Jukka Tolonen

Biography

Helsinki guitarist who co-founded *Tasavallan Presidentti* in 1969 and played in *Wigwam*, the two defining bands of Finnish progressive rock. His solo albums, beginning with 'Tolonen!' (1971), made him a European jazz-rock figurehead, prized for a fluid, vocal guitar style. After personal troubles and a prison term in the 2000s he returned to performing, including gospel-tinged projects, and remains a reference point for Nordic guitarists.