Contemporary Chart—making Roxette the only duo who appeared on that chart in the 1980s, 1990s, 2000s and 2010s.
"She's Got Nothing On (But the Radio)" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 10 January 2011 as the lead single from their eighth studio album, Charm School. An uptempo rock and electropop song, the track received a mixed response from both fans and critics. Despite this, it went on to become a substantial hit for the duo throughout mainland Europe. It was their most successful single since 1992's "How Do You Do!" in territories such as Austria and Germany, and also peaked within the top thirty of numerous airplay charts: including Billboard's Adult Contemporary Chart. This made Roxette the only duo who have appeared on that chart during each of the last four consecutive decades.
"Speak to Me" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 18 April 2011 as the second commercial single from their eighth studio album, Charm School. The single version of the track was a remix created by Swedish producer Bassflow. The song was released internationally, excluding in Germany and Austria, where "Way Out" was released as the second and final single from the album. The track failed to appear on any international sales charts, although it peaked in the top twenty of Finland's Radiosoittolista chart, and also entered the Russian TopHit chart. The music video was directed by Mikael Sandberg.
"Way Out" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 10 June 2011 as the third and final commercial single from their eighth studio album, Charm School. The single was released solely in Germany and Austria, with their record label there opting to release another uptempo single, following the success of "She's Got Nothing On ". Elsewhere, a Bassflow remix of "Speak to Me" was released as the album's final commercial single. The song received generally positive reviews, and its music video was directed by Mikael Sandberg and Magnus Öhrlund.
Roxette Live: Traveling the World is the first and only live album by Swedish pop duo Roxette, released on 6 December 2013 by Parlophone in conjunction with Warner Music. The set consists of recordings derived from three separate performances of the 2012 South American leg of "The Neverending World Tour". The music album contains their 5 May concert at the Teatro Caupolicán in Santiago, Chile in its entirety, while the DVD and Blu-ray also contains songs taken from their performances at the Orfeo Superdomo in Córdoba, Argentina on 3 May and the Teatro Positivo in Curitiba, Brazil on 8 May. Also included on the DVD/Blu-ray is an exclusive documentary, "It All Begins Where It Ends – The Incredible Story of Roxette".
Good Karma is the tenth and final studio album by Roxette, a Swedish pop rock duo consisting of Marie Fredriksson and Per Gessle. Released on 3 June 2016 by Roxette Recordings and Parlophone, it was the only album issued by the duo under an international recording contract signed with Parlophone's parent company Warner Music Group. The album was produced by Gessle alongside Christoffer Lundquist and Clarence Öfwerman, with co-production on several tracks by Addeboy vs. Cliff, among others.
Swedish singer-songwriter Per Gessle has released thirteen studio albums, four live albums, three compilation albums, one collaborative album, three box sets, six demo albums, one soundtrack album, two EPs and three video albums. He also released 53 singles, including two as a featured artist, one as Peter Pop and the Helicopters, one as Rita & the Rip-Off!, eight as Mono Mind and seven as PG Roxette.
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