Shlomo Carlebach

Artist: Shlomo Carlebach

LP: Vehaer Eynenu

Song: "Vehaer Eynenu"

[ listen ]

You may be familiar with The Singing Nun, but have you ever heard of The Singing Rabbi? Born in Berlin, Germany in 1925, Shlomo Carlebach has at various times lived in Toronto, San Francisco, and in New York City's Greenwich Village, where he met the likes of Bob Dylan and Pete Seeger and got his own singing career off the ground. You can read about the life and career of Shlomo "Singing Rabbi" Carlebach here, and watch the enigmatic trailer for Boaz Shahak's 2007 bio doc on the talented singer and composer here. The title track from the "Vehaer Eynenu" LP won First Prize at Israel's annual Hasidic Song Festival in 1969.

[ My Hebrew's a little rusty; is this the young Shlomo Carlebach? ]

 [ Shlomo Carlebach: January 14, 1925 — October 20, 1994 ]

The Israeli Strings

Artist: The Israeli Strings

LP: Jewish Rhapsodies For Those In Love
Song: "The Exodus Song"
[ listen ]

To create the atmosphere of seduction and romance necessary to lure a handsome young Jewish man into an evening of coy kissing and heavy petting, I find nothing works quite so well as "The Exodus Song."

The interpretations of Jewish melodies into contemporary
popular music has been magnificently achieved by The Israeli
Strings and the fine arrangements of Pete King. A mood of
romance prevails for all lovers, everywhere.

Traditionally, Jewish music is highly melodic but often the
melody is lost through interpretation. You will find that
within the twelve bands of this album, the songs presented
have lost none of their warmth, rather, they have been
elevated into a new dimension which can be accepted
by everyone with an appreciation for romantic music.
LOVERS EVERYWHERE, LISTEN...ENJOY!

Marty Levitt Orchestra featuring Harriet Kane

Artist: Marty Levitt Orchestra featuring Harriet Kane

LP: Bar Mitzvah Favorites
Song: "My Bar Mitzvah Boy"
[ listen ]

Here's another from the stash of Israeli-Jewish LPs I stumbled upon a few weeks ago. With lines like "with life dispensing tones she ripples through the blood streams of her listeners" and "the throbbing sigh, the carefree laugh, the lingering tear bobble like bubbles in her champagne of song," the notes on the back of this one are some of the strangest—and best—I've ever seen. Marty Levitt, who died in March of 2008, and his wife Harriet, who evidently died while still in her prime, were a popular entertainment duo on the Jewish-American circuit, playing for many weddings, Bar Mitzvahs, etc. You can read about Marty here, and I've included the aforementioned notes from the back of the LP below, along with a video clip of Marty and Harriet performing at an event in Brooklyn about 25 years ago.

Marty Levitt Orchestra featuring Harriet Kane on YouTube:
[ "Shmaravoznik" ]
October 21, 1984 at the H.E.S. in Brooklyn, NY

BAR MITZVAH FAVORITES is an album of emotions,
photographing in color and depth feelings of pride and
joy, hope and regret, nostalgia and frustration that
pervade Jewish-American living. These thirteen musical
pictures in photogenic words and rhythm depict the
stages of human development from infancy to golden age
with the aspirations, attitudes and pitfalls that crowd
each level. The whole family, three generations in all,
from bubeleh to babenuh, from zindele to zaydenuh, are
portrayed as moving, sensing and interacting beings.

This recording will grip your heart. This recording will
be your favorite as well as ours.

Harriet Kane has a voice full of heart. With life dispen-
sing tones she ripples through the blood streams of her
listeners. She injects pulsating life into her audiences.
The bright eyed dreams of youth, the hopes of mom
and dad, and the golden memories of grandparents are
saturated with her vocal warmth. The throbbing sigh, the
carefree laugh, the lingering tear bobble like bubbles in her
champagne of song. Her style is bewitching—intoxicating.
Her captivating vitality ignites us all. The dynamic quality
of Harriet's vocal renditions is augmented by the masterly
interplay of her husband's scintillating skill. Her voice is
wedded to his music; her feelings with the quiver of his
clarinet. Harriet and Marty, with his orchestra, form a
sensational combination. They are not just a pair of per-
formers. They are not just talented entertainers. They
have done what few have been able to duplicate. They
have fused together the sparkling essence of Yiddish-
American music with decor and artistry unsurpassed.

Listening to this record you will understand why they
are the most sought after entertainment package
of the Bar Mitzvah circuit.

* * * * * * *

MY BAR MITZVAH BOY

Murray Rumsey, the creator of this musical piece of
sheer beauty, is a highly sensitive, talented composer.
Out of the heart of his inner being the words were formed,
the notes were fashioned. For many years afer publication
he hesitated to share his musical joy with the listening
world. There was no one on the Yiddish-American scene
to interpret this song properly; no one who could reveal
the splendor and beauty of this work. When Harriet Kane
came upon the scene all reservations were removed. Her
vocal imagery and penetrating warmth convinced him
she was the one to do this song justice. The dreams
of every Jewish mom and dad glisten in the words
and spirit of this song.

My Bar Mitzvah boy
You're my pride and joy
Your baby days are over
Now you are a man
Be true to your religion
A staunch American

The feelings and hopes of first generation parents are
spelled out in heartful tunes, as the mother tells her
Bar Mitzvah boy the kind of man she wants him to be.

[ Marty Levitt and Harriet Kane—an entertainment package with no reservations. ]

The Diaspora Yeshiva Band

Artist: The Diaspora Yeshiva Band

LP: The Diaspora Yeshiva Band
Song: "Esah Eynai"
[ listen ]

Someone dumped their collection of '70s Jewish/Yiddish/Israeli records at Golden Oldies... and now they're mine! You can learn the history, methods and goals of the Diaspora Yeshiva here, read about The Diaspora Yeshiva Band here and for a short bio of group founder Avraham Rosenblum (aka. "the father of Jewish Rock"), go here. These notes come from the back of this 1976 LP:

ESAH EYNAI—Psalm 121: often recited to ask for Hashem's
protection over mother and child during and after childbirth.
This melody came and was sung at the birth of the author's
son, Yehuda Chiya; that the newborn infant hear, at birth,
his first words of Torah and Bracha.

* * * * * * *

In 1967, Rabbi Dr. Mordecai Goldstein founded the Diaspora
Yeshiva on Mt. Zion in Jerusalem, with the help of Rabbi Dr.
S.Z. Kahana. Since then, the Yeshiva has grown to become
a vibrant center for spiritual growth; an educational institute
known throughout Israel and the Diaspora.

Rabbi Goldstein, the Rosh HaYeshiva and Dean, uses modern
methods to transmit the Masoretic traditions and the eternal
Oral Law, together with a close student-teacher relationship.
This methodology encourages honesty, truth, justice, morality
and piety, while developing the student's potential to become
a Jewish spiritual leader capable of actualizing genuine
Torah values in today's world.

* * * * * * *

PERSONNEL:

Avraham Rosenblum — acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass, mandolin, vocals
Moshe Shur — mandolin, acoustic guitar, vocals

Ben Zion Solomon — fiddle, banjo, guitar, trumpet, vocals
Simcha Abramson — clarinet, vocalsShimmie Green — twelve string guitar, vocalsDavid Saracik — acoustic guitar, vocalsZvi Miller — vocalsAvraham Goodfriend — hand drums
Yochanan Lederman — drumsYoel Goldstein — snare drum
Beryl Glaser — piano, organYossi Cornfeld — banjo, trumpet, fiddleAmram Hakohen — trumpet, vocalsTed Glaser — vocalsS. Ziman — violin