This album was created on a Yamaha CX5MII Music Computer (in 1989). Bit by Bit is a combination of synth based rock and more ambient music. Paul was a gifted guitarist when an auto accident left him paralyzed from the neck down at age 19. he found his way back to music through the computer technology of the late 1980s and early 1990's, intil his death in 1992.

Bit by Bit

Sticks and Stones

West Side Rock

Netherlands

Shady Lady

Nuclear Winter/Lickity Split

Baby Blues

Clover Grove

Interstellar Stuff

Madam Heap

     Paul Joseph Otto, 1959-1992, was a talented and promising guitarist when he was injured in a car accident near his Wichita, Kansas home in 1977. The accident left Paul paraplegic, (paralyzed from the neck down) and unable to breath on his own. With the aid of loving parents and in home nurses, Paul was eventually able to return to his family home. In the early 1980's, the family bought a carpet, and was given a Texas Instruments computer as part of a promotional program from the carpet company. When Paul discovered the computer had a primitive music making program, he realized his dream of making music was not over. 

     Paul upgraded to a Yamaha CX5M Music Computer and a Yamaha drum machine and began to program original compositions on what, by today's standards, were primitive computers. Unable to physically do the programming himself, Paul relied on the help of family members and nurses who, in Paul's words,  "patiently provided my hands for me". In an age before the mouse, the process of composing this way was slow and cumbersome, as Paul had to tell his helpers exactly where to place the notes, which notations to use, and so on. Despite the difficulty of the process, from 1986 to 1991, Paul J Otto recorded  five full length recordings, before his life was cut short by a medical accident.
 
     These recordings were only available on cassette tape, and in an age before the internet, promoting the music of a musician who could not "play live" was nearly impossible. Add to that the fact that the music was mostly experimental, progressive rock  instrumentals, and it is easy to see why few people had the opportunity to hear Paul's work.
 
     Paul was my older brother, and recently, while listening to his music, I decided that the time has come to put  Paul's music on the medium most suited  it: the internet. I have begun the process of digitizing the recordings, and as cassette tapes degrade, the sound quality may be hit and miss. Rather than release the recordings in the order they originally appeared, I have decided to release them in a way that makes sense to me, and in a way that I suspect my brother would have approved. Downloads are free, as money is of no use in the afterlife.   
     Enjoy,

     Chris Otto                            
