Swedish representative at the 1963 Eurovision Song Contest, Monica Zetterlund died yesterday in Stockholm, aged 67. Zetterlund suffered from a disease and was therefore unable to escape a fire in her apartment. Today Sweden is mourning over a great artist.
Monica Zetterlund's Eurovision Song Contest entry En gång i Stockholm (Once upon a time in Stockholm) is the only Swedish song that ever scored zero points in the history of the contest. Back in 1963 the choice wasn't popular in Sweden either. It was widely claimed that the wrong entry won the Swedish selections that year. Nevertheless, Zetterlund's career didn't end with her failure at the Eurovision Song Contest.
Monica Zetterlund's career in jazzmusic started already at the end of the 50's. She performed in clubs in New York, London, Paris, and Copenhagen. Her impressive voice gave her a reputation. She got the opportunity to sing together with jazz giants such as Zoot Sims, Mel Lewis, Harry Belafonte, Bill Evans and Louis Armstrong.
Monica Zetterlund also had a career as an actress in many of the most popular and beloved Swedish films ever made. Over the years she became a much loved performer in Sweden and had a special ability to attract both young and old people with her music.
Monica suffered from a disease affecting her backbones, which finally made it very painful for her to stand on a stage and sing. In 2000 she performed for the last time and then withdrew from public life. Her disease made it impossible for her to rescue herself from the fire that broke out in her apartment yesterday.
Today Sweden is mourning over one of its greatest artists. Monica Zetterlund gave people a lot of joy and happiness and offered the country two songs about its beloved capital, Stockholm: her most famous song Sakta vi gå genom stan and her Eurovision Song Contest entry En gång i Stockholm, a song that has found a place in the hearts of the Swedish people.
