FEATURE:
Too Good to Be Forgotten: Songs That Are Much More Than a Guilty Pleasure
Roxette - Joyride
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MANY of the songs that…
I have featured in this run have been from the 1990s. I will move things on in future features, but I wanted to mention Joyride as it is a song that I really love. From the brilliant Roxette, it turned thirty very recently. I will bring in an article that marked twenty-five years of Joyride back in 2016. Sadly, this is a song we will never hear performed live again with the incredible voice of Marie Fredriksson. She died in 2019 and, when I heard the news, I was very sad. I think she is one of the most underrated singers there has been. Rather than dwell on loss, I wanted to celebrate a gem from the Swedish duo. If you are not familiar with the track, Joyride, then here is some background:
“Joyride" is a song by the Swedish pop duo Roxette. Written by Per Gessle, it was released as the lead single from their third studio album, Joyride (1991), the follow-up to the duo's highly successful second studio album, Look Sharp! (1988). It became one of Roxette's biggest hits, and was one of the most successful singles of 1991, topping multiple record charts across Europe, as well as in Australia, Canada, and the United States”.
I have been listening to the song for thirty years now and, every time I hear it, it lifts my energy. I have seen people talk about Roxette as a guilty pleasures group; their songs are not ones that one should think as being cool or great. The duo released more than their fair share of classics! I think that Joyride should not be seen as a guilty pleasure – and I have seen the song appear on a couple of lists that suggest it it.
I am going to take a bit of a de tour in a second and bring in a review for the Joyride album. One of the strongest albums of the 1990s, Joyride celebrates its thirtieth anniversary on 28th March. With the superb and reliable songwriting strength of Roxette’s surviving member, Per Gessle, I like how Joyride nods to The Beatles and Magic Mystery Tour. The Joyride album contains a lot of variety and strength. AllMusic had this to say:
“The beauty of Roxette is that the duo of Per Gessle and Marie Fredriksson can do practically anything in terms of Top 40 music. From the quiet desperation of "Spending My Time" to the chanting carnival of "Joyride" to the folky "Church of Your Heart," they bring a worldliness to their lyrics and melodies that most pop A-listers don't even have the imagination to dream of. This, the follow-up to their breakthrough disc, Look Sharp!, sees through on what that collection hinted at, meaning most of the songs sound like they were designed to be hit singles, not just filler between two or three good cuts. "The Big L," "Soul Deep," and "Hotblooded" all follow in the successful vein Gessle and Fredriksson mined with "The Look," while "Fading Like a Flower (Every Time You Leave)," an insistent rock ballad, and the accordion-driven "Perfect Day" take things down a notch. The low-key "Watercolours in the Rain" and the whining "(Do You Get) Excited?" are the only cuts that keep the album from being a total success. For the most part, though, this is two pop artists at the top of their game”.
Before I round off and give my thoughts, I will bring in that article from 2016 that nodded to a song that went to number-one around the world (although it reached number-four in the U.K.). I think Joyride still sounds so engaging, catchy and fresh after three decades! This is what Rhino wrote in their retrospective:
“25 years ago today, Roxette rose to the #1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for the fourth time in their career, and while there hasn’t been a fifth time thus far, they just released a new single (“It Just Happens”), so we’re not counting them out quite yet.
“Joyride” was, as you may already know, the first single – and title track – from Roxette’s third studio album. Written by Per Gessle, a.k.a. the dude in the duo, the opening lines of the song were reportedly taken directly from a note that his then-girlfriend, now-wife left on his piano which read, “Hello, you fool, I love you.” You’ll also note a bit of a “Magical Mystery Tour” vibe at times, particularly when you hear Dave Edwards, a friend of the band (not to mention their former tour manager), saying, “Come on, join the joyride, get your tickets here, step right this way.” This is not coincidental: Gessle has said that took the title of the song straight from an interview with Paul McCartney in which the former Beatle described writing songs with John Lennon as a “long joyride.”
Over the years, “Joyride” has earned addition honors within the pop culture pantheon, serving as the intro anthem for the Vancouver Canucks during the 1994 Stanley Cup playoffs and, perhaps most importantly, it was also selected as one of the tracks covered by Alvin and the Chipmunks and The Chippettes for their album The Chipmunks Rock the House. Ultimately, though, the greatest sign of the song’s success was on the charts: it hit #1 in US, Canada, Australia, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland, not to mention on the European Hot 100 Singles chart. Not only that, but the single earned the band gold and even platinum sales in various countries, cementing their success for the long haul.
Well, everywhere in America, that is. But, hey, let’s just focus on the #1 single, shall we?”.
It is a shame that some people feel that one of Roxette’s biggest hits is a song that is a little lame and cheesy. There is a giddiness and appeal to the song that I think crosses age barriers and tastes. Anyone can listen to Joyride and be enriched and made to feel happier!
Despite some people not liking the song, it has gained some positive reception through the years. Maybe it sounds different to a lot of Pop and Rock today but, as so much music today is either boring or empty, artists could learn a lot from a song that has been praised and stands up to the test of time:
“AllMusic editor Bryan Buss described the song as a "chanting carnival" in his review of the Joyride album Larry Flick from Billboard described it as a "playful pop/rock ditty with a catchy chorus that is destined to make a quick sprint up the charts." Jim Farber from Entertainment Weekly noted that "they blithely toss a bit of whistling into "Joyride", next to some psychedelic Beatles-like flourishes." Dave Sholin from the Gavin Report wrote, "Plenty of reason for joy in Top 40 land as Per Gessle and Marie Fredriksson deliver the first of a new batch of songs. Wisely, the Swedish duo retain "Look Sharp" producer Clarence Ofwerman, and, once again it's clear all three understand the way to a pop music fan's heart. Roxette has re-applied that happy, feelgood formula to making mass appeal records, and it's earned them instant recognition and remarkable chart success. This title track from their new album is certain to not only meet everyone's expectations, but surpass them." Music & Media stated that the song "is a perfect example of their pop sensibilities."
Brendon Veevers from Renowned for Sound commented, "There isn't a soul alive who cannot say they don’t love this track – Roxette fan or not. It's pop at its finest and the video is equally as memorable; the band speeding down a U.S highway, playing guitar on top of a red corvette." Rolling Stones J.D. Considine said that the song is "decked out in a glossy, Sgt. Pepper-style arrangement". Mark Frith from Smash Hits labeled it as a "over-the-top" pop song, "with catchy choruses that remind you slightly of those other musical Swedes, Abba." A writer for Cleveland.com ranked "Joyride" the 46th best Billboard Hot 100 number one of the 1990s, saying: "Even more so than the group's biggest hit, 'It Must Have Been Love,' 'Joyride' showed off Per Gessle's ability to craft fantastic pop-rock songs. The song's pop spirit and rock swagger mesh seamlessly".
I shall wrap up now. I wanted to almost defend a song that has got some bad press from people. Not that there is a guilty pleasure song; those who rank Joyride alongside some truly embarrassing tracks need to have a word with themselves! I think Joyride is one of those classic Pop songs that has a big chorus and an energy that carries you and lifts the heart! If you have not heard the song then get involved and let it feed into the bloodstream. Although some feel Joyride is a guilty pleasure listen, I think that it is…
SUCH a fine song