He started singing professionally in 1967,[1] playing solo gigs at the Kaseke restaurant in
Tartu.[3] He also later performed with the band
Fix.[5]
He released dozens of records and over 600 songs over the span of his career;[6] predominantly
dance music. Many of his hits were Estonian-language translations of popular songs in other languages, but he did have some well-known originals as well. According to Kroonika, his best-known songs include Mereranna tuul (
lit.'seaside breeze'; an Estonian-language cover of "
Agadoo") and Kutse tantsule (
lit.'invitation to dance'; an Estonian-language cover of "
I Can Make You Feel Like").[7]
In 2014,
TV3 made a documentary about him named A Story about the Real Jörberg (Jutustus tõelisest Jörbergist),[8] directed by Antti Oolo.[9]
In 2017, Jörberg, along with his wife Ester Jörberg[6] and fellow musician
Onu Bella, hosted the program "Great Love of the South Sea" (Suur Lõunamere Armastus) on
Raadio 2.[10] Also that year, Jörberg announced his retirement; his last major performances were at the 2018
Õllesummer and
Haapsalu festivals.[11]
Jörberg died as a result of a sudden medical condition on 26 December 2018.[2] He was survived by his wife Ester and son Sven.[2]
Discography
In the below list, the publisher follows the name of the album. Some albums contain
guest appearances by other artists:[12]
1986 "Üllar Jörberg", Meloodia
1992 "The away places: the best of Üllar Jörberg 1992",[note 1] Üllar Jörberg