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Raggare is a subculture found mostly in Sweden and parts of
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
OA: Råning og ragging på utstilling
/ref> and
Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bo ...
, and to a lesser extent in
Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establishe ...
,
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...
, and
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
. Raggare are related to the American greaser and
rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...
subcultures and are known for their love of
hot rod Hot rods are typically American cars that might be old, classic, or modern and that have been rebuilt or modified with large engines optimised for speed and acceleration. One definition is: "a car that's been stripped down, souped up and made ...
cars and 1950s American pop culture. Loosely translated into English, the term is roughly equivalent to the American "greaser", English "rocker", and Australian "
Bodgie Bodgies and widgies refer to a youth subculture that existed in Australia and New Zealand in the 1950s, similar to the rocker culture in the UK or Greaser culture in the United States. Most bodgies rode motorbikes but some had cars, many of w ...
" and "Widgie" culture; all share a common passion for mid-20th-century American cars, rockabilly-based music and related fashion (blue-collar in origin, consisting of the likes of white T-shirts, loose fitting denim trousers with rolled cuffs, and canvas top sneakers such as Keds or Converse Chucks, or low-topped boots of an industrial nature). While the raggare movement has its roots in late 1950s youth counterculture, today it is associated mainly with middle-aged men who enjoy meeting and showing off their retro American cars. However, the subculture retains its rural and small-town roots as well as its blue collar and low brow feel. The original phenomenon unleashed moral panic but the contemporary raggare subculture tends to be met with amusement or mild disapproval by mainstream society.


Description


Influences

The Raggare subculture's influences are American popular culture of the 1950s, such as the movies ''
Rebel Without a Cause ''Rebel Without a Cause'' is a 1955 American coming-of-age drama film about emotionally confused suburban A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that ...
'' with
James Dean James Byron Dean (February 8, 1931September 30, 1955) was an American actor. He is remembered as a cultural icon of teenage disillusionment and social estrangement, as expressed in the title of his most celebrated film, ''Rebel Without a Cause' ...
, and ''
American Graffiti ''American Graffiti'' is a 1973 American coming-of-age comedy-drama film directed by George Lucas, produced by Francis Ford Coppola, written by Willard Huyck, Gloria Katz and Lucas, and starring Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard (billed as Ronn ...
''.


Cars

Cars are an important part of the subculture, especially V8-powered cars and other large cars from the United States.''Automobilities'' by Mike Featherstone, Nigel. Thrift, John Urry. p. 189 Statistically, the most common raggare car ( sv, raggarbil) is the 1960s
Pontiac Bonneville The Pontiac Bonneville is an automobile built by Pontiac from 1957 until 2005. Bonnevilles were full-sized, with the exception of a brief period of mid-size between 1982 and 1986. The brand was introduced as a limited production performance conv ...
. They are plentiful, classic, relatively cheap, and have a huge backseat so the Raggare can pile in all of their friends. Raggare have been described as closely related to the
hot rod Hot rods are typically American cars that might be old, classic, or modern and that have been rebuilt or modified with large engines optimised for speed and acceleration. One definition is: "a car that's been stripped down, souped up and made ...
culture, but while hotrodders in the US have to do extensive modifications to their cars to stand out, raggare can use stock US cars and still stand out compared to the more sober Swedish cars. Some raggare also drive European cars from the 1950s, 1960s and the 1970s. According to an estimate by one Swedish car restorer, there are more restored 1950s American cars in Sweden than in the entire United StatesSweden's car kings: 'greasers' cruising in vintage US wheels
/ref> and although only two 1958 Cadillac convertibles were sold in Sweden there are now 200 of them in Sweden. Between 4000 and 5000 classic US cars were at one point imported to Sweden each year. The latest generation of raggare, the so-called pilsnerraggare such as the club Mattsvart who was the subject of the 2019 documentary "Raggarjävlar" ("Greaser scum") do not show much interest in restoring vintage cars, instead opting for driving around in trashed old US cars, drinking alcohol and playing loud music, not necessarily the rockabilly and classic rock traditionally preferred by raggare.


Fashion

The clothes and hairstyle are that of 1950s rockabilly. Blue jeans, cowboy boots, white T-shirts, sometimes with print (also used to store a pack of cigarettes by folding the sleeve), leather or denim jacket. The hair is styled using
Brylcreem __NOTOC__ Brylcreem () is a British brand of hair styling products for men. The first Brylcreem product was a hair cream created in 1928 by County Chemicals at the Chemico Works in Bradford Street, Birmingham, England, and is the flagship produ ...
or some other
pomade Pomade (; French ''pommade'') or pomatum is a greasy, waxy, or water-based substance that is used to style hair. Pomade generally gives the user's hair a shiny and slick appearance. It lasts longer than most hair-care products, and often re ...
.


Symbols

The flag of the Confederate States seem to be popular items in the subculture as they embrace the rebellious message of the flag.


History

Formation of the raggare culture was aided by Sweden staying neutral during
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
and untouched by the war. As a result, Sweden's infrastructure remained intact and export economy boomed, which made it possible for the working-class Swedish youth to buy cars, in contrast to most of Europe, which needed to be rebuilt. When raggare first appeared in the 1950s, they caused a
moral panic A moral panic is a widespread feeling of fear, often an irrational one, that some evil person or thing threatens the values, interests, or well-being of a community or society. It is "the process of arousing social concern over an issue", usua ...
with concerns about the use of alcohol, violence, high-speed driving, and having sex in the back seat. Raggare gangs were seen as a serious problem. The film ''
Raggare! ''Raggare!'' (in the UK released as ''Blackjackets'') is a Swedish drama film which was released to cinemas in Sweden on 13 November 1959, directed by Olle Hellbom. Plot A gang of car driving youngsters (raggare) hang out in a café outside St ...
'' covered the issue in 1959. One especially infamous raggare gang was Stockholm-based "Road Devils", formed in the late 1950s by Bosse "Gamen" Sandberg (1939-1994), which was very heavily publicized in the press. The name of the gang originated from a 1957 movie
Hot Rod Rumble ''Hot Rod Rumble'' is a US, low budget, black-and-white 1957 teen-oriented drag racing crime drama produced by Norman T. Herman and directed by Leslie H. Martinson. It stars Leigh Snowden and Richard Hartunian. The film tells the story of a clash ...
, which featured a gang by the same name. When other gangs managed to get facilities in the city, the Road Devils had too bad reputation. Later, raggare often got into fights with
hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to different countries around ...
s and punks, something described in the punk rock song "Raggare Is a Bunch of Motherfuckers" by
Rude Kids Rude Kids is a punk rock band from Hagsätra. Their first single "Raggare Is a Bunch of Motherfuckers", that they recorded themselves, was released by Polydor in 1978. Rude Kids was the first Swedish punk band to release a record through a major ...
The Guardian: Raggare: the Swedish rock'n'roll cult comes of age
/ref> (and later re-recorded by
Turbonegro Turbonegro (Turboneger in Norway) is a Norwegian rock band, active from 1989 to 1998 and from 2002 to the present. The band combines glam rock, punk rock, and hard rock into a self-described "deathpunk" musical style. History Early years ( ...
). When The
Sex Pistols The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they were one of the most groundbreaking acts in the history of popular music. They were responsible for ...
played in Sweden on 28 July 1977, a group of raggare waited outside and cornered some young girls who came out from the show. The girls had
safety pin The safety pin is a variation of the regular pin which includes a simple spring mechanism and a clasp. The clasp forms a closed loop to properly fasten the pin to whatever it is applied to and covers the end of the pin to protect the user from ...
s through their cheeks, and the raggare ripped them out of their faces. The band was upstairs drinking beer when they heard about it.
Sid Vicious John Simon Ritchie (10 May 1957 – 2 February 1979), better known by his stage name Sid Vicious, was an English musician, best known as the bassist for the punk rock band Sex Pistols. Despite dying in 1979 at age 21, he remains an icon of the ...
wanted to go down and fight, and someone else suggested they should get the limousine and run them over. In the end, the gig promoter called the police. The
Hjo Hjo () is a locality and the seat of Hjo Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 6,094 inhabitants in 2010. The town is located on the west coast of Vättern. Etymology The place is named after Hjoån 'Hjo river'. The meaning of ...
band Reklamation was forced to cancel a gig after threats from raggare. Also, Rude Kids was forced to cancel a sold-out gig as the police didn't have the manpower to offer protection against raggare. When Rude Kids played in Stockholm the police had to bring in seven police cars to stop the raggare. When
The Stranglers The Stranglers are an English rock band who emerged via the punk rock scene. Scoring 23 UK top 40 singles and 19 UK top 40 albums to date in a career spanning five decades, the Stranglers are one of the longest-surviving bands to have origin ...
played in Sweden, their followers were caught making
Molotov cocktail A Molotov cocktail (among several other names – ''see other names'') is a hand thrown incendiary weapon constructed from a frangible container filled with flammable substances equipped with a fuse (typically a glass bottle filled with fl ...
s, and the police intervened after a fight broke out. In 1996, the Swedish post office issued a stamp featuring raggare.


Public image

Because of their mostly rural roots, retro-aesthetics and attitude towards sex, raggare are often depicted as poorly educated and financially unsuccessful. A famous example is the 1990s TV series, "
Ronny and Ragge Ronny and Ragge (''Ronny och Ragge'' in Swedish) are two fictitious raggare characters played by Peter Settman and Fredde Granberg, popularized in the 1990s. They first appeared in sketches on Swedish television and then got their own series called ...
", a pair of stereotypical raggare who cruise around in a beat-up
Ford Taunus The Ford Taunus is a family car that was sold by Ford Germany throughout Europe. Models from 1970 onward were built on the same basic construction as the Ford Cortina MkIII in the United Kingdom, and later on, the two car models were essentia ...
. There are several periodic gatherings for raggare around Sweden. The
Power Big Meet Power Big Meet (sometimes shortened "Power Meet") is a classic car show held in Lidköping, Sweden, for American cars (especially those from the 1950s and 1960s). It is held each summer during the first weekend of July and is a major event for p ...
is the most famous, and is also one of the biggest American car meets in the world.


In the media and other popular culture

*In 1975, then
glam rock Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was performed by musicians who wore outrageous costumes, makeup, and hairstyles, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists drew on div ...
er
Magnus Uggla Per Allan Magnus Claësson Uggla (pronounced ; born 18 June 1954) is a Swedish artist, composer, actor, and occasional radio host. He is known for his satirical lyrics. Uggla was born in Stockholm. He was the lead singer of the hard rock band ...
made the song "Raggarna", which was a tribute to the culture. When performing live in late 1970s and early 1980s, raggare threw rocks and tried to thrash the arenas in which Uggla performed, accusing him of being a punk rocker due to his success with the more punk-oriented albums he released in the late 1970s. *
Eddie Meduza Errol Leonard Norstedt (17 June 1948–17 January 2002), better known by his stage name Eddie Meduza, was a Swedish composer and musician working mainly in the rockabilly genre. Music career Themes and behaviour Many of Meduza's songs are abo ...
have performed songs like "Punkjävlar" ("Punk Bastards"), or "Ragga Runt," a tribute to the Raggare subculture. *
Rude Kids Rude Kids is a punk rock band from Hagsätra. Their first single "Raggare Is a Bunch of Motherfuckers", that they recorded themselves, was released by Polydor in 1978. Rude Kids was the first Swedish punk band to release a record through a major ...
made a song about raggare (later re-recorded by
Turbonegro Turbonegro (Turboneger in Norway) is a Norwegian rock band, active from 1989 to 1998 and from 2002 to the present. The band combines glam rock, punk rock, and hard rock into a self-described "deathpunk" musical style. History Early years ( ...
) called "Raggare Is a Bunch of Motherfuckers", as an answer to "punkjävlar" by Eddie Meduza. The large number of punk songs about raggare shows the conflict between the two subcultures. *The 1959 film ''
Raggare! ''Raggare!'' (in the UK released as ''Blackjackets'') is a Swedish drama film which was released to cinemas in Sweden on 13 November 1959, directed by Olle Hellbom. Plot A gang of car driving youngsters (raggare) hang out in a café outside St ...
'' was about raggare and the moral panic of the time. *The TV series ''
Ronny and Ragge Ronny and Ragge (''Ronny och Ragge'' in Swedish) are two fictitious raggare characters played by Peter Settman and Fredde Granberg, popularized in the 1990s. They first appeared in sketches on Swedish television and then got their own series called ...
'' is about two raggare who cruise around in a beat-up 1976 - 1994
Ford Taunus The Ford Taunus is a family car that was sold by Ford Germany throughout Europe. Models from 1970 onward were built on the same basic construction as the Ford Cortina MkIII in the United Kingdom, and later on, the two car models were essentia ...
. *
Onkel Kånkel Onkel Kånkel and his Kånkelbär ( en, (approx.) ”Uncle Dingle and his Dingleberries”), commonly referred to as just Onkel Kånkel, was a Swedish könsrock/ punk rock band known for lyrics with off-color humor, dealing with subjects such as ...
made a song about raggare behaviour during cruising called "Åka femtitalsbil" (later covered by
Charta 77 Charter 77 (''Charta 77'' in Czech and Slovak) was an informal civic initiative in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic from 1976 to 1992, named after the document Charter 77 from January 1977. Founding members and architects were Jiří Ně ...
). * The early Swedish
punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
band
P.F. Commando PF may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Pianoforte, full original name of the piano instrument * Project Fanboy, a comic book news website Businesses * PF Flyers, a brand of shoes * Palestinian Airlines (IATA airline designator), a defunct air ...
has issued a song called "Raggare" on their 1978 ''Svenne Pop'' 7" EP * Raggargänget (1962) with
Ernst-Hugo Järegård Ernst-Hugo Alfred Järegård (12 December 1928 – 6 September 1998) was a Swedish actor. Biography Järegård was born in Ystad. He received his acting training at Malmö City Theatre. From 1962 he was an actor in Sweden's prominent Royal ...
and
Sigge Fürst Karl Sigurd Tore "Sigge" Fürst (3 November 1905 – 11 June 1984) was a Swedish film actor who appeared in more than 130 films. He was born in Stockholm, Sweden and died there of lung cancer in 1984. As well as appearing in films, Fürst ma ...
*
Massproduktion Massproduktion is a Swedish record company from Sundsvall started 1979 when it released records with local punk bands like Massmedia, Vacuum and Förbjudna ljud. Other bands published by Massproduktion include Lars Bygdén, The Confusions, Garma ...
published a compilation album titled ''Vägra Raggarna Bensin – Punk Från Provinserna''. * On 1 May 1979 about 100 punks formed their own parade down Kungsgatan under the slogan "''Vägra raggarna bensin'' ("Refuse the raggare gasoline"). * Nadja's brothers "Roffe", "Ragge" and Reinhold, Bert * '' Tjenare Kungen'' (2005) * In '' Welcome to Sweden'', Bengt is a raggare, and delighted to meet his niece's American boyfriend because of it. * '' Raggarjävlar'' (2019) is a documentary about the new generation of raggare in the club Mattsvart from Köpinghttps://tempofestival.se/program/raggarjavlar/


See also

*
Atlanticism Atlanticism, also known as Transatlanticism, is the belief in or support for a close relationship between the peoples and governments in Northern America (the United States and Canada) and those in Europe (the countries of the European Union ...
*
Bōsōzoku is a Japanese youth subculture associated with customized motorcycles. The first appearance of these types of biker gangs was in the 1950s. Popularity climbed throughout the 1980s and 1990s, peaking at an estimated 42,510 members in 1982. Their ...
*
Deep South The Deep South or the Lower South is a cultural and geographic subregion in the Southern United States. The term was first used to describe the states most dependent on plantations and slavery prior to the American Civil War. Following the war ...
*
Gopnik A gopnik (russian: гопник, gopnik, ; uk, гопник, hopnyk; be, гопнік, hopnik) is a member of a delinquent subculture in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, and in other former Soviet republics — a young man (or a woman, a ''gopnitsa' ...
*
Greaser (subculture) Greasers are a youth subculture that emerged in the 1950s and early 1960s from predominantly working class and lower-class teenagers and young adults in the United States. The subculture remained prominent into the mid-1960s and was particula ...
*
Harry Harry may refer to: TV shows * ''Harry'' (American TV series), a 1987 American comedy series starring Alan Arkin * ''Harry'' (British TV series), a 1993 BBC drama that ran for two seasons * ''Harry'' (talk show), a 2016 American daytime talk show ...
*
Kustom Kulture Kustom Kulture is a neologism used to describe the artworks, vehicles, hairstyles, and fashions of those who have driven and built custom cars and motorcycles in the United States of America from the 1950s through today. It was born out of the h ...
* Mods and Rockers *
Neo-Confederate Neo-Confederates are groups and individuals who portray the Confederate States of America and its actions during the American Civil War in a positive light. The League of the South, the Sons of Confederate Veterans and other neo-Confederate orga ...
*
Nozem Nozem was a term during the 1950s and 1960s to describe self-conscient, rebellious youth, often aggressive and considered problematic by authorities in the Netherlands. It was the earliest modern Dutch subculture, related to the Teddy Boy movemen ...
*
Rednecks ''Redneck'' is a derogatory term chiefly, but not exclusively, applied to white Americans perceived to be crass and unsophisticated, closely associated with rural whites of the Southern United States.Harold Wentworth, and Stuart Berg Flexner, '' ...
*
Rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...
*
Rocker Rocker or rockers may refer to: Places *Rocker, Montana, a neighborhood in Butte, Montana, United States People *Rocker, a British drummer, formerly of The Flatmates *Fermin Rocker (1907–2004), painter and illustrator *John Rocker (born 1974), ...
s *
Special Relationship The Special Relationship is a term that is often used to describe the political, social, diplomatic, cultural, economic, legal, environmental, religious, military and historic relations between the United Kingdom and the United States or its ...
*
Teddy Boy The Teddy Boys or Teds were a mainly British youth subculture of the mid 1950s to mid 1960s who were interested in rock and roll and R&B music, wearing clothes partly inspired by the styles worn by dandies in the Edwardian period, which S ...
jens *
Transatlantic relations Transatlantic relations refer to the historic, cultural, political, economic and social relations between countries on both side of the Atlantic Ocean. Sometimes it specifically means relationships between the Anglophone North American countri ...
, relating to the
assimilation Assimilation may refer to: Culture *Cultural assimilation, the process whereby a minority group gradually adapts to the customs and attitudes of the prevailing culture and customs **Language shift, also known as language assimilation, the progre ...
of American and Canadian cultures into a pan-European soil. *
White trash White trash is a derogatory racial and class-related slur used in American English to refer to poor white people, especially in the rural southern United States. The label signifies a social class inside the white population and especially a ...


References


External links

*
Cultural Imperialism or Hyper-Americanization – Swedish raggare and Chicano Lowriders
– article by Scott Holmquist




Photos from Power Big Meet
by Frank Aschberg
Stadin Raggarit – Finnish Raggare site
Over 6000 pictures and many articles (in Finnish), etc.

– music and period articles about punks and raggare {{Kustom kulture Swedish culture Transport culture Musical subcultures Working class in Europe 1950s cars