80 years old: No other band has performed in Finland as long as Erno Lindahl’s band: “The number of former players has died as many bands”

Aidan an Old English sheepdog barking in the back is a sure sign that the musician Erno Lindahl home has been found. Lindahl will soon be known as the leader of the band Ernos, which has been active for six decades, but also for his hobby with the long-haired dog breed, which has continued almost as long.

There are three old English sheep dogs at home. There used to be seven of them, but a few older individuals have left for happier pastures.

“In 1971, I was playing table tennis in Ruskeasu, and a stylish man was riding there, who tied his old English sheepdog to a pole for a while. It seemed nice and cool, and I wondered what it was,” Lindahl recalls.

At that time, the breed was not seen much in Finland. Soon, a newspaper ad about a litter for sale caught my eye.

“When I went to see, one puppy was standing on two legs and holding onto my leg the whole time. It became my first dog.”

Lindahlilla has had his own kennel since the beginning of the 1980s, and he still tours European dog shows with his wife. Neither of them present the dog themselves in the ring anymore, because they have to run with it, but they monitor the situation from the side of the ring.

“The nails get shorter there, even though there is no tension with the dog in the ring. If you want show success, you have to go abroad, because not all judges in Finland really understand the breed. They think it’s just a pile of hair.”

Lindahl is always happy to go to Central Europe with her dogs.

“At the borders, I have only experienced goodwill when these people are with me. Back in the day, the border guards had assault rifles, but when they saw our dogs, they just laughed. Now there’s a check at the English border, but we’ve only been told ‘oh oh, just go’, and the next car might have been completely emptied.”

Yet Lindahl has been working with music even longer than dogs. In the fall of 1965, he founded the pop group Ernos, which soon became one of the most popular in Finland.

Ernos was one of the first guitar bands in the country to make their own songs. The melodies and words came mainly from Lindahl, who had studied classical music. Some translated songs were also recorded, for example by the Beach Boys Good Vibrations.

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“A lot of drummers and guitarists have gone, the singers have stayed alive the most.”

“The Ernos band will be 60 years old next year. We are the only band in Finland that has performed for so long and never taken a break. The composition has changed quite a lot,” says Lindahl.

“I’ve had former musicians die in the amount of many ensembles. A lot of drummers and guitarists have gone, the singers have survived the most.”

Ernos invested in vocal harmonies and arrangements, but also in the stage show, which culminated at the end of the gigs.

“Furniture was destroyed on stage, smoke was distributed to others and bombs were distributed in boxes. There had to be quality in both the music and the excitement.”

Today Ernos performs wherever he happens to get gigs. According to Lindahl, the band is no longer included in 1960s music events, even if it has the desire to play.

You can see my own generation and younger people in the audience. The band also plays music from different eras, for example Deep Purple from the 1970s. In addition, there are Lindahl’s own songs, which she still creates.

“We train regularly, and now that I throw round parties, we perform here for a handful of friends. It’s much nicer to play by yourself than to party.”

Lindahlin life is still active. It’s because of the meaningfulness of music and dog hobbies, because both have the right amount of challenge.

“I like playing and performing, and you can always get better in music. Even with dogs, you always have to strive for better. We are trying to make two litters again at the turn of the year and we really hope that we will succeed. At least the parents are the best in the world.”

The musician says that he couldn’t live without Old English sheepdogs. They are warm-hearted and loyal friends, but they also bring a backbone to life. It is an obligation to take care of them at any time of the day.

“One of them liked to run in the snow in sheltered weather, even though the snow stuck to the hair. Soon it was a big snowball that couldn’t move anymore. I was able to remove the snow from it with different tools,” says Lindahl with a laugh.

“My first dog started howling again when we played rock, and it wasn’t suffering, it was clearly at the fair. Sometimes, they are stubborn people who obey when it pleases them. They are also incredibly intelligent, although they sometimes keep their intelligence hidden.”

What would you tell your 20-year-old self?

“I would advise you to respect your parents. I thought at the time that the parents didn’t know anything, even though I had a really good family.”

Correction 13.11. 6:40 p.m.: Some readers saw a title with a name error. The musician’s name is Erno Lindahl, not Ernos Lindahl.