All That She Wants

"All That She Wants"
Standard European cover (Scandinavian CD single pictured)
Single by Ace of Base
from the album Happy Nation/The Sign
B-side	"Fashion Party"
Released	1992
Format	CD maxi single 7" 12" cassette
Recorded	1992 SweMix Studios Stockholm, Sweden
Genre	Dance-pop[1] reggae-pop[2]
Length	3:30
Label	Mega London Arista
Writer(s)	Jonas Berggren Ulf Ekberg
Producer(s)	Denniz Pop Jonas Berggren Ulf Ekberg
Certification	see below
Ace of Base singles chronology
"Wheel of Fortune" (1992) "All That She Wants" (1992) "Happy Nation" (1993)

"All That She Wants" is a song by Swedish group Ace of Base. It was released in 1992 as the second single from their first studio album, Happy Nation. The following year, it was released as the first single from The Sign in North America. Produced by Denniz Pop, Jonas Berggren, and Ulf Ekberg, the song was inspired by the Kayo song "Another Mother".

"All That She Wants" is a reggae-pop song which describes a sexually promiscuous woman, with the word "baby" being synonymous to "boyfriend".^[3][2] The song was first recorded in 1991, but went through many renditions before it was officially released.

The song was a commercial success, reaching the top of the charts in many countries, including Denmark, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Australia. The single was certified platinum in the United States, where it peaked at number two, behind Meat Loaf's "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)". The single sold over 1 million copies in 1993 in the United States alone, and became one of the best-selling singles of that year.^[4] On 7 July 2014, the single was re-released with new remixes as a digital EP.^[5]

Background

Ace of Base was influenced by Kayo's "Another Mother" to create "All That She Wants".

While their predecessor single, "Wheel of Fortune", was a modest success, "All That She Wants," led Ace of Base to take off internationally. After hearing Swedish top 20 hit "Another Mother" by Kayo, the band decided that was exactly the sound they wanted to create.^[6] A demo version of "All That She Wants", titled "Mr. Ace", was produced in 1991 and featured different lyrics and rap vocals.^[7]

The song was initially in major key, but was changed to minor upon Linn Berggren's insistence.^[8] Jonas and Ulf contacted the producer of "Another Mother", Denniz PoP, and sent him this demo. The tape got stuck in the cassette tape player in his car, so he listened to it over and over again, which helped him decide to help produce the track. Denniz introduced many changes to the song. Denniz was not fond of the rap vocals on the original demo, and these were subsequently replaced with short spoken word sections. A new second verse was also added. Though vocals were recorded by all four members for this version, Jenny's vocals were eventually cut on the final release.^[9]

The final version of the song evolved into a dark fusion of dub-reggae with pop which became the band's trademark sound. Denniz would go on to co-produce all officially released versions of the song that were available at the time, notably a more uptempo version of the song, dubbed the "Madness Version". This version features entirely different vocals and more spoken-word sections.^[10] Ace of Base would later collaborate with Denniz Pop on "The Sign" and multiple tracks on the band's sophomore release, The Bridge.

Following its release in October 1992, the song quickly climbed to number one on the Danish chart while "Wheel of Fortune" was still sitting at number two. Keen to rush out an album for the Christmas market, Mega Records pressed the band for an album and it was hastily recorded, mixed, and released within a few weeks.

Commercial performance

"All That She Wants" reached the number one position in ten countries and peaked at top three positions in most other places where it was released. It was released as the band's first single from The Sign in the United States, where it peaked at number two and was certified platinum. The song was a very successful radio hit in the United States, sustaining the number one position on the US Billboard Top 40 Mainstream^[11] chart for nine consecutive weeks.

"All That She Wants" was listed at number 51 on the Billboard Hot 100 year-end charts and at number 70 on the 1990s decade-end charts. In Germany, the song was the best-selling single of 1993.^[12]

Music video

A music video directed by Matt Broadley was produced to promote the single. The video had a very low budget, and was filmed in one day with only two takes. The music video was meant to serve as an explanation for the song. It depicts the band members performing in a cramped apartment, interlaced with shots of a woman getting ready to go out. The video has a brown monochromatic filter.

Track listings

United Kingdom CD single "All That She Wants" (Radio Edit) "All That She Wants" (12" Version) "All That She Wants" (Banghra Version) "All That She Wants" (Madness Version) United States CD single "All That She Wants" – 3:31 "All That She Wants" (Extended Single/Dub Version) – 7:56 "All That She Wants" (Banghra Version) – 4:15 "All That She Wants" (12" Version) – 4:46 Australian CD Single "All That She Wants" (Radio Edit) "Fashion Party" All That She Wants (Remixed) – Standard Digital Download[13] All That She Wants (Funkstar De Luxe Cook 'n' Curry Remix) – 3:27 All That She Wants (We Are Legends Remix) – 6:18 All That She Wants (Bali Bandits Remix) – 4:00 All That She Wants (Joeysuki Remix) – 4:51 All That She Wants (Andalo Remix) – 3:24 All That She Wants (House of Titans Remix) – 3:55 All That She Wants (Marc MacRowland Remix) – 6:01 All That She Wants (Funkstar De Luxe Cook 'n' Curry Remix Extended) – 4:52 All That She Wants (Bali Bandits Remix Extended) – 6:01 All That She Wants (Andalo Remix Extended) – 5:41

All That She Wants (Remixed) – Beatport Edition Digital Download[14] All That She Wants (We Are Legends Remix) – 6:18 All That She Wants (Joeysuki Remix) – 4:51 All That She Wants (House of Titans Remix) – 3:55 All That She Wants (Marc MacRowland Remix) – 6:01 All That She Wants (Funkstar De Luxe Cook 'n' Curry Remix Extended) – 4:52 All That She Wants (Bali Bandits Remix Extended) – 6:01 All That She Wants (Andalo Remix Extended) – 5:41 All That She Wants (Bali Bandits Remix Extended Instrumental) – 6:00 All That She Wants (Andalo Remix Extended Instrumental) – 5:41

Personnel

• Vocals by Linn Berggren, Jonas Berggren and Ulf Ekberg
• Written by Jonas Berggren and Ulf Ekberg
• Produced by Denniz Pop, Jonas Berggren and Ulf Ekberg
• Recorded at SweMix Studios, Stockholm

Charts and sales

Weekly charts Chart (1992–94) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[15] 1 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[16] 1 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[17] 1 Canada Dance/Urban (RPM)[18] 1 Canada Top Singles (RPM)[19] 1 Denmark (IFPI)[20] 1 Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[21] 2 Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[22] 4 France (SNEP)[23] 2 Germany (Official German Charts)[24] 1 Ireland (IRMA)[25] 2 Italy (FIMI)[26] 1 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[27] 4 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[28] 3 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[29] 3 Norway (VG-lista)[30] 2 Spain (AFYVE)[31] 1 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[32] 3 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[33] 1 UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[34] 1 US Billboard Adult Contemporary[11] 22 US Billboard Hot 100[11] 2 US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks[11] 17 US Billboard Rhythmic Top 40[11] 4 US Billboard Top 40 Mainstream[11] 1 US Cash Box[35] 3 Chart (2016) Peak position Poland (Polish Airplay Top 100)[36] 80

Year-end charts Chart (1993) Rank Australia (ARIA)[37] 9 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[38] 2 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[39] 13 Canada Dance/Urban (RPM)[40] 9 Canada Top Singles (RPM)[41] 23 Germany (Official German Charts)[12] 1 Italy (FIMI)[42] 3 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[43] 4 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[44] 7 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[45] 3 UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[46] 3 US Billboard Hot 100[47] 51 Chart (1994) Rank Australia (ARIA)[48] 67 US Billboard Hot 100[49] 9 US Cash Box[50] 26 Decade-end charts Chart (1990–99) Rank US Billboard Hot 100[51] 70 Certifications and sales Region Certification Certified units/Sales Australia (ARIA)[48] 2× Platinum 140,000^^ Austria (IFPI Austria)[52] Gold 25,000^* France (SNEP)[53] Gold 242,000[54] Germany (BVMI)[55] 3× Gold 750,000^^ New Zealand (RMNZ)[56] Platinum 10,000^* United Kingdom (BPI)[57] Platinum 600,000^^ United States (RIAA)[58] Platinum 1,200,000[4] ^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone

Release history

Country	Date	Format	Label
Sweden	1 November 1992	CD maxi single 7" 12" cassette	Mega
United Kingdom	6 March 1993		London
United States	18 September 1993		Arista

Cover versions

• Swedish band Grass Show covered the song on their 1997 debut album Something Smells Good In Stinkville.^[59]
• American popstar Britney Spears recorded a demo version of the song using lyrics from the chorus for her 2007 album Blackout but it failed to make the final cut for the album. The demo leaked onto the internet in January 2008.^[60]
• The 2008, Holly Ray and Sean Kingston track Off The Meter sampled the signature whistling rhythm from the song.
• Wizo, a German punk band, have covered this song (in English).
• Breakcore producer Shitmat sampled part of this song on his Killababylonkutz album, on the track Ace of Base Babylon.
• The Italian girlband Lucky Star covered the song for their first album LS3 released in 2006.
• British rock band The Kooks covered this song as part of the Radio 1 Established 1967 compilation CD, a CD to celebrate the 40th anniversary of BBC Radio 1. 40 modern day music artists covered a single from the past 40 years of Radio 1's charts, and The Kooks ended up with this song.
• ReinXeed, a Swedish symphonic metal/power metal band, released a version of this song as a part of their 2011 compilation album titled Swedish Hitz Goes Metal.
• In 2014, Nana Vespertine covered "All That She Wants" in a vintage jazzy style.^[61]
• In 2014, the song was covered by the German electropop duo Eleven's 2.^[62]

See also

List of number-one singles in Australia during the 1990s List of number-one hits of 1993 (Austria) List of Billboard Mainstream Top 40 number-one songs of the 1990s List of number-one singles of 1993 (Canada) List of number-one hits of 1993 (Germany) List of number-one hits of 1993 (Italy)

List of number-one singles of 1993 (Spain) List of number-one singles of the 1990s (Switzerland) List of RPM number-one dance singles of 1993 List of UK Singles Chart number ones of the 1990s VRT Top 30 number-one hits of 1993

References

1. Larkin, Colin (2010). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music, Volume 1. Guinness Publishing. p. 51. ISBN 978-1-5615-9176-3. When Ace of Base scored a massive worldwide number 1 in 1993 with 'All That She Wants', the comparisons to fellow Swedish group, Abba, seemed obvious: Two female vocalists, one blonde, one brunette, and two male musicians, playing catchy dance pop.
2. Daw, Robbie (20 November 2014). "The 50 Best Pop Singles of 1994". Idolator. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
3. Seabrook, John (2015). The Song Machine: Inside the Hit Factory. W. W. Norton & Company. ISBN 0-3932-4192-0.
4. "Best-Selling Records of 1993". Billboard. Vol. 106 no. 3. 15 January 1994. p. 73. ISSN 0006-2510.
5. "Ace of Base Facebook – All That She Wants Remixed". Facebook. Retrieved 28 October 2014.
6. Beatlab, SVT documentary, 2001
7. "The Sign (Remastered)". iTunes. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
8. Säsong 5 – Avsnitt 3: Ace of Base at the Wayback Machine (archived 28 March 2015). SVT.
9. Seabrook, John (14 October 2015). "Mr. Pop". Slate. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
10. "All That She Wants (Madness Version)". Beatport. 16 April 2012. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
11. "Ace of Base – Awards". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
12. (German) Jahrescharts – 1993 at the Wayback Machine (archived 9 May 2015). Offiziellecharts.de. GfK Entertainment Charts.
13. "Amazon.com: All That She Wants (Remixed)". Amazon.com. Retrieved 28 October 2014.
14. "All That She Wants (Remixed)". Beatport. Retrieved 28 October 2014.
15. "Australian-charts.com – Ace Of Base – All That She Wants". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
16. "Austriancharts.at – Ace Of Base – All That She Wants" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
17. "Ultratop.be – Ace Of Base – All That She Wants" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
18. "Top RPM Dance/Urban: Issue 2288." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
19. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 2305." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
20. Jeffries, Stan (2003). Encyclopedia of World Pop Music, 1980-2001. Greenwood Press. p. 3. ISBN 978-0-3133-1547-3.
21. "Hits of the World". Billboard. 105 (24): 57. 12 June 1993. ISSN 0006-2510.
22. Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin - levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
23. "Lescharts.com – Ace Of Base – All That She Wants" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
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25. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – All That She Wants". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
26. (Italian) Singoli – I numeri uno (1959-2006) (parte 4: 1990–1996) at the Wayback Machine (archived 11 March 2016). It-charts.150m.com.
27. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Ace Of Base - All That She Wants search results" (in Dutch) Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
28. "Dutchcharts.nl – Ace Of Base – All That She Wants" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
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30. "Norwegiancharts.com – Ace Of Base – All That She Wants". VG-lista. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
31. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
32. "Swedishcharts.com – Ace Of Base – All That She Wants". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
33. "Swisscharts.com – Ace Of Base – All That She Wants". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
34. "Archive Chart: 1993-05-22" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved 5 July 2013.
35. CASH BOX Top 100 Pop Singles – Week ending NOVEMBER 27, 1993 at the Wayback Machine (archived 10 October 2012). Cash Box magazine.
36. "Listy bestsellerów, wyróżnienia :: Związek Producentów Audio-Video". Polish Airplay Top 100. Retrieved 3 October 2016.
37. "ARIA Charts - End Of Year Charts – Top 50 Singles 1993". ARIA Charts. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
38. "Jahreshitparade 1993" (in German). Austriancharts.at. Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
39. "Jaaroverzichten 1993" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
40. "The RPM Top 50 Dance Tracks of 1993". RPM. Vol. 58 no. 23. 18 December 1993. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
41. "The RPM Top 100 Hit Tracks of 1993". RPM. Vol. 58 no. 23. 18 December 1993. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
42. "I singoli più venduti del 1993" (in Italian). Hit Parade Italia. Creative Commons. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
43. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1993" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
44. "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1993" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
45. "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1993" (in German). Hitparade.ch. Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
46. "Top 100 Singles 1993". Music Week. 15 January 1994. p. 24.
47. "Top 100 Hits for 1993". The Longbored Surfer. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
48. "Australian Top 100 Singles 1994". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
49. "Top 100 Hits for 1994". The Longbored Surfer. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
50. The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1994 at the Wayback Machine (archived 10 October 2012). Cash Box magazine.
51. "Hot 100 Singles of the '90s". Billboard. 111 (52): 20. 25 December 1999. ISSN 0006-2510.
52. "Austrian single certifications – Ace of Base – All That She Wants" (in German). IFPI Austria. Enter Ace of Base in the field Interpret. Enter All That She Wants in the field Titel. Select single in the field Format. Click Suchen
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54. (French) Les Singles en Or at the Wayback Machine (archived 14 January 2016). InfoDisc.
55. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Ace of Base; 'All That She Wants')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
56. "New Zealand single certifications – Ace of Base – All That She Wants". Recorded Music NZ.
57. "British single certifications – Ace of Base – All That She Wants". British Phonographic Industry. Enter All That She Wants in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select single in the field By Format. Select Platinum in the field By Award. Click Search
58. "American single certifications – Ace of Base – All That She Wants". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH
59. "Grass Show – Artist Biography". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
60. "Friday Flashback: Britney Spears – All That She Wants". Crushable. 27 November 2009. Retrieved 28 October 2014.
61. "Nana Vespertine – All That She Wants (Ace Of Base)". SoundCloud. Retrieved 20 March 2014.
62. "All That She Wants – Single – Eleven's 2". iTunes. Retrieved 1 April 2014.

External links

• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics