"Wish You Were Here" is a song by Swedish band
Rednex
Rednex is a Swedish musical group whose style is a mix of American country music and modern Eurodance, with their appearance and stage names taking inspiration from the American redneck stereotypes. The band originally consisted of the lead sin ...
from their first album ''
Sex & Violins
''Sex & Violins (''also known on later US releases as ''Cotton Eye Joe (Sex & Violins)'') is the debut studio album by Swedish Eurodance group Rednex, released on Jive Records in February 1995.
Content
Female vocals on the album are provided b ...
''. Written by Teijo Agélii-Leskelä and produced by
Denniz Pop
Dag Krister Volle (26 April 1963 – 30 August 1998), better known as Denniz Pop (stylized ''Denniz PoP''), was a Swedish DJ, music producer, and songwriter. He co-founded the recording studio Cheiron Studios in Stockholm in 1992.
Life and car ...
and
, the
ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...
was released as a single in April 1995 and became a number-one hit in Austria, Germany, Norway, and Switzerland. In Austria, it was the most successful single of 1995. Additionally, the song reached number two in Iceland, number three in Sweden, and number six in Finland. On the
Eurochart Hot 100
The European Hot 100 Singles was compiled by '' Billboard'' and ''Music & Media'' magazine from March 1984 until December 2010. The chart was based on national singles sales charts in 17 European countries: Austria, Belgium (two charts separately ...
, it peaked at number five.
Critical reception
American magazine ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
'' deemed "Wish You Were Here" a "surprisingly sincere
ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...
".
J.D. Considine
J. D. Considine (born 1957) is a music critic who has been writing about music professionally since 1977.
Background
J. D. Considine's work has been published in numerous newspapers and music magazines, and he has contributed to several books. ...
from ''
The Daily Gazette
''The Daily Gazette'' is an independent, family-owned daily newspaper published in Schenectady, New York. ''The Daily Gazette'' also owns and operates ''The Amsterdam Recorder'', ''The Gloversville Leader-Herald'' and ''Your Niskayuna''.
Hist ...
'' described it as a "unexpectedly
ABBA
ABBA ( , , formerly named Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid or Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida) are a Swedish supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The group's ...
-esque ballad". Howard Cohen for ''
The Miami Herald
The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by the McClatchy Company and headquartered in Doral, Florida, a city in western Miami-Dade County and the Miami metropolitan area, several miles west of Downtown Miami.[album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...]
. ''
Music & Media
''Music & Media'' was a pan-European magazine for radio, music and entertainment. It was published for the first time in 1984 as ''Eurotipsheet'', but in 1986 it changed name to ''Music & Media''. It was originally based in Amsterdam, but later ...
'' wrote that it "focuses on a totally different side. It's a ballad, sung with lots of
Dolly
Dolly may refer to:
Tools
*Dolly (tool), a portable anvil
* A posser, also known as a dolly, used for laundering
* A variety of wheeled tools, including:
**Dolly (trailer), for towing behind a vehicle
**Boat dolly or launching dolly, a device fo ...
-patented vibrato and pathos." David Nagy from ''
Red Deer Advocate
The ''Red Deer Advocate'' is a daily newspaper in Red Deer, Alberta, Canada.
Published by Black Press, the newspaper was first established in 1901 as the ''Red Deer Echo'', changing its name to ''Alberta Advocate'' in 1903 and ''Red Deer Advoca ...
'' noted, "Just when the hillbilly party gets going, the band throws a contemporary pop ballad at you, and thoughts of ABBA come to mind."
Chart performance
"Wish You Were Here" managed to make an impact on the charts in Europe, becoming a major hit in many countries. It went to number-one in Austria, Germany, Norway and Switzerland. The single also reached the Top 5 in Iceland and Sweden, as well as on the
Eurochart Hot 100
The European Hot 100 Singles was compiled by '' Billboard'' and ''Music & Media'' magazine from March 1984 until December 2010. The chart was based on national singles sales charts in 17 European countries: Austria, Belgium (two charts separately ...
, where it peaked at number 5 in July 1995. Additionally, "Wish You Were Here" was a Top 10 hit in Denmark and Finland, and a Top 30 hit in Belgium and the Netherlands. It was awarded with a
gold record
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile meta ...
in Austria and Switzerland, with a sale of 25,000, and a
platinum record
Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...
in Germany and Norway, where the single sold 500,000 (in Germany).
Music video
The
music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
of "Wish You Were Here" was directed by
Matt Broadley
Matt Broadley is a Swedish director. He has made music videos for several songs that went #1 on the charts, like "All That She Wants" and "Mr. Vain".
Career
Broadley has directed many TV commercials and music videos. His clients include:
* Al ...
. It shows a woman, played by singer
Annika Ljungberg, sitting in a meadow, singing to her man, a soldier who has been killed in a war. Other times we see the male band members dressed like soldiers, on a battlefield. They are shooting at each other and some of them being shot. In between, romantic flashbacks between the woman and the man takes us back to happier days. In the end, the woman walks through the battlefield at night with a torch in her hand. She watches and sings to the dead soldiers, lying on the ground. The video has a sepia tone.
Track listings
7-inch single, Germany
# "Wish You Were Here" (radio edit) — 4:00
# "Wish You Were Here" (Live at Brunkeflo Town Hall) — 4:08
12-inch maxi-single, Germany
# "Wish You Were Here" (Stampede Remix) — 5:57
# "Wish You Were Here" (radio edit) — 4:00
# "Wish You Were Here" (Live at Brunkeflo Town Hall) — 4:08
# "Hittin' the Hay" — 3:19
CD single, Europe
# "Wish You Were Here" (radio edit) — 3:56
# "Hittin' the Hay" — 3:18
CD maxi, Europe
# "Wish You Were Here" (radio edit) — 3:56
# "Wish You Were Here" (Live at Brunkeflo Town Hall) — 3:57
# "Hittin' the Hay" — 3:18
# "Wish You Were Here" (Stampede Remix) — 6:05
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
Cover versions
* Urgent C in 199
*
Blackmore's Night
Blackmore's Night is a British-American neo-medieval folk rock band formed in 1997, consisting mainly of Ritchie Blackmore (acoustic guitar, hurdy gurdy, mandola, mandolin, nyckelharpe, and electric guitar) and Candice Night (lead vocals, lyri ...
on album, ''
Shadow of the Moon
''Shadow of the Moon'' is the debut studio album by the group Blackmore's Night, released June 2, 1997. It stayed on the German charts for 17 weeks. It received a gold certification in Japan for 100,000 albums shipped to stores.
Track listing ...
'' (1997)
* In 2006, the song was covered by former ''
Deutschland sucht den SuperStar
''Deutschland sucht den Superstar'' (''DSDS''; "Germany is looking for the Superstar") is a German reality talent show. Part of the ''Idol'' franchise, it was created by British media mogul Simon Fuller as a spin-off from the British show ''P ...
'' contestant
Anna-Maria Zimmermann
Anna-Maria Zimmermann (born 14 December 1988 in Gütersloh, North Rhine-Westphalia) is a German singer and a ''Deutschland sucht den Superstar'' participant in 2006. Zimmermann was injured in a helicopter accident when a Robinson R44
The Rob ...
on the ''Love Songs'' album.
References
{{Authority control
Rednex songs
1990s ballads
1994 songs
1995 singles
Music videos directed by Matt Broadley
Number-one singles in Austria
Number-one singles in Germany
Number-one singles in Norway
Number-one singles in Switzerland
Pop ballads
Song recordings produced by Max Martin
Song recordings produced by Denniz Pop
Songs written by Max Martin
Songs written by Denniz Pop
ZYX Music singles