Errol Leonard Norstedt (17 June 1948–17 January 2002), better known by his

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

Eddie Meduza, was a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

composer and musician working mainly in the

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...

genre.

Music career

Themes and behaviour

Many of Meduza's songs are about alcohol, women, and cars, often with

obscene An obscenity is any utterance or act that strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time. It is derived from the Latin ''obscēnus'', ''obscaenus'', "boding ill; disgusting; indecent", of uncertain etymology. Such loaded language can be use ...

lyrics. Some songs are politically oriented, with many aimed against the various

Swedish government The Government of the Kingdom of Sweden ( sv, Konungariket Sveriges regering) is the national cabinet of Sweden, and the country's executive authority. The Government consists of the Prime Ministerappointed and dismissed by the Speaker of the R ...

s in power during his musical career. One of Meduza's personas was the vulgar E. Hitler.Stefan Johansson's interview with Meduza, Okej 22/1984 In this guise he generally recorded more offbeat recordings like "E.Hitler skiter" (a recording of his own bowel movements) and sexually explicit material. The E. Hitler recordings were only available on tape by

mail order Mail order is the buying of goods or services by mail delivery. The buyer places an order for the desired products with the merchant through some remote methods such as: * Sending an order form in the mail * Placing a telephone call * Placing a ...

directly from Meduza. On tour, he urged his audience to drink vodka to become as drunk as he was during his performances, to the tune of his "Mera brännvin" ("More booze"). Meduza also recorded serious

songs with a distinct 1950s flavour in his own studio, called Studio Ronka (from '' runka'', Swedish for

male masturbation Masturbation is the sexual stimulation of one's own Sex organ, genitals for sexual arousal or other sexual pleasure, usually to the point of orgasm. The stimulation may involve hands, fingers, everyday objects, sex toys such as vibrator (sex t ...

similar to English ''wank''). He played most of the instruments himself. He often got bad reviews from the press, notably from ''

Expressen ''Expressen'' (''The Express'') is one of two nationwide evening newspapers in Sweden, the other being '' Aftonbladet''. ''Expressen'' was founded in 1944; its symbol is a wasp and its slogans are "it stings" or "''Expressen'' to your rescue". ...

'' journalist Mats Olsson, to which Meduza replied by writing songs such as "Kuken står på Mats Olsson" ("Mats Olsson has a hard-on"), "Mats Olsson är en jävla bög" ("Mats Olsson is a damn fag") and "Mats Olsson runkar kuken" ("Mats Olsson wanks his cock"). He reportedly said that no matter what he did it was never good enough for the critics. Meduza is also remembered for the first recorded appearance of future

hair metal Hair is a protein filament that grows from hair follicle, follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick ter ...

guitarist

John Norum John Norum (born 23 February 1964) is a Norwegian-Swedish guitarist and one of the founders of the rock band Europe. Concurrent to his role with Europe, he also maintains a career as a solo artist. Biography As an infant, Norum moved with his p ...

(

Dokken Dokken is an American glam metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1978. It split up in 1989 and reformed four years later. The band had several hit singles which charted on the Billboard Hot 100, such as " Alone Again", " In My Dreams", and " Burn ...

UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

), who played on two of his albums.

Albums

Errol Norstedts' first album was ''Errol'', released in 1975 under his real name. This album consists mostly of

dansband (; "dance band"), or in Norwegian and Danish, is a Swedish term for a band that plays ("dance band music"). ' is often danced to in pairs. Jitterbug and foxtrot music are often included in this category. The music is primarily inspired by ...

music, but also includes a humorous song called "Snus-kig Blues" about

snus Snus ( , ) is a tobacco product, originating from a variant of dry snuff in early 18th-century Sweden. It is placed between the upper lip and gum for extended periods, as a form of sublabial administration. Snus is not fermented. Although used s ...

. He began calling himself Eddie Meduza in 1978 with the release of the single "Punkjävlar" ("Punk bastards"). His first album as Eddie Meduza was released in 1979, called ''Eddie Meduza & Roarin' Cadillacs'', mostly consisting of

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

and ballads in English. In 1980, Meduza released his next album, ''Garagetaper'', with a front cover a parody of the cover for

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by wikt:nonconformity, nonconformity, Free improvisation, free-form improvisation, sound experimen ...

's 1979 album ''

Joe's Garage ''Joe's Garage'' is a three-part rock opera recorded by American musician Frank Zappa in September and November 1979. Originally released as two separate studio albums on Zappa Records, the project was later remastered and reissued as a triple a ...

''. Meduza's breakthrough came in 1981 with the album ''Gasen I Botten'', which includes some of his more well-known songs like "Mera Brännvin" and "Volvo".

Alcoholism and death

According to Meduza, he developed alcoholism in the early 1980s during periods of intense touring. In 1981, he was convicted of drink-driving and spent one month in prison. Nevertheless, he continued drinking heavily, and a year after his release, he suffered a nervous breakdown. In 1993 he collapsed on his way to perform at a concert and was diagnosed with

ventricular hypertrophy Ventricular hypertrophy (VH) is thickening of the walls of a ventricle (lower chamber) of the heart. Although left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) is more common, right ventricular hypertrophy (RVH), as well as concurrent hypertrophy of both ventri ...

(enlarged heart). He was warned by doctors that he would die if he drank again, and initially made major changes to his lifestyle, stopped drinking and started working out. However, in the late 1990s, suffering a worsening depression, he started drinking heavily again, and this caused his health to deteriorate further. On 17 January 2002, Meduza died of a heart attack at his home in

Småland Småland () is a historical province () in southern Sweden. Småland borders Blekinge, Scania, Halland, Västergötland, Östergötland and the island Öland in the Baltic Sea. The name Småland literally means ''Small Lands''. The Latinized fo ...

in southern Sweden, aged 53. He was cremated and his ashes scattered, in the summer of 2003, outside Rossö in Kosterfjorden,

Bohuslän Bohuslän (; da, Bohuslen; no, Båhuslen) is a Swedish province in Götaland, on the northernmost part of the country's west coast. It is bordered by Dalsland to the northeast, Västergötland to the southeast, the Skagerrak arm of the North Sea ...

. He is survived by his wife and children.

Popularity in Mexico

Meduza's song "Reaktorn läck i Barsebäck" ("The reactor leaking in

Barsebäck Barsebäck () is a locality situated in Kävlinge Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 524 inhabitants in 2010. It lies about 4 km east of the harbour village Barsebäckshamn. It is known for the now closed Barsebäck Nuclear Power Plant ...

") from the 1980 album ''Garagetaper'' has become popular in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, under the title "Himno a la banda".

Discography

Albums

* 1975 – Errol * 1979 – Eddie Meduza & Roarin' Cadillacs * 1980 – Garagetaper * 1981 – Gasen I Botten * 1982 – För Jævle Braa! * 1982 – 21 Värsta!!! * 1983 – Dåren É Lös * 1984 – West a Fool Away * 1985 – Ain't Got No Cadillac * 1986 – Collection (2 LP) * 1989 – Dom Dåraktigaste Dumheterna Digitalt (Röven 1) * 1989 – Dom Dåraktigaste Dumheterna Digitalt (Röven 2) * 1990 – På Begäran * 1990 – You Ain't My Friend * 1991 – Collection (CD) * 1995 – Harley Davidson * 1997 – Silver Wheels * 1998 – Värsting Hits * 1998 – Eddie Meduzas Bästa * 1999 – Väg 13 * 1999 – Dance Mix * 1999 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 1 * 1999 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 2 * 1999 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 3 * 2000 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 4 * 2000 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 5 * 2000 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 6 * 2001 – Scoop * 2001 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 7 * 2001 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 8 * 2001 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 9 * 2002 – Just Like An Eagle * 2002 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 10 * 2002 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 11 * 2002 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 12 * 2003 – Live(s)! CD+DVD * 2003 – 100% Eddie Meduza * 2003 – Live(s)! CD * 2004 – Rock'n Rebel * 2005 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 13 * 2005 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 14 * 2005 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 15 * 2005 – Alla Tiders Fyllekalas Vol. 16 * 2005 – Raggare * 2006 – Dragspelsrock * 2006 – Dubbelidioterna * 2010 – Rockabilly Rebel * 2014 – En Jävla Massa Hits * 2014 – Jag Och Min Far (with Anders Norstedt) * 2016 – The Lost Tape

Cassettes

* 1976 – E. Hitler & Luftwaffe: Mannen Utan Hjärna * 1977 – E. Hilter & Luftkaffe Nr. 1 * 1977 – E. Hitler & Luftwaffe Nr. 2 * 1979 – E. Hitler & Luftwaffe Nr. 3 Del 1 * 1979 – E. Hitler & Luftwaffe Nr. 3 Del 2 * 1980 – Greatest Hits * 1983 – Greatest Hits I * 1983 – Greatest Hits II * 1983 – Dubbelidioterna * 1984 – Eddie Meduza Presenterar Lester C. Garreth * 1985 – Hej Hitler! * 1985 – Legal Bootleg (cassette box consisting of "Första Försöken", "Fortsättning Följer", "Mera Material", "Svensktoppsrulle", "Fräckisar" and "Bonnatwist") * 1986 – Raggare * 1986 – Collection Del 1 * 1986 – Collection Del 2 * 1987 – Greatest Hits * 1987 – Jag Blir Aldrig Riktigt Vuxen, Jag! * 1987 – E. Hitler På Dansrotundan * 1987 – Börje Lundins Julafton * 1988 – Radio Ronka 1 * 1988 – Börje Lundins Kräftkalas * 1988 – Dårarnas Julafton * 1989 – Idiotlåtar * 1989 – Dårarnas Midsommarafton * 1990 – Radio Ronka 2 * 1993 – Jubelidioterna * 1994 – Eddies Garderob * 1994 – Kräftkalas Två * 1995 – Hjärndelirium 2000 * 1996 – Radio Abonnerad * 1996 – Rockligan * 1996 – Rätt Sorts Råckenråll * 1996 – Scanaway * 1996 – God Jul Era Rövhål * 1997 – Di Värsta Pärvärsta Scetcherna * 1997 – Di Värsta Pärvärsta Låtarna * 1997 – Göran Persson Är En Galt * 1998 – Compendia Ultima (cassette box, consisting of 11 collection cassettes)

Singles

* 1975 – Tretton År / Här Hemma * 1978 – Punkjävlar / Oh What A Cadillac * 1979 – Yea Yea Yea / Honey B * 1979 – Såssialdemokraterna / Norwegian Boogie / Roll Over Beethoven * 1981 – Volvo / 34:an * 1981 – Gasen I Botten / Mera Brännvin * 1982 – Han Eller Jag, Vem Ska Du Ha / Tonight * 1982 – Jätteparty I Kväll / Tonight * 1982 – Sverige / Stupid Cupid * 1983 – Fruntimmer Ska En Ha... * 1983 – Fruntimmer Ska En Ha... / Han Eller Jag, Vem Ska Du Ha? * 1983 – Jag Vill Ha En Brud Med Stora Bröst / Leader of the Rockers * 1983 – Jag Vill Ha En Brud Med Stora Pattar / Leader of the Rockers * 1984 – Sveriges Kompani (Militärpolka) / Dunder Å Snus * 1984 – Punkar'n Å Raggar'n / Hej På Dig Evert * 1984 – Fisdisco / California Sun * 1985 – The Wanderer / It's All Over Now * 1988 – Småländsk Sommarnatt / Birds And Bees * 1990 – Sweet Linda Boogie / Heart Don't Be A Fool * 2015 – Julesång / Ute På Vischan * 2016 – Midsommarnatt / Mera Brännvin

External links

Official Web page

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meduza, Eddie 1948 births 2002 deaths Singers from Gothenburg Swedish songwriters Swedish rockabilly musicians Alcohol-related deaths in Sweden

Music career

Themes and behaviour

Albums

Alcoholism and death

Popularity in Mexico

Discography

Albums

Cassettes

Singles

See also

External links

References