Tonight's HanuKat reminds me of my poor, dear departed Mrs. Katz (not her real name).
Night Seven. I may actually survive this. Probably not. It takes me about 4 hours to go through my email every day. Sure, there's spam, but I have more people asking me to feature their new Christmas song than I have readers. And I clearly can't answer all of it, so I pretty much answer none of it. Oy vey, I'm tired. My oil ran out months ago. Ain't no miracles happenin' here. I just want to watch a movie or something, y'know? Speaking of which, did you hear Hallmark is working on some Hanukkah movies for next year? True story.
Pfft. I do feel like I'm the only one who cares about Hanukkah music, sometimes. But somebody in the Christmas music community should. And, just a head's up, I do have something y'all will probably enjoy for tomorrow. Welp! Whatever. Another plate of NEW Hanukkah music, tonight.
Night Seven. I may actually survive this. Probably not. It takes me about 4 hours to go through my email every day. Sure, there's spam, but I have more people asking me to feature their new Christmas song than I have readers. And I clearly can't answer all of it, so I pretty much answer none of it. Oy vey, I'm tired. My oil ran out months ago. Ain't no miracles happenin' here. I just want to watch a movie or something, y'know? Speaking of which, did you hear Hallmark is working on some Hanukkah movies for next year? True story.
Pfft. I do feel like I'm the only one who cares about Hanukkah music, sometimes. But somebody in the Christmas music community should. And, just a head's up, I do have something y'all will probably enjoy for tomorrow. Welp! Whatever. Another plate of NEW Hanukkah music, tonight.
We've talked about Lenny Solomon and his group Shlock Rock (which I tend to misspell) before. Lenny's been making music--both original and parody--that speaks to Jewish culture since 1984. So even though he's not an annual Hanukkah single guy, it's fair to say he's done his share and then some. His latest Hanukkah track is "Judah Maccabee" (done to the tune of Walk The Moon's "Shut Up And Dance"). Looks like it was released last year, but everybody else is treating it like its brand new, so I will as well. "Judah Maccabee" is part of The Four Corners Project and the only place I've found this Shlock Rock single for sale, so far, is from Lenny himself (scroll down to the purchase link).
The New York Boys Choir, under the direction of producer Yitzy Bald, are usually good for an uptempo rockin' vaguely Metal Hanukkah single, year to year. They're usually quite popular, if YouTube views are any indication. If nothing else, they're joyous...which I like (though, admittedly, they've yet to crack my personal Hanukkah mixes). This year's single is "Spin That Dreidel", which is quite snappy. I'm still debating whether I like or dislike that they added a syllable to "latke" (lat-ah-kuh) so it would rhyme with "Hanukkah", but I guess all's fair in love, war, and holiday music. You can get "Spin That Dreidel" from The New York Boys Choir on most major digital platforms including Amazon.
"Al Hanisim" is a traditional Jewish prayer, with different versions for Hanukkah and Purim. "Al Hanisim", itself, translates roughly to "on the miracles". There is a traditional "Al Hanisim" melody, that I'm very fond of (when it's not presented like a funeral dirge...I mean, I understand it's a prayer, but prayer can be joyous). I still think the best arrangement I've heard of the traditional "Al Hanisim" melody is the one by Yom Hadash on the "Celebrate Hanukkah" collection. That one's sort of Pop Rock.
But this "Al Hanisim" is an original composition of Yechiel Lazarus. The elements of the prayer and the story of Hanukkah are in there (even though I don't speak the language, I've heard "Al Hanisim" enough to recognize words and phrases), but the music is all his. Lazurus is, himself, a fairly new artist. Though he's had a song here and a video there over the last two years, his official debut is considered the single "Hodu Lashem" which was released earlier this year. "Al Hanisim" by Yechiel Lazurus (ft. DJ YLK) is available at Amazon.
But this "Al Hanisim" is an original composition of Yechiel Lazarus. The elements of the prayer and the story of Hanukkah are in there (even though I don't speak the language, I've heard "Al Hanisim" enough to recognize words and phrases), but the music is all his. Lazurus is, himself, a fairly new artist. Though he's had a song here and a video there over the last two years, his official debut is considered the single "Hodu Lashem" which was released earlier this year. "Al Hanisim" by Yechiel Lazurus (ft. DJ YLK) is available at Amazon.
We haven't had much Hanukkah music to celebrate from what I call the "off genres", this year. That would be Jazz, Blues, Bluegrass...stuff like that. So let me introduce you to The Panorama Jazz Band. The Panorama Jazz Band are kinda like the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, except that they're Jewish and incorporate Klezmer influence in their Jazz. They are from New Orleans, so you still get that gumbo of other influences. The Panorama Jazz Band have been around for quire some time and they'll usually provide an annual holiday single. Some year's it's Christmas. Some year's it's Hanukkah. Some years, they'll do both.
This year's holiday single from The Panorama Jazz Band is "Spin The Dreidel" and features Mark Rubin, the Jew of Oklahoma (as he bills himself). "Spin The Dreidel" is part of the Song-of-the-Month Club. For $3 a month, you get all kinds of free stuff and access, including a guaranteed song on the first of every month. Or you can pick up the single a la carte from Amazon (I could swear it was up on Amazon a week ago, but it doesn't seem to be there, now; it should be, again or for the first time, eventually). Be sure to check out their back catalog of holiday tunes. They've done quite a few.
This year's holiday single from The Panorama Jazz Band is "Spin The Dreidel" and features Mark Rubin, the Jew of Oklahoma (as he bills himself). "Spin The Dreidel" is part of the Song-of-the-Month Club. For $3 a month, you get all kinds of free stuff and access, including a guaranteed song on the first of every month. Or you can pick up the single a la carte from Amazon (I could swear it was up on Amazon a week ago, but it doesn't seem to be there, now; it should be, again or for the first time, eventually). Be sure to check out their back catalog of holiday tunes. They've done quite a few.
There's some debate about whether the song "Lights On" by LA trio Distant Cousins qualifies as a Hanukkah song. There's no doubting the heritage of the group, which includes one of the founding members of Moshav. And the Indie Folk Rock band is proud of their Jewish heritage and doesn't try to hide it. In fact, that's what they say "Lights On" is about. Hanukkah, they say, isn't just about the miracle of the oil lasting for 8 nights, but also about not hiding who you are in the darkness. When the Greeks invaded Judea, some Jews at the time argued that they should assimilate rather than fight. But Judah Maccabee and others were unwilling to submit to the proclamations of Antiochus forbidding the practice of their religion. "Lights On" is a more general view of that idea. In short, be proud of who you are and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Works for me. Catch this one on Distant Cousins' latest album, "Next of Kin".
I want to quickly mention a new album I haven't mentioned because there's no audio that I can embed. You can probably stream on Spotify or Deezer, neither of which my computer wants anything to do with. The album is "Shimmering Lights" by Yale Strom's Broken Consort. We like different at Stubby's at "Shimmering Lights" is nothing if not different. Based on this album, I'd call Yale Strom a Jazz artist. But what I know about him is that he's a student of Klezmer. "Student" doesn't really do it justice. Strom has sought out Klezmer sounds and variations throughout the world, to preserve, to perform, to appreciate and spread the appreciation. He may be the world's foremost expert on the subject. The music on "Shimmering Lights" is a mix of Klezmer, Jazz, Middle Eastern, Bluegrass, Classical, Folk, and a bunch of stuff I'd never be able to identify, I'm sure. Which makes it fascinating to me. If you're a serious Hanukkah hound, you'll want to add "Shimmering Lights" to your collection, even though it may not be all that mixtape friendly (for one thing, the tracks tend to be very long). I do think the original "The Fool Over Yonder" could find a home, somewhere. "Shimmering Lights" is available from Amazon or from the artist.
We'll close out Night Seven with a fairly goofy song and video. But it is new. The Jew Crew (what was your first clue it would be a goofy song) is the duo of Keith and Laura Nicole Harrison and their Hanukkah single is "Yah, Brah, It's Hanukkah". I'm sure others will like the song more than I do...but the video is fun. Find it at Amazon.
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