Joachim Schmutzler’s “Opas Rag“ [Grandpa’s Rag] by Alo Koll’s Dance Orchestra - 1961 Amiga 45rpm

Schmutzler apparently performed more than he composed, but this “1900s nostalgia“ piece is comical yet tightly-executed by Schlagermeister of the East, Alo Koll! Koll was born in Aachen near Belgium, but stayed in what became East Germany as he was studying music there when the Soviets came in. He had knacks for composing, arranging, accordion, and piano. His career took off, and I don’t know if it was this or some artistic sympathies toward socialism that caused him to stay - perhaps it was because he had the ability to meet the state’s need for a certain controlled form of Schlager. He was versatile across several styles, composing even for musical theater, but he returned to Aachen in his old age and died two years later, in 1984. The recording quality isn’t ultra-stellar Polydor, but it’s on-par for the era! Issued on the Amiga popular music label, 45rpm EP number 5 50 131 / 6 2 50 018 [titled “Дедушкин рэг“ on the Russian-language issue], this d