Georg “Jojje” Wadenius, the Swedish guitarist whose career took him from the stages of Stockholm to the studios of New York and everywhere in between, has died at the age of 80. His family confirmed his sudden passing on May 1, 2026, writing, “It is with great sorrow that Jennifer Gilman and I share the news of our father, Georg Wadenius’s sudden passing.” No cause of death was provided. He is survived by his daughters, Annika Wadenius Erlich and Jennifer Gilman.
Born in Stockholm on May 4, 1945, Wadenius trained at Adolf Fredrik’s Music School before becoming a founding figure in two Swedish supergroups of the early 1970s, Made in Sweden and Solar Plexus. His talent was impossible to ignore, and it wasn’t long before it carried him across the Atlantic. From 1972 to 1975, he served as lead guitarist for Blood, Sweat & Tears, one of the defining rock and jazz-fusion acts of the era, appearing on four studio albums including ‘New Blood,’ ‘No Sweat,’ ‘Mirror Image,’ and ‘New City.’
In 1979, he joined the Saturday Night Live Band, the NBC sketch show’s house band, and remained a fixture there until 1985. It was a role that put him in front of millions of viewers every week and cemented his reputation as one of the most versatile and reliable guitarists working in American music. The list of artists he went on to work with as a session player and touring musician reads like a hall of fame roll call: Steely Dan, Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross, James Brown, Marianne Faithfull, Paul Simon, Dionne Warwick, Roberta Flack, Donald Fagen, Luther Vandross, Dr. John, David Sanborn, and many more.
Alongside his international career, Wadenius maintained deep roots in Scandinavian music, producing artists including Anne Sofie von Otter and contributing to the work of countless Swedish and Norwegian performers across five decades. He also built a beloved second career as a children’s musician in Sweden, releasing albums including ‘Goda, Goda’ and ‘Puss, Puss, Sant, Sant’ with lyrics by Barbro Lindgren, earning a Swedish Grammis for the work in 1970.
He never stopped playing. Just six days before his death, Wadenius performed on stage with Swedish singer Helen Sjöholm. His most recent album, ‘Livet är mer än musik,’ was released in 2025. A career that spanned more than five decades, two continents, and virtually every genre of popular music, Wadenius leaves behind a body of work that will outlast any headline.