Lasse Wellander: Abba pay tribute to guitarist's 'musical brilliance'

Abba person paid tribute to long-serving guitarist Lasse Wellander, saying his "musical brilliance" played "an integral relation successful the Abba story".

Wellander archetypal worked with the Swedish quartet arsenic a league instrumentalist connected their self-titled 1975 medium and became the main guitarist connected their consequent LPs.

He tin beryllium heard connected hits specified arsenic Knowing Me, Knowing You, Thank You for the Music and The Winner Takes It All.

"Lasse was a beloved friend, a amusive feline and a superb guitarist," Abba said.

He died connected Friday astatine the property of 70.

"The value of his originative input successful the signaling workplace arsenic good arsenic his stone coagulated guitar enactment connected signifier was immense," the radical continued successful a statement.

"We mourn his tragic and premature decease and retrieve the benignant words, the consciousness of humour, the smiling face, the philharmonic brilliance of the antheral who played specified an integral relation successful the Abba story.

"He volition beryllium profoundly missed and ne'er forgotten."

Speaking to Guitarist mag successful 2021, Wellander said Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson wrote immoderate guitar lines, but others were the effect of "a batch of jamming and spreading of ideas and uncovering retired things", adding: "I was capable to bring my ain sounds [to recordings]."

Wellander besides performed unrecorded with the legendary radical betwixt 1975 and 1980, worked with Björn and Benny connected their 1984 medium Chess and played connected the soundtracks for the 2008 Mamma Mia movie and its 2018 sequel.

He appeared connected 2 of Agnetha Fältskog's solo albums and reunited with the radical to play connected their 2021 comeback medium Voyage.

"I played with galore antithetic groups and artists, but moving with Abba was of people ever a spot special," he told the Sunday Express earlier the medium was released. "It is simply a existent honour and a privilege for maine to beryllium progressive with them again."

As a guitarist oregon producer, helium was credited connected much than 6,300 songs successful full by galore artists and released respective solo albums.

His household said successful a connection connected Facebook: "You were an astonishing instrumentalist and humble arsenic few, but supra each you were a fantastic husband, father, brother, uncle and grandfather.

"Kind, safe, caring and loving... and truthful overmuch more, that cannot beryllium described successful words."