Almost Unreal

"Almost Unreal"
Single by Roxette
from the album Super Mario Bros Soundtrack
Released	May 1993
Format	CD
Recorded	1993
Genre	Pop rock
Length	03:58
Label	EMI
Writer(s)	Per Gessle
Producer(s)	Clarence Öfwerman
Roxette singles chronology
"Fingertips '93" (1993) "Almost Unreal" (1993) "Sleeping in My Car (1994)

"Almost Unreal" is a pop song performed by Swedish duo Roxette. The song was released in May 1993 and is featured on the soundtrack to the 1993 film Super Mario Bros. The song is played in the end credits of the film

"Almost Unreal" became a summer hit especially in Europe, where it hit Top 10 and Top 20 in many countries, including the UK where it reached No. 7, and the video received a heavy rotation on music channels. The song proved to be unsuccessful in US where it peaked at No. 94 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.

The song's inclusion on the Super Mario Bros. soundtrack angered songwriter Per Gessle ^[1] as it was originally written for the 1993 fantasy horror comedy Halloween-themed film Hocus Pocus starring Bette Midler, but was never used.

The video clip starring Nick Pickard as a young man playing a video game in which he's watching parts of the film and the band members who sing the song, while changing characteristics such as the singer's costume, musical instruments and so on. After ignoring warnings about de-evolution, he becomes a lizard.

Reception

Roxette themselves were dismissive about the song, "Not one of our most inspired moments",^[1] Fredriksson said. While Gessle stated: "I still like the song in a way... but if you wanted to make a parody of Roxette, it would probably sound something like this."^[1] Mike Schiller from Popmatters called the song "awful"; and wrote, "...not only does it sound like corporate pandering, but it’s probably the most forced smash hit wannabe Roxette ever created."^[2]

Track listing

CD single (cardsleeve)

1. "Almost Unreal"
2. "The Heart Shaped Sea"

UK CD and EU CD Maxi^[3][4]

1. "Almost Unreal"
2. "The Heart Shaped Sea"
3. "Fingertips '93"
4. "Almost Unreal" (A/C Mix)

Charts

Chart (1993)	Peak Position
Sweden Single Charts	8[5]
UK Single Charts	7[6]
United States Single Charts	94[7]
German Single Charts	20[8]
Australian Single Charts	17[9]
Swiss Single Charts	15[10]
Norwegian Single Charts	6[11]
Dutch Single Charts	31[12]
Austrian Single Charts	20[13]

References

1. Roxette Hits (CD booklet). Roxette. EMI Records. 2006.
2. Mike Schiller (2007-03-30). "Roxette Hits review". Popmatters. Retrieved 2011-02-01.
3. "Almost Unreal (UK CD Single)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2012-03-19.
4. "Almost Unreal (EU Maxi CD Single)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2012-03-19.
5. "Swedish charts archive". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-01-29.
6. "UK charts archive". chartstats.com. Retrieved 2010-01-29.
7. "Roxette's Billboard singles history". All Media Guide / Billboard. Retrieved 2010-01-29.
8. "German charts archive". charts.de. Retrieved 2010-01-29.
9. "Australian charts archive". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-01-29.
10. "Swiss charts archive". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-01-29.
11. "Norwegian charts archive". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-01-29.
12. "Dutch charts archive". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-01-29.
13. "Dutch charts archive". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-01-29.

External links

• Almost Unreal at MusicBrainz (list of releases)