Until 1948 he played drums with Walter Dobschinski's orchestra, then he concentrated on his singing career.
From 1946 he was drumming for the RBT (Radio Berlin Tanz-Orchester) orchestra.
By 1950 he had recorded two dozen sides for the state-owned communist East-German Amiga label, but also for West-German labels Columbia, Electrola, HMV, Metrophon, Odeon, Parlophone and Regina.
Already with 9 years he got piano and violin lessons at a conservatory.
Until 1950 he sang for the East Berlin company Amiga, then for various West German companies. During this time he reached the zenith of his popularity, which also led to his being used in several feature films.