TDR listens to Marie’s new album... and (no big surprise) we like it!
Written by administrator on June 27, 2006 to Marie Fredriksson.
LJUSDAL (SWEDEN) | LLEIDA (SPAIN) - 
Marie Fredriksson - Min bäste vän, EMI
The Daily Roxette’s two news editors, Thomas Evensson and Judith Seuma, share their comments on Marie Fredriksson’s new album “Min bäste vän,” in this review of an album where Marie covers some of her favorite songs from the late ’60s and early ’70s.
Thomas: These songs are all from the beginning of the ’70s, from before I listened to music. I know a few of them from radio, but mostly this is new material to me. Also the material is from the prog era, an era I’ve never cared for and which is mostly – if not totally – dead these days. I can imagine that Marie’s songs mean more to people older than me. Having said that, here we go!
Judith: Most of the songs are new to me as well, and even though I listened to the original tracks a couple of times before the album was released, that wasn’t enough to keep them in my mind and later be able to compare them. This means the songs don’t mean any era or have any political background to me and I can listen to them in a complete different level. I must add Marie has the gift to make hers any song she sings, listen to “Ännu doftar kärlek” or “Mot okända hav” – she puts so much feeling in them, and she makes such wonderful performances of these songs, that if you didn’t know she hadn’t written them herself, you would blindly think she did. And the same thought comes to my mind when I listen to many of the songs featured in this album. Last but not least, this album has all brightness and happiness “The Change” had of darkness.
Din bäste vän
Thomas: This time around Marie decided that she didn’t want to write her own material, so she picked songs that she loved when she was growing up. John Holm, a now-in-the-US emigrated Swede, was huge in the beginning of the ’70s. Din bäste vän is a nice track, Marie says the original was “much rockier” in the liner notes. Funnily enough the whole song is more or less programmed by Micke B, the only thing that’s “live” is Jokke Pettersson’s guitar. Jokke is Marie’s nephew by the way.
Judith: One of those tracks one could be mislead to think it is written by Marie. A little “Den standiga resan” and “I en tid som var” flair do the trick here.
Sommaräng
Thomas: this is another song written by John Holm, he has three songs on the album. The first (and only) time I heard this was in 1986 when Per Gessle played his favorite songs on a Swedish radio show. Marie’s version is very soft and I have to say, a good summer single. This track is also fully programmed by Micke. I like it.
Judith: The perfect song to listen to when laying by the beach or by the swimmingpool – where I am while writing this review. Just close your eyes, listen to the birds, Marie’s incredible voice, this calm tune, feel the breeze, listen to the water.. and fly.
Om jag vore arbetslös (If I Were a Carpenter), Tim Hardin, Swedish lyrics by Cornelis Vreesvijk.
Thomas: I really don’t like this, very repetitive and definitely not my cuppa tea. This song, by the way, is fully instrumented.
Judith: One of my favourite tracks – couldn’t be anyway else. Those rocky guitars, Marie making one of the fabulous vocal performance this album is full with – for I think I will regard this album as the one featuring Marie playing with her voice the most and excelling at it.
Guldgruva by Pugh (formerly Torbjörn) Rogefeldt.
Thomas: Harmonica played by Mats Ronander. I never could stand Pugh, and this is just as bad. This is a blues track. Terrible, but not the worst on the album.
Judith: Oh, how much I would love to listen to this song live! Marie comments in the booklet she dreams of recording a blues album. Where do I have to sing?
Ingen kommer undan politiken (Complainte Pour Ste. Catherine).
Thomas: I remember this from the radio when I was a kid, the original Swedish version of course. Sung by Marie Bergman, or should I say squeeled by her. I truly hated this and thought that Marie’s version would be as bad. I was wrong. I think this is a good version, and Bengan Jansson, the guy on the accordion is from Ljusdal! Marie claims this is a very political song, I can’t say myself, as I rarely listen to lyrics. (As I’m sure you all know by now!)
Judith: Whatever the lyrics are about, I consider the song playful, summery, bright. I love the instrumental arrangements.
Jag ger dej min morgon (I Give You The Morning).
Thomas: This is an all time classic in Sweden! Sung, written (lyrics) and made famous by late troubadour Fred Åkerström. Sadly I must say that Marie’s version doesn’t touch me.
Judith: Probably the song I like the least in this album, Marie’s performance is not bad, but she can do it better, doesn’t touch me either. The chorus repeats too often for my taste.
Aftonfalken.
Thomas: Another Pugh track. Still the same – weird. Pugh is mostly weird and was definitely in the beginning of the ’70s.
Judith: Another of those tracks I’d believe is Marie-penned. Great melancholic guitars, fantastic voice.
Man måste veta vad man önskar sej by Mikael Wiehe.
Thomas: Not a bad song at all, very summery.
Judith: Not much more to add, another playful bright song.
Vem kan man lita på?
Thomas: Magnus Uggla covered this many years ago, he was sued by Mikael Wiehe as he changed the name “Robert Zimmerman” to “Björn Afzelius.” This is a dreadful reggae version á la typical cover band. Not good.
Judith: Marie’s voice and performance is nice and funny. I’m not a big fan of reggae but I can live with it if Marie (or Gyllene Tider) are involved.
Den öde stranden
Thomas: the last John Holm track of the album. Recorded by Per Gessle on “Per Gessle” in 1983 and performed by Gyllene Tider during the 1996 tour. I have also heard John’s own version. Marie does it well, but a tad too slow for my taste. Still a good track. John’s songs are definitely among the best on this album.
Judith: This is one of the songs I already was familiar with, as you will all guess. Marie makes this slow version touch very deep inside. Full of feelings and one of those songs she makes hers.
Här kommer natten
Thomas: Pugh, or should I say ugh? One of the album’s two worst songs, if not the worst. Violent intro and then just weird. Pugh is in the habit of making up words, it seems to me. Ra-bi-da-bi-dabi-da…
Judith: Joey Tempest, Anders Glenmark and Patrik Isaksson covered this song a couple of years ago and - like Marie - they also decided to leave the song rather unchanged. But I must agree with Marie: a female voice singing this song makes it totally different. I love the power in her voice and Stefan’s guitars. One of the best tracks in the album.
Thomas: All in all, this is a nice cover album. It’s about a million times better than “The Change,” and I know you agree with me now, even though you wanted to kick my ass last time… he he! I give it three out of five.
Judith: An album to enjoy over and over again and which makes it to my Top 3 together with “Den standiga resan” and “I en tid som var”. I also enjoyed reading Marie’s comments to the songs which one can read on the booklet. In a way they make me see Marie through other eyes, on the same level as me, a music fan, and talks about her favorite artists the way I talk about mine.
Other articles with the same topic
- Marie to perform at Citytunneln inauguration (October 27, 2010)
- Marie pushes Roxette into prestigious Australian Countdown! (December 1, 2009)
- Marie Fredriksson turns 51 (May 31, 2009)
- Roxette reunion special to air on Nordic Rox; Marie special on Swedish P4 (May 28, 2009)
- Marie joins Per and band on stage in Amsterdam (May 7, 2009)
41 comments
denny said on June 27, 2006 04:55:
First of all, thanks for the review guys. :)
I still don’t have the album but I’ve listened to most of the songs and I also got all swedish originals. I like Marie’s arrangements much much more, probably because I was never into 70’s music.
Din bäste vän is a terrific song and will probably be in my top 10 EVER Marie solo songs. :)
I also think Sommaräng (totally agree with Judith on that one) and Aftonfalken (it is a bit weird I must say lol) are great too!
All in all, I like it much more than The Change, maybe even some other albums as well. LOL if I like it that much now, I wonder what will happen when I get the whole album one day... :)
And on this picture, Marie is soooo cute, I love it! One of her best pictures! :D
tatti said on June 27, 2006 06:50:
I agree with Judith that it is ‘an album to enjoy over and over again’, and it is a very deep Marie’s album, far from being easy to understand, many-sided. To me the songs Din Bäste Vän, Aftonfalken, and Här Kommer Natten make sort of three accents in the album, powerful and fascinating, with Marie’s voice at its best, with breath-taking emotion. The lyrics are beautiful too. And the arrangements... Really, for some reason Min Bäste Vän makes think of Den Ständiga Resan, and, though much more summery, Min Bäste Vän is as deep.
ncurran said on June 27, 2006 07:15:
Interesting review. Dont agree with all of it (I agree with Judith more than Thomas..lol)....but thats life, different horses for different courses.
I really love this album, but I find it hard to be subjective so soon after the album is released. For me the real test is how often I still listen to the album after it was released.
In fact ’i en tid som vär’ is prob the marie album that ive listened to most. Not a record to party to, but a fantastic album to relax to. I also still listen to ’the change’ a lot and no matter what others thought about that album, i loved it. ’Den Ständiga Resan’ is another great record, but its one that i probably havent listened to as much since IETSV came out, though every time i listen to it i wish i listened to it more.
As for MBV, I love the fact that, as Judith said, although this is a cover album, if you dont know the songs (like me) you would never know that they werent written by marie. Maries voice is another highlight...the strongest ive heard it in a while, and you can really tell that she loves singing these songs, and maries voice was the reason i became a roxette fan in the first place so its a big deal for me.
I’m just happy that we got another solo album so quickly after ’the change’.....maybe thats a bonus of nothing much happening with Roxette- Marie spending more time experimenting with her solo stuff. (ooh...controversial!)
Parlophone said on June 27, 2006 07:20:
I agree in part with both of you, Judith and Thomas.
The Pugh-songs, especially “Här kommer natten”, sound strange to me as well, however I like Aftonfalken even if the lyrics seem (as you said) somehow made up.
My favourite songs of the album are:
Din bäste vän (I love Micke’s programming)
Ingen kommer udan politiken
Jag ger dig min morgon (I don’t know, the song touches me, love Marie’s voice not boring to me at all...........)
Den öde stranden
I think for most of the non-Swedes here it’s the same as for Judith, that most of the songs are completely new to us. I only knew the english version of “Ingen kommer...” and “Om jag vore arbetslös”.
Indeed, Marie makes most of the songs her own and one can’t tell she didn’t write them herself.
All in all I think it is a nice but not totally overwhelming album.
rox-kuryliw said on June 27, 2006 08:43:
abit late this review isnt it lol ? one could start to think Thomas doesnt like marie lol
daniel_alv said on June 27, 2006 10:25:
The best thing wth this CD is that my mother borrows my copy all the time... Her favorite is “vem kan man lita på?”
My favorites are Sommaräng and Min bäste vän...
Rox-Van said on June 27, 2006 16:32:
it is a wonderful album (really I like more, when I listen to it again) buy it now ;)
Secretkeeper81 said on June 27, 2006 16:45:
I haven’t heard the album yet, but I do love that pic of Marie with her mouth open you have here, she looks very young and pretty!
PolicarpoAroca said on June 27, 2006 16:59:
And NO BIG SURPRISE...Tevensso hates Marieee!!!
That´s the really good NO SURPRISE. Some of his comments about the songs (as “terrible”, and so on) are disgusting.
I didn´t expect anything else from our little TDR moderator.
ncurran said on June 27, 2006 17:18:
So maybe from now on only Judith should review Marie releases and Thomas can do the Per ones :P
He’s entitled to his opinion like anyone else. It doesnt mean you have to agree with him. I dont!
tevensso (moderator) said on June 27, 2006 19:29:
We got the review copy very late due to missing addresses, the Hultsfred festival etc. :)
rox-kuryliw said on June 27, 2006 19:40:
ncurran true but when things get to be so predicatable abit odd !, we are all allowed are opinions aswell :-P
and yes not a bad idea.
Marieangel said on June 27, 2006 20:12:
WHAT THE HELL!!
Who cares about what judith or Tev think about MBV album??!!Don’t waste yer time writing yer opinions on this page!Publish new articles or serious comments guys!
Room service:
If you fall sleep listening to Jag ger min morgon,maybe you need to sleep by the nights!!
tevensso (moderator) said on June 27, 2006 20:12:
Don’t read it then. Duh.
And seriously, how interesting it would be to always read reviews you agree with?? “This song is great, and this, and this and this...” Like you really need more people to agree with you?
ncurran said on June 27, 2006 20:39:
They cant please everyone. People were requesting a TDR when the album came out.
abysmo said on June 27, 2006 20:55:
It´s only good that Judith, Thomas and others have a different opinions. It´s natural. Why blame somebody for his opinion. Everybody likes something else. These opinions could be interesting for people who can´t listen the album.
I like Marie´s dark, melancholic songs and dislike her raegge, jazz or blues things. But it´s OK. Also dislike Per´s swedish albums from 80´s but TWATG is one of my favourites ever. It´s normal. People have diferrent tastes. I´m interesting which songs likes other fans, because I´m find out how different Rox fans are.
Jud (moderator) said on June 27, 2006 21:47:
marieangel: if you don’t like to read reviews, why read them then? It clearly states it’s our review, if you don’t understand it with the headline, you will reading the first lines of the article. On the other hand, did you even bother to try to understand what I have written? Do I have to say it more clear that I love the album?
Room_service said on June 28, 2006 02:44:
As you may know, I am not a good friend of Tevensso, we disagree most of the times. But now, I don’t think his comments were so negative at all. In fact, I was expecting someting even worse. But we agreed about some tracks: Pugh’s songs are definitely *weird* and (in my opinion) Jag ger min morgon is the most boring song on this album. It makes fall asleep, as I said before. It doesn’t mean I don’t sleep at night: I use to sleep more than 8 hours, otherwise I don’t “work” during the day. So, Marieangel, your harsh comment is out of place. What’s the problem if I don’t like that song? You don’t need my ears to listen to it as much as you want. I don’t understand why people is so intolerant, specially about something really trivial as a song...
Coming from Marie, this album sounds too “light” for me. I prefer other kind of songs, like “Tro”, “Mellan sommar och host” or “The Change”. More powerful songs, I don’t know how to explain this feeling. This album lacks something I can’t put my finger on.
I don’t understand why people is so intolerant, specially about something really trivial as a song...
Krischan said on June 28, 2006 06:33:
“Publish new articles or serious comments guys!”
Demands, demands, demands. Who are you to give orders anyway?
On topic: Thanks for the review, I didn’t read it cause I don’t care about this album.
Sparvogamarie said on June 28, 2006 07:25:
I was wondering why TDR hadn’t done a review until now, I’d been looking forward to one. Yeah of course they’re only a couple of fans giving opinions but I think it’s interesting to hear what others thought of the album, as long as it’s a fair review and not just “bla bla bla this sucked.”
pwbbounce (moderator) said on June 28, 2006 08:36:
I like the TDR reviews. Though this one isn’t as long as previous ones. It would be so boring if all the reviews were “great”, “excellent”, “amazing” etc..... At least the moderators aren’t afraid to say what they think, rather then some fans here who love everything they release just because it’s Per & Marie.
I like the album, (i actually think it’s one of Marie’s better ones) but I prefer SOAP. No surprises there for people who know me. That’s my opinion.
rox-kuryliw said on June 28, 2006 09:35:
yes very true pwb. but i dont like per’s singing all that much, so its a sence of every individuals taste aswell.
Rich-UK said on June 28, 2006 09:39:
I would agree absolutely: reviews saying that every track is fantastic don’t in fact say much at all. It’s nice to see a variety of TDR Editors reviewing newly released Roxette-related albums, even if on some occasions the verdict is critical. Anyway, if we pretend that everything is perfect then we can’t truly appreciate it when masterpieces come along... like the new Roxette tracks in the autumn :-) So keep up the good work please! All the best, Rich ;-)
pwbbounce (moderator) said on June 28, 2006 13:09:
@Rox-K I reckon that’s the most valid thing you’ve ever said!!1 lol :-))
Marieangel said on June 28, 2006 22:45:
I didn’t read the review!!
But it’s always the same,when Marie release a new album,all your comments are...not a good song,....maybe the worst i’ve ever heard...bla,bla,bla,bla.But when Per release an album...Oh God,it’s great!!...Fantastik!You are clearly Per’s fan (judith well known Eva Dhalgren’s fan),and everyone knows that it’s: “The Daily Per”.
I love Marie & Per,i’m NOT against none of them.
roxtexanet said on June 28, 2006 23:20:
”...everyone knows that it’s: “The Daily Per”.”
Wow, it amazes me that everyone who says nonsense like this thinks they’re the first one to come up with it (and she admits she DIDN’T EVEN READ THE REVIEW!!! Outstanding!). Mods: If THIS is the mentality you have to deal with, just nod, smile, and keep up the great work.
Sparvogamarie said on June 29, 2006 06:57:
I agree, if I read someone saying every track is wonderful, I’d wonder if it was a biased review, someone who just can’t say a bad word about their fave artist. If I wrote a review there’s some songs I’m not crazy about (actually I think same as Tev, all the songs I don’t like are Pugh songs though I didn’t realize that until he pointed it out!) I think the positive comments mean more if there’s negative ones also. It just depends on how it’s written, if it’s balanced or not and I think Jud and Tev’s review seemed pretty balanced to me.
I do struggle to understand how anyone could like SOAP more than this though....*shudders* ;)
Jud (moderator) said on June 29, 2006 07:53:
Marieangel: your complaints mean nothing and are not valid at all. Btw, I am also a Melissa Etheridge fan as well.. sorry I love to enjoy other artists’ music and I’m not stuck with Per and Marie ;)
miss-misery said on June 29, 2006 18:17:
“I do struggle to understand how anyone could like SOAP more than this though....”
Maybe because everyone is different and has different tastes that SHOULD be respected?? ;)
(BTW I don’t know if I like SOAP more than Marie’s version album or not, because I just don’t have the latter one. And I don’t think I’ll get it, I guess that hearing music in Swedish is too much for me. I’m not such a hardcore fan. And maybe that’s the reason why I think that all this fights between Per-fans and Marie-fans are a bit non-sense. Can’t you just respect other people’s tastes?? Is that so difficult?? Do you have to love every Marie or Per solo album just because you like Roxette??)
miss-misery said on June 29, 2006 19:35:
@ncurran: Yeah, I’m happier now, I guess that I just had to have my dinner first LOL.
Although I mantain all the above said, I think that some people are a bit extreme. Just a little bit ;)
miss-misery said on June 30, 2006 09:40:
@Sparvogamarie, no, actually, I didn’t :s
I hope you noticed my smily faces though :)
Anyway, I still think people tend to take things very seriously, and it’s just music, don’t you think??
Enjoy Marie’s album (if you have it) and your summer-holiday, today I’m beggining mine!!!
:D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D
(lots of smily faces)
pwbbounce (moderator) said on June 30, 2006 11:39:
As long as Per and Marie are still around and making music then it’s never gonna be any different. People will always say “Marie is better” or “Per is better”. Some people do take it too extremes though. But to be honest, I don’t really care.
BTW I think the MBV is one of Marie’s best solo efforts. I hadn’t heard most of the songs before, so it didn’t seem like a cover album.
Sparvogamarie said on July 1, 2006 00:58:
Miss-Misery: I must have given that same speech about different opinions and tastes about 1000 times on this board, which is why I was like o_O when someone gave me the same speech ;)
Summer holiday????? I live in Australia, it’s winter and damn cold!!
Room_service said on July 4, 2006 04:17:
I’ve been playing this album the whole Sunday. And I have to admit it has grown a lot on me. I’ve changed my mind about some tracks I didn’t like at first. Now I like many of those! There are some tracks that I DEFINITIVELY don’t like. They are Jag ger dej min morgon and Aftonfalken. I have mixed feelings about Guldgruva and Den öde stranden: sometimes I play them, sometimes I tend to skip those tracks. But Guldgruva is not AS BAD as I thought before. My mum likes that song a lot!
I still believe Din bäste vän is the best and the stronger track, it must be released as the 2nd single *I hope Marie is reading this!* This song really deserves a chance!
I really enjoy Man måste veta vad man önskar sej and Vem kan man lita på? I didn’t pay much attention to those songs when I played the record in its entirety for first time. But now they are among my favourites, I can play them many times and never get tired of (repeat, repeat, repeat!). I can say this songs have improved *a lot* if compared with the original versions by Hoola Bandoola. I really love these songs, that flow one into the other. Along Ingen kommer undan politiken, they are the most joyful moments in the album.
Another song I didn’t like at first and now is a favourite: Om jag vore arbetslös. It’s much better than the original version in English. I like the arrangement very much. In fact all the album is beautifully arranged. Micke has done a brilliant work.
Conclusion: I still believe The Change is one of Marie’s best album, and maybe her most personal record to date. But Min bästa vän is better than I en tid som vår, an album that I never played so much. I like a couple of songs, but it’s too slow, too quietful. This is my Top 5:
#1 Den ständiga resan
#2 The Change
#3 Din bäste vän
#4 I en tid som vår
#5 Den sjunde vågen
Room_service said on June 27, 2006 04:46:
I have to agree with some comments. Jag ger dej min morgon is boring as hell, it makes me fall asleep after the first minute. I don’t like Guldgruva nor Aftonfalken. Those 3 are the worst tracks. In my opinion the highlights on this album are:
Din bästa vän - The best song on it!
Sommaräng
Om jag vore arbetslös
Ingen kommer undan politiken
Den öde stranden
The other songs don’t mean much to me. Maybe ’cause I don’t understand a word of the lyrics, that’s important too. But as I don’t speak Swedish I can’t judge that aspect of the music, I have to trust in my intuition. But for me this is another cover album. I don’t think this is THAT important in Marie’s discography.
I still believe “The Change” is a superior album than this. And with “Den ständiga resan”, the best she has done as a solo artist.