Crazy Otto (Decca)

Fritz Schulz-Reichel was a classically trained German jazz and pop pianist who was quite popular in Germany and became known in the US in 1955 thanks to a medley of his songs created by an American musician. Apparently there was some confusion between Fritz and the creator of this medley afterwards, both being dubbed "Crazy Otto" in the US. Perhaps this 1955 record was an attempt to clear up that confusion by appealing to an American audience with a record of American tunes.

After reading the rear notes, I had pretty high hopes for this record, only to find them summarily dashed.

The back cover is adamantly plays up how "different" Fritz Schulz-Reichel is - I mean c'mon, he plays the melody with his left hand and rhythm with the right! He's got to be a whacky guy. They also talk about his "brilliant improvisations" and about his reputation as a "serious, well-known and well loved German composer-pianist". They also talk up his secret weapon, his "Tipsy Wire Box", a secret effect he uses to simulate the detuned honky-tonk piano effect, presumably without actually detuning the piano. Craaaaaaaazy I guess.

So you've got this kooky and quirky fella (by German standards, anyway), who writes some great music - what better way to highlight his abilities than to stick him with an uncredited rhythm section and have him play a bunch of pseudo-ragtime versions of a bunch of standards?

Well, I could have thought of a couple better ways, but I guess Decca was in a hurry to get some records out in 1955. A string of uninspired takes populate both sides of this recording. The rhythm section is never given any chance to shine, and Otto doesn't exactly have much to say himself. Well, not with the piano anyway.

One of the saving graces of this record is what apparently makes Otto "Crazy" - he's a chatterer. He loves to sing and warble along with the songs, shout and whistle. It's endearing, and it kept me listening through the record, hoping to hear more. His vocalizations are the only source of any real energy on the record.

The other positive element is the recording quality; the clarity of all three instruments - on a mono record no less - is truly astounding. A couple things may have made this easy to accomplish - there's very little bass drum present, and Otto's "Tipsy Wire Box" and his backwards playing style seem to remove almost all low end from the piano, leaving a wide open space for the bassline to live. Otto's honky-tonk sounds also ring loud and clear, and it does indeed sound pretty fantastic.

Unfortunately it's all a waste. The end of side one features the worst rendition of "In the Mood" that I think I've ever heard. Traditionally, the things that make this song so great are its dynamics and its heavy swing feel; both are eradicated in this straight ahead, droll take on the tune. In fact, parts of the melody have been un-syncopated in places, sucking away the character of the piece. Why, oh why would you do this? I for one can't see any reason, but I guess buried somewhere in his brilliant composer-pianist mind, he had a purpose. I suppose we'll never know.