Hep Stars

The chances are that, had Abba never come along making Benny Andersson (and his three partners in the group) into an international pop-rock star, no one outside of Sweden would ever have heard of The Hep Stars. They were the hottest rock band of the middle-to-late '60s in Sweden, however, considered by some to be that country's answer to The Beatles. The Hep Stars also charted 20 singles in their own country and had hits in the Netherlands, as well as building a following in Germany -- and their CDs are exported around the world as a result of the Abba connection. It also turns out that they were a pretty good band, too.



Andersson's interest in the keyboard manifested itself at age six, when he got his first accordion, and he began playing with his father and grandfather. At 10 he got his first piano and started lessons, but these didn't continue, and he basically became a self-taught musician.



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