Editing Joey Tempest (section)

== Early life ==
Rolf Magnus Joakim Larsson was born in Stockholm, Sweden on 19 August 1963. When he was eight years old, he would sit in front of the television or radio with a tape recorder and try to capture songs from the UK or US that he liked and listen to them over and over again. He learned how to play the piano and a friend of his father's taught him three [[Chord (music)|chords]] (A, D and E) on his sister's acoustic guitar.<ref>[[Paul Stenning]] (24 November 2013). Success – By Those Who've Made It. Pg.114,115. In Flight Books. {{ISBN|978-1628475869}}.</ref>

Larsson played [[association football|football]] and [[ice hockey]] and competed in [[go-cart racing]]; he once came in fourth place in the Junior Cart Race, a Swedish championship. Like many of the other Europe members, Larsson grew up in [[Stockholm]] suburb [[Upplands Väsby]]. His biggest influences were [[Thin Lizzy]] and [[Led Zeppelin]].{{citation needed|date=March 2013}} During his teens, Larsson played in a number of bands such as Jet, Blazer, Made in Hong Kong and Roxanne. At that time, Larsson alternated between playing rhythm guitar and bass, in addition to lead vocals.