Rolf "Roffe" Wikström
Self-taught after a childhood TV glimpse of Champion Jack Dupree, Roffe Wikström fused blues structure with Swedish poetic lyricism — including sung settings of poet Nils Ferlin — across a career still active in his seventies. After a year off touring in 2025 for back problems, he released the album Ballader och Bröl in April 2026, turning 72, and returned to a smaller run of shows later that year.
Musical Influence
Wikström is one of the few artists to fuse American blues form with the Swedish literary song tradition, giving the poetry of Nils Ferlin a bluesy musical voice and helping establish a distinctly Swedish idiom within blues-rooted songwriting. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
Influences
Formative experiences
- •1961: Sees pianist Champion Jack Dupree on Swedish television, sparking his interest in blues. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
- •1970: Plays guitar in The Underground Failures. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
- •1971: Gains wider recognition in Slim's Blues Gang, led by Per "Slim" Notini. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
- •1972–1974: Member of the politically engaged Löpande bandet. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
- •1976: Forms his own backing band, Rolf Wikströms Hjärtslag. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
- •1989: "Mitt hjärta är ditt" is released and wins him the Nils Ferlin Society's Troubadour Prize. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
- •2021: Releases "Ballader och bröl." (Kilde: Wikipedia)
Instruments & Equipment
Guitar
Self-taught, initially on borrowed instruments; later owned a Fenton Veil and a Levin 325.
Vocals
Distinctive Swedish-language blues vocal style, often setting poetry to music.
Stories & Anecdotes
"Wikström's entire path into music traces back to a single 1961 Swedish TV appearance by American blues pianist Champion Jack Dupree. (Kilde: Wikipedia)"
"Unable to afford his own guitar as a young man, Wikström taught himself to play on borrowed instruments before eventually acquiring a Fenton Veil and a Levin 325. (Kilde: Wikipedia)"
"Alongside his music career, Wikström completed a full university degree in cultural geography, economics and economic history — an unusually academic parallel path for a blues songwriter. (Kilde: Wikipedia)"
Collaborators
Bandleader of Slim's Blues Gang, where Wikström first gained recognition.
His own backing band, formed 1976, vehicle for most of his solo career.
Wikström set several of Ferlin's poems to music.
Watch & Listen
Rolf Wikström — Mitt Hjärta Är Ditt
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Watch & Listen
Discography
| Year | Title | Producer | Studio | Label | Chart | Sales | Musicians | YouTube | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | Sjung Svenska Folk | — | — | — | — | — | — | Early solo album. | |
| 1989 | Mitt Hjärta Är Ditt | — | — | MNW | — | — | — | Commercially successful album drawing on Nils Ferlin's poetry; won the Nils Ferlin Society's Troubadour Prize. | |
| 1990 | Himlen Är Blå | — | — | MNW | — | — | — | Follow-up to "Mitt Hjärta Är Ditt." | |
| 1996 | ...din längtans blå anemone | — | — | — | — | — | — | Second major Nils Ferlin-influenced album. | |
| 2021 | Ballader och bröl | — | — | — | — | — | — | Late-career album, released when Wikström was 72. |
Famous songs
Booking / Contact
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