"Beautiful Life" is a song by Swedish band Ace of Base, released on October 20, 1995 from their second album, The Bridge (1995). In North America, it was the first single released from the album; in Europe, it followed "Lucky Love" as the second single. Co-written by band member Jonas Berggren and produced by him with Denniz Pop and Max Martin, the single reached number 15 on both the US Billboard Hot 100 and the UK Singles Chart in December 1995. But it hit number one on the Canadian RPM Dance/Urban chart and Billboards Hot Dance Club Play chart. In 2017, BuzzFeed ranked "Beautiful Life" number 51 in their list of The 101 Greatest Dance Songs Of the '90s. Background and release The song was written on January 1, 1994 by band member Jonas Berggren while he was in the Canary Islands. At the time, "The Sign" had reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, which inspired him to write the song. On a late flight home he heard some chords, and started humming, and there the song was made. He had to record it swiftly so he wouldn't forget it. Berggren incorporated gospel elements into the song and the roof-raising gospel singing toward the end was made by a four-piece female group that Denniz Pop had. They tracked those vocals many times over for maximum soulful impact. In a 2018 interview, Ulf Ekberg told that Michael Jackson, after asking to meet the band when they performed "Beautiful Life" at World Music Awards in Monaco, told them that he thought that it was the best song that he had heard in so many years. Critical reception J.D. Considine from The Baltimore Sun described "Beautiful Life" as "techno-tinged", adding that it "tempers its impetuous pulse and seemingly happy message with a memorably sad melody." Larry Flick from Billboard deemed it a "jaunty, incredibly catchy li'l ditty that indulges in Euro-NRG dance rhythms while continuing to mine the ABBA-esque pop melodies". He stated that "even the act's detractors will find it impossible to resist the sugar-coated confection, with shoulder-shaking percussion and sing-along chorus." Steve Baltin from Cash Box called it "ridiculous", noting that "for this track, the quartet has jumped into this decade with a rocking dance beat that embodies the group's European heritage." The Daily Vault's Michael R. Smith declared it as a "high-octane techno gem". Dave Sholin