written by Per Gessle

produced by Clarence Öfwerman

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Welcome, Roxers...

 

...DO settle in.

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The debut Roxette album, Pearls Of Passion—released in the fall of 1986—performed well in Sweden, fueled by the Eurythmics-like dynamic of the band: Per’s songwriting acumen plus Marie’s vocal power, and singles to show off both, such as “Neverending Love” and “Soul Deep.” POP’s singles and videos spilled over into all of 1987 (and a bit of ’88), during which Rox collaborated with a few other Swedish artists and released some non-album singles as well. (One of them, earlier catalogued here on the site, was the original Christmas version of “It Must Have Been Love.”)

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In 1988 it was time to start recording the next album, though Per also felt a little more strong material to choose from would be helpful. As legend has it, he purchased a snazzy and complicated new synthesizer, the Ensoniq Esq-1, and found experimenting with buttons preferable to studying the manual. He wrote a few new songs on it, for Roxette’s sophomore album, which would turn out to be Look Sharp!... as well as its leading track. (Other songs written on the synthesizer around this time period included demo-only “Pocketful Of Rain (Reaching High),” “Don’t Believe In Accidents” and an underrated gem known as “Come Back (Before You Leave).”)

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When Per started writing “The Look”—with a simple melody and a straightforward beat—he scribbled out a set of rhythmic lyrics, mainly designed to just help him keep the rhythm. “Walk-in’-like-a-man, hit-tin’-like-a-ham-mer...” Sort of “guide” lyrics, if you will, or “dummy” lyrics. He originally planned to rewrite them. But when he tried, he made the realization that these primitive-sounding guide lyrics were... perfect. Regardless how he tried, Per sensed he’d never be able to replace these lyrics and how they fit the song. Almost as if they had already melted and melded themselves into its framework.

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He made the demo on March 30th—which is the first of seven versions I’ve got of it to display on this page. (Mind you, I have far more than six versions of the song—these six I merely feel are strong examples to show different, powerful sides... different “looks” for “The Look,” so to speak.) At this early stage, Per was still very uncomfortable with the stability of his own voice, to stand toe-to-toe with Marie’s. His voice was sufficient to temporarily rule Sweden with Gyllene Tider, but this was a different project on a different—i.e., worldwide—scale. He needed Marie’s majestic voice for Roxette to soar over all the territory they’d cover. And so when Per wrote “The Look,” like all the big Roxette songs, he wrote it with Marie in mind to sing lead. To “prepare” the lyrics for her, he went as far as to sing the demo with the male pronoun: “he’s got the look,” rather than “she’s got the look.”

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Most Roxette demos in the early days were sung by Per and Marie together, but Per demoed “The Look” on his own. But something unanticipated happened when they went into the studio to cut it. They realized the song was not designed and suited for Marie at all—it was simply perfect for Per to sing lead on instead. Marie backed him on vocals, and they chalked this up at first to an anomaly that wouldn’t represent the “true” Roxette sound. When it came time to sequence the Look Sharp! album, everyone except Per felt “The Look” should open it. His confidence lacked in his lead-singing ability, even if Marie and the crew had enough confidence in him for the entire lot.

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So the pronouns changed to female, and Per sang lead on “The Look.” Guitarist Jonas Isacsson whipped up and kicked in an unforgettably distinctive riff that opened the song and ran all the way throughout. Per agreed to kicking off Look Sharp! with it, though he didn’t expect big things to come of it. He at the time was excited for the other highlights Look Sharp! had to offer: “The Look”’s chaser “Dressed For Success,” red-hot duet-style “Dangerous,” and album closer “Listen To Your Heart,” the big bad ’80s Rox power ballad. Look Sharp! dropped on October 21st, 1988, an almost exact two years since the release of Pearls Of Passion.

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Though another autumn release, Look Sharp!’s first single, “Dressed For Success,” came out in the summer. Post-album release, single two was “Chances,” using the same photo of Per and Marie for cover art as “Dressed For Success”’s. EMI had no plans to trot out “The Look” as a single... until their minds were adamantly changed by early ’89. A Minnesota exchange student named Dean Cushman had bought Look Sharp! while abroad in Sweden, and brought it home to the States, urging his local radio station to play it. At first, they disregarded it. So when he eventually asked them to return it to him, the DJs finally gave it a listen... and were both surprised and impressed by the unique homemade touch that made “The Look” so both special and strong. Soon, the song started earning U.S. exposure. And the international branches of EMI took note... and woke up. “The Look” was released as the album’s third single at home in Sweden in January ’89, and in America in March. A couple of months later...

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...It burned up each chart it hit, skyrocketing to #1 in no less than 25 countries, resulting in Roxette’s first Billboard Hot 100 #1, and blowing the band’s career wide open with a global breakthrough. Suddenly, this little Swedish duo was more than just a promising phenom.

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No one was more surprised than Per. He couldn’t imagine such an explosion of acclaim rising from the crash of a song on which he’d sung lead. While an amazing time in the Rox camp, it was a temporarily disorienting time, as they’d made it with a song that departed from the whole Rox design. Marie was supposed to sing lead on the Roxette compositions, especially the masterpieces... but it would appear

that fate wanted otherwise. While its three fellow BHH #1s to follow rivaled it for the biggest hit of their career, “The Look” undeniably propelled Roxette into superstardom, and remained decades later arguably the strongest piece of their repertoire, and almost certainly their sturdiest pop hit. It’s the variety of a mega-smash many acts can only dream of finding one magical day.

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Here are the versions I’ve included:

· demo, March 30 ’88 (“he’s got the look”)

· original studio/Look Sharp! album version, ’88

· Power Radio Mix—on U.S. single, ’89

· live version #1, in Sydney, Australia, December ’91 (from Roxette’s Live-Ism video, and also released on the 1992 album Tourism)

· live version #2, in Stockholm, Sweden, January ’93 (MTV Unplugged, released on Roxette’s “Sleeping In My Car” single and Rarities compilation)

· Chaps Donna Bass Remix—on “The Look ’95” single

· 2015 Remake

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The lyrics below belong to the Look Sharp! album version. Aside from the “he”-to-“she” pronoun shift, a few of the demo’s chorus lyrics are slightly different. As usual, I’ll give you the credit for being able to adequately discern them.

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Also: first song included and finale in “The Rox Medley” (see here).

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Have notes to add? Let me know!

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YT:

full demo version

full studio version

full Power Radio Mix

full live version #1

full live version #2 (MTV Unplugged)

full Chaps Donna Bass Remix

full 2015 Remake

music video

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Rox’s official website