He bunked down with the Beatles in Hamburg and captured images of music legends in iconic poses. Now he's written a World Cup song based on a footie classic. KATE SOUTHERN says nice one Jan Olofsson

The World Cup is in full swing, and so is the competition to produce a football song which will capture the hearts of England fans.

Step forward Jan Olofsson and Ian Mitchell, two friends who live in Government Row, Enfield, who plan to grab the public's imagination with a song based on an old football classic Nice One Cyril.

Producer, Jan, who owns the publishing rights to the original which charted at number 14 in 1973, has given the ditty, celebrating the goal scoring skills of the late Tottenham Hotspur player, Cyril Knowles, a makeover.

Nice One Rooney, praising the talent of the England striker, has been released by Jan, Ian and friends under the name Four Blokes and a Pint.

Three-times married Jan, 62, said: "I have always been proud of Cyril, which has a catchy hook and is immediately known to football fans.

"We thought, everybody knows the tune to Nice one Cyril, so why not think about the song in terms of the World Cup?"

Released on the Crocodile Records limprint, it can be downloaded from www.nice1rooney.co.uk, and is gaining airplay across regional radio stations.

For Swedish-born Jan, who has lived in England for 40 years, the song is his chance to get back into the music scene he has played a part in since 1959.

As the owner of Young Blood Records, Jan produced several hit records in the '60s, '70s and '80s, including Desmond Dekker's Israelites, and Rod Stewart's In a Broken Dream.

But he is also known for his photography, capturing iconic images of music stars including the Beatles, Johnny Cash and Jimi Hendrix.

Jan's talent for having his finger on the pulse came at an early age, when at 15 he became Sweden's first Rock 'n' Roll star.

Jan said: "The girls screamed when I came on stage I had personality, moved around a lot and was fairly good looking.

"My first hit was Rock Ola Coming to Town. Elvis was my idol, but I looked more like Tommy Steele.

"I did it for a year, but it wasn't for me. I decided England was where it was at if I wanted to be part of the music business."

It was during a stopover in Hamburg that Jan was to stumble on a band that were to change the face of music forever.

The Beatles, then performing under the name of The Beat Brothers, were on stage at the Kaiser Keller.

Jan said: "My initial reaction was they were good. They played Chuck Berry hits, Long Tall Sally and Roll Over Beethoven.

"We became friends when they performed at the Top Ten Club, in Hamburg, where I worked. Lots of beer would be sent up on stage, and they would share it with me, making sure I was kept in supply.

"Soon after Lennon offered me a bunk with the band above the bar. Stuart Sutcliffe had moved in with his girlfriend, Astrid, and a space became free."

Jan spent six unforgettable months sharing laughs with the band and drinking until the small hours.

"They were normal lads. Nothing special at the time. I had a good time with George Harrison, he was the youngest and most mischievous everything was fun to him.

"Lennon was a guy's guy a great drinking partner, but the most subdued of the band.

"McCartney had his fair share of girls, but Lennon had Cynthia back in Liverpool, and so he kept himself to himself.

"I never really got close to Sutcliffe. He was really into Astrid and couldn't wait to finish playing so he could get back to where she was working in the bar."

Penniless, Jan spent his time in Hamburg living on his wits.

"When I was hungry, I would walk into a restaurant and order a meal, knowing full well I had no money on me. I would pretend to burst into tears to get away with it. Sometimes I would end up washing up for my meal, but more often than not the owners took pity on me."

Jan hit London in 1960, and using his music contacts, was hired as a pop columnist for a Swedish magazine.

With a visa secured, Jan was finally able to indulge his passion for the British music scene, which he brought to life through a camera lens on the studio floor at Ready Steady Go.

His photographs, also taken backstage after gigs, were to capture the most famous musical era of all time.

Reunited with the Beatles who were pleased to see their Swedish Friend' as Lennon liked to call him Jan took the famous photograph of the band sitting on the doorstep of Brian Epstein's house in May 1967.

But the enduring image of Johnny Cash, backstage at the Hammersmith Odeon in 1966, is Jan's favourite.

"That pose is wonderful we were enjoying some beers after the show and I took it because he was so relaxed. I met Cash several times he was fantastic."

Jan has met a host of big stars, including Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr, who he enjoyed a night out with in the West End.

"Sammy and I were in the bar, and he asked if I wanted to meet Frank. There was this little man surrounded by four big guys.

"I shook his hand and was struck by the aura about him. I wasn't a big fan, but I shall never forget his handshake."

Jan's meeting with Elvis Presley, on July 10, 1972, also had a profound affect on him.

"He was performing at Madison Square Garden, and I cried when he came on. After his show I went backstage and we smoked a cigar together."

In 1993, Jan launched an exhibition of his work, entitled Jan Olofsson My '60s, after stumbling across a box of old negatives tucked away in a shoebox in his garage.

The exhibition, launched in London, toured the world.

In 1997 Jan also became the first non-Cuban photographer to hold an exhibition in the country at the invitation of the government.

Entitled My Cuba, it captured his love affair with the country he first visited in 1993.

Never one to stand still for long, Jan is now planning a 2007 exhibition and book celebrating the definitive' 50 years of his work.

"I'm an ideas man, I can't leave things alone. If you mix with the right crowd, ideas will rub off and things will happen.

"I have led such a full life, and have met so many interesting people, and it gives me so much joy when people appreciate my pictures.

"I didn't have any photographic training. Even today, I have to laugh when people try to analyse the style of my pictures. All I can say is, I was there, I took the picture. Sometimes it worked, others it didn't. I was in the right place at the right time."