Reeperbahn

Legendary within Swedish new wave circles, Reeperbahn issued their self-titled debut album in 1979 and reached the Top Ten with the follow-up Venuspassagen two years later. Although the group proved short-lived and disbanded in 1983, its reputation grew substantially afterward once vocalists and multi-instrumentalists Olle Ljungström and Dan Sundquist each established thriving solo careers. The quartet had formed in Vaxholm in 1977, with Ljungström (born August 12, 1961, in Vaxholm) handling vocals and guitar, Sundquist (born September 10, 1958, in Stockholm) on vocals and bass, Eddie Sjöberg on guitar, and Peter Korhonen on drums. After inking a deal with Mercury Records, they debuted on wax that same year with the single “Havet Ligger Blankt” before unveiling the full-length Reeperbahn. Venuspassagen (1981) became their commercial high point by entering the Top Ten, while the subsequent releases Samlade Singlar (1982), Peep-Show (1983), and Intriger (1983) completed their studio output; of these, Peep-Show is widely viewed as their finest work thanks in part to the hit single “Marrakesh.” Following the 1983 split, Ljungström and Sundquist pursued independent paths and each achieved notable success. Ljungström first joined Heinz Liljedahl in the brief-lived duo Heinz & Young, which managed to issue the English-language album Buzzbuzzboys… (1984) on Stranded Rekords. Roughly a decade afterward he launched a solo singer-songwriter career, beginning with the self-titled Olle Ljungström on the Warner Music subsidiary Telegram Records in 1993. Later solo efforts, starting with Världens Räddaste Man (1994), frequently charted inside the Top Ten; though releases arrived intermittently, his audience remained consistently strong. Sundquist, meanwhile, had already begun producing records in 1980 and remained active in the role for decades, collecting multiple Swedish Grammys along the way while also scoring films. As a solo performer he assembled the short-lived Dan Sundquist & Prins Valiant and delivered the jazz-rock album Vaddå Jag Dyster?? (1983).