Steve ‘N’ Seagulls | Take It Easy

For this week, as he tells us in his post Nordic Sounds, Jim is inviting us to play some Scandinavian music – songs from Denmark, Norway, Finland and Sweden. Some big names have come from those countries, but I’m avoiding the obvious – so no ABBA or A-Ha from me today. And as for Barbie Girl – not a snowball’s chance in Hell! (You’re humming it now though, aren’t you!). I’m playing one each from Sweden, Finland, and Norway today: all have featured on my blog before, but I think they are worth another airing.

Let’s make a start with a Swedish band who have enjoyed a fair bit of success beyond their own country. They have had hit singles and albums across Europe, including the UK, and around the world, but they have achieved the square root of diddly squat in the US, so I expect this will be a new one for many:

And the lyrics, which I’m presenting as given but I suspect there may be a few errors in them, due to this being written in a second language:

I came home in the morning
And everything was gone
Oh what have I done
I dropped dead in the hallway
Cursing the dawn
Oh come on son
Why must I burn
I’m just trying to learn

I stared into the light
To kill some of my pain
It was all in vain
Cause no senses remain
But an ache in my body
And regret on my mind
But I’ll be fine

Cause I live and I learn
Yes I live and I learn
If you live you will learn
I live and I learn

God kicked you in the head
So I started a fight
Cause I knew I was right
But I learned I was wrong
I remember a slaughter
I remember I fought
For the money I brought
I got blistered and burned
And lost what I earned

But I live and I learn
Yes I live and I learn

I got, I got it now
She’s got, She’s got it now

I came to one a corner
With some help from a man and goddamn
I don’t see to have learn
That a lady in need is guilty indeed
So I paid and got laid in return
And I don’t know what I’ve learned

Well you get what you give
And hell yes I lived
But if you live as you learn
I don’t think I’d be learned
Oh with the sun in my eyes
Surprise, I’m living a life
But I don’t seem to learn
No I don’t think I can learn

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Nina Persson / Peter Anders Svensson

To me, that is a song about a woman who has come through a lot and has learned some life lessons along the way, not all of them positive for her. Lead singer Nina Persson wrote the lyrics, and I’ve often wondered how autobiographical they are. The song was featured in the second episode of the US TV show Grey’s Anatomy, but as I’ve never watched that I first recall hearing it when it was used as the soundtrack to a long fade out ending of an episode of the Swedish series Wallander – the first ones, starring Rolf Lassgärd, not the later Krister Henriksson ones. It was a very effective accompaniment as the hero got into his car and drove off into the distance, having solved another harrowing case. Not having been a big fan of The Cardigans I hadn’t come across it until then, but it was the song that converted me to their music. It was on their album Long Gone Before Daylight, released in March 2003. The band are Swedish and like most of their albums this did well across Europe, particularly in Scandinavia, getting to #1 in Sweden and #8 in Norway, in addition to making #47 in the UK. This was the third single taken from the album, but doesn’t appear to have been a hit anywhere. I think it deserved much better: it is a great song and Nina is an incredible lead vocalist.

As this week’s theme is about Scandinavian music, it seems only right that I should play you some bluegrass. What? Try this one for size:

As you may have noticed from the video, this isn’t your traditional bluegrass band – all that snow is a bit of a giveaway, really. Steve ‘N’ Seagulls are from Finland and started off in 2014, with a series of covers of rock songs done in their own style. They have released four albums so far, two of which reached the UK top ten: Brothers In Farms (great title!) at #10 in 2016 and Grainsville at #6 in 2018 . Their YouTube statistics are impressive, however: their first video was also an AC/DC cover, Thunderstruck, which has over 168m views. This one ‘only’ has 19m, but I prefer the song, and this video is hysterical. Both tracks are on the band’s debut album, Farm Machine. I wonder if any other band has made a video with their women’s national ice hockey team? Somehow, I doubt it. The band has over 1.07m YouTube subscribers, which is testament to their success. If you liked this, there are plenty more to explore.

For today’s final song I’m playing you some more bluegrass. The band even has it in their name – The Hayde Bluegrass Orchestra – though they actually come from Norway. They are superb musicians and their lead singer, Rebekka Nilsson, has a voice to die for. I’ve played their music a couple of times before, and this cover of a poignant John Hiatt song is fabulous, so it seems a good way to leave you until I return for Tuesday Tunes: