Issue 18 — 2013
The Reykjavík Grapevine
16
Feature | Interview
‘Tis The Season Of Björgvin Halldórsson The voice of generations — Árni Hjörvar Árnason
Baldur Kristjáns
Whether or not you’re aware of it, you’ve probably heard Björgvin Halldórsson’s voice a couple of times today if you’re in Iceland. You might even be listening to him as you read this. In the decades’ worth of music that he’s released to critical acclaim, he is still most prevalent on the radio this time of year. So much so that he must be considered the father of Christmas pop music in Iceland. But he is so much more than just the father of Christmas pop music. He’s a phenomenon. His contemporaries know the 62-year-old singer from Hafnarfjörður as Iceland’s first pop star. Never before had the nation idolized somebody like it did Björgvin in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. There were even persistent rumours that Björgvin-crazed teenagers attempted to knock out one of their front teeth to look like their idol, who had chipped his tooth in a swimming pool accident in his teens. “I couldn’t get it fixed straight away. The knock was so severe that it cracked the bone that holds the tooth,” Björgvin says when I enquire
1967
Björgvin joins his first band, Bendix.
about the validity of this story. “I obviously hated having a broken tooth, but learnt to live with it when I saw Paul McCartney sporting a chipped tooth in the music video to “Hello Goodbye.” Stories about those kids trying to knock their teeth out circulated fairly early on, but I never really got any conclusive proof. Maybe it’s just an urban myth, but isn’t there always a touch of truth in those?” For those born to the generation who were allegedly going for the chipped-tooth look in their youth, Björgvin’s voice has been an inherent part of growing up. He sent us to sleep with his children’s records, he was the voice of Stöð 2—Iceland’s “other” TV
1969
Voted Iceland's 'popstar' at the Popphátið competition.
station in the ‘90s—and the rest of his music was everywhere. Björgvin is the perpetual patriarch of pop music. Björgvin is our Elvis. He’s our Sinatra. He is our Legend.
Chipped Teeth And Popphátíð To wit, Björgvin’s Facebook page is actually called “Björgvin Halldórsson (Bo Hall) Icelandic Music Legend.” As I hesitantly enter his studio, which is above a shipping company in an industrial part of his hometown, I can’t help but feel the title is fitting. His beautiful high-end recording studio is stacked with racks of vintage guitars in their dozens and microphones that would make any audio geek weak in the knees. It also functions as a small museum, homage to his career and accomplishment. The walls are covered f loor to ceiling in gold records and various awards, countless memorabilia and pictures from his illustrious and colourful career, intermixed with massive posters featuring Dylan, The Beatles, The Stones and other greats. These are clearly the stomping grounds of a legendary pop star.
1970
Joins the Icelandic band Changes, which signs with EMI in London.
It doesn’t actually require any subjective observation to maintain that he was Iceland’s first pop star, as he was actually crowned “Pop Star” at Popphátíð, a battle of the bands contest, in 1969. To a packed audience of 4,000 people in Laugardalshöll, his band Ævintýri beat stiff competition from the likes of Trúbrot and walked away with the prize.
“'Bjössi á Mjólkurbílnum’? ‘Poppa Piccolino’! It’s a sound we’ve grown up with. Besides, the Italian language lends itself so neatly to being copied in Icelandic. They’ve got the long rhythmic syllables that Icelandic has.” “We became famous overnight and for the next couple of years and we experienced something like Beatlemania. We were once chased out of the youth centre Tónabær and had a crowd run after us down to Miklatún,
1977
Rejoins Brimkló, which goes on to release five best-selling albums over the next few years.
where we climbed the statue of Einar Ben and performed a few songs,” Björgvin recalls. “I never really intended to become a musician but after the whole Ævintýri era I’ve never really looked back. I had sort of reached a point of no return.” A point of no return indeed. In addition to fronting Ævintýri, Björgvin released his first solo record in 1969, singing a version of “Walk Away Renee,” which had previously been recorded by Left Banke and Four Tops respectively. Legendary filmmaker Hrafn Gunnlaugsson wrote the Icelandic lyrics to the song, called “Þó líði ár og öld,” and to this day remains one of the most beloved songs in Icelandic history. From there he went on to play in a series of bands: Brimkló, Change, HLH Flokkurinn, Ðe Lónlí Blú Blú Boys, Hljómar and more. “Being in a band was always the most fun,” he says, “but I realised pretty early on that bands are too volatile. There’s always somebody just about to walk out. So I couldn’t just rely on always being in a band. I needed to do something on my own. I guess I’m just built that way, I need to
1979
Joins comedy duo Halli and Laddi to form American Graffiti-inspired '50s rock band HLH Flokkurinn.