Celebrated accordionist’s final album released 18 years after his death

The family of decorated accordionist Olaf Sveen is releasing his 31st and final album after his death. CTV News Edmonton's Marek Tkach has the story.

Paul Sveen has pressed play on a special record: His father’s final album.

Paul’s late father, Olaf Sveen, was a decorated accordionist from Norway. He immigrated to Canada in 1949, going first to Saskatchewan before settling in Edmonton with his wife and family in 1962.

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Olaf recorded 28 albums in his lifetime, selling more than 300,000 of them. However, this one, No. 29, was never released. Olaf died in 2007 aged 88.

“We were cleaning the house out and we happened to find a box with several master tapes in them,” Paul told CTV News Edmonton on Friday. “I recognized the names of the albums in it, and I go, ‘These are my dad’s albums.’”

Since then, his family has taken it upon themselves to finish the record titled Double Trouble.

“‘We have to get this produced, we have to get this done,’ (we told ourselves),” Paul said. “And it became a mission.”

The record is a double album featuring Olaf playing two different accordions.

“He really went out of his way to record this album, but he never produced it, and that was, to me, the mystery,” Paul said. “It’s such a find because my dad was an old-school musician, and there’s not very many of them left.”

The family is choosing not to profit from the album, instead releasing it on YouTube for all to hear.

“We feel like he really helped them get this finished,” Paul said.