After a whole year in full speed!
Number 1 on the charts and a life in luxury. It sounds fantastic, but it's a bit annoying, like any other job. Now EUROPE are at home, enjoying their time off!
Finally the adventure is over - for now! Now EUROPE are at home in old Svedala again, and if the truth has to be said, it actually feels great for the guys to be able to catch their breath again after the hectic world tour. There wasn't time for a whole lot of rest and spare time during that tour. The fact is that EUROPE have been on the go since last year, when the "Final Countdown" tour started in Gävle. Since then, the carousel has been going around in full speed, even faster when the reports of foreign success started to roll in. And since September 1986, when they returned from Japan, they have been traveling almost all the time.
First the Swedish tour which ended at the ice stadium. That was followed by their first gig in Germany, in Munich, where EUROPE was number 1 at that time, and right after that, they started the intensive promotion tour which brought them all around Europe. Later on, John Norum left the band. It didn't make things any easier. On the contrary! EUROPE were forced to the rehearsal rooms with Kee Marcello, and at that time the entire continent of Europe was on fire.
Kee's debut came with the recordings of the videos for "Rock the Night" and "Carrie". After that they headed for Peter's Pop Show in Dortmund for a festival with 16 000 people in the audience. They almost didn't have time to celebrate Christmas, but they didn't complain at all. Now EUROPE really lived their lives.
The new year started just as intensive. The entire continent got a taste of EUROPE's unique stage show during their first real European tour! Highlights? "Well, Zurich was a thriller," Joey says. "It was a great feeling to play in front of 12 000 people. Our biggest audience so far!" Then he doesn't include Peter's Pop Show as a real concert. EUROPE performed playback there.
Ian thinks that England, especially London, felt great. "Imagine finally playing at Hammersmith, where every hero has played," he almost glows. "That was something!"
But everyone agreed. The European tour was a great thing - and a great success. There was almost chaos in Italy! But nothing could make EUROPE stop now. No, now America had woken up, and both the album and the single were climbing up the charts.
The first concert in the USA was in San Francisco on April 15, and just about a month later, they waved goodbye to another continent in Philadelphia.
At that time they had done 23 concerts. Every single one in front of a cheering audience. Add to this all the work with interviews, radio and TV, and you'll find a completely exhausted gang who've got nothing against relaxing with family and friends, away from luxury hotels, private planes and limousines. "It was totally great to come home," Ian says and hugs his Marita. "It's not so cool to be away from my sweetie here for so long."
The others have the same opinion, not that any of them ever regret being in the rock business. "It probably won't take long before we want to get out there again," they say. "The tour life is in your blood, you'll get crazy if you rest too much."
At home in Upplands Väsby, Joey relaxes together with his sister Lotta and brother Thomas, playing pool and writing new songs.
"I can't help it," he says. "They spin around inside my head all the time. Now I have the time to do some new demos for the new album."
Mic, who's the proud father of his son Marcus, gets the chance to try the father role a little more. "It doesn't feel good to be away from the little guy so much, but we'll have to catch up on it later. He is, so to say, used to me being away a lot. But of course I miss him and Mia - a lot!"
John (Levén) likes to go for a ride in his car, or stop by the office in town to have a look at all the gold and platinum records on the wall. When the weather allows it, he enjoys going to sea.
Kee and Karin enjoy the time off together. It started off with a summer holiday, but ends with just the two of them staying in the apartment in Stockholm. Because there's not much time left before it all starts again.
June was a month off, but already on July 4th, they are back on stage in Copenhagen (Denmark), at the Roskilde Festival.
Later on they are off to Iceland and Vancouver, Canada. EUROPE are going to perform at the CBS Convention. And later on? Yes, it can end up with a tour in Russia, but time will tell. It's soon time to plan the next album for real, but then we're back to this again... work, work, work! Being a rock star is hell. Nah, maybe that's not true...
