Safe to say music from Denmark has not been a major force in the USA music market.
However, earlier this year, Danish group Lukas Graham broke through with “7 Years,” one of the biggest success stories of 2016, a tender story line that covered various life stages, moments to remember, lost opportunities. It touched a nerve with Boomers and was #1, or close to that, on multiple radio formats: Adult Contemporary, Top 40, and Adult Top 40. (It’s this generation’s version of Harry Chapin’s “Cats In The Cradle”) https://boomermusicupdate.com/top-40/7-years-reminiscent-cats-cradle/.
Closing out the year with another killer song– “You’re Not There”–that’s also tender and introspective, Lukas Graham (the band) has once again constructed a gorgeous melody which beautifully supports and enhances Lukas Forchhammers’ (lead singer) vocals of yearning and loss.
“You’re Not There” is about all the moments an adult son recalls sharing with his father, and how bereft a son can feel, without his father there to guide him, after the father has died.
Every step I take, you used to lead the way
Now I’m terrified to face it on my own
You’re not there
To celebrate the man that you made
You’re not there
To share in my my success and mistakes
Is it fair?
You’ll never know the person I’ll be
You’re not there
With me
Those lyrics are simple and vastly different than the lyrics in Fleetwood Mac’s Lindsey Buckingham’s first solo hit, “Trouble,” from the early 80s but “Trouble” and “You’re Not There” are similar in both music and vocal arrangement.
(Recall how smooth and polished “Trouble” was, with Buckinghams’s great voice and guitar virtuosity.)
“You’re Not There” is just entering the Top 30 on Adult Contemporary radio
Lukas Graham is a Danish pop and soul band that got their first record deal in 2012.
Members are: lead vocalist Lukas Forchhammer, drummer Mark Falgren, bassist Magnus Larsson, and keyboardist Morten Ristorp.