The Final Countdown

The Final Countdown is the third album on which EUROPE expanded their hard-rock drive with impressive keyboards and sky-piercing melody. Joey Tempest’s singing soars high, and John Norum’s guitar supports the songs with both flashy solos and hard riffs. It is a monumental record that recorded a worldwide smash and made the band’s name known at a stroke. The grandeur of the title track goes without saying, and “Rock the Night” and “Carrie” also strongly show the band’s melodic sense. In particular, the title track “The Final Countdown,” with that iconic keyboard riff, became an enduring song representative of the 1980s. Songs like “Cherokee” and “Danger on the Track” breathe the band’s full playing too. Sounding Nordic melodic rock on an international scale, it is the band’s greatest signature work.