Veteran guitarist for the Swedish pop band Abba, Lasse Wellander, died Friday at age 70 in his sleep, surrounded by loved ones, the family reported on Sunday on their official Facebook profile.
“Lasse recently fell ill in what turned out to be a cancer and passed away early on Good Friday, surrounded by loved ones,” the family said in a brief statement, adding that he was an “incredible and humble” musician.
The Swedish guitarist, in addition to accompanying ABBA on several albums and tours during the 1970s and contributing to the soundtrack of the film ‘Mamma Mia’, played with other well-known national artists, such as Pugh Rogefeldt, DPA has reported.
Wellander He was part of Nature in his early professional years, a band that backed Ted Gardestad, who would introduce him to two of the members of ABBA: composer Bjorn Ulvaeus and producer Benny Andersson.