Mazarinerna is the band (VI): Per Gessle’s pop favorites

In this month’s Premiär magazine (a free magazine) Per gives us the recipe for a perfect pop CD. Many of these songs were featured on the pre-show CDs that were played before the “Sommar-Mazarin” concerts. As you may know it’s usually Per who compiles Roxette’s, Gyllene Tider’s and now his own pre-show CDs. Per does this “…with a few bottles of wine and a stack of CDs…”, according to himself.

• 1. Balloon Farm - A Question of Temperature
• 2. Simon & Garfunkel - The Only Living Boy in New York
• 3. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers - American Girl
• 4. Brainpool - Bandstarter
• 5. REM - The One I Love
• 6. The Buzzcocks - Ever Fallen in Love…
• 7. The Who - Dogs
• 8. Lindsay Buckingham - Trouble
• 9. The Beatles - Cry Baby Cry
• 10. The Troggs - Love is All Around
• 11. Bernt Staf - Familjelycka
• 12. Docent Död - Solglasögon
• 13. Blondie - Hanging on the Telephone
• 14. Ramones - Sheena is a Punk Rocker
• 15. T.Rex - Metal Guru
• 16. Israel Kamakawiwo’ole - Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World
• 17. Led Zeppelin - Immigrant Song
• 18. Joni Mitchell - Rainy Night House
• 19. ABBA - S.O.S.
• 20. Dusty Springfield - Son of a Preacher Man
• 21. The Kinks - Waterloo Sunset

Many classics and some new songs. Per also spoke at Finnish TV2 on 4th August about music. Read it below.

LJdM

I don't have any gold records or MTV awards at home. I don't want to get stuck with the past. I want to look forward. It's hard to make good songs, but it helps to love your work. Marie and I love Roxette and the music we make. But it doesn't come easy: I write maybe one good song and fifty bad ones a month. It's hard for me to listen to Top 40 music, the same music I write myself. Start to think about it too technically, like 'this singing is too anemic', 'this echo is strange'. At home I often listen to jazz. John Coltrane, Norah Jones. And I love Alison Krauss' country music. I would love to make film music. There's an almost instrumental song on the new album that would make good film score. People have asked me to write a musical, but I won't. I hate musicals!

Per Gessle

Mazarinerna is the band (V): Mazarin Swedish Summer Tour

The tour was fantastic, but all too short. I hope there will be a follow-up. One of the highlights was the mid-August concert in Stockholm. Over 17,000 wonderful people showed up. Playing in Stockholm has always been tough for a country boy like me, but eventually it was an excellent concert.

Per Gessle

The Mazarin Swedish Summer Tour has finished. Thanks to the fans and The Daily Roxette, we could see some of the pictures and stories about it.

• 29/07/2003 Brottet Halmstad 13,000 spectators.

• 30/07/2003 Sofiero slott Helsingborg 12,000

• 01/08/2003 Boulognersskogen Skövde 8,000

• 02/08/2003 Rockslottet Finspång 8,000

• 03/08/2003 Fästningsrundan Varberg 12,000

• 05/08/2003 Molleplatsen Malmö 10,000

• 06/08/2003 Slottsskogsvallen Gothenburg 22,000

• 08/08/2003 Kalmarsundsparken Kalmar 9,000

• 09/08/2003 Rådhusparken Jönköping 7,000

• 10/08/2003 Sparregården Karlskrona 7,000

• 12/08/2003 Sjöhistoriska muséet Stockholm 17,000

• 14/08/2003 Park Arena Sundsvall 6,000

• 15/08/2003 Sammilsdal Leksand 9,000

• 16/08/2003 Mariebergsskogen Karlstad 7,000

• 17/08/2003 Sundbyholms slott Eskilstuna 10,000

We all hope to see this great band together very soon.

LJdM

This is my first real tour, so everything is new and really exciting. The guys in the band has given me lots of tips on how to pack and things like that. I hope I could learn many things in this tour for the future tours of Sandy Mouche.

Helena Josefsson - H.J.

Helena Josefsson, backing singer at Tambourine Studios and Gula Studion (VI): Junior Senior - D-D-Don't Stop the Beat

Junior Senior is a pop musical duo from Denmark. The duo consists of keyboardist, guitarist and vocalist Jesper "Junior" Mortensen (born 1977) and vocalist Jeppe "Senior" Laursen (born 1975). Junior Senior formed in 1998 when Jesper Mortensen and Jeppe Laursen got back together after their previous band Ludo-X broke up in 1995. The band signed a deal with Danish label Crunchy Frog Records and here it is: their debut album, D-D-Don't Stop the Beat. The first single, "Move Your Feet" (April 2003), is one of the most played songs on Danish radio and eventually has climbed the charts in over thirteen countries, including the United States, Australia, France, the United Kingdom and Denmark.

The second single could be "Rhythm bandits", featuring Helena Josefsson (Sandy Mouche) as background singer. It was recorded at Tambourine Studios and produced by Eggstone's members.

LJdM