ABBA’s ‘superb guitarist’ Lasse Wellander dies
The guitarist for Swedish pop group ABBA has died.
Lasse Wellander was 70, Entertainment Tonight reported.
Wellander’s family announced the musician’s death on Facebook, saying he died on Friday after a battle with cancer.
Wellander joined ABBA — which was made up of Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Agnetha Fältskog — in the mid-’70s and played on several of the group’s most well-known songs, including “Voulez Vous,” “Take a Chance on Me” and “Knowing Me, Knowing You,” Sky News reported.
When ABBA broke up, Wellander continued working with Andersson and Ulvaeus, CNN reported.
He also worked on the soundtrack for the film version of the Broadway musical “Mamma Mia!” and “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.”
ABBA released a statement on Wellander’s death, calling him a “dear friend, a fun guy and a superb guitarist,” according to CNN.
“We mourn his tragic and premature death and remember the kind words, the sense of humour, 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,” ABBA said.
Wellander also played with several bands throughout the ‘80s, including Low Budget Blues Band, Zkiffz, Little Mike and The Sweet Soul Music Band and Stockholm All Stars, CNN reported.
The guitarist also embarked on a solo career, releasing several studio albums, according to his official biography.
3rd April 1974: Swedish pop stars (clockwise, from bottom left), Benny Andersson, Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Agnetha Faltskog and Bjorn Ulvaeus of ABBA at Brighton. (Photo by Steve Wood/Express/Getty Images)
6th April 1974: Swedish pop stars (from left), Bjorn Ulvaeus, Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Agnetha Faltskog of ABBA playing live on stage. (Photo by Reg Burkett/Express/Getty Images)
Swedish pop group ABBA win the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest at the Dome in Brighton, with their song ‘Waterloo’, UK, 6th April 1974. From left to right, the band are Benny Andersson, Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Agnetha Fältskog and Björn Ulvaeus. (Photo by Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
circa 1974: Swedish pop group Abba arriving at London Airport. (Photo by Evening Standard/Getty Images)
Swedish pop group Abba promote their single ‘Waterloo’ in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1974. (L-R) Björn Ulvaeus (Bjorn Ulvaeus), Agnetha Fältskog (Agnetha Faltskog), Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Benny Andersson. (Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Swedish songwriter and musician Björn Ulvaeus and Norwegian-Swedish singer, songwriter, and environmentalist Anni-Frid Lyngstad of pop group ABBA performs on stage at the Royal Albert Hall, London, UK, 15th February 1977. (Photo by Frank Tewkesbury/Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Singers Agnetha Fältskog (left) and Anni-Frid Lyngstad performing with Swedish pop group Abba on their third, and final, tour, 1979. (Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad and pianist Benny Andersson performing with Swedish pop group Abba on their third, and final, tour, 1979. (Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Swedish singer Agnetha Fältskog in concert with the pop group ABBA, 1979. (Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
LONDON – APRIL 6: Freda Lyngstad of ABBA arrives at the fifth anniversary performance of "Mamma Mia!," a musical based on ABBA’s hits at the Prince of Wales Theatre on April 6, 2004 in London, England. (Photo by David Westing/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS – FEBRUARY 13: Former ABBA singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad attends the premiere of "Mama Mia!" February 13, 2003 at the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Scott Harrison/Getty Images)
NEW YORK – JULY 16: Executive Producer/ABBA founding member Bjorn Ulvaeus (R) and his wife Lena Kallersjo attends the American premiere of "Mamma Mia!" at the Ziegfeld Theatre on July 16, 2008 in New York City. (Photo by Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images)
LONDON – JANUARY 26: Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Bjorn Ulvaeus of Abba arrive at the ABBAWORLD Exhibition World Premiere at Earls Court on January 26, 2010 in London, England. (Photo by Samir Hussein/Getty Images)
