"Wheel of Fortune" is a song by Swedish pop group Ace of Base, and also their debut single. It was first released in the Nordics in April 1992 through DanishMega Records as the first single from their first album, Happy Nation. It was re-released worldwide in April 1993 after the success of "All That She Wants". The single peaked within the top 10 in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and Switzerland. And within the top 20 in Finland, Iceland, Ireland and the UK. On the Eurochart Hot 100, it reached number 5. "Wheel Of Fortune" is a reggae flavoured dance-pop song written by Jonas Berggren and Ulf Ekberg. It was recorded in Studio Decibel in Stockholm, Sweden for a budget of SEK 30,000. It didn't enter the charts when it was released for the first time. It was the third re-release of the single that entered the charts after radio stations and clubs started to play it. The song reached #1 in Norway, and in Denmark and Netherlands; it peaked at #2.
Critical reception
editor Jose F. Promis noted the song as a "stellar" track in his review. Tore Bø from Bergensavisen wrote that Ace of Base "shows that the 70s are alive" in "Wheel of Fortune". Nikola Nedeljkovic Gøttsche from Dagbladet Information noted "its immediate melodic pop appeal and the combination of dancefloor pop and the fashionable warm reggae". Göteborgsposten described it as a "dance-song with some Bad Boys and Dr. Alban rhythms, but with more pop direction." The reviewer complimented Linn Berggren's voice, adding that it "makes me think of Angel for a while". Liverpool Echo said that the song is "cannily close to All That She Wants with its reggae-ish beat and just as catchy." Andrew Balkin from Kingston Informer wrote that "the Aces go downbeat" on "Wheel of Fortune" and "Happy Nation". He added that "both songs have a soul/dance feel about them and wouldn't be out of place on the dance floor, or setting the mood in a smoky club." Music & Media described it as a "oriental-tinged" song, Ulf Nygaard from Romerikes Blad stated in his review of Happy Nation, that "Wheel of Fortune" and "All That She Wants" "are difficult to get out of your head and completely impossible to stand still to." Chuck Campbell from Scripps Howard News Service called the song a "reggae-paced" number.
Music video
1992 version
The original version's music video was directed by Viking Nielson and features all four original members. In an 2018 interview, Ulf Ekberg told that they had $1000 to shoot the video. It begins with Linn singing. A woman is sitting in a chair on the middle of a big wheel of fortune. Then different characters appear along the video. Like a boxing blonde, a little girl playing with an hourglass, a bride in an wedding dress, an angel playing with a golden ball and an older couple. Sometimes the woman in the chair also appears with a man or with the older couple. In between these characters, we see the four members of Ace of Base performing standing together in a circle with their backs against each other. Linn sometimes sings in the chair on the wheel. Other times she sings standing with Jenny. Joker and Buddha are seen playing on different instruments such as keyboard, drum, and trumpet. Occasionally, a clockwise turns in the background.
2009 version
The 2009 re-recording was the first and only single released by the band as a trio. For this version, the label decided not to shoot a video for the song. However, a promo video was published on 21 October 2008 on the band's official website. Similar to their 1998 single "Always Have Always Will", the video completely consists of live footage from their Redefined tour and video footage from a photoshoot. The edit used in the video is a combination of the radio and album versions, lasting at 3:15 minutes.
Chart performance
The 1992 version failed to reach the singles chart on its first two releases, but when it was re-released a third time in September, it eventually reached number two. After the success of "All That She Wants" in the United Kingdom, it was released as the second UK single and it reached number 20 in the UK Singles Chart in August 1993. Prior to the official release of the song, a live version of the song entered the charts at #2 in Brazilian radio station Emboabas FM on 3 December 2007. The song entered the Radio Aachen chart in Germany at #26 on 15 December 2007. It also entered the Euro WebCharts at #5 in the last week of 2007 and eventually reached #1.
