Per Allan Magnus Claësson Uggla (pronounced [pæːr ˈalːan ˈmaŋnɵs ˈklɑːsɔn ˈɵɡːla]; born June 18, 1954 in Stockholm) is a Swedish artist, composer, actor, and occasional radio host known for his satirical lyrics. He is a member of the Swedish nobility and a descendant of several European rulers, among which John III of Sweden and Gustav Vasa. Through his mother, he also has Jewish ancestors.
Uggla was the lead singer of the hard rock band JUSO (later renamed Alexander Lucas) before going solo in the early 70's. Their influences were Black Sabbath, The Groundhogs and Alice Cooper among others. Uggla's first two glam- and art rock-inspired albums Om Bobbo Viking and Livets teater didn't sell well, the first only about 500 copies in Sweden and Livets teater even less. But his departure from glam rock with the punk and hard rock inspired Va ska man ta livet av sig för när man ändå inte får höra snacket efteråt gained him much popularity and the album sold about 150 000 copies. In the 1970s, several music magazines gave Magnus the name "The Swedish Ian Hunter". In 1979, he was one of the members in Magnus Uggla Band.
Povel Ramel awarded him the Karamelodiktstipendiet in 1991.
Magnus Uggla participated to the fourth semifinal of Melodifestivalen 2007 with the song "För kung och fosterland", competing for the opportunity to represent Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest in Helsinki, Finland. On February 24, 2007 Magnus Uggla performed his song, and advanced to the Second Chance round the following Saturday, where he lost to Sonja Aldén in the last round of voting. Earlier that week, he had received complaints about the lyrics of the song which contains a line that could be interpreted as degrading to Polish people, but the Swedish Chancellor of Justice decided not to try this as a violation of the hate speech act.[1]
Uggla's solo influences includes Karl Gerhard, David Bowie, The Clash, Marc Bolan, Wendy Carlos and Mott the Hoople. In an interview with Aftonbladet, he cited The Clash as the greatest band in the world.
Discography
Magnus Uggla has recorded 16 studio albums: 1975: Om Bobbo Viking 1976: Livets teater 1977: Va ska man ta livet av sig för när man ändå inte får höra snacket efteråt 1978: Vittring 1980: Den ljusnande framtid är vår 1983: Välkommen till folkhemmet 1986: Den döende dandyn 1987: Allting som ni gör kan jag göra bättre 1989: 35-åringen 1993: Alla får påsar 1997: Karaoke 2000: Där jag är e're alltid bäst 2004: Den tatuerade generationen 2006: Ett bedårande barn av sin tid 2007: Pärlor åt svinen 2010: Karl Gerhard passerar i revy
He has also released five collections: 1985: Retrospektivt collage 1985: Collection (only released in Finland) 1994: 100% Uggla - Absolut inget annat 2002: Klassiska mästerverk 2008: Magnus Uggla 1975-2008
There is also one official live album on the market: 1981: Godkänd pirat – Live
And finally there is one "stand-alone" maxi-EP: 1979: Magnus Uggla band sjunger schlagers International singles
Singles released in France, Spain, United Kingdom and Germany. 1979: Everything You Do/Concrete Kid 1981: Ain't About To Go Back/Scandal Beauties 1981: Body Love/The Other Side (also released in Sweden) International covers
Magnus Uggla has recorded several covers. These are the international ones, for which Uggla wrote new Swedish lyrics: The Rolling Stones' "Star Star" became Uggla's "Stjärn…r" (or actually "Stjärnluder") The Crystals' "Then He Kissed Me" became Uggla's "Å, han kysste mej" Nick Gilder's "Metro Jets" became Uggla's "Centrumhets" Bruce Woolley's "Blue Blue (Victoria)" became Uggla's "IQ" Nick Gilder's "Worlds Collide" became Uggla's "Herr servitör"
Recorded with original lyrics: David Bowie's "Rebel Rebel" Steppenwolf's "Born to Be Wild" Ramones' "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker" Swedish covers
Uggla has covered the following Swedish songs by other artists on officially released studio records (the artists mentioned are those who first recorded the songs, not the songwriters/composers): "Jazzgossen" by Karl Gerhard "Leva livet" by Lill-Babs (originally "It's My Party" by Leslie Gore) "Ring ring" (Swedish version) by ABBA "Mälarö kyrka" by Sven Lindahl "Livet är en fest" by Nationalteatern "Påtalåten" by Ola Magnell "Vem kan man lita på?" by Hoola Bandoola Band "Häng med på party" by Ulf Neidemar "I natt är jag din" by Tomas Ledin "Hög standard" by Peps Persson "Vi måste höja våra röster" by Margareta Garpe, Suzanne Osten and Gunnar Edander (since nobody seems to know exactly who recorded it first, these are the composers and songwriters) "Tusen systrar" by Jösses Flickor "In kommer Gösta" by Philemon Arthur & the Dung "Speedy Gonzales" by Nationalteatern "Hog farm" by Pugh Rogefeldt "Ska vi gå hem till dig" by Lasse Tennander Ett bedårande barn av sin tid
