Hannes Mikael Waldemar "Hasse" Walli was born on 10 February 1948 in Helsinki. His father was a musician and bandleader, his mother a singer. Hasse Walli was about ten years old when he started playing drums. He drummed in various bands in early 1960s such as The Islanders, The Electric Five and Nameless. Gradually Walli switched from drums to electric guitar. After Nameless had split, Walli started as a solo guitarist in The Typhoons. The Typhoons split when its members had to join the obligatory military service.