You Don't Understand Me

"You Don't Understand Me" is a song by Swedish pop music duo Roxette. Written by Per Gessle with American composer Desmond Child, it was released as the lead single from the duo's first greatest hits compilation album, Don't Bore Us, Get to the Chorus! Roxette's Greatest Hits (1995). It was also the only new song from the original edition of the album to appear on the 2000 U.S. edition. The song was a hit in several European countries, reaching the top 20 in Finland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, and the duo's native Sweden. The song was also a hit in Germany where, despite peaking at number 44, it would spend over three months on the German Singles Chart.^[1]

"You Don't Understand Me"
Single by Roxette
from the album Don't Bore Us, Get to the Chorus! Roxette's Greatest Hits
B-side	"Crazy About You"
Released	2 October 1995 (1995-10-02)
Studio	EMI (Stockholm, Sweden)
Genre	Alternative pop
Length	4:28
Label	EMI
Songwriter(s)	Per Gessle Desmond Child
Producer(s)	Clarence Öfwerman
Roxette singles chronology
"Vulnerable" (1995) "You Don't Understand Me" (1995) "The Look '95" (1995)
Music video
"You Don't Understand Me" on YouTube

Composition and style

The song was written by Per Gessle and Desmond Child. In the Don't Bore Us, Get to the Chorus! liner notes, Per called it: "the first [Roxette] song ever to be written with someone from the 'outside'. It wasn't intended to be recorded by Roxette. Desmond came to Halmstad this summer, just to see if we could create something together. He had this idea, I changed it around a bit, and asked Marie to sing on the demo. Then I realised it suited us very well."^[2] According to Ultimate Guitar, "You Don't Understand Me" is an alternative pop ballad, with a slow tempo of 77 beats per minute. Each verse is composed of two repetitions of a C–D–Em–C–C–D–Em sequence, and the bridge consists of a Gm–B♭–F–C–B♭–F–C–B♭–F–Gm sequence. The chorus is composed of two repetitions of B♭–C–F–C sequence, with the final note amended to a Gm during the final bar.^[3]

The duo recorded acoustic versions of several songs for inclusion as b-sides on UK editions of this single. New versions of "You Don't Understand Me", "The Look" and "Listen to Your Heart", as well as a cover of The Beatles' "Help!", were recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London in early 1995, although the latter would remain unreleased until it appeared on the 2006 box set The Rox Box/Roxette 86-06.^[4]

Critical reception

Pan-European magazine Music & Media commented, "Singer Marie Frederiksson cries out as she is left in the dark by an evasive lover. A brand new, slow-stepping and dramatic ballad".^[5] A reviewer from Music Week rated it two out of five, adding that "this clumsy and half-hearted ballad is unlikely to revive the Swedish outfit's Top 10 fortunes."^[6]

Formats and track listings

All songs were written by Per Gessle except "Listen to Your Heart", with music by Gessle and Mats MP Persson.

• Cassette and CD single (Australia 8651894 · Europe 8651892 · Japan TOCP-8675)

1. "You Don't Understand Me" – 4:28
2. "Crazy About You" – 3:57
3. "Harleys & Indians (Riders in the Sky)" – 3:45

• UK cassette and CD1 (TCEM-418 · CDEMS-418)

1. "You Don't Understand Me" – 4:28
2. "The Look" (Abbey Road Version) – 3:46
3. "Listen to Your Heart" (Abbey Road Version) – 3:38
4. "You Don't Understand Me" (Abbey Road Version) – 3:43

• UK CD2 (CDEM-418)

1. "You Don't Understand Me" – 4:28
2. "Almost Unreal" (Demo, February 1993) – 3:25
3. "Harleys & Indians (Riders in the Sky)" – 3:45
4. "The Sweet Hello, The Sad Goodbye" – 4:47

Personnel

Personnel are adapted from the liner notes of Don't Bore Us, Get to the Chorus! Roxette's Greatest Hits.^[2]

• Marie Fredriksson – all lead and background vocals
• Per Gessle – mixing
• Anders Herrlin – bass guitar, engineering and programming
• Michael Ilbert – engineering and mixing
• Christer Jansson – drums
• Clarence Öfwerman – keyboards, programming, production and mixing

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1995–1996) Peak position Australia (ARIA)^[7] 115 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)^[8] 25 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)^[9] 35 Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)^[10] 18 Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)^[11] 29 Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)^[12] 7 Germany (Official German Charts)^[1] 44 Italy (Musica e dischi)^[13] 16 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)^[14] 20 Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[15] 19 Scotland (OCC)^[16] 35 Spain (AFYVE)^[17] 6 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)^[18] 9 UK Singles (OCC)^[19] 42

Year-end charts Chart (1995) Position Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)^[20] 164 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)^[21] 58

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
Europe	2 October 1995	CD	EMI	^[18]
Japan	1 November 1995			^[22]
United Kingdom	March 1996	CD cassette		^[23]

"Tú No Me Comprendes" (2020)

"Tú No Me Comprendes"
Single by Roxette
from the album Bag of Trix
B-side	"Let Your Heart Dance with Me"
Released	6 November 2020 (2020-11-06)
Length	4:25
Label	Roxette Recordings Parlophone
Songwriter(s)	Per Gessle Desmond Child Luis Gómez Escolar
Producer(s)	Clarence Öfwerman
Roxette singles chronology
"Let Your Heart Dance with Me" (2020) "Tú No Me Comprendes" (2020) "Piece of Cake" (2020)
Music video
"Tú No Me Comprendes" on YouTube

Roxette released the Spanish-language compilation album Baladas en Español in 1996, which consisted of ballads translated by Spanish songwriter Luis Gomez-Escolar. The album was only released in Spanish and Portuguese-speaking territories.^[4] A translated version of "You Don't Understand Me", titled "Tú No Me Comprendes", was also recorded during these sessions, but was excluded from the album.^[24] Gessle explained: "We had too many songs [for Baladas en Español], so this was just hidden away somewhere."^[25]

While compiling the rarities compilation Bag of Trix in 2020, Gessle recalled recording a Spanish version of the track; the master tape of the recording was located within an EMI archival vault "in London or in Cologne". The version included on Bag of Trix is a new mix of the original recording.^[25] It was released as a single on digital and streaming platforms on 6 November 2020. This single contained their previous release, the Good Karma outtake "Let Your Heart Dance with Me", as the b-side.^[26]

Music video

A music video was created for the song, consisting of previously unseen footage from both Gessle and Fredriksson's private archives. It premiered on YouTube on 6 November.^[27]

Formats and track listings

"Tú No Me Comprendes" was written by Gessle, Child and Luis Gómez Escolar; "Let Your Heart Dance with Me" was written by Gessle.

1. "Tú No Me Comprendes" – 4:25
2. "Let Your Heart Dance with Me" – 3:07

References

1. "Roxette – You Don't Understand Me" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
2. "Digital booklet". Don't Bore Us, Get to the Chorus (liner notes). Roxette. Stockholm, Sweden: EMI Records. 1995. 7243 836203 2 6.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
3. "You Don't Understand Me by Roxette chords". Ultimate-Guitar.com. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
4. Thorselius, Robert (May 2003). The Look for Roxette: The Illustrated Worldwide Discography & Price Guide (1st ed.). Sweden: Premium Förlag Publishing. ISBN 978-9197189484.
5. "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. 28 October 1996. p. 10. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
6. "Reviews: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 3 February 1996. p. 27. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
7. "Roxette chart history, received from ARIA on 1 February 2022". ARIA. Retrieved 2 August 2022 – via Imgur. N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the release's peak on the national chart.
8. "Roxette – You Don't Understand Me" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
9. "Roxette – You Don't Understand Me" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
10. "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 2834." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
11. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 12, no. 46. 18 November 1995. p. 27. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
12. "Roxette: You Don't Understand Me" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
13. "Classifiche". Musica e Dischi (in Italian). Retrieved 3 June 2022. Set "Tipo" on "Singoli". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "Roxette".
14. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Roxette" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
15. "Roxette – You Don't Understand Me" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
16. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
17. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
18. "Roxette – You Don't Understand Me". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
19. "Roxette: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
20. "Jaarlijsten 1995" (in Dutch). Stichting Nederlandse Top 40. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
21. "Årslista Singlar, 1995" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
22. "あなたにはわから wehen ない | ロクセット" [You Don't Know | Roxette] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
23. "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 9 March 1996. p. 31.
24. Guilherme Araujo (7 November 2020). "Roxette: versão em espanhol de 'You Don't Understand Me' chega ao streaming" ["Roxette: Spanish version of 'You Don't Understand Me' comes to streaming"]. Yahoo! (in Portuguese). Retrieved 11 November 2020.
25. "Per Gessle talks about Tu No Me Comprendes (You Don't Understand Me)". YouTube. 7 November 2020. Archived from the original on 2021-12-17. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
26. Sebas E. Alonso (6 November 2020). "De 'No sé si es amor' a 'Tú no me comprendes': Roxette dan la sorpresa del día" ["From 'It Must Have Been Love' to 'You Don't Understand Me': Roxette gives the surprise of the day] (in Spanish). Jenesaispop.com. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
27. "Roxette – Tu No Me Comprendes (You Don't Understand Me) [Official Video]". YouTube. 6 November 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.