- Fritz Schulz-Reichel
Fritz Schulz-Reichel (July 4, 1912 - February 4, 1990) was a German
jazz and pop pianist.Schulz-Reichel's father was a classical musician, and he began playing piano at the age of six. He developed an unusual technique where he played the
melody of a tune with the left hand and therhythm with the right hand.While he trained to be a concert pianist, he chose a career in pop music, playing light jazz and pop tunes. He invented a device called the Tipsy Wire Box, which could be attached to a piano to make it sound like an out-of-tune barrelhouse upright. In 1953 he adopted the
moniker "Schräger Otto" (Crazy Otto ), and recorded forDeutsche Grammophon . His tunes became hits in Germany, France, England, and America; his albums were released on Decca and MGM in the U.S..In 1955, American musician
Johnny Maddox made a medley of his songs, entitled "The Crazy Otto Medley "; this went to #2 on the U.S. charts, and in the U.S. both Reichel and Maddox were subsequently known as "Crazy Otto", to some confusion.Schulz-Reichel continued to perform live and on film, and remained a popular jazz favorite in Germany for many years.
References
* [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:gzftxq95ldke~T1 Crazy Otto] at
Allmusic
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