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Ace of Base is a Swedish pop group formed in 1987, originally consisting of siblings Jonas, Linn, and
Jenny Berggren Jenny Cecilia Petrén (née Berggren; born 19 May 1972), professionally known as Jenny Berggren and Jenny from Ace of Base is a Swedish mezzo-soprano singer and former lead singer in the Swedish pop band Ace of Base. Since 1995, she has also bee ...
, with Ulf Ekberg. They achieved worldwide success following the release of their debut album, '' Happy Nation'', in 1992. Later re-issued as '' The Sign'', it was certified nine times platinum in the United States and was the best-selling album of 1994. One of the most successful debut albums of all time, it was the first to produce three No. 1 singles on the '' Billboard''
Mainstream Top 40 Pop Airplay (also called Mainstream Top 40, Pop Songs, and Top 40/contemporary hit radio, CHR) is a 40-song music chart published weekly by Billboard (magazine), ''Billboard'' Magazine that ranks the most popular songs of pop music being played o ...
chart: " All That She Wants", " The Sign" and "
Don't Turn Around "Don't Turn Around" is a Popular music, popular song written by Albert Hammond and Diane Warren. It was originally recorded by American singer Tina Turner and released as the A-side and B-side, B-side to her 1986 Hit song, hit single "Typical ...
". The group continued to score hit singles throughout the 1990s, with songs such as " Beautiful Life", " Lucky Love", " Cruel Summer", and " Life Is a Flower". They have sold 30 million copies of their first four studio albums, making them the third most successful Swedish group of all time, behind
ABBA ABBA ( ) were a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. They are one of the most popular and successful musical groups of all time, and are one of the List ...
and
Roxette Roxette is a Swedish pop rock duo originally consisting of Marie Fredriksson and Per Gessle, both of whom were already established musicians in Sweden prior to the band's formation. Fredriksson had released a number of successful solo albums, ...
. Despite being largely inactive since 2012, the group has never officially disbanded. In the last decade, they have released several demo tracks, first via their Facebook page and later, in 2015, on the compilation album '' Hidden Gems''. A follow-up titled ''Hidden Gems, Vol. 2'' was included in the 2020 box set '' All That She Wants: The Classic Collection''. Jenny Berggren continues to perform the group's hits in solo concerts around the world.


History


1987–1992: Formation

In 1987, after several years as part of a new wave and punk cover band called G Konrad (named after Hungarian author György Konrád), Jonas Berggren formed a band with two friends, Johnny Lindén and Niklas Tränk, for a school project; his sisters Linn and Jenny later joined as vocalists. The new band went through several names: New Arbat Avenue, after an avenue in Moscow; CAD (Computer-Aided Disco); and Tech-Noir, which is French for ''black technology,'' inspired by a nightclub in the film '' The Terminator''. They toured the clubs of Sweden with original material, creating techno inspired by 1980s Italo disco and
house music House is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by a repetitive Four on the floor (music), four-on-the-floor beat and a typical tempo of 115–130 beats per minute. It was created by DJs and music producers from Chicago's underground ...
. Johnny left the group in 1989, and Niklas made his departure known by failing to turn up to a gig at Bältespännarparken in
Gothenburg Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...
on 4 August 1990, instead attending a
Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...
concert across town. Jonas his friend Ulf Ekberg to stand in for Niklas. Inspired by a Jamaican
reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...
band who resided in a studio next door to theirs, they experimented with a fusion of reggae and pop – dubbed "China reggae" by their Jamaican friends – which became the band's trademark sound. After responding to an ad in the paper '' Göteborgs-Posten'', the new quartet started working in the studio with record producer John Ballard, and decided to adopt a new name to make a fresh start, as well as to avoid confusion with another band with the same name (Tech Noir) who were attracting bad reviews. Linn said: "No one could pronounce the name of the group and nobody could remember it." They settled on Ace of Base in early 1991, after Ulf was inspired by the Motörhead song " Ace of Spades". In a 2018 interview, Ulf explained: "I was hungover, watching MTV and I saw Motörhead's video for their song 'Ace of Spades'. I liked the name and I thought I'd play around with those words. ..Then I thought of our studio and how it's our base". The group continued performing in the clubs of Gothenburg but struggled to gain recognition, partly due to the local preference for
heavy metal music Heavy metal (or simply metal) is a Music genre, genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the United Kingdom and United States. With roots in blues rock, psychedelic rock and acid rock, heavy metal band ...
over techno. They sent out demo cassettes to numerous record companies, but all received refusals. In May 1991, Jonas and Ulf traveled to various record companies in Stockholm, including Polar Music, which requested that they record more songs first, and SweMix, which expressed interest but did not have the capacity to work with them until autumn. In July, Klas Lunding at Telegram Records arranged for the group to record a new version of " Wheel of Fortune" in their newly renovated Decibel Studio, but did not offer them a recording contract. Jonas recounts:
When it had just been finished, Martin Dodd (Head of A&R at independent Danish label Mega Records) called and shouted: "Do not sign anything, do not sign anything!" They wanted everything from us, while Telegram only wanted the reggae songs and no up-tempos. We had already recorded a single with Telegram, but hadn't signed anything. Klas is not the fastest in the world, so to speakand that was perhaps lucky for us. So Mega bought the master tape from Klas for 34,000 SEK.
"Wheel of Fortune" was serviced to radio and nightclubs in Sweden in early 1992, reaching Gothenburg's local Jockeytoppen chart in March, which led to an invitation to perform on the music television channel ZTV. However, the record failed to gain traction in Sweden, prompting Mega to shift focus to Denmark. After servicing the single to media three times, it was finally released commercially at the end of June 1992, entering the Danish singles chart at No. 6 before rising to No. 2.


1992–1994: International success and ''Happy Nation''/''The Sign''

Following the success of "Wheel of Fortune" in Denmark, the group continued to work on new music. After hearing Kayo's "Another Mother" in a record store – a top 20 hit in Sweden in 1990 – Jonas and Ulf decided that it was the exact sound they wanted to create. In early 1992, they sent producer Denniz PoP a demo tape that included a song titled "Mr. Ace". Initially, he was not particularly impressed, but the tape became stuck in the cassette player of his car. As a result, he had to listen to it repeatedly and gradually realized the song's potential. Although he had lost the band's contact details, when they called him a few months later, he invited them to his SweMix studio to re-record the song in July 1992. The song was eventually titled " All That She Wants" and, upon its release at the end of August, it quickly ascended to No. 1 on the Danish chart, while the previous single remained at No. 2. Eager to release an LP for the Christmas market, Mega Records pressured the band for an album, which was recorded and mixed in just a few weeks. The album, '' Happy Nation'', was released on 2 November 1992, in Denmark, and its success generated interest throughout Europe. A pan-European license was signed with Metronome/PolyGram (now Universal Music), but the American division declined to pursue the band. Within a few months, "All That She Wants" reached No. 3 in Sweden and spent eight weeks at No. 1 in Germany. In various European countries, " Happy Nation" and " Waiting for Magic" were released as additional singles following the album's release. In May 1993, "All That She Wants" solidified its European success by topping the charts for three weeks in the United Kingdom. However, despite Mega Records's efforts to secure a distribution deal in the United States, the response was always the same: "This band will never work in the States." Eventually, Clive Davis, founder of
Arista Records Arista Records ( ) is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was previously a division of Bertelsmann Music G ...
, heard the song playing on the radio whilst on vacation on his yacht, and rushed to sign a licence with Mega for the Americas. In October and November 1993, "All That She Wants" reached No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, as well as in Australia. The group had already started work on a second album, with the working title of ''The Sign'', named after one of the new tracks they had written. However, concerned about the sales of import copies of ''Happy Nation'', Davis decided to modify the track list of the original LP by adding three new tracks and re-titling it '' The Sign''. Released in the US on 23 November 1993, the album remained in the top three of the ''Billboard'' Top 200 for 26 consecutive weeks and was nominated for ''Best Pop Album'' at the 1995 Grammy Awards. The updated album was released in Europe as '' Happy Nation (US Version)''. Collectively, the various versions of the album reached the No. 1 position in at least 14 countries and sold over 21 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling debut albums of all time. It was also one of the best-selling albums of 1994. The second U.S. single was the album's title track, " The Sign", released on 14 December. It proved to be even more successful than the first single, spending six weeks at No. 1 and becoming the best-selling single of 1994. The song also achieved significant international success, peaking at No. 2 in both the UK and Sweden, and reaching No. 1 in Germany; in Australia, it topped the charts for four weeks. At the request of Clive Davis, the group's next single was "
Don't Turn Around "Don't Turn Around" is a Popular music, popular song written by Albert Hammond and Diane Warren. It was originally recorded by American singer Tina Turner and released as the A-side and B-side, B-side to her 1986 Hit song, hit single "Typical ...
". This song had previously been released by
Tina Turner Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939 – May 24, 2023) was a singer, songwriter, actress, and author. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", her vocal prowess, raspy voice, and electrifyin ...
as the B-side of her single " Typical Male" (1986) and had reached No. 1 in the UK for Aswad in 1988. The cover version achieved top 5 placements in the US, UK, Sweden, Denmark, and Finland. Promotion for the album concluded with the final single release, " Living in Danger", which also became a top 40 hit internationally and was performed in front of the
Brandenburg Gate The Brandenburg Gate ( ) is an 18th-century Neoclassical architecture, neoclassical monument in Berlin. One of the best-known landmarks of Germany, it was erected on the site of a former city gate that marked the start of the road from Berlin t ...
at the first-ever MTV Europe Music Awards in
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
in November 1994. The band became embroiled in controversy when, on 27 March 1993, the Swedish newspaper ''
Expressen (''The Express'') is one of two nationwide evening newspapers in Sweden. Describing itself as independent liberal, was founded in 1944; its symbol is a wasp and its slogans are "it stings" or " to your rescue". The newspaper awards the cultu ...
'' reported that Ulf had been a member of a skinhead gang during his teenage years, prior to his association with Ace of Base. Linn commented in 1993, "Ulf gave all that up long ago, and my family had nothing to do with any of that in the first place." In 2013, the story resurfaced in a report by ''
Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, Habit (psychology), habit or item generally considered morally wrong in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character trait, a defect, an infirmity, or a bad or unhe ...
'', which referenced an unauthorized CD released in 1998 titled ''Uffe Was a Nazi!'', containing songs with racist content purportedly recorded by Ulf's former band, "Commit Suiside". Ulf was described as "a drug and alcohol-abusing teenager, when he was a member of a
neo-Nazi Neo-Nazism comprises the post–World War II militant, social, and political movements that seek to revive and reinstate Nazism, Nazi ideology. Neo-Nazis employ their ideology to promote hatred and Supremacism#Racial, racial supremacy (ofte ...
skinhead gang". In an interview with '' E!'', Ulf stated, "I have always been deeply regretful of that period in my life, as I strive to bring happiness to people, and during that period, I did not live up to that standard. ..I'm truly deeply sorry for any hurt and disappointment this has caused for our fans, and I really hope that we clearly have stated that Ace of Base never shared any of these opinions and strongly oppose all extremist opinions on both the right and left wing." In April 1994, an obsessed German fan broke into the Berggren family home, brandishing a knife. After managing to restrain her, the band decided they needed bodyguards. Recalling the attack in a 2016 interview, Jenny said:
"She woke me up with a knife to my throat. She broke into my parents’ house when I was staying there after two years away. I woke up and she was standing over me with the knife. I was terrified. That was the darker side of fame. I remember just after I was attacked I found out that we were Number 1 in the United States. All I could think was that I almost got killed. Everyone was like, 'wow, let's have a huge party'. I didn't want a party. I was broken."


1995–1997: ''The Bridge''

Following the substantial success of their debut album, the group was offered the opportunity to perform at
Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh and Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eig ...
in New York and asked to represent brands such as
Pepsi Pepsi is a Carbonated water, carbonated soft drink with a cola flavor, manufactured by PepsiCo which serves as its flagship product. In 2023, Pepsi was the second most valuable soft drink brand worldwide behind Coca-Cola; the two share a long ...
and Reebok in promotional campaigns. However, after two years of traveling the world to promote their first album, the band was too exhausted to accept any of these offers. Simultaneously, their various record companies worldwide were demanding a second album promptly. To expedite the process, instead of Jonas and Ulf writing most of the album, each member was encouraged to submit their own tracks for consideration. Ultimately, 17 tracks were selected for the second album, titled '' The Bridge''. This album marked a significant shift in sound; alongside the reggae and dance styles that had propelled the group to fame, it featured more experimental tracks and several ballads. The lead single, " Lucky Love," was a mainstream pop record that premiered in August 1995 at the World Championships in Athletics in Gothenburg. It debuted at No. 1 in Sweden upon its release in October, becoming their first chart-topper in their homeland. Additionally, it was a top 20 hit across Europe, peaking at No. 1 in Finland, No. 2 in Denmark, No. 13 in Germany, and No. 20 in the United Kingdom. Arista Records instead opted for the more up-tempo track " Beautiful Life" as the first single in the US, where it peaked at No. 15 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, becoming the first American and UK hit for its co-producer Max Martin. It was released as the second single from the album in most countries, also reaching No. 15 in the UK and charting in at least 17 countries. An alternative acoustic mix of "Lucky Love" was chosen as the second U.S. single, peaking at No. 30. " Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry" was released as the third single from the album and achieved moderate success in Europe, but failed to chart on the Hot 100 in the US. ''The Bridge'' was certified platinum in 14 countries, although it did not match the sales of the group's debut album. In February 1996, the band performed at the
Viña del Mar International Song Festival The Viña del Mar International Song Festival () is an annual international music festival held every third week of February in Viña del Mar, Chile. Started in 1960 it is the oldest and largest music festival in Latin America, and one of the long ...
in
Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...
, headlining alongside 2 Unlimited. After touring Asia and Australasia in April 1996, the group temporarily withdrew from the limelight, scrapping plans to release either "My Déjà Vu" or "Edge of Heaven" as singles. They re-emerged only in 1997 for an April performance at the World Music Awards and a July concert celebrating the 20th birthday of Princess Victoria of Sweden.


1998–2000: ''Flowers'' / ''Cruel Summer,'' ''Singles of the 90s'', and ''Greatest Hits''

Having felt rushed to record a second album, the group were given as much time as they need to produce their third, with much of it being recorded in Jonas's own studio, The Barn. Declaring it their best album yet, the group titled it '' Flowers'' because they believed that the songs, wildly different in style, including
Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...
and
gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...
influences, resembled a varied bouquet of flowers.''Flowers'' album booklet. Edel-Mega Records (1998) In live performances in support of the album, Linn relinquished lead vocal duties to sister Jenny, and on many promotional photos, Linn's face was blurred. Fans were reassured that Linn was happy with her new backing role in the group, and many reasons were given for her decision, including her having damaged her voice, her aerophobia deterring her from international travel, dealing with depression, and her dislike of fame. Her vocal contributions to the album itself were also diminished, though she still appeared on the majority of the tracks. The album's lead single, " Life Is a Flower", was released in mainland Europe in April 1998, and became the most-played track on European radio of the year. It reached the top 5 in Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Hungary and in the UK, where it was certified silver. The album followed in June, hitting the top 20 in at least a dozen countries. The group's British label London Records had requested the band record the 1983 hit " Cruel Summer" by Bananarama and it was selected as the second European single. Deciding that "Life Is a Flower" was "too European in nature", Clive Davis pushed "Cruel Summer" as the lead single for the United States, and it brought Ace of Base back into the U.S. Top 10 for the first time in four years, being certified gold. The album was also renamed '' Cruel Summer'' and featured a different track list from the European release. For this version of the album, Davis persuaded a reluctant Linn to record the Billy Steinberg-penned ballad " Everytime It Rains". "Life Is a Flower" was re-recorded as " Whenever You're Near Me" and chosen as the second single from ''Cruel Summer'', peaking at No. 76. " Travel to Romantis" and " Always Have, Always Will" were further singles in Europe whilst "Everytime It Rains" was issued as a single in the UK along with a repackaged edition of ''Flowers''. The group returned to the studio in 1999, writing several tracks together as a quartet for the first time and recording enough demo tracks for consideration for a fourth studio album. Ulf later revealed that they had hoped to release a track called "Pole Position" as the lead single, with a music video featuring the
Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...
champion driver Jacques Villeneuve. Several of the tracks recorded for the scrapped studio album were eventually released in demo form by Jonas via Facebook in 2011. In November 1999, Mega Records released the best-of album '' Singles of the 90s'', a compilation of 13 singles and 3 new songs. A new single taken from it, " C'est La Vie (Always 21)", was a modest chart hit in Sweden, Finland, Germany and Switzerland, and topped the charts in Spain. " Hallo Hallo" followed as the second single in parts of Europe, but only found minor success. Arista Records fulfilled the group's four-album contract in the Americas by releasing '' Greatest Hits'' in March 2000. A new dance mix of " Everytime It Rains", previously included on '' Cruel Summer'', was released as a radio single to promote the album. Both the single and album failed to chart in the USA.


2002–2003: ''Da Capo''

After a lengthy absence from the pop scene, a new single titled " Beautiful Morning" was released to radio in Europe in July 2002. Polydor Records announced that it was their fastest-added track to radio playlists for the year, eventually reaching No. 38 in Germany and No. 14 in Sweden upon its commercial release in September. After several delays, Ace of Base finally released their fourth studio album, ''
Da Capo Da capo ( , , ; often abbreviated as D.C.) is an Italian musical term that means "from the beginning" (literally, "from the head"). The term is a directive to repeat the previous part of music, often used to save space, and thus is an easie ...
'', on September 30, 2002, in Europe, and in Japan through Toshiba EMI with a different cover and three bonus tracks. The album received only a soft release in the United Kingdom and was not released in the Americas. The title comes from the musical term ''da capo'', which translates as "back to the beginning", as the sound of the album was meant to be a return to the group's early blend of reggae and europop. Although the album charted across much of Europe, it was not as successful as previous releases. Only Jenny and Ulf went on a promotional tour of Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Germany, Poland and Austria. Jonas chose to forego promotional activities because "it was better to be two then" and led to "less questions" about Linn's lack of participation. Linn attended only one performance in Germany, which was her last public appearance. " The Juvenile" was chosen as the album's second single in Germany and was featured in a Christmas campaign by TV channel RTL Television. The song is a rewritten version of a track originally submitted for the
James Bond The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...
film '' GoldenEye'' in 1995. However, Clive Davis advised the band that it was not the best move for them at the time, leading to its withdrawal from consideration. In Scandinavia, Edel-Mega released " Unspeakable" as the second single; however, its poor chart performance resulted in the premature end of the album's promotion.


2003–2009: Hiatus and reunion

The group remained out of the spotlight throughout 2003 and 2004. During this time, Jenny performed solo live performances in several Christian shows with her husband, Jakob Petrén, and released an album as a vocalist with the Swedish group Arose. In 2005, several songs featuring vocals by both Jenny and Linn were recorded with producer Tommy Ekman, including "Would You Believe" and "Make My Day". Jonas and Ulf later explained that the group did not have the energy to finish the project, though the tracks that were recorded eventually surfaced. At the end of 2005, the group reunited, without Linn, for several live performances at the Night of the Proms in Belgium, alongside other artists such as Donna Summer. Ace of Base reunited as a trio to perform their first full-length concert since 1996 in
Yekaterinburg Yekaterinburg (, ; ), alternatively Romanization of Russian, romanized as Ekaterinburg and formerly known as Sverdlovsk ( ; 1924–1991), is a city and the administrative centre of Sverdlovsk Oblast and the Ural Federal District, Russia. The ci ...
, Russia, on 15 November 2007. They embarked on a world tour called ''Ace of Base - Redefined!'', which continued throughout 2008 and 2009. The set list included several new versions of their greatest hits. Jenny confirmed Linn's permanent departure from the group, saying "She hasn't been part of Ace of Base for several years" in '' Se & Hør'' magazine. Ulf later explained in an interview "She left the band and we promised her to never even ask to come back. She's done with entertainment industry. It's understandable. It's brutal from the inside, it was not for her. She has no craving to be famous, she loved her fans, but the fame factor was not for her." While touring, the group performed a brand new song called "Sparks From A Fire". The group collaborated with Jenny's husband, Jakob, to record material for a new studio album, which was intended to include seven new songs and seven remakes of old hits. However, this album did not see a release and a new compilation, '' Greatest Hits'', was released on 12 November 2008, instead. Five re-recorded songs were released from the album in various forms: "Lucky Love 2009", "Don't Turn Around 2009", "The Sign (Freedom Bunch Mix)" and "Wheel of Fortune 2009", which was released worldwide on 24 October 2008, as a digital single. A fifth reworking, "Happy Nation 2009", was released separately as a remix kit. A remake of "All That She Wants" was also recorded and featured guest vocals by
Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the "Princess of Pop", she has sold over 150 million records worldwide, making her one of the world's best-selling music artists. Cultural impact of Brit ...
that stemmed from her own 2007 cover of the song. This remake was never officially released, but leaked online in June 2016. Three of the new tracks recorded in this period ("Sparks From A Fire", "The Mask" and "Wish You Were Mine") were posted on YouTube in 2017.


2009–2012: New members, ''The Golden Ratio'', and ''Ace Thursdays''

In August 2009, in an interview with
Digital Spy Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its initial launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television pro ...
, Ulf mentioned adding another singer to the group alongside Jenny, explaining: "We're just deciding now whether to add a fourth member to the group again or to bring it out under a new name. At the moment, we think it would be stronger with two female singers, so it's a little technical problem to solve." During this time, Ulf and Jonas began recording songs with singer Julia Williamson, whom they met through Martin Dodd, who had originally signed the group to Mega Records. Meanwhile, a new remix of "Cruel Summer" by Rico Bernasconi charted at No. 69 in Germany. Jenny published her autobiography ''Vinna hela Världen'' in Sweden in September and announced that she was recording a solo album, which materialized in October 2010 as '' My Story''. In November 2009, Jenny confirmed via Twitter that she would not be involved with the upcoming album, but later clarified that she had not left, saying that "other constellations will have other names". In a 2010 interview with Aftonbladet, Jenny claimed "They didn't want to be with me", and that she was not allowed to participate in songwriting. Jonas and Ulf then said in an interview with Scandipop that Jenny wasn't happy with plans to introduce a new member, and while she never formally quit the group, they felt that they had no choice but to proceed without her. Two new singers were revealed in February 2010: Clara Hagman, a contestant from Idol 2009 who Ulf met whilst appearing as a guest judge on the show; and Julia Williamson. The new quartet maintained the original band name, but it was stylized as "Ace.of.Base" on the artwork of single and album releases. In July 2010, a track called "Mr. Replay" appeared on a Polish promo compilation for DJs, becoming the first release from the new line-up. The first official single from the line-up, " All for You", was premiered on radio station Antenne AC on July 22, and was released on CD and download on September 10, debuting at No. 38 in Germany. The album '' The Golden Ratio'' followed on September 24, entering the German album charts at No. 20. In Sweden, the album failed to chart, backed only by a radio release of the album's title track "The Golden Ratio" in October, followed by a performance of "Southern California" on Bingolotto in April 2011. An acoustic version of the album was being considered but never materialized. No further singles were released in support of the album. In March 2011, Jonas began releasing previously unreleased material to fans via the band's official Facebook page and the website ReverbNation on a semi-regular basis, in events they referred to as "Ace Thursdays". Writing sessions for new material took place throughout the same year, but following the group's tour of Canada and Brazil in 2011, new music was put on hold.


2012–present: Departures, ''Hidden Gems'' and 30th anniversary

''Ace Thursdays'' continued throughout 2012, but were discontinued in May 2013. In November 2012, Jenny was quoted as saying, "The rest of the band are doing other things. ... We're just wishing each other luck at this stage. I have a dream that we'll get back together, so I don't want to bang anyone on the head". Jenny began touring as "Jenny from Ace of Base" alongside popular Eurodance acts from the decade. In January 2014, Julia announced that she had left the group in 2012. She later confirmed that Clara had also left, saying "I never really left the group, one day I just didn't hear anything from them and it's the same with Clara. Like it went up in smoke; really strange". Clara has since released several solo singles, and has collaborated with various EDM producers such as KREAM and R3hab. A remix EP was released in July 2014, featuring new remixes of "All That She Wants". In December 2014 and January 2015, remastered versions of their first four studio albums, in both European and American editions, were released digitally. This was followed in March by '' Hidden Gems'', a compilation album consisting entirely of demos and b-sides. " Would You Believe", one of the last tracks recorded by the original quartet in 2005, was released as a promotional single. The band filmed a multi-part documentary titled "The Story" at Google Headquarters that was posted on
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
in March 2015. It also aired on Swedish television. In a 2015 interview with ABC News, Ulf remarked on the possibility of a future reunion, stating, "With the right elements in the next few years, I don't think it's impossible"; however, in July 2016, Jenny remarked: "We won't re-form. ..We're finished working together but we're not finished being family together. We have a lot of fun plans in the future but no musical plans". In 2018, Jonas said a potential reunion had been discussed, but noted "We always got the same question "where is Malin?". I am still writing music, maybe one song each fortnight or something. It's a lot of fun, like therapy. And maybe if we do a reunion... I have songs for it!" In 2019, Demon Music Group began releasing new compilations of the band's material in the United Kingdom. The first of these releases was '' Ace Of Base – Gold'', which charted at No. 59 in the UK, marking the group's first return to the UK charts in 20 years. To mark the group's 30th anniversary, a 12-disc box set called '' All That She Wants: The Classic Collection'' was released in July 2020. The set includes expanded versions of the group's original four studio albums and ''Hidden Gems'', ''Hidden Gems, Vol. 2'' (a new follow-up to the original ''Hidden Gems''), an EP containing previously unreleased remixes of "Edge Of Heaven", and a DVD containing all of the group's music videos. Included among the 195 tracks are previously unreleased demos from the original line-up's final recording sessions in 2008 and live recordings of the group's first gig at Bältespännarparken in 1990. There is also a 4 LP coloured
vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl ...
version of the box set, which only includes the four studio albums. ''Hidden Gems, Vol. 2'' was released digitally in August 2020. In 2020, Playground Records began releasing standalone digital singles which feature new remixes of the group's tracks. In November 2021, a remix EP was released for the album track "Dancer in a Daydream" which first appeared on ''Happy Nation'' in 1992. The EP features remixes by producer Trace Adam and was released alongside a new video with previously unseen footage. On 28 April 2023, the group released a 26-compact disc singles box set, '' Beautiful Life: The Singles''. A three-part documentary series, '' All That She Wants'', produced by Viaplay, was announced on 21 November 2023. The series premiered in April 2024. The group was inducted into the Swedish Music Hall of Fame in September 2024.


Legacy

Several musicians and singers have been influenced by Ace of Base.
Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta (born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her image reinventions and versatility across the entertainment industry, she is an influ ...
has said her album '' The Fame Monster'' was influenced by the "super pop melodies of the 90s" by acts such as Ace of Base. The song "
Alejandro Alejandro is the Spanish form of the name Alexander. Alejandro has multiple variations in different languages, including Aleksander ( Czech, Polish), Alexandre ( French), Alexandros ( Greek), Alsander ( Irish), Alessandro ( Italian), Aleksand ...
" in particular has been heavily compared to Ace of Base's version of "Don't Turn Around"; Paul Lester from
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
commented that " lejandromoves at an Ace of Base pace", and Sal Cinquemani from ''
Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New Yor ...
'' described the song as a homage to them; The song " Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)" from '' The Fame'' has also been linked to the band;
Alexis Petridis Alexis Petridis (born 13 September 1971) is an English journalist. He is the head Rock music, rock and pop music critic for ''The Guardian'', and a regular contributor for ''GQ''. In addition to his music journalism for the paper, he has written ...
from ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' noted that the song "is the first song in a long time that warrants comparison to the œuvre of Ace of Base".
Katy Perry Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson (born October 25, 1984), known professionally as Katy Perry, is an American singer, songwriter, and television personality. She is one of the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists in hist ...
said she wanted her third studio album, '' Teenage Dream'', to sound like "The Sign". In 2010, Perry said of the album: "It's what I said I wanted earlier....We nailed it: It's roller-skating! It's '90s! It's Ace of Base! It's Cyndi Lauper! It's like all these colors and more". Robyn said she was inspired by Ace of Base for her song " Dancehall Queen", which was produced by Diplo and Klas Åhlund for her fifth studio album '' Body Talk Pt. 1'', saying: "We were just having fun with that kind of genre music. And the idea of making this song came out of that discussion. It was fun". Some of Clean Bandit's tracks have been compared to the band, notably their 2016 UK No. 1 single " Rockabye". Band members have named them as an influence in interviews. Tegan and Sara's song " Closer" was inspired by the band's music. Robert Alfons of Canadian synthpop group Trust said he was influenced by the synthesizers used by Ace of Base. Yeasayer and Twin Shadow have both also cited Ace of Base as an influence. In 1995, a cover of "The Sign" was featured in the American sitcom
Full House ''Full House'' is an American television sitcom created by Jeff Franklin for American Broadcasting Company, ABC. The show is about the recently widowed father Danny Tanner who enlists his brother-in-law Jesse Katsopolis and childhood best friend ...
in the final season episode "We Got the Beat". In the episode, Jodie Sweetin in character as Stephanie Tanner performs the song with her fictional band Girl Talk. Indie rock band
The Mountain Goats The Mountain Goats are a United States band formed in Claremont, California, Claremont, California, by singer-songwriter John Darnielle. The band is currently based in Durham, North Carolina, Durham, North Carolina. For many years, the sole me ...
included a cover of "The Sign" by Ace of Base on their 1995 EP ''Songs For Peter Hughes''. The group has continued to play versions of it at live shows.
Beck Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970), known mononymously as Beck, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his Experimental music, experimental and Lo-fi mus ...
had plans to cover an Ace of Base album as part of his Beck's Record Club project in 2009, but this never came to fruition. "The Sign" was covered by fictional a cappella group the Barden Bellas in the 2012 film '' Pitch Perfect'' and appears on the
soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...
for the movie. The 2019 single " Liar" by Cuban pop singer
Camila Cabello Karla Camila Cabello Estrabao (; ; born March 3, 1997) is an American singer and songwriter. She rose to prominence as a member of the Pop music, pop girl group Fifth Harmony, one of the List of best-selling girl groups, best-selling girl gro ...
interpolates the melody of "All That She Wants".


Band members


Current members

* Jonas Berggren – keyboards, guitars, vocals, programming, production (1987–present) * Ulf Ekberg – keyboards, vocals, programming, production (1987–present)


Former members

* Linn Berggren – vocals (1987–2007) *
Jenny Berggren Jenny Cecilia Petrén (née Berggren; born 19 May 1972), professionally known as Jenny Berggren and Jenny from Ace of Base is a Swedish mezzo-soprano singer and former lead singer in the Swedish pop band Ace of Base. Since 1995, she has also bee ...
– vocals (1987–2007) * Clara Hagman – vocals (2009–2012) * Julia Williamson – vocals (2009–2012) Despite her status as a former member, Jenny Berggren has stated in numerous interviews that she has never left the band and has further stated that all four original members are still members of the Ace of Base brand by agreement and legal documents.


Awards and nominations

* 1992 Music Television Award- Best Pop Act (Nominee) * 1992 Music Television Award- Best New Act (Nominee) * 1993 Popcorn Music Awards - Best Album - Happy Nation * 1993 Popcorn Music Awards - Best Song & Video - All That She Wants * 1993 Swedish Grammis – Best Pop Group * 1993 Swedish Grammis – TV audience price * 1993 Bronze BRAVO Otto (Germany) – Best rock/pop Group * 1993 Swedish Dance Music Awards - Best Breakthrough Artist * 1994 MTV Europe Music AwardsBest Cover (Nominee) * 1994 American Music Award – Favorite Band, Duo or Group – Pop / Rock * 1994 American Music Award – Favorite New Artist – Pop / Rock * 1994 Billboard Music Award – Number One Single * 1994 Billboard Music Award – Top New Artist * 1994 Billboard Music Award – Artist of the Year * 1994 Peleg Music Award of Excellence – Best New Artist * 1994 World Music Award – World's Best-Selling Scandinavian Recording Artists of the Year * 1994 Echo (Germany) – Group of the Year * 1994 Swedish Dance Music Awards - Best Swedish Dance Artist * 1994 Swedish Dance Music Awards - Best Swedish Dance Album (nominee) * 1994 OKEJ Magazine Award * 1994 Visionary Award * 1995 Grammy Awards – Best Pop Album for '' The Sign'' (nominee) * 1995 Grammy Awards – Best New Artist (nominee) * 1995 Grammy Awards – Best Vocal Performance By a Group or Duo for '' The Sign'' (nominee) * 1995 World Music Award – World's Best-Selling Scandinavian Recording Artists of the Year * 1995 Juno Awards – International Album of the Year for ''The Sign'' (nominee) * 1995 Swedish Dance Music Awards - Best Swedish Dance Artist (nominee) * 1996 European Award For Dance Music * 1996 World Music Award – World's Best-Selling Scandinavian Recording Artists of the Year * 1997 World Music Award – World's Best-Selling Scandinavian Recording Artists of the Year * 1998 Midem Fono Award – Most Played Song of the Year – ''Life Is a Flower'' * 1999 RSH Gold * 2007 BMI Award for over 3 million performances of ''The Sign'' on US TV and radio * 2011 Scandipop Award – Best group album * 2016 BMI Award for over 4 million performances of ''The Sign'' on US TV and radio * 2021 BMI Award for over 5 million performances of ''The Sign'' on US TV and radio * 2024 Swedish Music Hall of Fame – inducted


Discography

Studio albums *'' Happy Nation'' / '' The Sign'' (1992/1993) *'' The Bridge'' (1995) *'' Flowers'' / '' Cruel Summer'' (1998) *''
Da Capo Da capo ( , , ; often abbreviated as D.C.) is an Italian musical term that means "from the beginning" (literally, "from the head"). The term is a directive to repeat the previous part of music, often used to save space, and thus is an easie ...
'' (2002) *'' The Golden Ratio'' (2010)


See also

* Swedish pop music


References


External links

* * *
Biography A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curri ...
on
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
* {{Authority control 1990 establishments in Sweden Arista Records artists English-language musical groups from Sweden Europop groups Musical groups established in 1990 Musical groups from Gothenburg Playground Music Scandinavia artists Reggae fusion groups Sibling musical groups Swedish co-ed groups Swedish Eurodance groups Swedish pop music groups World Music Awards winners Female-fronted musical groups 1990s establishments in Gothenburg and Bohus County