Jewface

Various Artists (Artist)

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 14, 2006)
• Original Release Date: November 14, 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Reboot Stereophonic
• ASIN: B000J3Q0Y8
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #43,021 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #38 in	Music > Folk > Klezmer
  #59 in	Music > Folk > Jewish & Yiddish Music

Track Listings

1. Pittsburgh, Pa. - Monroe Silver

2. My Yiddish Mammy - Irving Kaufman

3. Cohen Owes Me 97 Dollars - Rhoda Bernhard

4. My Friends, Morris and Max - Maurice Burkhart

5. Marry a Yiddisher Boy - Premier Quartet

6. I'm a Yiddish Cowboy - Edward Meeker

7. Under the Matzos Tree - Ada Jones

8. When Mose with His Nose Leads the Band - Collins & Harlan,

9. No Hot Water Was Up in the Bronx - Monroe Silver

10. Becky Is Back in the Ballet - Fanny Brice

11. That's Yiddisha Love - Edward Meeker

12. Nat'an - Rhoda Bernhard

13. Original Cohens - Ada Jones, Len Spencer

14. Becky the Spanish Dancer - Julian Rose

15. Yiddish Professor - Maurice Burkhart

16. Then I'd Be Satisfied with Life - Julian Rose

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Where popular music is concerned, most immigrant populations begin by looking back toward their homelands before developing styles that reflect their own take on the slow, arduous process of assimilation. Eastern European Jewish musicians had especially rich traditions to draw upon, although in the old country, professional players were often treated like social pariahs. But this began to change in the New World; many vaudeville and big band tunes evolved from klezmer tunes and owe as much to long-ago shtetl weddings as Tin Pan Alley. The cover says it all: "Jewface" is a wry reference to "blackface," yet another form of ethnic minstrelsy that is presently regarded as unspeakably un-PC. Recorded as early as 1905 and rescued from fragile wax cylinders and 78-rpm recordings, the tunes collected here are chock-full of Yiddish-inflected dialect pieces (comedian Jackie Mason is a modern descendant). They are often crudely, raucously funny, if one can get past the now-repugnant stereotypes. These ditties, which must have cheered up thousands of lonely newcomers, are heard in understandably antique yet remarkably clear sound. All are well worth the price of admission but Irving Kaufman's "My Yiddisha Mammy," which probably inspired Al Jolson, and "Becky Is Back in the Ballet," recorded by Fanny Brice in 1922, are both falling-on-the-floor, boffo numbers--in more ways than one! --Christina Roden

Product Description

What did the dawn of American pop music sound like? The answer can be found on the new Reboot Stereophonic release Jewface, consisting of Jewish minstrel songs that took vaudeville stages by storm at the turn of the twentieth century. Composed by legendary tunesmiths like Irving Berlin and Gus Kahn, many of these songs made use of authentically Jewish musical motifs, fusing them with every Jewish stereotype under the sun. From "Under the Matzos Tree" to "I'm a Yiddish Cowboy," exploring the Jewface recordings reveals one of the dirty little secrets of American culture: some of the very first hit records were fiendishly catchy Jewish musical creations! All of these songs have been re mastered from cylinder recordings to create one of the most remarkable, and perhaps offensive, albums ever.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Yiddish vaudeville, February 21, 2007

By	E. Beraru "Elise Dee Beraru" (Lynchburg, VA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This album is exactly what it advertises itself to be: a compendium of songs and comedy routines featuring the stereotypical Jewish immigrant parodies popular in vaudeville before the 1930's. PC it ain't, but a necessary piece of theatre history it is. To listen to Fanny Brice singing "Becky Is Back In The Ballet" is worth the price.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Collection, January 15, 2007

By	L. Berman (New Jersey, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a very entertaining collection of quirky old Jewish vaudeville-type songs. Yes, they sound scratchy, because a number of them were taken from really old (wax cylinders, even) recordings, but we like old radio stuff, so this didn't bother us. These were all pieces that we had never heard before, and we love them. Uncensored, self-effacing American Jewish humor. Cultural history in a jewelcase. What's not to like?

16 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nothing Offensive Here!, January 27, 2007

By	Ivan J. Goldberg "Audio Engineer" (New York) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Anyone who would be offended by Jewface is probably not Jewish at all! We have always had the ability to laugh at ourselves and this CD is nothing less than pure gold to the grand tradition of angst.

Enjoy

Ivan Joseph Goldberg
Miracle Mastering Studios L.L.C.
P.S. - The mastering from these old wax gems is a job well done!