Artist Ola Magnell is dead

Artist Ola Magnell has passed away. He died in his home on Thursday morning, says his record label National for TT. National bookkeeper Ulrika Wiklund Martínez tells TT that the cause of the death is heart disease, and that the news of his passing came unexpectedly.

Magnell started acting as a troubadour already during high school. He then studied at Lund University and then went on to the University of Journalism in Gothenburg.

During the sixties, Ola Magnell began writing his own music with influences from contemporary American singer / songwriters, the sixties rock wave and the Swedish music tradition. He debuted in 1973 with the prosecution, and has since been counted on the Swedish prog movement, with political criticism constantly present in his texts.

His debut album, Påtalåtar, came in 1974. The following year he released the album New Perspective, which became a success and sold gold. During the 1970s, he became one of the biggest in a new wave of young troubadours, and, with artists like Pugh Rogefeldt and Mikael Wiehe, characterized a young generation. The musician Stefan Sundström remembers him as a quirky and brilliant songwriter.

-I think he was awesome, Sweden's Bob Dylan. He has gone his own way and that honors him. There is a need for those who resist trends and drive their own stuff, ”says Sundström to the Culture News.

- He was in the inning with Pugh Rogefeldt and the others in the 70s, but probably tired very quickly of being a pop star. He was a boxer and a farmer and did not come from the urban area. I associate him with Cornelis, it was Swedish folk music and show at the bottom of his music.

Some of Ola Magnell's most well-known songs besides Påtalåten are Kliff (1975), Escalator (1977), Tomma barrels (1981), Trasten (1983) and Bruten wing (2003). But Magnell also distinguished himself as a songwriter, and has, among other things, created songs for artists such as Siw Malmkvist and Lill Lindfors.

According to Stefan Wermelin, program manager at Swedish Radio, Ola Magnell was one of the most talented songwriters and copywriters in the 70s.

- I like those first plates very much, there are many good songs like Kliff, New Perspectives and Pappa but my favorite is the Skomakarvalsen. It's a real favorite dungeon. Ola is a favorite artist for me, which I like to listen to. There is a pleasantness in his songs that allows you to listen deeper, says Stefan Wermelin and continues:

- He was very unique and special and had his own voice.

The compilation album Attorney Songs - a tribute to Ola Magnell, came out in 2006, where artists such as Mats Ronander, Stefan Sundström, and Lars Winnerbäck interpret Magnell's music. In 2018, his book Words and No Visions was published: song lyric 1973-2013.

As late as last fall, Magnell went on tour which ended at the South Theater in Stockholm.

Ola Magnell turned 74 years old.