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[harrybarracuda]

Lasse Wellander, guitarist for Swedish pop icons ABBA, dies at 70



Lasse Wellander, stage and studio guitarist for legendary Swedish pop combo ABBA, has died at the age of 70, the group confirmed.
Wellander passed away(opens in new tab) last Friday (April 7), after a short battle with cancer.
“Lasse was a dear friend, a fun guy and a superb guitarist," ABBA wrote in a statement posted to their social media pages today(opens in new tab) (April 10). "The importance of his creative input in the recording studio as well as his rock solid guitar work on stage was immense.
“We mourn his tragic and premature death and remember the kind words, the sense of humor, the smiling face, the musical brilliance of the man who played such an integral role in the ABBA story. He will be deeply missed and never forgotten.”
Though never an official member of the band per se, Wellander was a key part of ABBA's sonic equation from shortly after their inception through to their breakup in 1982. He later reunited with the band in the studio to play on their 2021 comeback album, Voyage.


From then on, Wellander became an integral part of the "core" of studio aces who played on ABBA's remarkable string of hit singles from the mid-'70s through to the early '80s.
Though he used a ’57 Les Paul Goldtop on some of ABBA's early hits, Wellander later moved to a ’62 Strat and, occasionally, a Gibson ES-175.
He was also able to bring a surprising amount of his tougher-edged rock side to ABBA's live performances, making the group's laboratory-like, ever-radio-friendly hits just a tad looser live.
“If you listen to the Live At Wembley Arena album, for example, it was much looser than on the records," Wellander explained to Guitar World. "Of course, we played the things that belonged to the song, but there were parts where it was much looser. It sounded rockier live than on the record, and there were some solos.”
Eagle, Wellander told Guitar World, was his favorite ABBA song to play live.
"I liked Eagle because I had a long guitar solo in that song," he said. "I enjoyed it all, actually, but I looked forward a bit more to that number. It was amazing being out on the road. We played six days at Wembley Arena, full house."

https://www.guitarworld.com/news/las...guitarist-dies

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