Björgvin Halldórsson

Björgvin Halldórsson was born on April 16th 1951. He started singing with the band Bendix and the moment he first appeared on stage singing Penny Lane, he kick started one of the most brilliant careers in Icelandic pop music history. He soon formed the band Ævintýri (Fairytale) with Sigurjón Sighvatsson(Joni Sighvatsson)and Arnar Sigurbjörnsson. He fulfilled his dream of becoming a "Pop Idol" with that band, when they performed in the Laugardalshöll arena for 4300 people who then voted him pop superstar of the year on October 1st 1969. Ævintýri wanted to release an album but the label thought a solo album with Björgvin would be more profitable. The album was released late in 1970 and sold well. The guys from Ævintýri formed a new band called Brimkló, but Björgvin soon left because of musical differences. He joined the band Change for a short time and then left to join the band Hljómar which was reuniting. They released the album Hljómar 74 in 1974 but it wasn´t a commercial success so the band dissolved. Instead they formed the band Ðe lónlí blú boys which became extremely popular and released many fun-filled albums. Björgvin worked with Gunnar Þórðarsson on two albums of children ballads called "Einu sinni var"(Once upon Time) which was released in 1976 and is still on of the best selling albums in Icelandic history and Út um græna grundu a year later. In 1976 Brimkló was revived and became a hit with their first LP. In 1978 Björgvin released his second solo album, Ég syng fyrir þig (I Sing For You) which is one of his most popular albums. In 1979 Björgvin put on his leather jacket and rock´n rolled with comedic brother-duo Halli og Laddi in the band HLH. They released a few albums through the years and were always hugely popular. In 1980 Björgvin released the album Dagar og Nætur (Days and Nights) with singer Ragnhildur Gísladóttir which became very popular despite the great punk revolution that was finding its way to Iceland at the time. In 1982 his third solo album Á hverju kvöldi (Every Night) was released. In 1986 he released the album Björgvin which contains a few of his most popular songs, e.g. Ég lifi í Draumi by Eyjólfur Kristjánsson and Ástin by Valgeir Guðjónsson. A year later his first Christmas album of three, where Björgvin sings with known Icelandic singers, was released. The other two albums Allir fá þá eitthvað fallegt and Jólagestir 3 were released in 1989 and 1995. In 1993 Björgvin released the album Kom Heim (Come Home). The songs Gullvagninn and Milljón glappaskotin became instant hits and Björgvin was one of the first artists to make gospel music popular in Iceland. Later he produced two other gospel albums "Hærra til þín" in 1995 and "Alla leið heim" in 1997. Many of his songs have been collected on various compilation albums. In 2001 Björgvin released a new solo album and surprised people with his renditions of two songs by Icelandic artist Megas. Björgvin has also worked as a producer and musical director. His voice can be heard on more than 500 recordings in Icelandic music history and he has taken part in many song contests both in Iceland and abroad. In 2003 Björgvin released an album where he sang duets with many of most popular local younger singers. In 2005 Bjorgvin released a triple CD box, containing 70 of his most popular songs, along with 4 new recordings. Bjorgvin has recorded around 900 songs in his successful career. This Compilation Box was a best seller before chrismas and sold around 13.000 units in Iceland and is still going strong. To celebrate Bjorgvins 35 years in the recording business he staged a show at the prestigious "Club Broadway" in Reykjavik. The show premiered in October and is still running to a sold out show. A 9 piece band with 2 actors and 4 dancers take you through Bjorgvin´s songs through the years in a 2 hours show. And in September 2006 some 37 years later Bjorgvin was back in the city sports arena, with a 3 sold out concerts, and at that same venue (Laugardalshöll) where he proofed again who was still the best Pop & Rock singer in town. Along with the Icelandic Symphony Orchestra , The Male Choir Fostbrædur, rock band and some of the most popular singers in the nation. The show has now been released on a a double DVD/CD and are receiving rave reviews and are available in all records stores in Iceland, as well on the internet at www.tonlist.is or wwww.tonlist.com. These concerts were released in November in a 2 CD box. One DVD and a CD. This box was at the top of the charts in Iceland during Christmas and was the seasons best seller. The concerts were also aired on New Years day on Channel 2 in Iceland. His next project are various and exiting projects. He will be in the studio for the winter of 2007 producing albums. Among the projects that Bo will be working on on is a tribute album to the country legend Hank Williams. Bo is working on having many of the top Icelandic artists to take part in this project. Also in the pipeline is the 7th "Songs of Iceland" album that contains many of the best Icelandic songs from way back when. Bo is also writing material for a new solo album. Release date is not confirmed. Further informations can be viewed at the following sites http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Björgvin_Halldórsson http://www.tonlist.com/ViewArtist.aspx?AuthorID=2611 http://www.bo.is Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.