The Hootenanny Singers were a Swedish singing and music group from Västervik, founded in 1961. The band included Björn Ulvaeus, who later joined ABBA, along with Johan Karlberg, Tonny Rooth, and Hansi Schwarz. Their debut on the Swedish TV program Hylands Hörna in 1964 featured the song "Jag väntar vid min mila" (1964). The group's early hit was "Gabrielle" (1964), based on the Russian song "May There Always Be Sunshine" by Arkady Ostrovsky. They released numerous albums, including Hootenanny Singers in 1964 and Civila in 1967. Their biggest hit was "Omkring tiggarn från Luossa" (1972), which spent 52 weeks on the Svensktoppen chart between November 1972 and November 1973. The band's extensive touring of Swedish outdoor concert venues brought them fame, with numerous hit singles on the Svensktoppen chart. The band disbanded in 1974 but returned in 1974 before disbanding again in 1982. Karlberg passed away in 1992, followed by Schwarz in 2013.
