Happy Nation is the debut studio album by Swedish pop group Ace of Base. It was initially released in Denmark on 2 November 1992 by Mega Records. During development of the record, the group was heavily influenced by a Jamaican reggae band residing in a nearby studio. For a release in North America, Japan and some Latin American countries, the album was retitled The Sign with a heavily revised track listing and three new tracks. To coincide with this, Happy Nation was reissued with the new tracks in other territories as Happy Nation (U.S. Version). In 1995, Guinness Book of World Records named the LP the best-selling debut studio effort in music history, at more than 19 million copies sold worldwide. By 1998, Happy Nation/The Sign had sold approximately 21 million units including 9 million in the US alone. Happy Nation/The Sign is one of the best-selling albums of all time.