Lasse Wellander, guitarist who played ‘integral role in the ABBA story,’ dies at 70

Lasse Wellander, the musician who long served as the guitarist for iconic pop group ABBA, has died at 70.

Wellander died Friday after a cancer diagnosis, his family said Sunday. The Swedish musician played on ABBA’s major albums, toured with the globally recognized quartet in the late 1970s and was involved in their recent Grammy-nominated “Voyage” album.

“It is with indescribable sadness that we have to announce that our beloved Lasse has fallen asleep. Lasse recently fell ill in what turned out to be spread cancer and early on Good Friday he passed away, surrounded by his loved ones,” the family wrote on his official Facebook page.

He was remembered as a humble and amazing musician, as well as “a wonderful husband, father, brother, uncle and grandfather.”

“Kind, safe, caring and loving… and so much more, that cannot be described in words. A hub in our lives, and it’s unbelievable that we now have to live on without you,” they said.

Wellander teamed up with the Eurovision Song Contest 1974 winners after playing in Nature, the backing band of Swedish singer-songwriter Ted Gärdestad. Gärdestad introduced him to ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson and he joined the quartet in the late 1970s to 1980. He also appeared on Ulvaeus and Andersson’s “Chess” concept album and Agnetha Fältskog‘s solo albums after the band separated in 1982. Wellander is also credited on the soundtracks for the ABBA-musical films “Mamma Mia! The Movie” (2008) and sequel “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” (2018).

The “Dancing Queen” and “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!” hitmakers paid tribute Monday to Wellander with a statement written “in their own words” and posted on the band’s Instagram and Facebook accounts.

“Lasse was a dear friend, a fun guy and a superb guitarist,” said Fältskog, Ulvaeus, Andersson and Anni-Frid “Frida” Lyngstad. “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 humour, the smiling face, the musical brilliance of the man who played such an integral role in the ABBA story,” they added. “He will be deeply missed and never forgotten.”