The Poet

Olli Ahvenlahti, born on 6 August 1949, is a Finnish pianist, composer, and conductor who has been one of Finland's leading Jazz artists since the 70s. He has recorded with several artists including UMO Jazz Orchestra.

During the 70s, there was a small group of very talented jazz musicians in Finland, of which Ahvenlahti was one of the key players. His band consisted of cutting-edge musicians of that decade, including Markku Johansson, Bertil Strandberg, and Pekka Pöyry.

The groove of the 70s dancefloor jazz made a significant impact on the Finnish jazz scene, with the track "Grandma's Rocking Chair" being viewed as a highlight of that era. Originally featured on a pressing in 1976, the track was later sampled by legendary US house producer Kenny Dope for his record "The Illout".

It is speculated that the track was taken from a "Finnish Jazz 66-75" bootleg album, as evidenced by the drum fill in "The Illout" being sampled from another track in the same bootleg (Matti Oiling's "Oiling Boiling" from the "Happy Jazz Band" album).

Since the 1990 Contest, Ahvenlahti has served as the Finnish conductor at the Eurovision Song Contest and has worked for the Finnish radio and television company YLE. This vinyl pressing is made in Japan and is an exact facsimile of the 1976 release.