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.
"Wish I Could Fly" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 1 February 1999 as the lead single from their sixth studio album, Have a Nice Day (1999). An orchestral pop ballad containing elements of electronica, the song was written as an experiment by Per Gessle, who was attempting to establish if a prominently-placed drum loop would fit alongside a large orchestra. The track became a sizable hit for the duo, peaking inside the top twenty of Billboard's European Hot 100 Singles, and was the most-played song on European radio of 1999. It would also become their final top 40 hit on the UK Singles Chart.
"Dressed for Success" is a song by Swedish pop rock duo Roxette, released on 3 August 1988 as the lead single from their second studio album, Look Sharp! (1988). Following the international success of "The Look" – the album's third single in their home country, but first to be released outside of Sweden – "Dressed for Success" was re-issued internationally from June 1989 and became a worldwide hit, most notably in Australia, where it peaked in the top three and was certified platinum by ARIA.
"Anyone" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 10 May 1999 as the second single from their sixth studio album, Have a Nice Day. Composed by Per Gessle, the song was inspired by the work of Burt Bacharach and Phil Spector, and the album version of the song was mostly performed in a single take at Atlantis Recording Studio in Stockholm. In Japan, the single was released as a double a-side with "Pay the Price", although no music video was created for that song.
"Stars" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 26 July 1999 as the third single from their sixth studio album, Have a Nice Day (1999). It was their first – and only – foray into the techno subgenre and features a children's choir in the song's chorus. A remix of the song by production collective Almighty served as the version which was predominantly played on European radio. The song became a hit throughout Europe, particularly in Scandinavia and in Germany, where it became the album's best-performing single. Its music video was directed by Anton Corbijn.
"Salvation" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 22 November 1999 as the fourth and final single from their sixth studio album, Have a Nice Day.
"Run to You" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 21 November 1994 as the fourth single from their fifth studio album Crash! Boom! Bang!. The song charted moderately in several territories, peaking at number 20 in Finland, while reaching the top forty in Belgium, Scotland, Switzerland and the UK. It was the duo's final single to chart in the top fifty of the Australian Singles Chart, peaking at number 49.
"Almost Unreal" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 10 May 1993 as the lead single from the soundtrack of the 1993 live action adaption of Super Mario Bros., which starred Bob Hoskins, John Leguizamo and Dennis Hopper. The song became a top twenty hit in numerous territories, including Scandinavia, Ireland and the UK. It would also be the duo's final top ten hit in both of the latter countries—excluding a re-release of "It Must Have Been Love" two months later. The song proved to be unsuccessful in North America, peaking at number 94 on the Billboard Hot 100, although it performed better in Canada where it peaked within the top thirty. Roxette themselves were later dismissive of both the song and the associated movie. It appeared as a bonus track on the Japanese edition of their next studio album, Crash! Boom! Bang! (1994), mis-titled "It's Almost Unreal".
"Spending My Time" is a song by Swedish duo Roxette, released as the fourth single from their third studio album, Joyride (1991). It was written by Per Gessle and Mats Persson, and produced by Clarence Öfwerman. The single attained moderate success, reaching the top ten in Germany and Italy, and the top twenty in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Finland, Sweden and Switzerland, while peaking at number twenty-two on the UK Singles Chart and thirty-two on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States.
"Church of Your Heart" is the fifth and final single taken from Swedish pop duo Roxette's third studio album, Joyride (1991). Written by Per Gessle, the song was a hit in Canada, where it peaked at number 11. "I Call Your Name" – originally released as a single from their 1986 debut album Pearls of Passion – appeared as the b-side. On UK editions of the single, the song was backed by an exclusive megamix. This consisted of a medley of "It Must Have Been Love", "Listen to Your Heart", "The Look", "Joyride" and "Fading Like a Flower ".
"One Wish" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 9 October 2006 as the lead single from the duo's fourth greatest hits compilation album, A Collection of Roxette Hits: Their 20 Greatest Songs! It was recorded in June 2006, and was one of the first songs recorded by the duo since vocalist Marie Fredriksson's brain tumour diagnosis in 2002. Longtime collaborator Jonas Åkerlund directed the song's music video. The single performed well in several territories, particularly in Scandinavia. It ended 2006 as one of the twenty best-selling singles in Sweden.
"Opportunity Nox" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 25 February 2003 as the lead single from the duo's third greatest hits compilation album, The Pop Hits (2003).
"Queen of Rain" is a pop ballad by Swedish duo Roxette. It was released as the second single from their fourth studio album Tourism on 28 October 1992. The song became a top twenty hit in Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden, and spent over three months on the German Singles Chart, where it peaked at number nineteen.
"June Afternoon" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released in January 1996 as the second single from their greatest hits compilation album Don't Bore Us, Get to the Chorus! Roxette's Greatest Hits (1995). The single was only released in Europe, Australia, and Canada, peaking at number one in the Czech Republic and within the top 40 in numerous territories. Its music video was directed by Jonas Åkerlund.
"Neverending Love" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 8 July 1986 by EMI as their debut single. The track was originally written in Swedish by Per Gessle, as "Svarta glas", for recording artist Pernilla Wahlgren, who turned it down. However, she offered the song to her brother Niclas Wahlgren, who recorded his own version. The release of his single was cancelled at the request of EMI, when Gessle recorded an English version of the song with Marie Fredriksson.
"Goodbye to You" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 3 December 1986 by EMI as the second single from their debut studio album, Pearls of Passion (1986). The song was written by Per Gessle, and was backed by album track "So Far Away". It was only released commercially on 7" vinyl exclusively in Sweden, although a limited test pressing 12" vinyl was also created, containing an exclusive remix of the song. The single peaked at number nine on the Swedish Singles Chart. No music video was created for the track.
"Milk and Toast and Honey" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 10 September 2001 as the third and final single from their seventh studio album, Room Service (2001). It was the only single from the album to be released in the United Kingdom, where it peaked at number 89. The song performed better elsewhere, becoming the album's highest-charting single in Portugal, and Roxette's longest-charting single in several years in both Sweden and Switzerland.
"The Centre of the Heart" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 19 March 2001 as the lead single from their seventh studio album, Room Service. An uptempo pop song, it was written by Per Gessle and originally demoed in January 1998 during sessions for their previous album Have a Nice Day (1999). The single was backed by an exclusive B-side, "Entering Your Heart", along with several remixes by StoneBridge.
"Real Sugar" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette, released on 18 June 2001 as the second single from their seventh studio album, Room Service. The single was not released in the United Kingdom.
