The discography of Swedish pop duo Roxette consists of ten studio albums (including six Swedish number ones), one live album, thirteen compilation albums, one remix album, eleven video albums, three box sets, fifty-six singles (including three Swedish and four US number ones) and twenty promotional singles, as well as fifty-two music videos. The duo, which consisted of Per Gessle and Marie Fredriksson, are the second most commercially successful Swedish act of all time, after ABBA.[1] They sold over 75 million records worldwide,[2][3][4] although a report by the Los Angeles Times put the figure as high as 80 million.[5] The RIAA awarded them certifications of 3.5 million units in the US,[6] where the duo have sold over two million albums since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking sales data in May 1991.[7][8] The BPI in the UK certified Roxette for shipments of at least 3 million.[9] They were particularly successful in Germany, where they are recognised as one of the highest-certified acts of all time, with shipments of 5.725 million units.[10]
The duo formed in 1986, releasing debut album Pearls of Passion that same year. The record and its singles performed well in Sweden, but failed to chart elsewhere. Their international breakthrough came with Look Sharp! in 1988, which contained "The Look" and "Listen to Your Heart". Both songs peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, while "Dangerous" peaked at number two.[11] Originally a non-album single in 1987, "It Must Have Been Love" became an international hit when it was re-released in 1990 as part of the soundtrack to Pretty Woman.[12] Their most successful album, Joyride, was issued the following year, eventually selling over 11 million copies worldwide. The title track was their fourth number one on the Billboard Hot 100, with "Fading Like a Flower (Every Time You Leave)" also peaking at number two.[11]
Roxette's fourth studio album Tourism was recorded in multiple studios during the "Join the Joyride! Tour", which saw them performing to over 1.7 million people worldwide.[13] The record performed well internationally, selling six million copies worldwide, but failed to replicate the success of previous albums in North America. 1994's Crash! Boom! Bang! was followed by greatest hits collection Don't Bore Us, Get to the Chorus! in 1995, which both sold in excess of five million copies worldwide. A compilation of Spanish-language re-recordings titled Baladas en Español was issued in Spanish-speaking territories in 1996. Studio albums Have a Nice Day and Room Service were released in 1999 and 2001, respectively, and were both commercially successful throughout Europe.
Fredriksson was diagnosed with a brain tumour in 2002, resulting in a period of inactivity for the duo. They briefly reunited to record two new songs for A Collection of Roxette Hits: Their 20 Greatest Songs! in 2006, before reforming in 2009 and embarking on "The Neverending World Tour".[14] Their studio albums from 1986–2001 were re-mastered and re-released in September 2009, featuring previously released bonus tracks.[15] Eighth studio album Charm School came in 2011, with Travelling following a year later. Their tenth and final studio album, Good Karma, was issued in 2016. The band began releasing 30th anniversary editions of their studio albums in 2018, with Look Sharp! followed by Joyride in 2022 and Tourism in 2023. Fredriksson died in 2019 as a result of complications stemming from her 2002 cancer diagnosis.[14] The band released an album of outtakes titled Bag of Trix on the first anniversary of her death; it was released in dedication to her.[16]
Albums
Studio albums
List of studio albums, with selected chart positions, sales figures and certifications
^Baladas en Español consists of re-recorded versions of twelve of their down-tempo singles and album tracks, translated into Spanish. It was only released in Spanish and Portuguese-speaking territories.
^The 2011 Greatest Hits album was only released in the United States, and consists of their eleven English-language singles to appear on the Billboard charts, plus their then-current single "No One Makes It on Her Own".
^Greatest Hits did not enter the Australian Albums Chart, but peaked at number 9 on the ARIA Digital Albums Chart the week of Fredriksson's death.[48]
^"Dressed for Success" peaked at number 48 in the UK when it was originally released in July 1989. It went on to peak at number 18 when it was re-released there in October 1990.[26]
^"Listen to Your Heart" was re-issued in the UK in August 1990 as a double A-sided single with "Dangerous". "Listen to Your Heart" peaked at number 62 when it was originally released there in October 1989.[26]
^"It Must Have Been Love" was reissued in the UK and Ireland in 1993. The song originally peaked at number 5 in Ireland, while the 1993 re-release peaked at number 10 in both the UK and Ireland.[26][62]
^"You Don't Understand Me" did not enter the Canadian Top Singles Chart, but peaked at number 18 on the Canadian Adult Contemporary Chart.[65]
^"The Look (2015 Remake)" did not enter the Swedish Airplay Chart, but peaked at number 38 on Swedish Digital Songs.[76]
^"It Just Happens" did not enter the Swedish Airplay Chart, but peaked at number 8 on Swedish Digital Songs.[77]
^"Paint" was released on a limited edition promotional single solely in Philippines.[68]
^"The Sweet Hello, the Sad Goodbye" was released on a limited edition promotional CD solely in Sweden.[68]
^"Come Back (Before You Leave)" was released as a limited edition double A-sided promotional single in Spain, which also contained the Tam Tam Go! track "Piel Sobre Piel".[83]
^Only 75 copies of the "Love Is All" single were made. These were all sent to executives at EMI branches throughout the world, "as a Christmas gift and also as a sample of what [the Crash! Boom Bang! album] would sound like". Many of the 75 copies were sent to North American branches of EMI, as an attempt to remind staff there that Roxette "still exist."[68]
^"I Don't Want to Get Hurt" was released as a promotional single in Brazil.[68]
^"Soy una Mujer" was released as a promotional single exclusively in Mexico.[68]
^"I Call Your Name '97" was released as an airplay-only single exclusively in Spain.[68]
^"From One Heart to Another" was released as a promotional single in Brazil.[68]
^"Neverending Love" was reissued as a promotional single by EMI Spain, to commemorate shipments in excess of 50,000 units of the 1997 reissue of Roxette's debut album, Pearls of Passion, in that country.[68]
^"Quisiera Volar" was released as a promotional single exclusively in Spain.[68]
^The album version of "Crush on You" was issued as a promotional single in Sweden, while an exclusive remix of the song by Almighty was issued as a promo single to radio stations in the United Kingdom.[68]
^"Alguien" was issued as an airplay-only single in Mexico, Spain and Argentina.[68]
^"Touched by the Hand of God" was released as a promotional CD solely in Germany.[68]
^"Lover, Lover, Lover" was released as a promotional single solely in Germany.[68]
^The Sweden Live video was only released in Japan.
^4-DVD box set containing Sweden Live, Look Sharp Live, Live-Ism, Crash! Boom! Live! and the previously unreleased Room Service Tour '01 filmed at the Globe Arena in Stockholm on 16 November 2001.[89]
for top 100 peaks to December 2010: Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (pdf ed.). Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. pp. 239–240.
for all other albums and singles, up to 2002: Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN84-8048-639-2.
for top 200 chart positions between 1994 and 2006: "UK Chartlog: The Rabble Army – RZA". Charts Plus. zobbel.de. Archived from the original on 22 November 2012. Retrieved 8 September 2016.
^ abRyan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (pdf ed.). Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. pp. 239–240.
^"Weekly Charts - Promusicae - Productores de Música de España"(PDF). Productores de Música de España. Archived from the original on 11 June 2014. Retrieved 11 September 2016. To access the Baladas en español certification from this reference, user must enter "Albums", "2006" and "Semana 11 - (13/03 a 19/03)" as the search parameters and download the corresponding PDF file. The album appeared at No. 98 that week.
^"1989 ARIA Singles Chart". ARIA. Archived from the original on 12 March 2017. Retrieved 17 December 2016. N.B. This page omits some certifications for 1989 singles, including "The Look".
for "Speak to Me": "Svensktoppen: 2 Oktober 2011". Sveriges Radio (in Swedish). Nostalgilistan. 2 October 2011. Retrieved 12 August 2019.
for "It's Possible": "Svensktoppen: 27 Maj 2012". Sveriges Radio (in Swedish). Nostalgilistan. 22 May 2012. Retrieved 12 August 2019.
for "The Sweet Hello, the Sad Goodbye": "Svensktoppen: 29 Juli 2012". Sveriges Radio (in Swedish). Nostalgilistan. 22 May 2012. Retrieved 12 August 2019.
^Piel Sobre Piel / Come Back (Before You Leave) (CD liner notes). Tam Tam Go! / Roxette. EMI. 1992. 1225972.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
