Kal P. Dal

Kal P. Dal had a brief period of fame in the late '70s with his mix of '50s rock & roll and garage rock. His first records sold very well, but in the '80s sales dropped low, and after his death in 1985 he soon vanished from the music stores and the public mind. In the small town of Arlöv, Sweden, Karl Ljunggren worked at a youth center and played rock & roll with the kids. When there were concerts at Akademiska Föreningen in nearby Lund, he played sets in between the bigger acts and that way got to know a number of local artists, among them Peps Persson. It was also Persson who convinced Sonet to record an album with Ljunggren a few years later. The only problem was that there was no band, but in a week Ljunggren had formed Kal P. Dal Och Pågarna together with guitarists Mårten Micro and Janne Knuda, bassist Jo-Jo Kamp, and drummer Bronco Nyman. Two sets in the studio, totalling only five hours, resulted in Till Mossan, which was released in 1977. The producer was Peps Persson. The album was a big success and the coming year saw heavy touring from Kal P. Dal. This did not leave much time for writing and recording new material, so Gräd Ente, Fassan consisted partly of leftovers from the debut. In 1979 hard rock had become the main inspirational source for the band instead of rock & roll, and Rock e' Nock was released with Cagan and Camelen, replacing the former guitarists. The album was a commercial failure, and after Svarta Fåret in 1980, Kal P. Dal did not make much noise outside the province of Skåne but was still a local star. He worked as a DJ at a local radio station, appeared in the film Barnförbjudet, and released Ente Nu Igen in 1982. In 1985 Kal P. Dal was struck with cerebral hemorrhage and died after a few days in a hospital, only 36 years old. While being one of the better live acts of the time, he relied very much on covers and played in a somewhat antiquated style. At the time of his death he had already passed out of the spotlight, and a few years saw his memory fade even more. In the '90s, all that seemed to remain of his legacy was Bob Hund mentioning him as an influence and citing him at their concerts. ~ Lars Lovén