Official website : http://www.aceofbase.com/
Official YouTube Channel : http://www.youtube.com/user/aceofbase
Official MySpace : http://www.myspace.com/aceofbase
Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=14610205340
Last.fm : http://www.last.fm/music/Ace+of+Base
Wikipedia : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ace_of_Base


Ace of Base is a pop band from Gothenburg, Sweden, comprising Ulf Ekberg (Buddha) and siblings Jonas Berggren (Joker) and Jenny Berggren. They released their debut album in 1993 and went on to sell more than 30 million albums worldwide, topping the charts with hits such as "All That She Wants" and "The Sign". Following the formal departure of former member Malin "Linn" Berggren in 2007, the trio have recently been playing gigs in Europe and Asia, and plan to release their fifth studio album in 2009.

Formation

After a few years in a new romantic and punk covers band called G Konrad, in 1987, Jonas Berggren formed a band with two friends, Johnny Lindén and Niklas Tränk; his sisters Linn and Jenny joined as singers. The new band went through several names: Kalinin Prospect (a street in Moscow); CAD (Computer-Aided Disco); and Tech-Noir (French for black technology, after a nightclub in the film The Terminator). They toured the clubs of Sweden with their new self-written material, techno inspired by the likes of The KLF and Snap!.

Johnny left the group in 1989. Niklas made his departure known by failing to appear at a gig at the Bältesspännarparken on 6 August 1990; he preferred to attend a Rolling Stones concert on the other side of town. Jonas asked his friend Ulf Ekberg to stand in for Niklas. The new quartet sought a new name to make a fresh start; Linn was reported saying: "No one could pronounce the name of the group and nobody could remember it". They settled on Ace of Base, because they were the "masters of their studio", the basement of a car-repair shop.

However the band continued to struggle to gain any recognition, partly due to the preference of heavy metal over techno in their home town, according to singer Jenny. In 1991 they responded to a newspaper ad by producer John Ballard who was looking for new talent. He was somewhat unsure about their potential, but did pass them on to Klas Lunding at Telegram Records who helped them record an early demo for the song "Wheel Of Fortune" in their newly renovated studio. But it did not convince Telegram to sign the band, and other labels in Sweden still showed no sign of interest. In the end, the unfinished demo was sold for a small price to the independent Danish label Mega Records in March 1992. "Wheel Of Fortune" was re-recorded and released as a single in Denmark in May but failed to hit the charts. A small-budget music video was shot and directed in a small studio by Viking Nielsson and in September, after two failures, the single finally reached the charts.

International success: Happy Nation/The Sign (1993–1994)



But it was another song that was to help Ace of Base's career take off internationally. After hearing Swedish top 20 hit "Another Mother" by Kayo, the band decided that was exactly the sound they wanted to create. They contacted the song's producer Denniz PoP and sent him a demo of a track called "Mr Ace". The tape got stuck in his car's cassette player so he was forced to listen to it over and over again which helped him decide to produce the track. The song became "All That She Wants", a unique dark fusion of dub-reggae with pop which became the band's trademark sound. On release in October 1992, it quickly climbed to number 1 on the Danish chart while the previous single was still sitting at number 2. Keen to rush out an LP for the Christmas market, Mega Records pressed the band for an album and it was hastily recorded, mixed, and released within a few weeks.

Preceded by a single of the same name, the album, titled Happy Nation was an instant hit in Denmark, and its success prompted interest from elsewhere in Europe. A pan-European licence was signed with Metronome/PolyGram (now Universal Music) but they were turned down by the American division. Within a few months, "All That She Wants" had reached number 3 in Sweden and had spent eight weeks at number 1 in Germany.

The band were briefly caught up in controversy when on 27 March 1993 the Swedish newspaper Expressen reported that Ulf had once been a member of a white power band called Commit Suiside who sang songs with racist lyrical content. He was also a member of the controversial far-right political party Sverigedemokraterna. Ulf was quick to admit that most of the details printed were true, but denied that he was racist. In the 1997 documentary "Our Story", Ulf said "I told everyone I really regret what I done. I closed that book. I don't want to even talk about it, that time does not exist in me any more. I closed it and I threw the book away. I took the experience from it, I learned from it. But that life is not me. It's somebody else."

The revelations did not harm the band's career and in April 1993 the band performed alongside Inner Circle and Dr Alban in Tel Aviv, Israel at what would be their biggest audience ever - 55,000 people.

In May, "All That She Wants" continued to hit all round the world and topped the chart for three weeks in the United Kingdom. However, despite Mega Records' hard efforts to secure a distribution deal in the United States the response was always the same: "this band will never work in the States". But Clive Davis, founder of Arista Records and the man who had discovered Whitney Houston, thought otherwise, and by the end of 1993 "All That She Wants" had made its way to number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100.

In order to freshen up the album for US release, Davis insisted that some new tracks were recorded, including "The Sign" which became the new title for the album and the second American single. It was even more successful than the first, spending six weeks at number 1 becoming the best-selling single of the year 1994. It was also a major hit in Europe, peaking at number 2 in the UK and Sweden and doing one better in Germany. PolyGram re-released the album under the name Happy Nation (US Version).

Two more singles were released; "Living in Danger" and "Don't Turn Around". Originally a Tina Turner b-side which went on to become a UK number 1 hit for reggae band Aswad, Davis asked Ace of Base to record the Diane Warren-penned track and it was yet another worldwide hit. By the end of 1994, there was barely a country in the world where they were not successful.

Subsequent releases: The Bridge and Flowers/Cruel Summer (1995–1998)

The band, who by now were not only tired of being compared to fellow Swedish group ABBA, but exhausted from two long years of international promotion, could hardly believe how successful they had become. In April 1994, a crazed German fan Manuela Behrendt broke into the Berggren family's home brandishing a knife. After managing to restrain her, the band decided that from then on they needed bodyguards. But they were not allowed to take time to reflect before starting work on a second album because their record companies all over the world were demanding a swift follow-up. To speed up the process, instead of Jonas and Ulf writing the bulk of the album, each member was encouraged to submit his or her own tracks for consideration.

In the end, 17 tracks made the cut of the second album entitled The Bridge. It marked a considerable change of direction in sound; out were the reggae and club sounds that made the group so popular in favour of a more experimental sound and several ballads. The lead single "Lucky Love" however was a mainstream pop record and on release in October 1995 became the band's first number 1 single in Sweden, which came as a pleasant surprise as they had found that their fellow Swedes had been their harshest critics. It charted at a more modest number 13 in Germany and number 20 in the United Kingdom, but Arista Records decided that it wasn't appropriate for US release so they opted for the pulsating dance beat of "Beautiful Life" which peaked at number 15 both in the US and UK. The album was still certified platinum but the phenomenal success of the band's first album proved difficult to follow. In February 1996, the band performed at the Viña del Mar concert in Chile, topping the bill alongside 2 Unlimited.

After this, Ace of Base disappeared from the limelight for a while, only emerging in July 1997 to perform at a concert to celebrate the 20th birthday of Princess Victoria of Sweden. They were given as much time as they wanted to produce their third album, much of it being recorded in Jonas' own studio "The Barn". When it was finally released in June 1998, the band declared it their best album yet. It was titled Flowers because they believed that the songs, wildly different in style including Motown and gospel influences, resembled a varied bouquet of flowers. Fans were surprised to see that blonde singer Linn had relinquished lead vocal duties to sister Jenny, and on many promotional photos Linn's face was blurred. They were reassured that Linn was happy with her new backing role in the group, and many reasons were given for her decision including her having damaged her voice, fear of flying putting her off from travelling round the world, and her dislike of fame.

The radio-friendly single "Life Is a Flower" was certified the most-played track on European radio for 1998 and sold more than 250,000 copies in the UK, peaking at number 5. British label London Records had requested the band record the 1984 hit "Cruel Summer" by Bananarama and it was selected as the second European single. Deciding that "Life Is a Flower" was "too European in nature", Clive Davis pushed "Cruel Summer" as the lead-off single for the United States and it took Ace of Base back into the US Top 10 for the first time in four years, being certified gold. The album was also re-named Cruel Summer and featured a different tracklist to the European release. Davis persuaded a reluctant Linn to record a Billy Steinberg ballad "Everytime It Rains" and "Life Is a Flower" was re-recorded as "Whenever You're Near Me" and was the second single, but it could only peak at number 76. "Always Have, Always Will" and "Travel to Romantis" were further hits in Europe while "Everytime It Rains" was issued as a single in the UK along with a re-packaged edition of Flowers released only in the UK.

Celebrating a decade of success: Singles Of The 90s and Greatest Hits (1999–2000)

Singles Of The 90s, a compilation of sixteen hit singles was released in November 1999. Its first single, "C'est La Vie (Always 21)," went on to become a surprise number 1 hit in Spain. Attempting to capitalize on the success of the previous single, "Hallo Hallo" was released with special remixes just for the Spanish market. The album's marketing push closed with the limited radio-only single release of "Love in December". "Everytime It Rains", previously included on the Cruel Summer album was released as a radio single in the US the following year in remixed-form (pushed by Clive Davis) in order to promote a new Greatest Hits album for the American market, which failed to chart, selling fewer than 5,000 copies in its first week. It completed the band's four-album contract with Arista Records and was not renewed. "Hallo Hallo" was planned initially to be the first single from this American compilation, but in the end it was not included on the album at all. "C'est La Vie (Always 21)" was the only new recording included on the U.S. release. Two old remixes of both "Lucky Love" and "Beautiful Life" were also included.

A new millennium and the Da Capo album (2002–2003)



Ace of Base released their fourth studio album Da Capo in September 2002 in Europe, and in Japan through Toshiba EMI with a different cover and three bonus tracks. The album contained twelve original tracks and had originally been planned for release in mid-2000, but was repeatedly postponed due to record company complications. The album is named after the musical term da capo, meaning "back to the beginning". It was intended to be a return to the band's earliest sound.

Although the album entered the album charts in many European countries, it was not as successful as previous releases. Only Jenny and Ulf went on a promotional tour of Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Germany, Poland and Austria; Jonas wanted to stay at home with his two children and Linn attended only one performance in Germany. The album was not released in the Americas or Australasia, and received only a 'soft release' in the United Kingdom, as their new British label Polydor thought that their sound was no longer relevant to the UK music scene.

The first single release from the Da Capo album was "Beautiful Morning", which peaked at number 14 in Sweden and number 38 in Germany, where it was followed by "The Juvenile", which was used for a Christmas campaign by German TV channel RTL. "The Juvenile" was a "lost track"; Ace Of Base had previously written it for the Goldeneye James Bond movie in 1995. However, Arista, the band's American record label at the time, shelved the idea. The band was no longer involved in the soundtrack for the movie, and Bono Vox's composition of the same name was substituted, sung instead by Tina Turner.

In Scandinavia, Edel-Mega released the album's opening track, "Unspeakable", as the second single. But its poor chart performance ended the promotion of the album prematurely.

Hiatus (2003–2006)

The band remained out of the spotlight throughout 2003 and 2004, although Jenny kept busy by performing solo live performances in several Christian shows with her husband Jakob Pétren, and joined the Swedish group Arose.

The band returned at the end of 2005 for several live performances at the Night of the Proms in Belgium alongside other artists such as Donna Summer and performs some of their hits such as "All That She Wants" and "The Sign". Since then, the band went back to Sweden and started working in the studio for the 5th studio album.

International comeback and world tour (2007–present)

On August 14, 2007, Lasse Karlsson announced that the band would be playing their first full-length concert since 1996 in Bangalore, India, on November 24, 2007. This was later cancelled, but several other concerts were scheduled and Jenny, Jonas and Ulf performed in Yekaterinburg, Russia on November 15, and Saint Petersburg on November 17. The group also performed in Denmark, Estonia, and Lithuania, as a warm-up to a planned world tour in 2008. The setlist included various songs from their past albums and notably, a brand new remix of their very first single "Wheel Of Fortune".

Ulf Ekberg confirmed in an interview on November 28 that Malin Berggren had now officially left the band and that she would not be involved with any future projects. The group had already been performing mostly without Linn as a trio for a decade before her departure. Jenny confirmed Linn's departure to the Danish press: "She hasn't been part of Ace of Base for several years," she stated in Se & Hor magazine. She reportedly left the band to dedicate more time for studies and family.

The band is currently on world tour and are set to perform at several summer music festivals this year, including Smukfest in Skanderborg, Denmark in August. They are also hoping to return to perform in the United States in 2009.

Plans for a fifth studio album started on October 2004 after a short promotion tour from their earlier album Da Capo, with a possible Summer 2005 release. But other events like Jenny's wedding and problems with record companies, led the band postpone it. After Malin's departure from the band, the band started recordings from scratch on November 4, 2007. Although the band have not yet signed a new recording contract, the band is set to release their new album in 2009, which will include 14 tracks in total: 7 new songs and 7 re-worked versions of some of their hits. The band have also commissioned new dance remixes of their previous hits for an album currently known only by the codename Global Remix Project, which also consists in user-generated audio and video remixing in the band's official website, starting in September until November 2008. They hope to release five different remix albums in different territories, with each release featuring remixes from local DJs. Whether it will be bundled with the new studio album or released on its own is, as yet, unknown.

On December 14, 2007 Jonas Berggren announced in a meeting with fans after a concert in Lithuania that they are currently working with very famous American producers, but he couldn't reveal yet who they are. Susanna Safsund and Linnea Deb, two of the background singers on their world tour, will do backing vocals for the new studio album.

On April 4, 2008 the first promotional pictures for the new album appeared online in UnitedStage.se, the band's former booking agency site. A few days later, on April 10 the new website for the band went live. From early 2008 the band announced they had a new manager; Orlando John from Urbania Group, who had previously acted as their exclusive agent in Eastern Europe, Africa and Asia.

Since their show at Rock Under Broen (Middelfart, Denmark) on June 14, 2008, the group performs in their concerts a new song called "Sparks From A Fire" from their upcoming new album.

Ace of Base is releasing their Greatest Hits CD/DVD, Greatest Hits, Classic Remixes and Music Videos on November 12, 2008. The 3-disc set includes one CD with the hits, a second CD containing remixes, and the third disc, a DVD containing all the music videos. The package is three gold-Digipak and comes in a slip case. Along with the set is are new liner notes, with photographs. Three new remixes, "The sign 2009", "Wheel of Fortune 2009" and "Don't Turn Around 2009" are included. "Wheel of fortune 2009" will be released worldwide on October 24 as the lead single of the Greatest Hits album.

Achievements

Ace of Base have won a number of awards and broken many records. Their first album The Sign was given the Guinness World Record for "Best-Selling Debut Album". Combined sales of Happy Nation and The Sign are thought to have now reached 23 million. It reached the number 1 position in at least sixteen countries: Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, United Kingdom and United States.

In 1994, the band were awarded two American Music Awards including "Best Single" for "The Sign", which was also certified the year's best-selling single at the Billboard Music Awards. In addition, they received three Grammy nominations, including "Best New Artist" which was awarded to Sheryl Crow.

Four of the group's singles have received gold or platinum certification by the RIAA in the United States. These are



In addition, "The Sign: Home Video Collection" was also certified gold.

In Europe, Ace of Base won the award for "World's Best-Selling Scandinavian Artist" at the 1994, 1995, 1996, and 1997 World Music Awards in Monaco, at which they performed each year. They also won the "Pop Newcomer of the Year" award at the 1994 World Music Awards. Also, "Life Is a Flower" was Europe's most played single on radio in 1998.

In the United Kingdom, the "All That She Wants" single sold more than 600,000 copies, making it the third-best selling single of 1993 (behind Meat Loaf and UB40). The band scored twelve UK top 40 singles and performed on the BBC's long-running music show Top of the Pops ten times.

Discography

Ace of Base is the third best-selling band from Sweden after ABBA and Roxette. They are estimated to have sold 32 million albums and 15 million singles worldwide. This is a list with all of their albums and singles released, along with highest chart positions reached in major territories. Extended chart information, artwork and tracklistings can be found on individual pages.

Albums

Happy Nation



Happy Nation is the debut album of Ace of Base, a pop music group based in Sweden. It was released in early 1993 in Europe and Latin America. The album once held the world record as the highest-selling debut album of all time, a title which it has since relinquished. It reached the number one position in at least 14 countries, and an estimated total of 23 million copies have been sold.

A second release in Europe, Happy Nation U.S. Version, came on September 25, 1993, to coincide with the album's release in North America under the title name, The Sign. The Sign was released in North America on November 23, 1993 with four brand new tracks.

Several songs on the album, including "The Sign", "All That She Wants" and "Don't Turn Around", were #1 singles in the United States and all over Europe.

Track listing

1. "Voulez-Vous Danser" (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) - 3:22
2. "All That She Wants" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren; Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg) - 3:32
3. "Münchhausen (Just Chaos)" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren) - 3:27
4. "Happy Nation [Faded Edit]" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren; Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg) - 4:14
5. "Waiting for Magic" (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) - 5:21
6. "Fashion Party" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren) - 4:11
7. "Wheel of Fortune" (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) - 3:50
8. "Dancer In A Daydream" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren) - 3:39
9. "My Mind" [Mindless Mix] (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) - 4:10
10. "Wheel of Fortune" [Original Club Mix] (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) - 4:01
11. "Dimension Of Depth" [Instrumental] (Jonas "Joker" Berggren) 1:45
12. "Young And Proud" (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) - 3:56
13. "All That She Wants" [Banghra Version] (Jonas "Joker" Berggren; Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg) - 4:16

Happy Nation U.S. version

Happy Nation was re-released in Europe only, as Happy Nation (US Version) on September 25, 1993, to coincide with the American version of the album titled The Sign released in the Western Hemisphere on November 23 of that same year. Three new tracks were added to the American version, Don't Turn Around, The Sign, Living in Danger, while Happy Nation (US Version) contained four new songs, Don't Turn Around, The Sign, Living in Danger, Hear Me Calling, and a bonus remix for the track Happy Nation. The re-release climbed to number one in the UK Albums Chart, beating the number 21 peak of the original release. Happy Nation U.S. Version has the same cover as The Sign.

Track listing

1. "All That She Wants" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren; Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg) 3:30
2. "Don't Turn Around" (Albert Hammond; Diane Warren) 3:51
3. "Young And Proud" (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) 3:54
4. "The Sign" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren) 3:09
5. "Living In Danger" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren; Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg) 3:44
6. "Voulez-Vous Danser" [New Version] (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) 3:21
7. "Happy Nation [Faded Edit]" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren; Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg) 4:10
8. "Hear Me Calling" (Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg) 3:52
9. "Waiting for Magic" [Total Remix 7"] (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) 3:49
10. "Fashion Party" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren) 4:11
11. "Wheel of Fortune" (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) 3:54
12. "Dancer In A Daydream" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren) 3:39
13. "My Mind" [Mindless Mix] (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) 4:10
14. "All That She Wants" [Banghra Version] (Jonas "Joker" Berggren; Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg) 4:14
15. "Happy Nation" [Remix] (Jonas "Joker" Berggren; Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg) 3:44

The Sign



Only released in the US, Canada, Japan and some Latin American countries (such as Argentina and Brazil, where the band reached significant success).

Track listing

1. "All That She Wants" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren; Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg) 3:44
2. "Don't Turn Around" (Albert Hammond; Diane Warren) 3:51
3. "Young And Proud" (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) 3:56
4. "The Sign" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren) 3:12
5. "Living In Danger" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren; Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg) 3:43
6. "Dancer In A Daydream" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren; Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg) 3:39
7. "Wheel Of Fortune" (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) 3:54
8. "Waiting For Magic" [Total Remix 7"] (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) 3:53
9. "Happy Nation" (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) 4:16
10. "Voulez-Vous Danser" [New Version] (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) 3:20
11. "My Mind" [Mindless Mix] (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) 4:16
12. "All That She Wants" [Banghra Version] (Jonas Berggren, Ulf Ekberg) 4:14

Brazilian Track listing

1. "All That She Wants"
2. "Don't Turn Around"
3. "Young and Proud"
4. "The Sign"
5. "Living in Danger"
6. "Voulez-vous danser" (New version)
7. "Happy Nation"
8. "Hear me calling"
9. "Waiting for Magic" (Total Remix 7")
10. "Fashion party"
11. "Wheel of Fortune"
12. "Dancer In a Daydream"
13. "My Mind" (Mindless Mix)
14. "All That She Wants" (Banghra Version) - Exclusively available for CD format
15. "Happy nation" (Remix) - Exclusively available for CD format

In Brazil, BMG/Arista decided to release a mix version, using as basis both US version and the European re-release. The final result was an album entitled 'The Sign/Happy Nation US Version'. Three formats were released: LP (13 tracks) and Cassette/CD (15 tracks). Six songs were highly airplayed in the country, being Happy nation, All that she wants, Don't turn around and The sign major hits, while Living in danger and Wheel of forturne were minor hits.

Ace Of Base - All That She Wants


Ace of Base - The Sign


Ace Of Base - Happy Nation


Ace Of Base - Wheel Of Fortune


Ace Of Base - Dont Turn Around

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RYo0JpT410

Ace of Base - Living in Danger


The Bridge



The Bridge is the second album by Swedish pop music group, Ace of Base. It was composed during 1994 and 1995, and released on November 21, 1995. It is the only Ace of Base album to feature writing, production, vocals and harmonies by all four band members, each having an equal part in its creation. Earlier recordings featured arrangements and music by Ulf Ekberg and Jonas Berggren with vocals by all members. Later recordings utilized vocals by only Linn Berggren and Jenny Berggren.

History

On January 1, 1994, The Sign album and single hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Inspired by the band's success, Jonas penned the first song of what would become The Bridge while on holiday 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.

The band was still promoting their previous album and so work on The Bridge was infrequent during much of 1994. Jonas and Ulf each composed (separately) a half-dozen songs. Jonas' songs were recorded mainly at Cheiron Studios in Stockholm, while Ulf's tracks were created at Tuff Studios in Gothenburg. For the first time, Jenny and Linn also composed and produced songs. Their tracks were recorded mainly at Tuff Studios.

Ulf continued to work with John Ballard and StoneStream (Björn Stenstrom). In Stockholm, Jonas worked with producers Max Martin and Denniz Pop and vocalist Jeanette Söderholm.

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.

Releases and promotion

In the later half of 1995, preparations were made to release The Bridge, including the creation of several music videos. Director Richard Heslop filmed videos for "Beautiful Life" and "Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry", which were filmed within months of each other, as evidenced by the Christmas decorations seen in the back of the laundromat in the latter video. The band was filmed entirely in a studio and computer graphics were added to give the band the appearance of being outdoors.

Two videos were also filmed for "Lucky Love", and these were actually filmed outdoors. However, the American record company, Arista Records, was unhappy with all four of these videos. According to VH1, the bubbles digitally added to the Beautiful Life video were digitally removed at the record company's insistence. An entirely new, "sexier", video was filmed for "Lucky Love".

In September 1995, "Beautiful Life" was released in North and South America and Japan, while simultaneously "Lucky Love" was released across Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia. The full album was released later that month. The band appeared in Canada and Mexico, and performed in several Latin America countries.

"Lucky Love" was a commercial success across Europe, and was later released in North and South America (in April, 1996). While "Lucky Love" was released there, "Beautiful Life" charted in Europe.

"Never Gonna Say I'm sorry" was released in the U.S. in August, 1996, but was largely ignored because it was given no promotion, and the band was busy performing concerts elsewhere. "Just 'N' Image" was heard on several radio stations in the U.S., but no further single releases were forthcoming. Promotional releases of "My Déjà Vu" appeared in France and Scandinavia that year.

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".

During 1997, three of the band members (Jonas, Jenny, and Ulf) prepared material for their next album. This was to become Flowers, the band's third album. In 1998, Polydor released a strange limited-release promotional CD "Angel Eyes". This was the very last Bridge release, and it was packaged with the South-East Asia version of Flowers.

The full version of "The Bridge" (including "You and I") was released in the US via iTunes in 2007.

Performance in the charts

The Bridge is certified double Platinum in the USA. Six million copies of the album were sold worldwide. However, this was a far cry from the 23 million copies of the band's previous album, Happy Nation / The Sign.

The singles from the album found extremely varied levels of success. While "Beautiful Life" became a #1 club hit in the U.S., and reached #15 on Billboard's Hot 100 singles charts, the release of "Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry" in August of 1996 was given no promotion and peaked just outside the official U.S. Billhoard Hot 100.

Track listing

Demo version

The following is the track listing of the demo presented to the record companies.

1. "Beautiful Life"
2. "Blooming 18"
3. "Edge of Heaven"
4. "Experience Pearls"
5. "Strange Ways"
6. "Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry"
7. "Look Around Me"
8. "Lucky Love"
9. "Perfect World"
10. "Que Sera"
11. "Stranger to Love"
12. "Wave Wet Sand"
13. "Whispers in Blindness"
14. "My Déjà Vu"
15. "Angel of Love"
16. "Angel Eyes"
17. "Just 'N' Image"
18. "Ravine"
19. "You and I"

Finalized track listing

It is not known why the final track listing differed considerably from the demo version. Alterations were made to tracks 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, 16, and 17; tracks 7, 11, and 15 were removed altogether. Only four tracks were considered entirely usable, and these songs were planned as single releases.

Europe (excluding UK)

1. "Beautiful Life" – 3:39
2. "Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry" – 3:14
3. "Lucky Love (Original Version)" – 2:52
4. "Edge of Heaven" – 3:49
5. "Strange Ways" – 4:25
6. "Ravine" – 4:39
7. "Perfect World" – 3:55
8. "Angel Eyes" – 3:13
9. "Whispers In Blindness" – 4:10
10. "My Déjà Vu" – 3:40
11. "You and I" – 4:06
12. "Wave Wet Sand" – 3:18
13. "Que Sera" – 3:47
14. "Just 'N' Image" – 3:07
15. "Lucky Love (Acoustic Version)" – 2:52
16. "Experience Pearls" – 3:57
17. "Blooming 18" – 3:38

Japan

1. "Beautiful Life" – 3:39
2. "Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry" – 3:14
3. "Lucky Love (Original Version)" – 2:53
4. "Edge of Heaven" – 3:49
5. "Strange Ways" – 4:25
6. "Ravine" – 4:39
7. "Perfect World" – 3:55
8. "Angel Eyes" – 3:13
9. "My Déjà Vu" – 3:40
10. "You and I" – 4:06
11. "Wave Wet Sand" – 3:18
12. "Que Sera" – 3:47
13. "Just 'N' Image" – 3:07
14. "Whispers In Blindness" – 4:10
15. "Experience Pearls" – 3:57
16. "Blooming 18" – 3:38
17. "Beautiful Life (Vission Lorimer Club Mix)" – 7:01
18. "Lucky Love (Armand Van Helden House Mix)" – 11:23

United Kingdom

1. "Beautiful Life" – 3:39
2. "Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry" – 3:14
3. "Lucky Love [Original Version]" – 2:52
4. "Edge of Heaven" – 3:49
5. "Strange Ways" – 4:25
6. "Ravine" – 4:39
7. "Perfect World" – 3:55
8. "Angel Eyes" – 3:13
9. "Whispers In Blindness" – 4:10
10. "My Déjà Vu" – 3:40
11. "Wave Wet Sand" – 3:18
12. "Que Sera" – 3:47
13. "Just 'N' Image" – 3:07
14. "Experience Pearls" – 3:57
15. "Blooming 18" – 3:38

US and South America

1. "Beautiful Life" (John Ballard; Jonas "Joker" Berggren) – 3:39
2. "Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry" (Jenny Berggren; Jonas "Joker" Berggren; Malin "Linn" Berggren) – 3:14
3. "Lucky Love [Acoustic Version]" (Billy Steinberg; Jonas "Joker" Berggren) – 2:52
4. "Edge Of Heaven" (John Ballard; Stonestream; Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg) – 3:49
5. "Strange Ways" (Malin "Linn" Berggren) – 4:25
6. "Ravine" (Jenny Berggren) – 4:39
7. "Perfect World" (John Ballard; Stonestream; Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg) – 3:55
8. "Angel Eyes" (Billy Steinberg; Jonas "Joker" Berggren) – 3:13
9. "My Déjà Vu" (Jonas "Joker" Berggren) – 3:40
10. "Wave Wet Sand" (Jenny Berggren) – 3:18
11. "Que Sera" (John Ballard; Stonestream; Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg) – 3:47
12. "Just 'N' Image" (Malin "Linn" Berggren) – 3:07
13. "Experience Pearls" (Jenny Berggren) – 3:57
14. "Whispers In Blindness" (Malin "Linn" Berggren) – 4:10
15. "Blooming 18" (Billy Steinberg; Jonas "Joker" Berggren) – 3:38
16. "Lucky Love [Original Version]" [South American bonus track] – 2:53

Ace of Base - Lucky Love


Ace of Base - Beautiful Life


Ace of Base - Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry


This post has been edited by Calvin871989: Nov 16 2008, 08:10 AM

Flowers



Flowers is the third album by Swedish pop music group, Ace of Base. It was released on July 14, 1998 in Europe, Asia, and Africa, and August 10 in the United Kingdom. An American version, titled Cruel Summer, was released on September 1, later that year. The American version contained remixes of several of the original songs, and one new track. Britain, Japan, and Australia received hybrid versions of the two albums, retaining the original title in Britain and Australia and being called Cruel Summer in Japan.

Sales and charts

The Flowers album spawned the massively successful single, "Life Is a Flower", the most heavily played radio single of 1998, and Top 10 hits "Cruel Summer" and "Always Have, Always Will". The corresponding U.S. album sold poorly, and was the last original Ace of Base album released there. Flowers is estimated to have sold more than three million copies worldwide.

The Flowers album received gold certifications in Sweden and Denmark, and was certified platinum in Switzerland. The album was a top ten hit in Denmark, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Sweden and Switzerland. Singles from the album were also highly successful, earning the band top ten positions in the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Hungary, Italy, Russia, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and, oddly, Brazil, where the album was not even released.

Track listing

European release

1. "Life Is a Flower" – 3:47
2. "Always Have, Always Will" – 3:46
3. "Cruel Summer (Cutfather & Joe Mix)" – 3:35
4. "Travel to Romantis" – 4:10
5. "Adventures In Paradise" – 3:32
6. "Dr. Sun" – 3:35
7. "Cecilia" – 3:55
8. "He Decides" – 3:09
9. "I Pray" – 3:18
10. "Tokyo Girl" – 3:36
11. "Don't Go Away" – 3:41
12. "Captain Nemo" – 4:02 (its lyrics refer to Jules Verne's fictional character of Captain Nemo)
13. "Donnie" – 4:39
14. "Cruel Summer (Big Bonus Mix)" – 4:07
15. "Cruel Summer (duet with Alliage)" (bonus track for French release) – 3:28

A re-release of the record in UK saw "Cecilia" replaced with "Cecilia (Ole Evenrude Mix)" and "Cruel Summer (Big Bonus Mix)" replaced with "Everytime It Rains"

Australian release

1. "Cruel Summer (Cutfather & Joe Mix)" – 3:36
2. "Donnie (Ole Evenrude Edit)" – 3:33
3. "Whenever You're Near Me" – 3:32
4. "Everytime It Rains" – 4:51
5. "Adventures In Paradise" – 3:32
6. "Don't Go Away" – 3:41
7. "Cecilia" – 3:55
8. "He Decides (US Album Version)" (aka Fisher Mix) – 3:52
9. "Always Have Always Will" – 3:46
10. "Tokyo Girl" – 3:36
11. "Travel to Romantis (Larossi Radio Edit)" – 4:12
12. "Cruel Summer (Aqua Mix)" (aka Big Bonus Mix) – 4:07
13. "Life Is a Flower" – 3:48

Ace of Base - Life Is a Flower


Ace of Base - Travel to Romantis


Ace of Base - Always Have Always Will


Cruel Summer



Cruel Summer is the third album by Swedish pop music group, Ace of Base. When Flowers saw the sale of three million copies after its release in Europe, Asia and Africa on July 14, 1998, Arista Records decided to release their own version of the album in the US and Japan, titled Cruel Summer.

Cruel Summer was released on August 25, 1998 in Japan with two bonus tracks, and on September 1, 1998, in America. Sales were not as positive as the earlier release Flowers. The American version contained only remixes of several of the original songs, and one new track; it is generally considered inferior to the original European release. People did not seem interested in buying Americanized versions of songs by a Swedish band, and the resulting album sold a mere 122,000 copies. Later Ace of Base albums have not been released in the United States.

History

In 1996, the band completed its promotion of The Bridge album, which had sold five million albums worldwide. Ace of Base did not immediately return to the studio as they had with their second album. Band member Linn Berggren tired of the spotlight, and had returned home early from the group's tour of Asia. The quartet took a break from both recording and promotion; Ulf Ekberg moved to Marbella, Spain.

In mid-1997, the band's record companies asked Ace of Base for new material. Representatives at Arista Records specifically asked for "summery", sunny songs. By Autumn of 1997, "Doctor Sun" had been recorded; it was the first song completed for the new album. The band members test-played the song in several clubs in Gothenburg. Originally, the song featured vocals from all four members, but Ulf's vocals were eventually cut on the final version, which was not released in the United States.

The band members had resisted recording another cover, but at the record company's insistence, Jonas Berggren chose Bananarama's "Cruel Summer". The original version, however, was considered unsuitable, and a new version, produced by Arista president Clive Davis was commissioned instead.

Jenny had written just one song for the new album: "He Decides". However, this song, too, was considered unsuitable in its original form, and was remixed by Charles Fisher. The resulting mix was darker in tone than the original. Ulf composed "more than twenty songs", but only one was used on the released album. Linn wrote and produced one demo entitled "Lapponia," but the track was rejected.

Instead, Arista chose songs written by Jonas for the American version, although few of these songs were considered album-worthy in their original versions. Jenny was asked to record new vocals for "Donnie", and Linn's vocals were cut altogether. The resulting remix was later described as a "Phil Spector-inspired Wall of Sound".

"Life Is a Flower" was considered unsuitable for American audiences, despite high chart positions worldwide. Clive Davis ordered a new version, which became "Whenever You're Near Me", an adult contemporary love song.

The record company head also was instrumental in the recording (and re-recording) of "Everytime it Rains". The original vocals by Jenny were found unsuitable, and a version featuring Linn's voice was used instead. "Travel to Romantis" and "Always Have, Always Will" were also edited for the U.S. release.

While the band members began their promotion for the worldwide release of the Flowers album, Arista executives waivered on whether there would be a U.S. album at all. As late as spring of 1998, Arista representatives had commented that the album was "too bubblegum" and would not be released at all in the States. When it became clear the album was selling well in Europe, representatives at Arista relented, and the album was released, three months after the European version. The name of the album, however, was rejected. Arista settled on the name Everytime it Rains, but switched gears into the promotion, retitling the album Cruel Summer after printing 500,000 copies of the single.

The resulting album, despite spawning a top 10 single, did not sell well. It peaked at #101 on Billboard's Hot 200 Album chart, and failed to make a dent in sales. It dropped out of the charts soon after release, despite good reviews by Fred Bronson, who praised the album for its retro sound. A second single, "Whenever You're Near Me", received little attention, and was not even correctly promoted on the Arista website (it was listed as "Whenever You Need Me"; despite fan efforts to get the mistake corrected, it is still listed as "Whenever You Need Me" to this day). The record company soon ceased any further promotion. People Magazine reported in December of 1998 that only 122,000 copies of the album had sold, while the Flowers album was certified multi-platinum.

Even though the album was not a success in the US, many of the album's singles were readily available via import in US stores.

Track listing

U.S. release

1. "Cruel Summer (Cutfather & Joe Mix)" – 3:33
2. "Donnie (Ole Evenrude Version)" – 3:47
3. "Whenever You're Near Me" – 3:32
4. "Everytime it Rains" – 4:52
5. "Adventures in Paradise" – 3:30
6. "Don't Go Away" – 3:39
7. "Cecilia" – 3:54
8. "He Decides (Fisher Mix)" (aka US Version) – 3:49
9. "Always Have, Always Will (US Edit)" – 3:48
10. "Tokyo Girl" – 3:35
11. "Travel to Romantis (Love to Infinity Radio Remix)" – 3:27
12. "Cruel Summer (Blazin' Rhythm Remix)" – 3:31

Japan release

1. "Cruel Summer (Cutfather & Joe Mix)" – 3:36
2. "Donnie (Ole Evenrude Version)" – 3:47
3. "Life Is a Flower" – 3:45
4. "Everytime it Rains" – 4:52
5. "Adventures in Paradise" – 3:30
6. "Don't Go Away" – 3:40
7. "Cecilia" – 3:54
8. "He Decides (Fisher Mix)" (aka US Version) – 3:49
9. "Always Have, Always Will (US Edit)" – 3:49
10. "Tokyo Girl" – 3:36
11. "Travel to Romantis (Love to Infinity Radio Remix)" – 3:38
12. "Cruel Summer (Blazin' Rhythm Remix)" – 3:34
13. "Dr. Sun" – 3:35
14. "Into the Night of Blue" – 4:10

Ace of Base - Cruel Summer (US Version)


Ace of Base - Cruel Summer (UK Version)


Da Capo



Da Capo is the fourth studio album by Ace of Base, a pop music group based in Sweden. It was released in 2002 in Europe (on Edel-Mega/Universal) and Japan (on Toshiba EMI with a different cover and the usual bonus tracks). The European version contained 12 tracks, and the Japanese version 15.

It was initially slated for a summer 2000 release, but problems with Ace of Base's record labels caused it to be delayed for another year. Ultimately, Da Capo came out at the end of September 2002, and then to very low sales in many European territories.

The miminal promotion was handled by two members, Jenny Berggren and Ulf Ekberg. This left out the other two Berggrens: Jonas wanted to stay at home with his two kids, and Malin was unable to join them because of her fear of flying. During the promotion Jenny and Ulf visited Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Germany, Poland and Austria.

As of 2008, Da Capo has sold between 400,000 and 500,000 copies, a flop compared to Ace of Base's earlier releases.

In an interview, Ulf said that the group would release the album in the United States and the songs would be more acoustic. However, it never came out in the Americas or Australia. Moreover, Polydor Records gave it a "soft release" in the UK on October 21, 2002; that label gave it no promotion, nor any radio singles, believing that the band were no longer relevant to the British music scene.

The album is named for the musical term da capo, meaning "back to the beginning." It was intended to be a return to the band's earliest sound.

This album has been released with the Copy Control protection system in some regions

Track listing

1. "Unspeakable"
2. "Beautiful Morning"
3. "Remember the Words"
4. "Da Capo"
5. "World Down Under"
6. "Ordinary Day"
7. "Wonderful Life"
8. "Show Me Love"
9. "What's the Name of the Game?"
10. "Change with the Light"
11. "Hey Darling" [German pressing included an alternate version]
12. "The Juvenile"
13. "Don't Stop" [Japanese bonus track]
14. "Summer Days" [Japanese bonus track]
15. "Beautiful Morning (Groove Radio Edit)" [Japanese bonus track]

Ace of Base - C'est La Vie


Ace Of Base - Beautiful Morning


Ace Of Base - Unspeakable


DVD

The DVD contains the complete album in 5.1 Surround Sound, all official Ace of Base videos except "Travel to Romantis," gallery, discography and biography in English and German.

Da Capo (album)

1. Unspeakable
2. Beautiful Morning
3. Remember the Words
4. Da Capo
5. World Down Under
6. Ordinary Day
7. Wonderful Life
8. Show Me Love
9. What's the Name of the Game?
10. Change with the Light
11. Hey Darling
12. The Juvenile

Videos:

1. C'est la Vie
2. The Sign
3. Beautiful Life
4. Always Have, Always Will
5. All That She Wants
6. Living in Danger
7. Don't Turn Around
8. Cruel Summer
9. Happy Nation
10. Lucky Love
11. Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry
12. Life Is a Flower
13. Wheel of Fortune
14. Beautiful Morning

can't wait until 2009

Btw, Your signatory very nice.