The Pop Hits is the third greatest hitscompilation album by Swedish pop duo Roxette, released on 24 March 2003 by Roxette Recordings and Capitol Records. It was the second in a two-part series of "best of" albums released by the duo in quick succession, and was preceded by The Ballad Hits in November 2002. The album was not as commercially successful as its predecessor, although it did peak within the top twenty of various Scandinavianrecord charts. It was also certified gold in Brazil.
Recording and promotion
Per Gessle originally planned to record two new songs for The Pop Hits.[1] "Opportunity Nox" was written by Gessle, and first recorded at his Tits & Ass Studios in Halmstad on 4 March 2002.[2] Recording later took place at EMI Studios in Stockholm in October 2002, a month after vocalist Marie Fredriksson's diagnosis of a brain tumour.[3] Due to her illness, the track features very little of Fredriksson's vocals. Her illness also affected the recording of another song intended to appear on the compilation: "I Like It Like That", which Gessle said "was never recorded because Marie got ill, so there was no chance to record it." The track later appeared on Gessle's 2005 album Son of a Plumber.[2] Instead, the compilation concludes with "Little Miss Sorrow", a re-recording of an outtake from the duo's 1999 album Have a Nice Day.[1] "Opportunity Nox" was issued as the compilation's first and only single on 25 February 2003, with an animatedmusic video for the song being directed by Jonas Åkerlund and Kristoffer Diös.[4]
Limited edition units of the compilation contained a bonus EP of three more previously unreleased recordings, along with a song which had previously been released as a b-side on their 1999 single "Stars", "Better Off on Her Own". The EP also included another Have a Nice Day outtake, "Makin' Love to You", which was recorded in January and February 1998. A further two outtakes from the sessions of their 2001 album Room Service are also featured. "Stupid" had originally appeared as the album opener on Per Gessle's 1997 solo album The World According to Gessle, and appears on this album in a slightly re-recorded (in November 2000) form, while "Bla Bla Bla Bla Bla (You Broke My Heart)" was recorded January 2000.[1]
Although Heather Phares from AllMusic gave the album a positive review, she wrote that "casual fans will have their needs better-met by a Roxette collection that features their classic ballads as well". She went on to call The Pop Hits "an exhilarating collection of their sugar-buzz pop moments."[5] Tina Kindler of Laut.de said that the album contained "earworm-like pop songs which have a high recognition factor", but lamented the absence of other singles such as "Fingertips '93" and "Fireworks", and was critical of the songs on the bonus disc for not "fitting in to the overall concept. With the exception of "Stupid", the bonus tracks are all very quiet and slow, and would have been better placed on The Ballad Hits." She went on to say that "because Roxette made relatively simple pop music, it wasn't 'cool' to admit to liking Roxette. But it was a completely different story behind closed doors, of course, otherwise one can hardly explain the incredible success of the two Swedes." She summarised by saying: "People who only briefly flirted with Roxette will be overjoyed with this album. And people who enjoy this album no longer need to feel ashamed. Honestly."[6]
Recorded in various studios in Sweden, Italy and Spain between May 1988 and October 2002.
All songs produced by Clarence Öfwerman, except tracks 1 and 14 by Öfwerman, Per Gessle and Marie Fredriksson; tracks 12 and 15 by Fredriksson, Gessle, Öfwerman and Michael Ilbert; track 13 by Fredriksson, Gessle and Öfwerman with backing track co-production by Ilbert.
^ ab"The Roxette Demos, Vol. 1, Disc 2 – 01: "Opportunity Nox" (Conversation with Sven Lindström)". The Per Gessle Archives (A Lifetime Of Songwriting) (liner notes). Per Gessle and Sven Lindström. Stockholm, Sweden: Elevator Entertainment. 2014. 334 43503.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Thorselius, Robert (May 2003). The Look for Roxette: The Illustrated Worldwide Discography & Price Guide (1st ed.). Sweden: Premium Förlag Publishing. ISBN978-9197189484.
