Blue Swede

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Blue Swede
The band in 1974
The band in 1974
Background information
OriginStockholm, Sweden
GenresPop rock, glam rock
Years active1973–1979
LabelsEMI
Past membersMichael Areklew
Anders Berglund
Tommy Berglund
Hinke Ekestubbe
Jan Guldback
Bosse Liljedahl
Björn Skifs

Blue Swede were a Swedish rock band fronted by Björn Skifs which was active between the years 1973–1979. Blue Swede released two albums of cover versions, including a rendition of "Hooked on a Feeling", which brought them international chart success.[1] The band consisted of Anders Berglund (piano), Björn Skifs (lead vocals), Bosse Liljedahl (bass), Hinke Ekestubbe (saxophone), Jan Guldbäck (drums), Michael Areklew (guitar), and Tommy Berglund (trumpet).[2] They disbanded after Skifs decided to embark on his solo career.

Career[edit]

Blue Swede was first formed in 1973, when Björn Skifs, a top vocalist in Sweden, was looking for a band to accompany him during his concerts.[3]

The band was originally called "Blåblus" (Swedish for "blue blouse" [could be made out of denim], a pun on the word "blues"[4]) and featured Skifs singing the lead vocals. The band got their international breakthrough in 1974 with their cover of the 1968 B. J. Thomas song "Hooked on a Feeling".[5] Blue Swede recorded Thomas's song in 1973, but based its rendition of the song on a 1971 version released by British pop eccentric Jonathan King, which created the "ooga-chaka" introduction. Producer at the recording sessions was Bengt Palmers. Blue Swede released "Hooked on a Feeling" in Sweden in May 1973 and in the United States in February 1974. The song reached number one in the U.S. for one week in April 1974 and stayed in the Billboard Hot 100 chart for 18 weeks. The track also topped charts in Australia, Canada, and the Netherlands, where it reached a peak chart position of 26.[3] To capitalize on the success of the song, Blue Swede released an album of the same name that same year.

Throughout the rest of 1974, two follow-up singles from the same album were released: "Silly Milly", which peaked at position 71 in the U.S., and a cover of The Association's "Never My Love", which made the Top Ten by peaking at position 7.[5] From the band's 1974 follow-up album, Out of the Blue, they recorded a medley of "Hush" by Deep Purple and "I'm Alive" by Tommy James and the Shondells (not The Hollies' song of the same name), peaking at position 61 in the U.S., and achieving its greatest chart success in Scandinavia. Skifs left the band in 1975 and the band continued as Blåblus, releasing a further two albums.

Discography[edit]

Albums[edit]

Title Album details Peak chart positions
SWE
[6]
AUS
[7]
CAN
[8]
US
[9]
Pinewood Rally
  • Released: December 1973
  • Label: EMI
  • Formats: LP, MC
5
Hooked on a Feeling
  • Released: March 1974
  • Label: EMI
  • Formats: LP, MC, 8-track
  • International revised version of Pinewood Rally
53 84 80
Out of the Blue
  • Released: October 1974
  • Label: EMI
  • Formats: LP, MC, 8-track
4
Better Days Are Coming
  • Released: 1976
  • Label: EMI
  • Formats: LP, MC
De' e vi som spelar på skivan
  • Released: 1978
  • Label: EMI
  • Formats: LP, MC
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.

Singles[edit]

Title Year Peak chart positions Album
SWE
[6]
AUS
[7]
BE (FLA)
[10]
CAN
[11]
GER
[12]
NL
[13]
NZ
[14]
UK
[15]
US
[16]
US AC
[17]
"Hooked on a Feeling" 1973 2 4 18 2 22 26 7 90[A] 1 31 Pinewood Rally / Hooked on a Feeling
"Silly Milly" 9 50 71
"Half Breed" Pinewood Rally
"Sally var en reko brud" 1974 Non-album single
"Doctor Rock 'n Roll" Out of the Blue
"Never My Love" 52 7 7 Pinewood Rally / Hooked on a Feeling
"Hush"/"I'm Alive" (medley) 1975 90 61 Out of the Blue
"Boo, Boo Don't Cha Be Blue" 1976 Better Days Are Coming
"Låt mej lära känna dej" 1977 De' e vi som spelar på skivan
"Har jag gjort bort mig nu igen?" Non-album single
"Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye"/"Galaxy Take-Off" (medley) 1978 De' e vi som spelar på skivan
"Då dansar Angela"
"När inga ord räcker till" 1979 Non-album single
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Charted in 2014.

References[edit]

  1. ^ Caulfield, Keith (20 February 2014). "Blue Swede's 'Hooked On a Feeling' Sales Soar Thanks To 'Guardians of the Galaxy' Trailer". Billboard.com. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  2. ^ Listing on Discogs.com.
  3. ^ a b Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. pp. 325. ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
  4. ^ Schaefer, John (April 1, 2014). "That Was a Hit?!?: Blue Swede, 'Hooked On a Feeling'". SoundCheck. NPR. Archived from the original on June 18, 2015. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
  5. ^ a b Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 281. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
  6. ^ a b "Björn Skifs Och Blåblus - Se alla låtar och listplaceringar". NostalgiListan (in Swedish). Retrieved 2022-01-17.
  7. ^ a b Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 39. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  8. ^ "Image : RPM Weekly". www.bac-lac.gc.ca. 2013-07-17. Retrieved 2022-01-17.
  9. ^ "Blue Swede". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2022-01-17. Retrieved 2022-01-17.
  10. ^ "ultratop.be - ULTRATOP BELGIAN CHARTS". www.ultratop.be. Retrieved 2022-01-17.
  11. ^ "Results: RPM Weekly". www.bac-lac.gc.ca. 2013-07-17. Retrieved 2022-01-17.
  12. ^ "Suche - Offizielle Deutsche Charts". www.offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved 2022-01-17.
  13. ^ "Dutch Charts - dutchcharts.nl". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 2022-01-17.
  14. ^ "flavour of new zealand - search listener". www.flavourofnz.co.nz. Retrieved 2022-01-17.
  15. ^ "BLUE SWEDE | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 2022-01-17.
  16. ^ "Blue Swede". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2022-01-17. Retrieved 2022-01-17.
  17. ^ "Blue Swede". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2022-01-18. Retrieved 2022-01-17.