RoxetteBlog

Per Gessle on Nordic Rox – Room Service 20

December 22, 2021December 22, 2021 by Patrícia Peres

You might remember that in the June episode of Nordic Rox on Sirius XM, at the end of the Joyride 30th anniversary chat, Per Gessle and Sven Lindström mentioned they would celebrate the 20th anniversary of Room Service in the next episode. That episode was broadcast in September, but it took a bit more time than usually to get access to that part. Thanx a lot for Sven’s support!

Just like the Joyride 30 episode, Room Service 20 was also recorded in Per’s kitchen in Stockholm, so the guys probably had a full day anniversary recording. Per says it’s a great little kitchen, they have a lot of meetings there and exquisite lunches. Sven introduces the show: „another day, another anniversary, they say in the pop business”. Per laughs and says „that’s what happens when you’re getting old”.

Per tells Room Service is one of his favourite Roxette albums, maybe because they recorded it in the old ABBA studio in Stockholm. It’s closed now, most studios are closed these days. Mr. G says they worked with a new engineer, Ronny Lahti, a guy that Per is still working with. It was a fun album to make.

The guys play an ABBA song, Voulez-Vous that was recorded in Florida instead of that Stockholm studio. Then comes Broder Daniel’s Army Of Dreamers. The next one is Titiyo’s probably biggest hit, Come Along from 2001 to check the atmosphere of the year when Room Service was released.

Sven asks Per how he remembers 2001 and if there is anything that sticks out. Mr. G says he was touring, they did a big European tour with Roxette. Apart from that, he probably had a big hangover. The guys are laughing and Per asks Sven how he remembers that year. Sven says he wasn’t touring, but he was probably stuck with a hangover.

Here they play I’m Alive by The Hives, one of Per’s favourite bands. Then comes Get Some by Lykke Li and Hopeless Case Of A Kid In Denial by The Hellacopters. Regarding The Hives, Sven tells it was their first single in 7 years when they released it two years ago. Mr. G says they play fast, but are pretty slow in releasing records. Sven says they just don’t do it like Per, working 24/7. PG says he doesn’t do that either, it just looks like that. The guys are laughing. Per says he just keeps himself busy, he likes it like that, he likes to work a lot. If you have a project going on or a record or a career for that matter, you have to work, Per adds. You have to maximize everything and at the same time you have to challenge yourself and try to expand your possibilities and explore new things all the time. When it comes to writing or when it comes to producing and performing as well. It’s hard to do. Sven asks Per if he is the kind of person who can work endlessly as long as he doesn’t feel like it’s work, when he is driving it himself. Mr. G says he is a very lucky guy, because he winded up with a profession that doesn’t feel like a profession. When he looks back on his life, it has always been about pop and rock music. Eventually, he could make a living out of playing pop music and writing music and it’s just a blessing. So for him it doesn’t feel like he is going to work. Of course there are days, especially in the old days when you did endless months of promoting, then it becomes a work. You deal with journalits, you are doing photo sessions and in-stores and it becomes tedious after a while. But at the end of the day it’s a tiny price to pay for being able to do what you love the most, which is being part of this crazy industry.

Sven says one piece of that crazy industry is The Centre Of The Heart (Is A Suburb To The Brain). Per tells he wrote this track for Have A Nice Day. They even recorded it for HAND, but there was something missing, it just didn’t feel right. They just left it, forgot about it and later when Per was in France he came to think of it. He heard some other music which reminded him of TCOTH, but it was much faster. He called Clarence and told him they should go back to TCOTH and speed it up, to make it a little bit more uptempo, because it had all the great ingredients, it’s catchy and has a great chorus. It became the first single of Room Service. Sven tells Roxette pemiered it on Melodifestivalen (ESC) on Swedish TV. Sven asks Per about the lyric, mainly this part „a suburb to the brain”. Per laughs and says „it just makes sense, doesn’t it?” The guys are playing the song.

Sven asks Per about the international release of Room Service. Mr. G says of course it has tough competition when you compare it to Look Sharp! or Joyride, but it went very well and they had lots of success with the three singles from it.

Regarding the tour PG says they hadn’t been touring since 1995, so in 2001 they had a slightly different band and they started working with Jonas Åkerlund who designed the stage set with lots of clips. It was different vs. what they had done before.

Sven tells the album sleeve was shot at The Madonna Inn, San Luis Obispo, California. Per tells they went there for almost a week to shoot the TCOTH video. Jonas is not only an awesome music video director, but an amazing photographer as well. They spent a whole day taking pictures in different locations of that amazing place. Madonna Inn is just the craziest place Per has ever seen. Mr. G tells it was fun and the video became great as well.

The next track is My World, MY Love, My Life which is one of Per’s favourites and Sven asks PG what makes it so special for him. Per tells some songs just turn out great soundwise. He has always loved the sound of this track. He loves Jonas Isacsson’s guitar playing, the melody, Marie’s voice and the key she sings in. It sums up that era of Roxette very well for Per. It’s the closing track of the album.

After the song is played, Per says it’s 20 years… Sven asks „it’s 20 years of…?” PG replies „wisdom!” Sven is curious if Per got wiser. Mr. G laughs and replies „of course, by the minute!” Sven says Room Service is an interesting album in many ways. He adds it could have been the last Roxette album, because in 2002 Marie got ill and the future for Roxette looked really dark. Per says in a way it became the last album, the last of that main, classic Roxette era. Marie’s illness affected her so much. When she came back in 2010 it was a different thing. Sven tells that against all odds Marie recovered from this really severe illness and made a comeback with Roxette. They enjoyed many years of incredible touring then. Per says Marie was an amazon for sure. She came back in 2009. They did 55 shows with Night of the Proms, they headlined that in Europe and it was a great start for Marie to come back, because even though they were the headliners, they only did 5 songs. She wanted to see how it felt and it felt actually good for her. She got better and better and she loved being on stage. She felt at home there. After that they decided to go back on the road as Roxette, so they continued working for another 5.5 years. Those 20 years since Room Service contained some amazing drama.

Sven asks Per what his thoughts were back then, in 2000-2001, where Roxette was going. Per always says they had amazing success all over the world during those 8 years between 1988 and 1995, they worked constantly and did all those world tours. In 1995 Marie wanted to have a second child, she wanted to take a break for a couple of years, so Per did a lot of other things with Gyllene Tider and solo stuff, as well as doing compilation albums with Roxette. This meant he had to write three or four songs for Roxette. Then they did a comback in 1999 with Have A Nice Day, but decided not to tour, mainly because Per had become a father and Marie wanted to stay home with her kids. They waited for another album, Room Service to tour with. The journey went on. Who knows what would have happened if Marie wouldn’t have become ill in 2002.

The guys play one of the main ballads of the album, Milk And Toast And Honey. Sven asks Per if he remembers writing this one. Mr. G tells he had this song in his head for many months before he even bothered to write it down. It’s a natural song for him, it came natural with its baselines and everything. Per heard the melodies, all the chords and modulations, he was just waiting for a good idea for a lyric. He got the title and created something around the title. It went very smooth. Mr. G loves this song and the video a lot. The clip was shot in the Stockholm archipelago and Marie is just amazing. She is singing so well and makes it a really beautiful song.

Towards the end of the episode Sven says they had Joyride 30th anniversary, Room Service 20th anniversary, but they all pale in comparison to Gyllene Tider celebrating the 40th anniversary of Moderna Tider. Per tells it was released in 1981 and it became a megahit in Sweden. Mr. G says it was crazy days, Sven adds GT were insane teenage idols, having Beatlesque popularity. PG adds they toured a whole year in Scandinavia and especially the summer was really amazing. Sven tells GT was heavily influenced by the new wave, punk and power pop era, as well as the 60’s. The guys play (Kom så ska vi) Leva livet from the album. Per is thinking how to translate it into English. Sven says „Come on and let’s live life!”, Per says „C’mon, join the joyride!” Haha. PG tells it was a big song for them. He wrote it on his 21st birthday. Per: „Why didn’t I have a party? Maybe I had a party afterwards.” Sven: „You were working!” Per: „Ah, I was working, of course, even in the 80’s.” They are laughing.

Before saying thanks to the listeners, Sven tells it was a teaser for an upcoming show featuring the power pop sounds of Gyllene Tider.

The show ends with Anita Lindblom’s Cigarettes as usual.

Per Gessle on Nordic Rox – 500th episode

December 11, 2021 by Patrícia Peres

Per Gessle and Sven Lindström celebrated the 500th episode of Nordic Rox on Sirius XM last Sunday, 5th December.

The guys are chatting in Stockholm, talking about the beginnings 15 years ago. Per tells it was before Sven’s time. He started doing the show with Viktor Petrovski after he got a request from Sirius XM to do a show where they would play Scandinavian and Nordic music. Mr. G found it a cool idea. He wouldn’t have been able to do it on his own, so he needed someone to collaborate with. Viktor, a Swedish music journalist came up. It was fun and then Sven came along. Sven inserts „to make things worse”. The guys are laughing. Mr. G tells Sven is also a music journalist and author and his knowledge about Scandinavian music is pretty big. „Together we were unbeatable”, Per says. Sven tells it was a fun story when Scott Greenstein at Sirius – who came up with the idea, because he loves Scandinavian music – persuaded PG. He really came off as a fan when he discussed his idea with Per. Mr. G tells the first time they met, Scott quoted one of Per’s Swedish songs in Swedish for him. PG says it was pretty impressive that he took it seriously and learned Swedish for that. Per feels very honoured to have been part of this during the past 15 years. It’s pretty crazy.

Mr. G tells 15 years in the music industry is a very long time. Lots of things happened music-wise, the style of pop and rock music has changed. Per adds they are both – Sven and he – 15 years older, but their hearts still beat for the old stuff, they still prefer the old production styles and the old sounds. Even though Per is listening to a lot of new music as well to see what’s going on. The problem is that you’ve heard so much music throughout your life that you always compare things. The knowledge you have is incredible, because you’re getting old. Haha. Per has been a music fan since he was 5 years old, Sven tells. PG adds he had an older borther, a young teenager in the mid 60’s who bought all the records of The Beatles, The Kinks, The Lovin’ Spoonful, The Byrds, so ever since he was very young, pop music has been his entire life. „My wife doesn’t like that, but that’s the truth”, Per says. Haha.

The guys dig deep into some Scandinavian classics and they kick off with one of their favourite bands’ song, Sister Surround by The Soundtrack of Our Lives from Gothenburg. Sven tells they had quite surrealistic album titles, e.g. Welcome to the Infant Freebase. Per thinks it’s a good title. Their second album’s title is Extended Revelation for the Psychic Weaklings of Western Civilization. „It’s no wonder they broke up”, Per laughs. Mr. G thinks they were an amazing band and it’s sad that they didn’t break through even bigger than they had. They had it all. A great front person, Ebbot Lundberg, the band was really cool with really good players and they also had great songs. They had success, but they didn’t become massive. For Per they are still one of the best bands that ever came out of Sweden.

The next track is Adiam Dymott’s Miss You. Then they play Hate To Say I Told You So by The Hives, another amazing band. They are the best when you see them live, PG thinks. HTSITYS, their breakthrough hit sounds a bit like MC5 on steroids to Mr. G. He loves it, it’s a great great track. Sven tells they also had some surrealistic titles, e.g. Some People Know All Too Well How Bad Liquorice, or Any Candy for That Matter, Can Taste When Having Laid Out in the Sun Too Long – And I Think I Just Ate Too Much. The guys are laughing. „Hard to beat!”, Per says.

The next one is Cardiac Arrest by Teddybears feat. Robyn. Per thinks it’s a great song, full of energy. Sven asks Per when he wrote a song about a deadly disease. Mr. G says it hasn’t happened yet. For PG the Teddybears is a band you should digest in small doses. They are a perfect singles band, he thinks. Sven says he can actually indulge in the Teddybears, he likes them a lot. They started out as punks and then they switched, but you can still hear this punkish, new wavish style in their DNA. Per loves all the synthesizer sounds they use, these toy or computer sounds. It’s fun, young and fresh. When they get a proper song made, it’s sensational. And Robyn is an amazing singer. On the Swedish edition of the song Teddybears are featuring Maipei, but Per prefers the Robyn version (released on the international edition of the album).

The guys go back to Gothenburg, the second biggest city in Sweden on the West Coast. Mr. G says ever since the 60’s they had lots of great music coming out of Gothenburg. Broder Daniel’s Work is what they play and Pale Honey’s Lonesome is next, also from Gothenburg.

After these two tracks, Sven asks Per what he is busy with right now. Mr. G tells he is happy that things have opened up a bit and you are allowed to perform again in these corona times, so he is on tour now. It’s an unplugged tour with 15 shows. It’s something he has never really done before, so he is stepping out of his comfort zone a bit, talking a lot between the songs, telling some anecdotes from e.g. Roxette’s history. Per tells he has a beach hotel on the Swedish West Coast. When the regulations were still on, you could only have a certain amount of people attending and he was to do 2 acoustic shows at the hotel. But it felt so cool that it became 10 in the end. After those 10 gigs he felt he should do a tour, because it was much fun. It’s so different from everything else he has done. He digged into his files and vaults from the past and played songs he hasn’t played before. Per tells when he started out at the age of 18, he was unemployed in the late 70’s and he got a government supported job, being a troubadour playing for elderly people in elderly homes for 6 months with another guy. That’s how he actually started out performing in front of people, playing Swedish folk music at elderly homes and sneaking in 1-2 of his own songs that he started writing those days. „I’ve come full circle now, I’m playing for elderly people again, because I’m old now”, Per says and the guys are laughing. „It’s good fun, it’s a sold-out tour, I’m really pleased, the response has been amazing, so I’m just having a blast doing this”, Per adds. He is just happy that things are opening up a bit and he can speak for every artist, musician and technician on the planet. „We’ve been missing our work so much!” Sven tells the audience has been missing it as well. He heard that the hard thing now is to book the venues. Per says as son as the regulations are opening up, everyone wants to tour, so it’s really hard to get the venues. People are really starved for music and entertainment and socializing, so it goes very well for everyone.

Next song is Jerk It Out by Caesars Palace, then Nicole Sabouné’s Unseen Footage From A Forthcoming Funeral is played.

Sven and Per then talk a bit about the Joyride 30th anniversary release, and Sven asks Per how it is to zoom back 30 years, checking all Mr. G’s home videos and stuff like that. Per says it’s crazy how time passes by. He is getting used to it, but this year also his Swedish band celebrates the 40th anniversary of their Moderna Tider album. It was a big album in Scandinavia. It feels like every year there is a new anniversary. „If we stick around long enough, it’s gonna be a 50th anniversary coming up”, Sven says. From a fan point of view, Per as a Tom Petty fan says, you’re really into the things that you haven’t heard before, so he thinks a lot of people appreciate these anniversary releases with outtakes, alternative versions or demos. Sven agrees and says he has just seen the Tom Petty movie about recording Wildflowers and it was really heartwarming to see, you really miss him.

Regarding the Metallica cover Per did for Nothing Else Matters he says The Black Album also has its 30th anniversary this year and he was invited to be part of that. It’s cool that all those big albums have big anniversaries.

Reeperbahn, a Swedish band with German name is next. Per thinks their best song is Inget, so they play it on Nordic Rox. Then it’s Atomic Swing’s turn with Soul Free.

The guys get back to the Metallica cover topic and Sven says it’s unexpected to hear a Roxette cover of a Metallica classic. This is the first time PG entered the metal world. Mr. G tells when he first got the invitation he felt like „hm, I don’t know what to do with this”, because he doesn’t know how to transform a heavy metal song into his world. Then he came to think about Nothing Else Matters which is such a great track and Per remembers when it came around in the early 90’s, Marie and Per always joked about that it could have been a great Roxette ballad. It’s got such a great melody and amazing lyrics. Mr. G felt like „shit, I should give it a go”. He did the cover with the old Roxette band. They tried to treat it as a Roxette ballad. Sven says: „with Marie Fredriksson having passed away, you had two singers taking her place”. Per says the two girls are very special in their own separate ways, but when you combine their voices, a third person comes out. Per tried to use that and it sounded really cool. He thinks they nailed the song pretty well, it sounds great to him. Mr. G is really honoured to be part of it. They play Nothing Else Matters by PG Roxette on Nordic Rox.

With this the guys are wrapping up the show and just like any other time, Anita Lindblom’s Cigarettes is closing the 500th episode too.

Still is from the Bag of Trix comment videos recorded by Anders Roos.

Thanks for the technical support to János Tóth!

Gyllene Tider’s story becomes a film!

November 30, 2021 by Patrícia Peres

Nordic drama production company Nevis Productions has secured a deal with Sweden’s great music treasure, Gyllene Tider to make a feature film and a TV-series based on the band’s incredible journey to success.

Per Gessle and Mats Persson formed Gyllene Tider with Micke Andersson, Anders Herrlin and Göran Fritzon in the late 70’s. After taking Sweden by storm, they broke up in 1984. Per Gessle then formed Roxette with Marie Fredriksson and became successful all around the world.

The feature film about Gyllene Tider is developed in full collaboration with the band and will be a warm feelgood story about friendship and growing up in the spotlight. The script is written by Pernilla Oljelund (Miss Friman’s War, Wallander, The Restaurant) and the shooting will start in 2022. Producers at Nevis are Anni Faurbye Fernandez, Moa Westeson and Cindy Hanson.

The film tells the story of Per, an ambitious outsider who dreams of pop stardom and finds a brotherhood through music with MP, Micke, Anders and Göran. They experience the highs and lows, but despite all setbacks, being ridiculed and rejected, the band works hard and purposefully – and breaks through with their power pop, their effective choruses and joyous and affectionate lyrics about life in a small town.

The movie is a story about dreaming big and achieving something even bigger. Success is not only accompanied by joy and happiness, but also pressure, conflicts and tragic events that challenge the band and force them to grow up in unexpected ways. In the end, it’s the friendship and music that lead forward. The gang not only survives, but also becomes bigger than ever.

After their breakup, Gyllene Tider reunions and tours have taken them to heights that no one, least of all themselves, could have imagined. When the band celebrated their 25th anniversary with their first new album in 20 years, the tour in 2004 became the largest in Scandinavia ever and the third largest in Europe. For over 40 years, GT has maintained its popularity and been loved by generation after generation, who have grown up with their songs. Gyllene Tider reunited several times, most recently in 2019. At that time, they celebrated their 40th anniversary as a band and also released a studio album, Samma skrot och korn.

Per Gessle says:

The story of the guys in Gyllene Tider could be the story of any young small town person. The shaky possibilities after finishing school, the uncertain prospects of the future. However, inspired by the new wave and power pop scene of the era, bonding in our tiny rehearsal shack, we found a very unusual way to grow up. The early and crazy Gyllene Tider years changed our lives forever. And it seems we might have changed some other people’s lives as well along the way. The lads and I are all excited to be part of this production.

Producer Moa Westeson adds:

We have long dreamed of dramatizing the exceptional, inspirational story behind legendary Swedish pop band Gyllene Tider and are excited to bring the audience along on this fun, uplifting whirlwind celebration of music, friendship and coming of age that captures the zeitgeist of a bygone era.

Nevis is an independent production company with offices in Copenhagen, Stockholm and London. Nevis Productions was founded in 2020 by Anni Faurbye Fernandez, Cindy Hanson and Moa Westeson and is backed by London based production company NEVISION. Their mission is to create high quality storytelling that appeals to both the local Nordic market and to a wider, global audience. With passion and dedication, they aim to entertain, inspire and move audiences with a variety of creatively ambitious TV dramas.

PRESS RELEASE

Per Gessle Unplugged Tour – #9 – 29th November 2021 – Halmstad

November 30, 2021 by Patrícia Peres

When a week ago I was on my way back home from Göteborg it was the day when there was the second Göteborg show. It felt very weird that I was flying away while PG was on stage, so after getting back home I quickly rescheduled my tour plan – not to feel too depressed again, haha –, because Halmstad #2 wasn’t in my original plans to attend. But what a good decision it was to go and see this concert too! It absolutely topped the first Halmstad gig! Both the band and the crowd were in top shape and worked very well together.

The crowd reactions were cool, last night you could also feel that all Halmstad people are proud to have such an artist as Per, born here. Everyone enjoyed themselves both on and off stage, the audience was singing and clapping along the songs. The anecdotes were also appreciated with laughter and applause.

Before Det hjärta som brinner Per told the anecdote about Gyllene Tider playing on this stage in 1979 when they were invited by Ulf Lundell on his Ripp rapp tour. Just like yesterday, Mr. G remembered the small mugs on stage which he thought contained water, but after drinking from them it turned out it was vodka.

After Micke N-S brought Per his ukulele on stage, PG told the story of how he got hold of his first ukulele. He read in a magazine that George Harrison from The Beatles had tons of ukuleles. Per thought it’s a good idea and he also bought an ukulele. He joked that they sold 3 pieces for 300 SEK, it was in a basket at the checkout, just like Dumle (chocolate-covered toffee) usually is. The same day he wrote a song, the only song he wrote on an ukulele so far. He said he has no ambition to write another one. Haha. Tuffa Tider is always fun to hear live. When the band finished the song, Per stood up and took a round around his chair to sit back. He said they had seated gigs in summer and 4 of 5 in the band had problems with their back after that. Christoffer added they had prostate problems too, so now they have to sit. Everyone laughed.

Before It Must Have Been Love, Per asked the audience what they think about the fact that it’s soon Christmas. The reaction wasn’t too positive from the crowd’s side. However, whole Halmstad is covered with Christmas trees all around the streets, on the main square, there is Christmas music playing all day in town, the Christmas lights are also up and beautiful.

Before Min hälsning Per told he thought to finish with the next song. He said it’s Monday after all. The audience wasn’t happy about the idea, of course. Haha. After telling he wrote this song originally for Gyllene Tider, he introduced MP, responsible for the sound at the show. The crowd was cheering him loudly. Christoffer started playing a different song though, so Per stopped and told him it’s not that song. Chris said there are so many from the past 43 years. Haha.

When Per & Co. went off stage for the first time, the crowd gave a standing ovation and didn’t stop clapping their hands until the band was back on stage.

After Listen To Your Heart – dedicated to Marie and Pelle –, the crowd didn’t stop clapping for a longer while. Per put his hand on his heart and thanked the audience for their response.

After the first encore it was standing ovation again and all in the crowd wanted more. Obviously, the gang wanted more too, so they came back for the second encore.

Before Sommartider Per stood up again and he didn’t even have to suggest the audience to stand up too, we all were up on our feet by the time he would have finished the sentence. At last, a crowd that stayed standing for the very last song too. Before När alla vännerna gått hem, Per said he hopes to meet the audience again. Someone shouted „in Kalmar”, haha. Mr. G appreciated it.

After PG & Co. took a bow and waved goodbye to the audience, they were also applauding the crowd and then Per stopped at longtime fan Sandra Knospe and asked her (not loudly, but writing the number in the air with his finger) if it was already her 300th show. Not much left until then, but her 300th will happen in Malmö.

Next stop is Karlstad on 8th December!

Setlist

1. Kung av sand
2. På promenad genom stan
3. Flickan i en Cole Porter-sång
4. Småstadsprat
5. Min plats
6. Tycker om när du tar på mej
7. Det hjärta som brinner
8. Ljudet av ett annat hjärta
9. Varmt igen
10. Tuffa tider
11. Juni, juli, augusti
12. It Must Have Been Love
13. Vilket håll du än går

Band introduction

14. Här kommer alla känslorna
15. Min hälsning

Encore 1
16. Födelsedag
17. Listen To Your Heart (dedicated to Marie Fredriksson & Pelle Alsing)
18. När vi två blir en

Encore 2
19. Vid hennes sida
20. Sommartider
21. När alla vännerna gått hem

Photos in the article are taken by Patrícia Peres.

Per after the show:

Thank you Halmstad for a truly amazing Monday night. So proud to be part of this band. So blessed to get this feedback from you guys and gals. Wow!!! Speechless! /PG.

Per Gessle Unplugged Tour – #8 – 28th November 2021 – Halmstad

November 29, 2021November 29, 2021 by Patrícia Peres

Halmstad’s first show, just like Göteborg’s, got sold out so fast that an extra gig had to be added for the next day, so in Halmstad there are also two concerts at Halmstad Theatre. Last night’s gig was the only one on tour that was set to start at 18:00. It didn’t turn out why.

It was great to see that couple’s reactions who were sitting next to me. At each song they were first listening if they could find out which hit PG & Co. started to play and when they realized which song it was actually, they had quite some aha moments. They enjoyed the show a lot, just like everyone else in the crowd. You could feel that it’s Per’s hometown and he is loved here. Halmstad is proud of him. They liked the anecdotes a lot – could put the places Per mentioned on the map to be able to imagine the stories Mr. G told about and they awarded the band with long applauses in between the songs. When Per mentioned Marie, the audience gave a loud applause too and also when Helena was singing.

Before Det hjärta som brinner Per mentioned that Gyllene Tider played exactly on this stage. In 1979 they were invited by Ulf Lundell. Per thinks it was Ulf’s birthday, he was on his Ripp rapp tour. Back then they were at the same record company. GT came up on stage for the extra and played Roadrunner at that Ulf Lundell concert. MP stayed on stage after that and played (Oh la la) Jag vill ha dig too. Mr. G remembers that there were small mugs on stage and after singing, he drank from one of them because he thought it was water. It was vodka… Haha.

The crowd had the loudest reactions to GT hits and Mazarin songs. Ljudet av ett annat hjärta, It Must Have Been Love, Vilket håll du än går and När vi två blir en were the most appreciated tracks on the set.

When the guys and girl went off stage for the first time, the whole audience gave a standing ovation and shouted „en gång till”. When they entered the stage again, Per asked if the audience likes the sound. We shouted yes and he said we have to thank it to MP, because he is doing it. The crowd cheered MP.

After the first encore it was standing ovation again and no one wanted to leave, they wanted to hear more from Per and the band. And so they came up on stage again.

Before Sommartider Per stood up and suggested the audience to stand up too if they want. Of course, they wanted. There was a big party with everyone singing along and clapping. After Sommartider all in the crowd sat back into their seats for the last song, but only to give yet another standing ovation at the very end of the gig.

The only disturbing thing was that some people thought it’s fun to go out to the toilet and come back several times during the gig. Of course, they were all sitting in the middle of the rows. But this couldn’t take away the joy Per and the band brought to Halmstad and the audience’s love towards those guys and girl on stage.

Come back tomorrow and we do it again! 2nd Halmstad gig is next on Monday!