Jewish Songbook: Heart & Humor of a People

Various Artists (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 3, 2008)
• Original Release Date: 2008
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Shout Factory
• ASIN: B0017V8PJY
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #105,651 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Utt Da Zay - The Manhattan Transfer Featuring Andy Statman

2. My Yiddishe Momme - Neil Sedaka

3. Raisins and Almonds - Dave Koz

4. Mein Shtetele Belz - Herb Alpert Featuring Alicia Svigals

5. Bagel & Lox - Rob Schneider

6. Shake Hands With Your Uncle Max - Jason Alexander

7. Mahzel (Means Good Luck) - Triumph the Insult Comic Dog with Special Appearance by Max Weinberg

8. Joe and Paul - Paul Shaffer and Richard Belzer

9. Sheyn Vi Di L'Vone - Lainie Kazan Featuring Brooks Arthur

10. Sabbath Prayer - Theodore Bikel Featuring Betsy Hammer

11. Hine Ma Tov - Adam Sandler Featuring Cantor Marcelo Gindlin

12. Hatikvah - Marvin Hamlisch Featuring Kenny Karen

13. Avinu Malkeinu - Barbra Streisand

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Some is great;;some a one time listen, June 28, 2008

By 

Steven I. Ramm "Steve Ramm "Anything Phon... (Phila, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Jewish Songbook: Heart & Humor of a People (Audio CD)

The concept of this CD, produced by Brooks Arthur is a commendable one. He knows lots of folks in show business who are Jewish and decided that newly recorded versions of "Jewish" songs would be great. All but one of the 13 tracks on this (somewhat short at 44-minute length) were recorded in 2006 and 2007 by the artists. The lone "oldie" is "Avinu Malkeinu" by Barbra Streisand, which comes from her 1997 "Higher Ground" album.

The CD starts off great with The Manhattan Transfer performing a great swing version of "Utt Da Say" about a tailor making a dress. It had me tapping my feet immediately. Then Neil Sedaka (who recorded a whole CD of Yiddish songs a few years back) slows it down with "My Yiddishe Momme". Smooth jazz meet traditional Yiddish Klezmer for the next two track which feature soprano sax player Dave Koz and then trumpeter Herb Alpert. Comedian Rob Schneider really surprised me with his version of "Bagel & Lox" a 1940s swing tune. THEN thinks stopped. Jason Alexander performs one of lesser-known (for good reason) Allen Sherman parodies ("Shake Hands With Your Uncle Max"). Okay, maybe it's cute once. But I doubt anyone will play this track a second time. The next two "comedy" tracks are also funny ONCE. Then things get serious. The last 5 tracks are more or less Jewish Religious vocal music or prayers. (Ironically, the one song titled "Sabbath Prayer" is the song that Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick wrote for the score of "Fiddler on the Roof" in the 1960s. Theodore Bikel does a nice job and Adam Sandler (who has single-handedly brought back the songs of Hanukah each December) sings the prayer "Hine Ma Tov" in a duet with his real-life Cantor. Marvin Hamlisch does "Hatikva" and it's Streisand's turn to wrap things up.

With a bit better programming (keep Schneider and Triumph The Wonder Dog - seriously - but delete the between song shtick) and Jason Alexander's take on the Sherman song, as well as the "goes on too long" number "Joe and Paul" and this would be a Cd you could repeatedly play from beginning to end. Since you can program your CD player for sequencing, I'm only complaining a bit <g>.

The CD says that "a portion of the proceeds will benefit Jewish charities" so there's a "mitzvah" going on here as well.

Maybe this project will be successful and Richard Foos (exec at Shout Factory) will chance Volume 2. There's lots more Jewish performers out there and more songs to be covered. (Heck Irving Berlin wrote a bunch of great Jewish novelties.)

Steve Ramm
"Anything Phonographic"

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Star Covers of Traditional and Modern Jewish Songs, May 14, 2010

By 

gregarious1 (New York City) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Jewish Songbook: Heart & Humor of a People (Audio CD)

Only Neil Sedaka singing My Yiddishe Mama, can cause my aunt in her 90's to break down in tears (from this CD), even though she has heard the song many times before. When I told her that Neil Sedaka is a rock singer, she didn't believe me. And who could resist singing along to the Bagels and Lox song? Of course, the Manhattan Transfer (with Andy Statman) did Klezmer riffs in their American jazz too (if you listened hard you could hear it/feel it--it was in the scat, the improvisation and the syncopation even if not in so many wailing, bent-out-of-shape notes or Yiddish words) ... they were made for the Klezmer rendition of Utt Da Zay ... Triumph the Wonder Dog was the one bit of comic relief in this wonderful CD. I can't get over how well the traditional songs were covered ... !

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Jewish "wow" collection, March 1, 2009

By 

Rob Schneider (Sydney, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Jewish Songbook: Heart & Humor of a People (Audio CD)

The service from AMAZON was great & the item exceeded my expectations. It is a wonderful collection of Jewish melodies by an interesting array of performers some of whom I had no idea had any Jewish connections. I thoroughly recommend this title to all who appreciate a good laugh, a good cry & most of all a good addition to any library of Jewish music & song.