Customer Reviews

Music From The Yiddish Radio Project

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This CD is truly a priceless time capsule, gleaned from what co-producer Henry Sapoznik calls "The King Tut's tomb of Yiddish music" -- a re-discovered "lost" collection of rare, one-of-a-kind recordings, made on-the-spot as the shows were broadcast from the 1930s and 40s. Out of that discovery came the 10-part "Yiddish Radio Project," which aired on National Public Radio in 2002. And from that series comes this CD.

The CD is much more than a trip down memory lane. It's an important slice of Jewish-America history. At a time when Yiddish-speaking immigrants and their American-born children were trying to fit into their new land's pop culture, old-world Klezmer met new-world Swing in an endearing, sometimes hilarious combination. Some of these songs, such as "Bei Mir Bist Du Sheyn," became national hits and are still sung today. Others, such as a Swing version of "Dayenu" (a song from the Passover liturgy), never caught on in the gentile world, but will still bring a smile to any Jewish face.

On the technical end, the CD has been edited as if it were a one-hour radio program, complete with station identifications and some wacky commercials -- including one for a local cafeteria that served "meat, dairy, and some foods we can't mention" (i.e., not kosher.) If you don't understand Yiddish, the liner notes contain English translations and some excellent background history by Henry Supoznik. There's even a photo of the "Joe and Paul" store, which spent decades running its jingle and "going out of business" sales until, in the 1960s, they finally did. It was the end of an era -- or maybe not... with the recent revival of Swing music, these songs may yet be sung again.

...I expected this to be a compendium of the kind of stuff I heard as a little boy, but oh, it has so much more.

In addition to all of the standard Yiddish music which I (thought I) knew so well, there are moments here of amazing power and virtuosity!

This is not just bar mitzvah music! In its golden age, this music was treated as seriously and professionally as Duke Ellington treated Jazz, George Gershwin treated Swing, and Leonard Bernstein treated classical music. Unlike the other musical styles, this one was suddenly snuffed out after the holocaust, its echoes drowned out by the louder sounds that followed.

But it's still there, and parts are right in this treasury! You will be amazed at the excellence of this stuff, and amazed as I am that it still lies so obscure and unknown in the murky past.

Be prepared to have a whole new bunch of favorite performers.

(Oh, and some of the shlocky fun stuff is in there too. Hey, even the finest gefilte fish should have some horseradish on the side, right?)

This swing and klezmer collection combines many forms of mastery, not least the kitschy commercials and jingles. Between numbers, listeners are enticed (in Yiddish, as they would have been on an hour-long Yiddish radio show) to buy everything from Adler's elevator shoes and Manischewitz Matzo to Joe and Paul's clothing and Ajax. Of course, many products and stores hawked here have long since bit the dust. But the music is timeless right down to a couple of Chasidic niguns--nonsensical words sung as prayer--one doubling here as a station identification. --"Ya ba ba, ya ba ba bye, WBVD."

My favorite piece is Dave Tarras' rendition of Second Avenue Square Dance, a piece of divine klezmer, braiding alto and soprano clarinets into musical silk. But Abe Ellsteins's Orchestra rendition of Die Goldene Khasene comes a close second. And one cannot but smile at the Barry and Andrews Sisters' jazzy but melodious harmonies.

Each of the 34 cuts on this disc offers a kind of elegance, whether peddling the most pedestrian products or gliding through a Naftule Brandwein serenade. Treat yourself to a small piece of heaven. Alyssa A. Lappen

I love when someone gets the smart idea to save a bit of history. And better still when they format in a way that is current and useful. This CD is tremendous - it is a radio show in the background with live vocalists for ads - the Barry Sisters, the Andrews Sisters, more.

Fantastic find.

What Aaron of Amherst did for Yiddish books, Klezkamper Henry Sapoznik, Yair Reiner, and David Isay have done for classic Yiddish radio. After hearing snippets of this work-in-progress a couple of years ago at the Eldridge Street synagogue, I awaited this CD with great anticipation. TV, assimilation, and cultural changes killed off Yiddish radio and the stereotypical Yiddish characters in the 1950s, but this CD lets you relive its heyday. Restored from fragile recordings and "FCC acetates", we get to hear snippets of radio shows, swing, klezmer, product commercials, and personalities. And the musicians appearing in these snippets are not hacks, but the brilliant Dave Tarras and Naftule Brandwein. You not only get the Barry Sisters, but the Andrews Sisters appear as well. Product commercials include those for B. Manishewitz Matzos, The Parkway Cafeteria (1937), Hebrew National meats, Adlers (elevator) Shoes, and gefilte fish in gleaming glass jars. There is The Battle Hymn in Yiddish, a swing version of Dayenu, and a 1941 pre-War version of Dona Dona in Yiddish. The Barry Sisters belt out Yidel Mitn Fiedel, Tevye Mitn Bass, while the Andrews Sisters perform Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen by Seconda, Sammy Cahn, and Saul Chaplin. For me, the WEVD commercial for Joe and Paul is the quintessential selection, since it combines Yiddish and English; music, merchandise, and commerce; and cantorial, swing, and klezmer - all in one promo. The CD contains excellent liner notes and translations of the Yiddish selections. This CD is a must buy... and maybe you'd like a little jacket and pants with it??

As a document of the history of Yiddish radio, this CD is remarkable enough. But it is much more. It paints a fantastic picture of how radio served a community, with entertainment, culture, politics and a sense of identity. Radio did that (and continues to this day) as NO other medium could.
And aside from its historical interest, this is a great piece of production, with outstanding music and some of the funniest (intentionally and otherwise) commercials you've ever heard
I've never heard anything like it. I'd sure like to hear more.

This is honestly one of the best albums I've heard in YEARS. It's breathtaking. There are matzo jingles and old-style klezmer tunes, swinging big bands and snippets of sixty year-old radio station IDs. Somehow, all of the various tracks blend into a seamless album that transports you to another world.

I don't speak a word of Yiddish, but I don't need to. Some of the tracks are instrumentals, some are in English, and all of the Yiddish lyrics are translated in the beautiful liner notes. (They also include a really great essay that provides a quick, entertaining history of Yiddish radio.)

I'd recommend this album to everyone: for music lovers it's a joy; for aficionados of radio history it's a treasure trove; and for ANYONE interested in American Jewish culture it's a must. I just hope they put out a sequel!

How do you rate something that until recently, no one knew existed -- and the voices on the CD are liking both living and dying history, vital voices for a Yiddish-speaking community that dwindles daily. Buying it for the whole family.

Listening to this make me feel 12 years old again.

Yiddish radio programs were heard coast to coast in our nation for decades on many radio stations. The music was often very appealing and this CD gives us both traditional Yiddish music along with another type of Yiddish music clearly designed to assimilate Yiddish music into a more Americanized "swing" culture.

Sam Medoff and The Yiddish Swing Orchestra perform "The Bridegroom Special" so well; love that swingin' beat! You can hear traditional Yiddish music being mixed with elements of American swing on this very good track. "Second Avenue Square Dance" by The Dave Tarras Orchestra has a lot of surface noise but it's still a good track anyway. Again you can hear traditional Yiddish music mixed with American swing. Great! In addition, The Barry Sisters sing "Oh Mama, I'm So In Love" with Sam Medoff and the Yiddish Swingtet. The Barry Sisters were young when they recorded this; and they never sounded better!

The Andrews Sisters, who were certainly not in the Yiddish community, scored a major, major hit with their fantastic "Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen." The Andrews Sisters really make this number swing and the overall effect is pure electricity! "Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen" uses the brass well to enhance the beauty of this melody.

"Dona Dona" is a classic older Yiddish number and we get it here by Moishe Oysher and Shalom Secunda. The tempo is faster than normal but the song retains its beauty just fine. Moreover, there's also "Yidel mitn Fiedel" sung again by The Barry Sisters with Sam Medoff and The Yiddish Swingtet. "Dayenu" by Sam Medoff also sounds great in his competent hands.

Something I really find interesting is the collection of radio commercials also on this CD. Listen for them all; but the "Manischewitz Matzo Commercial," the "Hebrew National Meats Commercial" and the "Barbasol Commercial" stand out in my mind.

Henry Sapoznik contributes an informative essay for the booklet of liner notes; and we get the song credits, too. I really like the black and white photos in the booklet.

Overall, Music From The Yiddish Radio Project is practically a necessity for anyone who wants to study early ethnic radio programs in our country; and many Jewish people will find this CD to be interesting as well. I myself enjoyed this music very much--it's very, very well done.