Fritz Schulz-Reichel (July 4, 1912 – February 14, 1990) was a German

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

and pop pianist. Schulz-Reichel was born in

Meiningen Meiningen () is a town in the southern part of the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in the region of Franconia and has a population of around 26,000 (2024).

. His 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 A melody (), also tune, voice, or line, is a linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most literal sense, a melody is a combination of Pitch (music), pitch and rhythm, while more figurativel ...

of a tune with the left hand and the

rhythm Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a " movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular r ...

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. (Another interpretation is that "Tipsy Wire Box" was a slang expression for the piano itself, which was merely "detuned"; that is, one of the three strings that make up each note of the main section of the piano is slightly flatted, giving the piano the characteristic sound.) In 1953 he adopted the

moniker A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...

''Schräger Otto'' (Crazy Otto), and recorded for

Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family of ...

. His tunes became hits in Germany, France, England, and America; his albums were released on

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, record label * Decca Gold, classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, musical theater record label * Decca Studios, recording facility in West ...

and

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

in the U.S. and Polydor which were distributed by Philips Electrical Industries Pty. Limited in Australia. In 1955, American musician Johnny Maddox played 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. "Crazy Otto" is referenced in the song "Ramble on Rose" written by Robert Hunter and performed by the Grateful Dead.

References

* Crazy Ottoat

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schulz-Reichel, Fritz 1912 births 1990 deaths German jazz pianists 20th-century pianists 20th-century German musicians Polydor Records artists MGM Records artists Brunswick Records artists Decca Records artists