Gyllene Tider – Hux Flux – Helsingborg – 10th July 2023 – #3

After a day off, Gyllene Tider arrived to Helsingborg. The weather forecast showed a 90% chance of rain from 11:00 to late night, so we were quite sure this would be a rainy gig. While waiting outside the venue, it stopped raining and after the gates opened and we got in, we still had some dry time, but it started raining heavily again. The speakers, microphones and cameras had to be covered and the audience put on their ponchos.

We were afraid the setlist would get shorter because of the bad weather. Uno Svenningsson started his support act session 15 minutes earlier than usual. It was still raining when he started, but during his performance, the clouds went away and then we thought OK, it would probably stay like this for 2 more hours. To have the least possible risk, after cleaning the stage from water and unwrapping the mics and cams, GT got on stage also 15 minutes earlier than usual, so the show started at 21:00.

Everyone on stage had a huge smile on their faces, they seemed to be in a very good mood.

The setlist remained the same as it was for the premiere gig in Halmstad, so song No. 7 was Chrissie, hur mår du? this time.

After the opening song, Gyllene Tider igen, Per greeted the crowd. He said Sofiero is close to their hearts, they had many beautiful moments here over the years.

After they played Juni, juli, augusti and Det hjärta som brinner, PG said they wanted to play a tribute to their favourite Dutch band. This time when Anders said Ekseption was damn good, Per said it’s Anders’s guilty pleasure. When Micke Syd’s George Baker Selection moment came, he started playing and singing „una paloma blanca” and to the rhythm he asked the audience to put their hands up in the air. The crowd was clapping their hands up in the air. Per said this has been ruining him in the past 30-40 years. Talking about Shocking Blue, MP started playing Venus, but of course, in the end they played Skicka ett vykort, älskling.

The next one was Gammal kärlek rostar aldrig and then came Flickorna på TV2 from the times before Internet, Netflix and HBO.

Before Chrissie, hur mår du?, Per sipped a bit from his ginger tea saying it’s a mix that Micke Syd prepares for him before every gig.

Puls and En sten vid en sjö i en skog came next, the day’s gym session, as Per said.

Before they played Flickan i en Cole Porter-sång, PG picked up a plec from his mic stand, but that was not for the acoustic guitar, so he put it back while saying „wrong plectrum” and picked up the red one for acoustic. When he mentioned Marie, that she was his new friend back then when he wrote this song, the crowd was cheering for her. So lovely to get this reaction at each concert.

The world’s most interesting instrument was brought to Per and yes, Tuffa tider was next on ukulele with Micke Syd in the front and Göran on melodica.

When Per started the band presentation, he said he introduces them so we know what their names are and because it’s fun for him. Micke Syd said „let’s see if you remember them”. After presenting the two wonderful ladies, Dea and Malin-My, Per said MP is Harplinge’s best guitar player by far. Göran was wearing the checkered shirt again (and a hat as well this time), so Per said he has good taste and picked his shirt after Per’s checkered guitars. Then came Anders and last but least Micke Syd. Micke asked the audience to cheer him more, it’s so great to come forward. He has been sitting in the back for more than 40 years. Haha. Micke introduced Per as Furet’s own Ronnie Peterson, sports car owner.

Micke got prepared for singing Min tjej och jag and he invited Dea and Malin-My to the front. His crowd-animation worked absolutely fine again. He knows how to do it. „I sing and you are waving.” He counted in „uno, dos, tres” before he started singing.

Kung av sand was the biggest highlight for me at the show. The audience was singing along this one the loudest. Then came Ljudet av ett annat hjärta and Ska vi älska, så ska vi älska till Buddy Holly, as well as the medley of (Kom så ska vi) Leva livet / (Dansar inte lika bra som) Sjömän / Tylö Sun.

When the band went off stage, the audience was clapping and screaming „en gång till, en gång till” (once more, once more). When they came back a few minutes later, Per thanked for it and said „you are absolutely amazing”. They played Billy. When the song ended, this time Micke Syd clasped his arms together, so that he didn’t start playing Det är över nu too early, like at the 2nd Halmstad gig. Haha.

Then came Gå & fiska! and the gang went off stage again. The audience started singing Sommartider very loudly.

När vi två blir en was very much welcomed by the crowd as the first song in the second encore. Then they were even happier about Sommartider.

Before playing the closing song, Per thanked the audience for a wonderful Monday evening. He said he hopes everyone will have a fantastic summer. He also said if we hear it anywhere that they said they quit, we shouldn’t believe it. The crowd was cheering.

När alla vännerna gått hem was the last song again. Micke Syd occupied his spot in the front on the left, while Dea came to the right side of the stage. At one point, Per let Dea sing a part of the song.

After they all took a bow, Per threw his remaining picks and Micke Syd ran back to his place for some drumsticks that he could throw to the audience.

Next stop is Malmö on Wednesday.

Setlist

1. Gyllene Tider igen
2. Juni, juli, augusti
3. Det hjärta som brinner
4. Skicka ett vykort, älskling
5. Gammal kärlek rostar aldrig
6. Flickorna på TV2
7. Chrissie, hur mår du?
8. (Hon vill ha) Puls
9. En sten vid en sjö i en skog
10. Flickan i en Cole Porter-sång
11. Tuffa tider

Band presentation

12. Min tjej och jag
13. Kung av sand
14. Ljudet av ett annat hjärta
15. Ska vi älska, så ska vi älska till Buddy Holly
16. (Kom så ska vi) Leva livet / (Dansar inte lika bra som) Sjömän / Tylö Sun medley

Encore 1

17. Billy
18. Det är över nu
19. Gå & fiska!

Encore 2

20. När vi två blir en
21. Sommartider
22. När alla vännerna gått hem

 

 

All photos in the article by Patrícia Peres

Per after the show:

Thanx for a truly amazing evening in Helsingborg. Third sold out show in a row and beautiful people everywhere! We’re blessed and honoured to attract crowds like this. Next stop: Malmo on Wednesday! See y’all there!

 

Per Gessle Unplugged Tour – #18 – 6th May 2022 – Helsingborg

Helsingborg I thought would have been an obvious place when it came to the PG Unplugged tour and I remember I was surprised it didn’t make it to the dates in 2021, because all Swedish tours visited Helsingborg in the past. I was glad to see that in 2022 it got on the list. More than that, it got to the No.1 spot on my personal toplist of the concerts on this tour leg!

Anders Roos was on spot again and made THIS stage building time lapse video. Always very cool to have such an insight!

Per and the band were in top top top shape and the audience was just fantastic. Some people made me remember that Helsingborg gigs are usually fun, because the alcohol a bigger part of the audience drinks before the shows cheers the people up even more. Haha. They were clapping and singing along to almost every song! Sounded wonderful! They also applauded the gang for a longer time after each song and were clapping even during songs we usually didn’t clap before, e.g. Juni, juli, augusti. That was amazing! And it was the first crowd that made the first encore a bit different than usual.

It was also the first place where appr. 10 people came in only after the first song and while Mr. G was talking, they tried to find their seats. When Per noticed them, he greeted that little group and told Christoffer they were probably queueing for the T-shirts. Chris said or for his solo album. The whole audience laughed.

It seems that Per realized on the previous concert that he has all the right and can stand up more often than before. Not for complete songs, but to check on the crowd or just to take a break from sitting and do some little exercises. Haha.

It was also fun, when Helena, Magnus and Christoffer left the stage before Ljudet av ett annat hjärta. Per mentioned that he wrote the song on the tour bus in 1981 and they were to be in the movie, Parkliv back then. He told Parkliv is one of Christoffer’s most favourite films besides the Rambo movies. Chris now walked back on stage for a second to confirm. Haha.

The O’boy and capo jokes were not missing, as well as the usual stories. The audience was grateful not only for all the songs, but the fun story-telling too.

From the band introduction it turned out that Magnus is coming from Malmö, but he was born in Helsingborg. He got a loud cheering from the audience.

The crowd stood up before the first encore and wanted the gang back on stage asap. When they were back, Mr. G thanked for the audience’s kindness. As I mentioned, the first encore became a bit different vs. all previous concerts. A guy on the left side, who came several times to the front to take pics of Chris and Per, stood up and started dancing to När vi två blir en. Then he demonstrated that everyone should stand up and so the whole audience stood up and was listening to NVTBE standing. Per and the band loved it and that cheered them up even more.

We stayed standing before the second encore and waited for the band to perform more. For Vid hennes sida we sat down, but for Sommartider we stood up to party. Magnus stood next to Helena and they were now singing into the same mic. PG hi-fived Magnus after the song. It wasn’t the first time that Christoffer – due to the crowd’s awesome reaction to the song with a long and loud cheering – started playing Ljudet av ett annat hjärta (the fast version) after Sommartider, but this was the first time the crowd joined in with clapping and humming. It was fantastic! For När alla vännerna gått hem everyone sat down, but it was yet another gig that ended with standing ovation. Best so far!

Next stop is Umeå on 9th May after well-deserved two days off!

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 gig:

Wow! Six shows in seven days. Not bad at my (and Clarence’s) age! And yes, what a truly great gig it was tonight in Helsingborg!!! Super crowd + band in top shape! We had a blast. This tour is one of the greatest I’ve ever experienced!!!! So much very special feedback from people + I can play my music in a most intimate way. Love that. Two days off now then we’re going north! Look forward to every second of it. Have a fab weekend y’all!

Gyllene Tider – GT40 – Helsingborg – 10th July 2019 – #4

6 years ago, exactly on 10th July, Gyllene Tider played the very same venue in Helsingborg, Sofiero Slott. Per also played here 2 years ago on his Swedish solo tour. What I remembered from those past Helsingborg concerts is that people love to have a picnic there and they love to sing along and they are loud. My memory served me right and the crowd hasn’t changed over the years. Many were queueing for long hours just to reach the best picnic spots inside, hardcore fans were queueing for the front row. Everyone to their own. The crowd didn’t change soundwise either. They are still loud and happy to sing along. The only thing on the negative side is that people get drunk very easily in Helsingborg and then they start being pushy and rude. The security guys did a great job in the front and either convinced the pushing ones to behave or they took them out from the crowd. This way unfortunately, there were quite some moments when we were more occupied with what’s happening around us than what’s on stage.

Sofiero Slott being a huge venue, I was surprised that there were no side screens this time, so I don’t know how much those in the back saw from the concert. But they were probably happy with their meals, eating on their blankets and listening to fab live music.

Regarding the setlist I had high hopes the guys would change it vs. Malmö, because there was a live soundcheck at 5 pm and then besides Det hjärta som brinner and Vandrar i ett sommarregn they played Puls and Billy too. I wouldn’t have expected that both Puls and Billy would make it to the setlist though, but it did happen. Puls was introduced simply as a song from the 80’s and was performed right after Det hjärta som brinner.  Billy was the first song played in the first encore. Yeah, the first song in the first encore… Which means Skrot och korn got kicked off of the setlist. Too bad, but Billy was very much welcomed.

I really like the fact that there were no exact same setlists so far on the tour and I hope it stays like this. The guys should play as many of their songs as possible on their last tour. I’m also impressed that the setlist didn’t get any shorter. Knock on wood! There are 24 songs now, so 1 extra compared to the first 3 shows.

This was the first concert from the 4 so far that I saw from the right side. The whole gang was visible, no one was ”hiding” behind someone else’s back. Only Micke Syd was less visible behind the drums, but the sound of his drumming and him coming to the front for 3 songs compensated us. When he came to sing Låt denna trumslagarpojke sjunga! and told he wouldn’t sing Min tjej och jag on this tour, he also mentioned that he and his wife celebrate their 14th anniversary next Saturday. The audience cheered him loudly.

The guys and girls up on stage were very fit again. They enjoyed some days off before this sold-out show that probably helped them being more relaxed. I mean mentally relaxed, because physically they were quite energetic and powerful. Per was bouncing around a lot and the girls were doing the twist in the background. MP was very much into this concert again. It’s awesome to see him enjoying to be there and playing his guitar. Anders and Göran hardly move, but they are masters of their own instruments. Micke Syd is as cool behind his drumset as in the front of the stage.

When the guys left us after Tylö Sun, the crowd started singing ojojojojoj and soon the boys and girls came back on stage. Before the second encore everyone felt one song is definitely missing, so the audience started singing Sommartider and yep, the gang came back. While everyone on stage had their instruments with them, Per was standing there without a guitar, so he said into the mic that all he needs is a guitar. Then Micke N-S, his technician rushed in and gave him a guitar. Micke Syd asked the audience to applaud the guitar guy. Haha.

After saying goodbye for one last time in Helsingborg, Per tried to throw some of his remaining picks to the crowd, but they didn’t fly too far so he left some more on his mic stand. Micke Syd thought he would help Mr. G out and he took off all the picks and threw them to the crowd. Per was laughing.

Åsa was there this time too and she filmed a lot. It’s always so lovely to see how much she still enjoys her husband’s music. Let’s hope the little clips will show up soon on any social media site handled by PG.

Next stop is Skövde, but before that, everyone gets one day off.

Setlist

1. Skicka ett vykort, älskling
2. Juni, juli, augusti
3. Chrissie, hur mår du?
4. Det hjärta som brinner
5. (Hon vill ha) Puls
6. Flickorna på TV2
7. Vandrar i ett sommarregn
8. (Dansar inte lika bra som) Sjömän
9. Det kändes inte som maj
10. Flickan i en Cole Porter-sång
11. Tuffa tider

BAND PRESENTATION

12. Låt denna trumslagarpojke sjunga!
13. Kung av sand
14. En sten vid en sjö i en skog
15. Ljudet av ett annat hjärta
16. Ska vi älska, så ska vi älska till Buddy Holly
17. (Kom så ska vi) Leva livet
18. Tylö Sun

Encore 1

19. Billy
20. Det är över nu
21. Gå & fiska!

Encore 2

22. När vi två blir en
23. Sommartider
24. När alla vännerna gått hem

 

All pics in the article are taken by Patrícia Peres.

GT after the show:

GIG #4 SOFIERO, HELSINGBORG. Alltid kul att komma till vackra Sofiero. Tack alla för att ni hjälpte oss med ett minne för livet. Fantastisk kväll, picnic all around, ni är bäst!!!! /GT

Per Gessle – En vacker kväll in Helsingborg, Sweden – 6th July 2017 – #1

4 days ago Per Gessle’s most awaited solo tour started. The pre-premiere gig at Leif’s Lounge was a real good appetizer for what was about to come in July and August, so we couldn’t wait anymore to see and hear Mr. G and the band on a huge stage under the Swedish summer sky. The premiere gig was held at Sofiero Slott in Helsingborg. This place I remembered from 2013 when Gyllene Tider played there. Besides recalling images of 5 amazing golden guys on stage, I also remembered 2 other things: all the people were coming with picnic baskets and the sound was so weak back then that we could hear our voices better than Per’s and also the sound of the instruments was very low. So I was wondering how the show would be, if the sound could be better after 4 years and if the Swedes come to have a picnic again.

Hardcore fans arrived from several countries during the day: besides Sweden, there were fans from Argentina, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Russia, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and maybe from even more countries. So the front row seemed to become very international to cheer PG on his big night. The security team was very helpful and nice, they seemed to understand our insanity of waiting for our favourite artist during all day.

While we were waiting for the gates to open at 6 pm, we could hear the soundcheck that started at appr. 4 pm. The stage was too far away to see clearly what was happening, but the sound was great outside. Gave us high hopes for it to be awesome at night too. What PG and the band rehearsed were På promenad genom stan, Vilket håll du än går, Det hjärta som brinner, Segla på ett moln which lead into Första pris, then Mahi Nana, woohoo Tittar på dej när du dansar, It Must Have Been Love, Honung och guld, Varmt igen, Tycker om när du tar på mej, then we could hear some drum tacts from Soul Deep, then came Småstadsprat, Dressed for Success and Min plats. The whole soundcheck lasted for about an hour. Åsa was there at the venue too and she came to greet us some minutes after 4 pm, during the soundcheck. She was as nice she is always with the fans.

The gates opened at 6 pm and just as we thought, after we got to our places in the front, no Swedes were coming closer to us. They all landed their baskets on the grass, far away from the stage and started having their picnic. Haha. Still such a funny thing. But good for us.

As I already shared some pictures on our Facebook page, there is of course new merchandise. You can buy T-shirts (6 different ones), a crew-neck sweater, a sailor bag, a lithography, a corkscrew, a set of 3 wine glasses in a nice case and a pack of cards. Hm. It might be hard to find out what to include in the merchandise and then you have to decide on the design too. Well, next time it would be worth asking the fans about it. Just saying. To those who plan to buy any of the above mentioned, it might be useful info for you that the wine glasses have tussilagos printed on them. Not engraved, printed. So you might not be able to wash them in a dishwasher. At least we wouldn’t try to. 3 glasses. 3? Could be 2 or 6. Interesting anyway. Another funny thing is the corkscrew and its design. To print ”Per Gessle” with silver on a silver coloured (plastic) surface wasn’t the best of ideas. OK, everyone can decide on what he / she is into and would buy from the merchandise. What we all miss are mugs and keyrings and T-shirts with the tour dates on the back. And more PG pics on the merch stuff, instead of signs. The tussilagos are fine though. And how about merch guitar picks? Besides all what I listed above you can also buy the standard ”En vacker natt” vinyl and the CD, as well as the Mazarin LP at the merch stand.

After checking the merchandise, we got back to our places. While standing there waiting for the support acts, we saw photographer Anders Roos on stage. We talked to him shortly and it turned out he would be at several shows to take photos. So let’s hope there will be a nice photo book of this tour too.

Good Harvest was the first support act to perform. The 2 girls, Hanna Enlöf and Ylva Eriksson got on stage at 19:30 and played for about 25 minutes. They sound beautiful together and their guitar playing is also wonderful. Their songs and covers are really unique.

After Good Harvest, the stage was set for Strandels, Tova and Sixten Strandell (sister and brother) and a young guitarist and drummer. They performed both own songs and covers too, starting at 20:10, playing for about 25 minutes. They got the crowd into a bit more party mood.

Before, after and between the support acts PG’s mix tape was on. The good old crew, the technicians were busy with setting up the stage, having everything ready for THE show. Some minutes (maybe 3-4) after 21:00, the band and Per appeared on stage.

Here comes the setlist and then I go into details:

1. Min plats
2. På promenad genom stan
3. Vilket håll du än går
4. Juni, juli, augusti
5. Det hjärta som brinner
6. Segla på ett moln / Första pris
7. Tittar på dej när du dansar
8. It Must Have Been Love
9. Honung och guld
10. Här kommer alla känslorna (på en och samma gång) / Flickan i en Cole Porter-sång
11. Kung av sand
12. Ljudet av ett annat hjärta
13. Spegelboll
14. Gå & fiska!
Band presentation
15. The Look (with När vi två blir en as intro)

Encore:
16. Varmt igen (with Queen of Rain as intro)
17. Tycker om när du tar på mej
18. Dressed for Success
19. Joyride

Encore 2:
20. Sommartider
21. Småstadsprat

As Min plats was the opener at Leif’s Lounge, we expected it to be the first song on tour too. You could sense Per was so nervous (during the first 3 songs maybe), his facial expressions showed it and his moves too. He messed up the first verse in Min plats and he had to check the screen in front of him several times to make sure he sings the correct lyrics. It was probably not visible to all in the crowd and mostly hardcore fans realized it only anyway. Mr. G was so cute in this situation. I think the crowd’s reaction during and after the songs encouraged him to think all was going fine and he let his nerves ease. Really after 3 songs there was no sign of being nervous at all.

Before the next song, Per said ”I thought to play songs from my whole, ridiculously long career. I’ve been writing songs since more than 40 years now…, which is a little odd, because I’m only 33.” Then they went on with the 2nd song. You can’t go wrong with På promenad genom stan. The crowd loved it and was singing along loudly. Sha la la… he-he-hej!

Vilket håll du än går was a nice addition to the setlist, it wasn’t played at Leif’s Lounge. Why I liked it so much is because I love when Per plays the harmonica. When the crew was setting up the stage, we could already see there were harmonicas attached to Per’s mic stand. I couldn’t wait for him using them. The song sounded cool live, with Malin on the violin and all.

Before Juni, juli, augusti, Per talked a bit to the crowd and said he hoped they had nothing against a little Gyllene Tider. Oh, we had nothing against it, of course. Party time! Just like with the next song, Det hjärta som brinner. On this one, Ola came to the front with his guitar and was rocking it hard. Also had a funny interaction with Mr. G.

Then it was time to calm down a bit. Helena and Malin started singing Segla på ett moln while Per was changing his guitars next to Micke N-S. Before Per got back to the stage he was singing along (without a mic). This intro lead into Första pris. Malin’s viloin playing here was heavenly too and Helena’s singing as well.

After Första pris Per talked to the audience again and talked about Nashville, that they recorded the song there and it was an amazing experience for them. He said he gives a holiday idea, go to Nashville. He mentioned they also recorded the next song there. And yeeeeaaah, Tittar på dej när du dansar came as next on the setlist. We really wanted to hear this song live and it didn’t disappoint. Sounds fab live too! Mahi Nana! The boogie didn’t catch the standard crowd’s feet, but we hope they will be more into it during the rest of the tour. Maybe a physical release of this single would help. 😉 Haha. The song got a big applause anyway. By the way, Malin plays both the violin and the mandolin on this one. So talented and sweet!

After the song Per talked to the crowd again. He said back in the days one learned English via pop music, The Beatles, The Kinks, The Lovin’ Spoonful, Small Faces, Pink Floyd, oh well, Pink Floyd not really. He said he thought to play one of the first songs he wrote for Roxette. And it was It Must Have Been Love. Oh well… I think we (I mean the hardcore fans in the front) were not really prepared to hear this song. It is so much Marie and we are so not over the fact that Roxette is not touring anymore (and maybe not even recording anymore) that it hurt very much hearing this actual Roxette song live – without Marie. So even if we sang along and the rest of the crowd enjoyed it, we had mixed feelings and we could easily live without this song in the setlist. Really. At the same time, it’s a big song in Per’s career, a US No. 1 and a huge hit all over the world, we know it. And seeing and hearing the standard crowd’s reaction, it will surely stay in the set. But still. It hurts.

After IMHBL came another song that was new on the setlist vs. what was played at Leif’s Lounge. It’s from Gyllene Tider’s third album, Puls and Per asked the audience if they remembered that album. The crowd’s reaction showed they remembered. He said he thought he would play a song they had never played live before, so asked the crowd to keep their fingers crossed. Honung och guld was the song.

After sipping a little from his ginger tea, Mr. G and the band went on with Här kommer alla känslorna (på en och samma gång) / Flickan i en Cole Porter-sång. The same way it was played at Leif’s, however, there these two songs were the last on the setlist. The crowd loved it very much and we enjoyed a loud sing along. Doobie doobie dum doh!

Then came another harmonica song, woohoo! Kung av sand! What a lovely song it still is!

After KAS it was time to party hard again. The crowd went crazy when they realized which song was next. Ljudet av ett annat hjärta! Helena and Malin go wild on this one, jumping like hell. This song is a real highlight and how Spegelboll comes after LAEAH is awesome! You can’t stop dancing, jumping, clapping, singing along and shouting. Not even during the next song, because it’s Gå & fiska! and you just hope the party never ends. The stage is now much bigger than it was at Leif’s and so all the musicians can go from one side to another, Magnus and the girls from right to left, Chris and Ola from left to right and Per can also run around easily. However, every now and then they still bump into each other. 6 people moving around can be tricky sometimes. Haha. But it’s so cool!

After Gå & fiska! Per introduced the band and he started it with telling that he found them on a dating site. First he introduced Helena (vocals), one his favourite singers, then Malin (violin and mandolin), who was born in Umeå, but grown up in Hong Kong, then Clarence (keyboards), an old acquaintance of Per’s wife, then Magnus (vocals, bass, dance and a little blue machine), Stockholm’s, Malmö’s, Sweden’s biggest sex machine. Per asked Magnus how he felt. Magnus said he was fine, it was a very special day. Besides having their premiere gig, it was 60 years ago when John met Paul. Magnus told the crowd if they know who John and Paul are, they get Dumle (Swedish sweet). Then Per introduced Ola (guitar and pedal steel), Andreas (drums) and ”last but least”, Professor Christoffer von Lundquist (guitar). All in the band got huge applause and shout outs from the crowd.

Then Chris played När vi två blir en as intro to The Look in his crazy style. The party mood was guaranteed again and it was yet another highlight in the set. All the guys on stage going psychedelic and the crowd singing along the nananananas. Then the band left the stage and the crowd was clapping and shouting to get them back.

The first encore was different to that in Leif’s Lounge. First all band members came back on stage and Chris started playing Queen of Rain (which I must admit I haven’t recognized until Per mentioned it, I was probably distracted by so many other things on stage, haha) and it lead into Varmt igen for which Per appeared on stage in WHITE clothes. Oh my God! How long I had to wait for this moment! You might find it stupid and I don’t really know what we, most of the fans (OK, probably most of the Gessle Girls) like so much about Per in white, but that’s a fact: we adore him in white clothes. Well, clothes don’t make the man, we love him anyway, you know that. 😉 Varmt igen sounded incredibly wonderful, it was a pure delight to hear this song live. Both Per and Helena sing beautifully.

And they go on sounding wonderful on Tycker om när du tar på mej which came next in the setlist. Per’s moves and facial expressions during this song are priceless. This song definitely means much to him. And when he goes next to Chris and they play the guitars together is so lovely too.

After 2 slow songs it was time to p-a-r-t-y and bring a little Roxette sound. Dressed for Success was next and the audience was singing along heavily to this one too. Also to Joyride which came after DFS. Everyone was a real Joyrider on and off stage. Per and Chris played their guitars back to back each other at some point. It was much fun! And time flies when you’re having fun, they all went off stage again.

The crowd was loud and wanted them back again. Of course, they came back after some minutes. First Andreas sat behind the drums and aaaaaah, he started playing Sommartider. One must love how he is drumming. A real pleasure to watch and hear him playing. Fun guy! Hej hej! The crowd went crazy for Sommartider and it became a heavy sing along again. Only this time we realized why BoJo was checking the camera (as a cameraman) before the show, because he came to the front and started filming the crowd. The pictures went on to the screens on the stage. It looked cool. And BoJo seems to be not only the nicest bodyguard and tour manager on Earth, but also a talented cameraman. Haha.

I would say Sommartider would be a PERfect ending to the concerts, but for some reason the ending song became Småstadsprat. Before they could start playing it, the crowd started shouting oj-oj-oj-oj-oj and clapping and it lasted long. Per appreciated it, thanked and sent kisses and he also applauded the audience. If it were not the blue lights on stage we might have had seen him blushing. He was so sweet! Småstadsprat sounded beautiful at the premiere show too and with it the show ended. Per thanked for the audience, told them they were absolutely wonderful, thanked them for coming and wished a wonderful summer.

We couldn’t believe the concert ended, it had just begun! And we would have been ready to relive it again (and again and again) right then. It was really en vacker kväll. More than that! A most fantastic night! Great start of the tour both for the band and for the audience (8385 people).

Åsa filmed a lot during the whole show and 3 videos Per already shared on his YouTube channel (1; 2; 3). We hope there is more to be uploaded.

Per about the show:

Yeehaa! Tack alla ni nästan 8 1/2 tusen som kom till Sofiero ikväll. Vilken resa ni gav oss. Premiärnerver till trots…. en fantastisk afton.

End of the concert, goodbye! From left to right: Christoffer Lundquist, Andreas Dahlbäck, Ola Gustafsson, Per Gessle, Helena Josefsson, Malin-My Wall, Magnus Börjeson, Clarence Öfwerman

   
Micke N-S tuning the violin                                             BoJo, the cameraman

All photos in the article are taken by Patrícia Peres.

Videos:

Det hjärta som brinner
Tittar på dej när du dansar
It Must Have Been Love: 1; 2;
Här kommer alla känslorna (på en och samma gång)
Ljudet av ett annat hjärta: 1; 2;
Gå & fiska!: 1; 2; 3;
The Look: 1; 2;
Varmt igen
Tycker om när du tar på mej: 1; 2;
Småstadsprat: 1; 2;

Articles, pictures:

Aftonbladet
Sydsvenskan
Expressen (funny, we saw Anders Nunstedt sitting there at Sofiero and writing his review right after the show /and probably during the show he was working on it too/)
Rockfoto
hd.se (for subscribers only): 1; 2;
Dagens Nyheter

 

Marie’s tour: Helsingborg, 19th February #1

Setlist

1. Så stilla så långsamt [1992 – DSR]
2. Kom vila hos mig [2013 – Nu!]
3. Bara för en dag [1987 – ES]
4. Det regnar igen [1992 – DSR]
5. Sista sommarens vals [2013 – Nu!]
6. Ber bara en gång [1996 – IETSV]
7. Sparvöga [1989 off the Swedish drama TV series]
8. Ett hus vid havet [1985 – DSV]
9. Ett bord i solen [2007 – TFT]
10. Så skimrande var aldrig havet [1990 off Taube compilation album]
11. Ännu doftar kärlek [1984 – HV]
12. Så länge det lyser mittemot [1992 – DSR]
13. Om du såg mig nu [1987 – ES]
14. Efter stormen [1987 – ES]
15. Den sjunde vågen [1985 – DSV]

16. Mellan sommar och höst [1992 – DSR]
17. Den bästa dagen [1985 – DSV]
18. Tro [1996 – IETSV]

Comment

Marie Fredriksson’s first concert was a spectacular start of the series of 19 concerts across Sweden. In the city of Helsingborg – as she calls herself as a “hometown” she performed in front of 800-900 people in the Konserthus (philharmonic). There were 18 songs performed and Marie and the band conquered the stage for about 90 minutes. Some of songs were sang for the very first time in the Marie’s touring history – including 2 singles off 2013 “Nu!” – “Kom vila hos mig” and “Sista sommarens vals” as well as  Swedish version of “A table in the sun” from 2007 ballad compilation known as “Ett bord i solen” or second single off “I en tid som vår” – “Ber bara en gång”.  The most popular album during the concert was 1992’s “Den ständiga resan” and after that come 1987’s “Efter Stormen” and 1985’s “Den sjunde vågen” with 3 songs each. The biggest suprise was the lack of Marie’s only #1 single “Där du andas” from 2008 as well as her last tour’s hit “Äntligen”.

Concert generated raving reviews in Swedish media – Aftonbladet gave 4/5 and called the band “magical” and the concert as “full of startled emotions” with 3/5 from both Expressen and HD.se. Marie mentioned her fight with cancer just before “Ett bord i solen”. She also dedicated one of songs during the gig to her father Gösta Fredriksson.

Galleries

RockFoto.net
The Tivoli

Videos

Heartland Anne’s videos:
Den sjunde vågen
Bara för en dag
Så skimrande var aldrig havet / Ännu doftar kärlek

Big thanks to Heartland Anne for sharing clips and photos.

Christina Tholander’s videos:
Ett bord i solen
Ett hus vid havet
Så stilla så långsamt

Ricardo Acosta Hernandez’s video:
Så stilla så långsamt & Kom vila hos mig

Antje Friedrich’s video:
Den bästa dagen