Thomas John Peterson (born May 9, 1950), better known as Tom Petersson, is an American musician who is best known for being the bass guitar player for the rock band Cheap Trick.\n', '

Before joining Cheap Trick, Petersson played in a number of bands, including the Bol Weevils, the Grim Reapers, Sick Man of Europe, and Fuse. He started out playing rhythm guitar, but soon switched to bass. His professional career has been closely entwined with Cheap Trick guitarist Rick Nielsen since the Grim Reapers in 1967, and the two co-founded Cheap Trick in 1974.\n', '

During Cheap Trick\'s classic period, Petersson invented a 12 string bass guitar in collaboration with Hamer Guitars. Rick Nielsen notes at every show that Tom is “the inventor of the 12-string bass”. Petersson left Cheap Trick in August 1980, shortly before the release of the album All Shook Up. He worked with his then-wife Dagmar on material for a solo album, which was eventually released in 1984 as the six-song EP Tom Peterson and Another Language. Petersson also toured with Carmine Appice in 1982. From 1985 to 1987 he joined Pete Comita, who had briefly replaced him in Cheap Trick, in a reformed version of his early band Sick Man of Europe, which also included songwriter Janna Allen.[citation needed] Petersson rejoined Cheap Trick in 1987 and has remained with the band ever since.\n', '

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