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Ten hit songs you didn’t know were from Sweden

You'd be surprised by how many international hit songs are sung by Swedes. In fact, we wager that there are many songs that you know and love that you didn't even realize were from Sweden. Here are our favourite ten.

Published: 24 October 2014 08:48 CEST
Ten hit songs you didn't know were from Sweden

Let's get this out of the way immediately: If you are a music buff or if you are deeply ingrained in Swedish culture, this is not a list for you. Rather, it's a list for your friends. Your family. Your enemies, even. 

This is a list for those people who, when they hear the words "Swedish music", say "Oh, Abba, yes, I love Abba. Is there anything else, though?" 
 
Well of course there's something else. Abba was just so big the rest all got overshadowed. 
 
So, we suggest having a little listen to these songs, each sung by Swedes (in English), and see how many you didn't realize were by Swedish musicians.
 
For every song you knew was by a Swede, you get 1 point. Feel free to share your scores below. 
 
1. Rednex – Cotton Eye Joe

Take yourself back to 1994. Remember that smash hit, Cotton Eye Joe? Of course you do, you couldn't escape it. It was number one in eight countries, and stayed top of the charts in Norway for 15 weeks. 15 weeks! Poor Norway. Trivia: In 2007, the Swedish band tried to sell itself on eBay.

2. Icona Pop – I Love It

We don't care… that you didn't know they were Swedish. We love it. Best buds Caroline Hjelt and Aino Jawo may be based these days in the US, but they grew up in Stockholm. 

Today folks call them Icona Pop. Their break-out hit I Love It reached number 1 on UK charts, number 7 in the US, and number 2 back home in Sweden.

3. The Final Countdown

Almost 80 million YouTube viewers can't be wrong – this is an amazing anthem. Have a listen to that intro. BUT, did you know that the lads from Europe are actually from the town of Upplands Väsby, making The Final Countdown the most interesting thing to come out of Upplands Väsby. Note, the lead guitarist is Norwegian.

4. Peter, Björn and John – Young Folks

This song has, perhaps, the catchiest whistling known to man. Join almost 50 million YouTubers and have a listen. But did you know they're Swedish? They may have caught you out by spelling their name without the ö in Bjorn. This tune has a guest singer, Victoria Bergsman, who's also Swedish.

 

5. Ace of Base – The Sign
 

Tokyo girl? No sir. The Sign, which spent six weeks at number one on US billboards, was written by Swedish siblings Linn, Jenny, and Jonas- aka Ace of Base. 

The family hails from Gothenburg, and stirred up the charts with their other single Don’t Turn Around – said to be the inspiration for Lady Gaga’s Alejandro.

6. The Hives – Hate to Say I Told You So

 
*
 
Well…we told you so. The Hives are as Swedish as it gets. The boys of Tick Tick Boom fame are from Fagersta, a town in central Sweden. Their music has since featured in Spiderman films, Lego video games, and Guitar Hero. Now that's a career.
 
7. Basshunter – Now You're Gone
 
 
156 million YouTube clicks. That is insane. That's the population of Bangladesh, which is incidentally the 8th most populous country in the world. This song topped the charts in the UK and the US. Basshunter,  also known as 29-year-old Jonas Erik Altberg from Halmstad, has had success with this song in Swedish too with "Boten Anna".

7. The Cardigans – Love Fool

 
 
 
You’d be a fool not to guess that blonde, blue-eyed Nina Persson wasn’t a Swede. Lovefool climbed to number 2 on international charts, and has its roots in Jönköping.

Persson wrote the lyrics while sitting at an airport waiting for a flight. The pop rock-disco-funk song became The Cardigans' first international hit.

 
9. Robyn – Dancing On My Own 
 

 
Ever wondered why Robyn's lyrics are always just a tiny bit… off? Give the girl some slack, it's not her first language. We can forgive her for some of her more interesting "rhymes". 

The Stockholm-native began her career by voicing an animated Swedish film, but has now moved on to Grammy nominations. Good for her.

 
10. Roxette – It Must Have Been Love
 
 
We weren't going to include Roxette, but our guinea pigs didn't know it was sung by a Swede. This song was Roxette's third chart topper in the US, and was even featured in Pretty Woman. Trivia: the song never topped the charts in Sweden. But it was number one in Norway. Poor Norway.
 
 

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READER INSIGHTS

‘Benny is always very kind’: Foreigners’ top encounters with Swedish celebrities

We asked The Local's readers to tell us of a time they met a Swedish celebrity. Here are their best stories.

Published: 16 April 2024 11:10 CEST
Updated: 16 April 2024 14:27 CEST
'Benny is always very kind': Foreigners' top encounters with Swedish celebrities

Some readers shared stories of encounters with Swedes who are also global stars, such as Abba or the King and Queen of Sweden, others spoke of meeting national celebrities who had helped them get to know their new home country.

Anne Foo from Malaysia is a fan of the Sällskapsresan movies by Lasse Åberg, who plays the kind but hapless Stig Helmer.

“It was one of the first Swedish films I watched when I first moved to Sweden that I could understand without needing to be fluent. It helped me understand the Swedish psyche and their humour and Swedish people in general,” she said.

Multi-talented artist Åberg is also known for his sketches of Mickey Mouse, as well as Trazan & Banarne, one of Sweden’s most famous children’s shows, and his band Electric Banana Band. Anne met him when she visited his museum, Åbergs Museum, outside of Stockholm.

“We were not expecting to see him there but we kind of heard he pops by the museum often to help out. We bought tickets for the guided tour and lucky us the guide fell sick (sorry guide!) and Lasse, who happened to pop by just then, took over and gave us a personal guided tour of his museum. He is just as he was as Stig Helmer. Has a down-to-earth humour, very intelligent and humble.”

Another reader, Doug, met Swedish singer Lisa Nilsson when she was performing the lead role in the musical Next to Normal at Stockholm’s Stadsteater, a performance she got rave reviews for.

“I have loved Lisa Nilsson for years, ever since Himlen runt hörnet was required listening in my Swedish class,” he wrote on The Local’s Facebook page.

“After the performance I waited by the stage door to see if I could meet her. Many people came out, but not her – until finally she exited, alone. I approached her and she was not just gracious – she seemed genuinely excited to meet an American fan. We stood (in the rain, no less) and spoke for a while. I came away feeling that my adoration was well-placed: talented, beautiful, and so down to earth. A wonderful entertainer and an extraordinary human being.”

Some readers also shared pictures of themselves running into a Swedish celebrity.

Benjamin Dyke met football coach Sven-Göran Eriksson in Torsby, where Eriksson grew up, at the opening ceremony of the Svennis Cup, a youth football competition held every year in his honour.

Eriksson, more known by his nickname Svennis in Sweden, during his long career coached teams such as Lazio in Italy and brought England, as coach, to the quarter-finals of the 2002 and 2006 World Cups. Earlier this year he disclosed he had been diagnosed with fatal pancreatic cancer.

Dyke’s encounter with Eriksson happened a few years ago, and he walked up to the Swede to thank him for his time as England manager and the two chatted for a while about that.

“He asked where I came from in England and I answered that all my family come from Liverpool. His eyes lit up (I now know he supported Liverpool all his life, as did his dad) but when I explained that I was an Everton fan (the other Liverpool team…) he quickly shut down the conversation and walked away,” said Dyke.

Sven-Göran Eriksson, left, and Benjamin Dyke in 2018. Photo: Private

Readers also shared their stories on The Local’s Facebook page. Lindelwa posted a picture of her chance meeting with Swedish Melodifestivalen winner John Lundvik at Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport, although she revealed they did not share a flight.

Lundvik represented Sweden in the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest with the song Too Late for Love (and co-wrote the UK’s entry, Bigger than Us, the same year), with which he came in fifth.

Lindelwa and John Lundvik. Photo: Private

Gerard met Abba legend Benny Andersson outside his studio in Stockholm.

“I had never seen Benny’s studio so I went to take a look with the ferry from Djurgården to Skeppsholmen. I was told that Benny was in so I waited for a little while and he came out to meet a few fans,” he said, revealing that it was in fact not the first time he ran into Andersson, a composer also known for co-writing hit musicals such as Chess and Kristina from Duvemåla.

“He’s always very kind and patient. I had met him before, last time in 2010 in London for the concert of Kristina at the Royal Albert Hall. Next stop will be May 27th, the second anniversary of Abba Voyage in London where Benny and Björn will do a Q&A before the show.”

Gerard and Benny Andersson back in 2010. Photo: Private

Several other readers also said they had met members of Abba.

“I was a child visiting my relatives in Sweden the year Voulez-Vous was released. My aunt took me to NK [Stockholm mall] to buy the LP. On our way back to her apartment, she spotted Frida on Hamngatan. My aunt was amazing at celeb-spotting, and she was usually very discreet, but in this case she insisted I go up and say hello! Frida was happy to autograph the album for a young fan; it’s still one of my prized possessions today,” said Sue Trowbridge.

Of course, it’s not always easy to recognise celebrities. You might spot a familiar face but not be able to place it, as happened to Linda on two separate occasions when she ran into a Swedish acting star and a member of the Nobel Prize-awarding Swedish Academy.

“I accidentally stared at Pernilla August in a local food shop. She looked familiar but I couldn’t recognise her. She stared back and I suddenly came to my senses and looked another way. Embarrassed. I’ve also stared at Horace Engdahl,” she said.

In The Local’s original survey call-out, we also included a story from Australian reader Jake Farrugia, who was on his lunch break in NK when he spotted a familiar face, Sweden’s Crown Princess Victoria. He walked up to her to ask for a selfie.

“She was very nice and we shared some small talk which truly made me feel like we were on the same level and that she had a strong sense of humanity, as I stood there, butchering her native language with my ‘work in progress’ level of Swedish. I can see why the Swedish people have a deep love and respect for her,” Farrugia said.

“It’s a very un-Swedish thing to do, that’s why I think it’s so fun! All of my encounters with celebrities in Sweden have been very positive so far. It’s all in the approach, you have to be respectful and be OK with others not wanting to give you their time of day, since we all have days where we are feeling less social and those can easily be interpreted as a part of our character, but they rarely are a fair representation.

“If I were to be a celebrity, Sweden would be the place to best blend in. It seems like celebrities can live a somewhat normal life as the construct of ‘celebrity’ isn’t viewed as a thing people go hysteric for as is the case in many other countries.”

The Local’s reader Jake Farrugia snapped this selfie with Sweden’s Crown Princess Victoria. Photo: Private
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