Will Glahé

Born on 12 February 1902 in Elberfeld, Germany, Will Glahe died on 21 November 1989. The accordionist and bandleader from Europe scored a major American success in 1939 when his Musette Orchestra recorded ‘Beer Barrel Polka’. That release drew on the Czechoslovakian melody ‘Skoda Lasky’ (‘Lost Love’) written by Jaromir Vejvoda and Wladimir Timm and supplied with English lyrics by Lew Brown. Glahe’s recording surpassed one million copies sold and was followed in the United States by further hits such as ‘Hot Pretzels’, ‘W.P.A. Polka’, ‘Woodpecker’, ‘Bartender Polka’ and ‘You Can’t Be True, Dear’. Almost ten years passed before he reappeared on the US charts in 1957, this time with his orchestra and chorus on ‘Liechtensteiner Polka’. The same number enjoyed modest success in the UK, where ‘The Crazy Otto Rag’—credited to Will Glahe And His Sunshine Quintet—also found an audience.