Europe

Europe is a Swedish rock band formed in Upplands Väsby in 1979, by lead vocalist Joey Tempest, guitarist John Norum, bassist Peter Olsson, and drummer Tony Reno. Named after the continent itself, they obtained a major breakthrough in Sweden in 1982 by winning the televised competition Rock-SM (Swedish Rock Championships); it was the first time this competition was held. Since their formation, Europe has released eleven studio albums, three live albums, three compilations and twenty-four music videos. Europe's current lineup comprises Tempest, Norum, bassist John Levén, keyboardist Mic Michaeli, and drummer Ian Haugland. Europe's first two albums, released in the early 1980s, performed moderately well, but only in their home country of Sweden. The group saw more international fame with the release of their third album, 1986's The Final Countdown. As of 2003, Europe had sold a total of 10 million albums worldwide. The band has had two top 20 albums on the US Billboard 200 chart (The Final Countdown and Out of This World) and two top 10 hits on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart; "The Final Countdown" (#8) and "Carrie" (#3). Another song, "Rock the Night, reached #30 on the US Hot 100. Europe broke up in 1992, taking what was called an indefinite hiatus. The band, however, reunited for just one performance in Stockholm on New Year's Eve 1999. Four years later, in 2003, they announced an official reunion. Since then, the band has released six albums, Start from the Dark (2004), Secret Society (2006), Last Look at Eden (2009), Bag of Bones (2012), War of Kings (2015) and Walk the Earth (2017).