Search - Roxette :: Don't Bore Us Get to the Chorus: G.H.

Hits after hits

Rodrigo Medina | Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro Brazil | 01/02/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Well,finally this CD was released in US. For those who are not familiar, Roxette is a very popular band everywhere, with milions of albums already sold.Roxette is Marie Friedksson and Per Gessle, two very talented artists. Some years ago, they had a problem with their record label in US and their CDs were not released there. This compilation is a great chance for those who do not own their previous albums.It brings two recent singles "I wish I could fly" and "stars", besides their greatest songs, such as "dressed for success", "fading like a flower" and "joyrider". "It must have been love" is a great track, from "pretty woman" soundtrack. I also like "almost unreal", from Mario Bros soundtrack (believe me, it's good!) and "spending my time", a powerful song, which became very popular here in Brazil a long ago. I really recommend Crash!Boom! Bang! album, as well as their live videos and previous singles/CDs. If you like pop music, you will surely like roxette."

Rox-ETTTTE!!!!!

Christopher Bubb | Saline, MI United States | 06/30/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"(First of all, in case you don't know, the title of my review paraphrases the ending of the song "Joyride.") Which Swedish act has had more #1s in the U.S. than any other? No, it's not Abba or Ace of Base (both of whom only had one U.S. #1). It's the duo known as Roxette. And if you were listening to top 40 or adult-contemporary radio at all between 1989 and the first half of 1992, you've heard their music, though you may not know who Roxette are.
This CD is the U.S. release of Roxette's greatest hits album, "Don't Bore Us, Get to the Chorus," which originally appeared in Europe in 1995. This track listing is different and seems to have been tailor-made for the U.S. market. All of Roxette's U.S. charting singles, from 1989's "The Look" to 1994's "Sleeping In My Car," are here, along with other non-hit tracks that are still definitely worth a listen.
Per Gessle was once quoted as saying that he believed Roxette made music similar to what Abba would have done if Abba were still around in 1990. The comparison is easy to understand: both Roxette and Abba built their careers around catchy, hook-filled three-and-a-half-minute compositions. Despite the title of this album, Roxette were NEVER boring, even if their lyrics were sometimes (especially on "The Look" and "Joyride") borderline laughable. The songs and performances were just good enough to make you forget giggle-inducing couplets like "Now she's telling all the secrets/And the wonderful balloons." They could handle both rock and ballads with ease, and they were absolutely unstoppable between 1989-91, with (in the U.S.) four #1 singles, two #2 hits and one other top 20 hit. Then in 1992, their popularity suddenly dropped off drastically as musical tastes changed and Nirvana and grunge-rock became all the rage, and Roxette's straightforward pop-rock was apparently no longer "hip." Their first U.S. single to miss the top 20 was "Spending My Time" (#32, 1992), and in chart terms, it was downhill from there. (The fact that "Almost Unreal" appeared on the soundtrack of the forgettable "Super Mario Bros." movie in 1993 probably killed its chances for success as well - as it was, it barely dented the U.S. charts at #94 Pop and #45 Adult Contemporary.) But Roxette are still huge in Europe to this day and are still churning out great music, even if America has all but forgotten them.
Of the non-hit tracks on this album, my favorites are "Stars" (a delightful, catchy piece of club bait) and "Wish I Could Fly" (a ballad which sends chills up my spine and deserved to be a hit, but wasn't, despite receiving some airplay on Adult Contemporary stations).
In short, Roxette was responsible for creating some of the catchiest, hookiest pop songs of the '80s and early '90s, and like I said, if you don't know the name of the band, you probably know at least one of the songs. Listening to this CD is an experience that can best be summed up in the title of their last U.S. #1 hit: "Joyride.""

All The Hits On One CD

Aaron | Ohio, USA | 12/20/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Roxette were/are one of the world's biggest international pop groups. Although they're not really popular in the US, they're still huge in Europe. But back in the late-80's and early-90's, Roxette were big here in the US thanks to their #1 debut single "The Look" which is on here along with their other three fantastic #1 hits "Joyride," "Listen To Your Heart," and from Pretty Woman, "It Must Have Been Love." Two other US top 10 hits are included on here too which are "Dangerous" and the beautiful power ballad "Fading Like A Flower." Equally good is the top 40 hit "Dressed For Success' *just try not to dance while listening to it.* There are also a few minor hits being "Church of Your Heart" and "Spending My Time." "I Wish I Could Fly" and "Stars" are newer songs that weren't really hits in the US but were overseas and they are also good songs. This is definitely a great pop collection!"