IN the eyes of Per Gessle, Roxette was "a match made in heaven."
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Gessle's melodic pop-songs, coupled with Marie Fredriksson's explosive mezzo-soprano and platinum-blonde hair, guaranteed the Swedish duo became one of the most bankable acts of the late '80s and early '90s.
Roxette sold almost 80 million albums worldwide and generated a slew of hits such as The Look, It Must Have Been Love, Joyride, Listen To Your Heart, Dressed For Success and Dangerous.
In Australia, they enjoyed a feverish fan base, which delivered four top-three albums and six top-10 singles on the ARIA charts.
"Marie and I came from different musical backgrounds," Gessle remembers from his home in Stockholm. "Marie had this bluesy [style] and she was even singing in jazz bands.
"She had that knowledge of how to interpret songs. For every album we made, I could customise my writing even more to her abilities.
"It was a match made in heaven basically. It was just extremely amazing that we had success as well, because we might have become an arty band playing in the pub circuit, but it turned out to be this mega thing all over the planet. It's a blessing."
However, following the Fredriksson's death in December 2019 at 61, following a 17-year battle with a brain tumour, most fans believed Roxette was over and that their music would only be heard live from cover bands.
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Fredriksson's death came almost four years after Roxette's final show in February 2016, in Cape Town, South Africa.
"Marie just had to give it up," Gessle says.
"She got ill 2002, so she powered on and keep going for 14 years which was amazing. But you could tell she couldn't do it anymore.
"It was sad of course, but what can you do?
"When she passed away, you were prepared for that, because she had been ill for so long. Nevertheless it was a tragedy for everyone."
At the time Gessle was 60 and not ready to pack away his vast catalogue of songs.
Even before the formation of Roxette in 1986 Gessle enjoyed major success in Scandinavia with his Swedish pop-rock band Gyllene Tider (meaning Good Times).
Gyllene Tider's most recent album, Hux Flux, topped the Swedish charts in 2023.
You can't really replace Marie and what she gave to Roxette. It's not about that.
- Per Gessle
Gessle was also working on a duets album when he "clicked" with Swedish singer Lena Philipsson, who is relatively unknown internationally, but has been star in her homeland since the '80s.
"We talked about it and we tried some songs," Gessle says. "It sounded terrific, so I felt like, hey, this might work. It wasn't about starting a new duo, she's a special guest. I don't have any plans.
"You can't really replace Marie and what she gave to Roxette. It's not about that. It's more about keeping the legacy of the songs alive."
Gessle sang lead vocal on some of Roxette's biggest hits like The Look and Joyride, but it was clear he needed a female voice to perform these songs properly.
He knew Philipsson had the ability, but she took some convincing and was afraid of the backlash from Roxette fans.
INXS, who replaced the iconic Michael Hutchence with reality TV contestant J.D Fortune, is a clear example of how a legacy can be tarnished by attempting to carry on after a front person's demise.
"All those songs were written for Marie and they were written for a girl to sing, so from a songwriter's point of view, I need someone else to do these songs," Gessle says.
"Lena was, of course, scared people would think she's stepping into Marie's shoes, but it's not about that at all.
"Lena is going to do it in her own style, of course, because she's a great singer, so she's gonna do it in her own way, backed up by the classic Roxette band.
"So it's not about creating a new duo or making a new album together, it's about playing the Roxette catalogue again."
Regardless, a healthy appetite remains for the Roxette's catalogue. The duo boast almost 12 million monthly listeners on Spotify, despite their last global hit coming with the 1994 album Crash! Boom! Bang!
"All those songs are in so many people's hearts still, so I feel it's a cool idea to keep the legacy going, if possible," Gessle says.
"But it has to be done in a really classy way and a proper way, and I think Lena can help me with that."
Roxette play the WIN Entertainment Centre in Wollongong on March 9, 2025.
Josh Leeson
Josh Leeson is an entertainment and features journalist, specialising in music, at the Newcastle Herald. He first joined the masthead in 2008 after stints at the Namoi Valley Independent and Port Stephens Examiner and has previously covered sport including the Asian Cup, A-League, Surfest, cricket and rugby league.
Josh Leeson is an entertainment and features journalist, specialising in music, at the Newcastle Herald. He first joined the masthead in 2008 after stints at the Namoi Valley Independent and Port Stephens Examiner and has previously covered sport including the Asian Cup, A-League, Surfest, cricket and rugby league.
