ABBA guitarist Lasse Wellander dies aged 70 as family and fans pay tribute

dailyrecord.co.uk:

ABBA guitarist Lasse Wellander has died at the age of 70 after a cancer diagnosis, his family has confirmed.His family posted a statement on Facebook that read: "It is with indescribable sadness that we have to announce that our beloved Lasse has fallen asleep."Lasse recently fell ill with what turned out to be cancer that had spread, and early on Good Friday he passed away surrounded by his loved ones."The statement continued: "You were a fantastic musician and humble like few, but above all, you were a wonderful husband, brother, grandmother, and grandfather."As reported by the Mirror, Lasse played on a total of 24 of the band's studio recordings, including all of their eight studio albums.He was a mainstay on their final tour between 1979 and 1980, which saw the band play their hit tunes to sold-out audiences across the globe.The guitarist joined Peps & Blues Quality alongside Peps Persson when he was 16 years old and his career didn't end when ABBA quit the first time around.He played alongside a number of other bands and artists from Sweden and even released a self-titled debut album in 1981.Lasse also worked as a composer for a number of film and television tunes, including the score for the 1992 Swedish film Änglagård.He was honoured with a prestigious Swedish Royal Medal called the Litteris et Artibus in 2010 and was entered into the Swedish Music Hall of Fame in 2014 alongside other members of ABBA.Fans have taken to social media to share their messages of condolence following the announcement.A user on Twitter wrote: "Lasse passed away on Good Friday with cancer.

We would like to send our condolences to Lasse’s family and close friends. Thank you Lasse, for sharing your talent to the world."Another penned: