Yiddish Curiosities: a library of wonderful but forgotten Yiddish songs from the late 1920s and after (includes Polish Jewish Cabaret). Have a listen!

UPDATE: Here is a live version of the song from a concert at the Carrboro Artscenter:


Or you can click here to listen to and/or buy this track, aka Ohn a heim: On a heym on the cd Lebedik Yankel

Here's an example of  how Yiddish theater stars re-worked material for their own purposes. This song was first published in 1920, a composition by Meyerowitz & Friedsell from a show called Di kraft fun der natur. I got the sheet music from Florida Atlantic University and in it "Farfinstert..." was the first verse, then a chorus, then a second verse which was your typical generic plaint sung by an ill-treated mother.

Zhelonek's source was BenZion Witler (right), who used the song in a show called Yanko Tsigayner (Yanko the Gypsy). Witler threw out the mother verse - he started off instead with a half-verse about "us gypsies", then sang the chorus, then sang as a second verse what was originally the first verse.

I published this earlier in July but Randy Kloko drove up from Florida to sing bass on some of the tracks for the new cd Lebedik Yankel and I wanted to show off his part (and a fiddle harmony). We sang the original first verse (Witler's second verse), the chorus, then Witler's half-verse, then another chorus. I have never heard a recording of this song. Aviva Enoch is playing piano.

There is another song from this same Yanko Tsigeiner show in the Zhelonek collection (just called "Yanko") but I haven't found it yet.

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My translation from the Yiddish:

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