Lyrics/Chords ADD:Jerusalem of Gold (Naomi Shemer)

Subject: Jerusalem of Gold
From: Sarah
Date: 25 Feb 99 - 09:00 AM

Does anyone know where (on the net) I can find the sheet music or chording to "Jerusalem of Gold"? his is pretty urgent-I needit for our Friday night service. Thanks!

Subject: RE: Jerusalem of Gold
From: Joe Offer
Date: 25 Feb 99 - 03:20 PM

Hi, Sarah - I'm not familiar with the song. Could it be Jerusalem the Golden (click here)? I found it at the Cyber Hymnal (click here).
If that's not the song, give us what you know of it, and we'll try to help.
-Joe Offer-

Subject: RE: Jerusalem of Gold
From: Felipa
Date: 25 Feb 99 - 04:22 PM

The song you suggest, Joe, wouldn't suit a Jewish sabbath service. I only know the lovely air of 'Jerusalem of Gold', but I've just e-mailed a couple of friends to see if they can help - if none of the established Mudcatters beat them to it. Shalom, Felipa

Subject: Lyr Add: JERUSALEM OF GOLD
From: Joe Offer
Date: 25 Feb 99 - 09:18 PM

Well, I found the English lyrics. Click here for the MIDI. Another link (click here) that may be interesting, although the Hebrew lyrics may be incomplete.

I also found a story about the song:
Naomi Shemer's song Yerushalayim Shel Zahav (Jerusalem of Gold) was chosen as Israel's "Song of the Jubilee" on Independence Day. In a survey conducted jointly by the Reshet Gimmel radio station, Channel One television and the Yediot Aharonot newspaper, Shemer's 1967 hit was selected as the most popular song of Israel's first fifty years.
Naomi Shemer appeared on television as the top ten songs were announced and played for viewers and listeners all over Israel. She recalled how Jerusalem mayor, Teddy Kollek, had asked for new Jerusalem-related songs to be written for the annual Hebrew song festival to be held in Jerusalem in 1967. It was during the months just before the Six Day War when songwriter Shemer travelled to the divided city for inspiration. She remembered a legend of Rabbi Akiva giving a gift of gold and copper to his wife, and the song began to take hold. An unknown singer, Shuli Natan, was asked to perform the song at the festival, and it was an immediate hit.
Just months later the war broke out, and for the first time the city of Jerusalem was united under Israeli rule. The verses of "Jerusalem of Gold" were updated to reflect the change, and the song became part of Israel's history.

Jerusalem of Gold

by Naomi Shemer

As clear as wine, the wind in flying
Among the dreamy pines
As evening light is slowly dying
And a lonely bell still chimes,
So many songs, so many stories
The stony hills recall...
Around her heart my city carries
A lonely ancient wall.
Refrain:
Yerushalaim all of gold
Yerushalaim, bronze and light
Within my heart I shall treasure
Your song and sight.
Alas, the drying wells and fountains,
Forgotten market-day
The sound of horn from Temple's mountain
No longer calls to pray,
The rocky caves at night are haunted
By sounds of long ago
When we were going to the Jordan
By way of Jericho.
Refrain:
Yerushalaim all of gold
Yerushalaim, bronze and light
Within my heart I shall treasure
Your song and sight.
But when I come to count your praises
And sing Hallel to you
With pretty rhymes I dare not crown you
As other poets do,
Upon my lips
is always burning
Your name, so dear, so old:
If I forget Yerushalaim
Of bronze and light and gold...
Refrain:
Yerushalaim all of gold
Yerushalaim, bronze and light
Within my heart I shall treasure
Your song and sight.
Back to the wells and to the fountains
Within the ancient walls
The sound of horn from Temple's mountain
Again so loudly calls,
From rocky caves, this very morning
A thousand suns will glow
As we shall go down to the Jordan
By way of Jericho.
Refrain:
Yerushalaim all of gold
Yerushalaim, bronze and light
Within my heart I shall treasure
Your song and sight.

Subject: Lyr Add: JERUSALEM OF GOLD - YERUSHALAYIM SHEL...
From: Bracha and Felipa
Date: 26 Feb 99 - 10:01 AM

Way to go, Joe! I just came to paste in a copy of a message from Bracha Ben Avraham. She gave me English and transliterated Hebrew words; she says if she posted Hebrew characters, they would appear as Greek letters instead! - Felipa

Jerusalem of Gold - Yerushalayim shel Zahav

1.
The mountain air is clear as wine.
The scent of pine trees is carried on the late afternoon wind
Together with the sound of bells.
Within the sleep of stone and tree, imprisoned in her dream, lies the city alone and in its heart is a wall.*
1.
Avir harim tzalool kayayin
V'rayach oranim
Neesa beruach ha'arbayeem
Im kol pa'amonim
U'betardemat ilan va'evan
Shvooya bachaloma
Ha'ir asher badad yoshevet
U'b'libah choma.

Chorus:
Jerusalem of gold, of copper and of light
I will be a violin (lyre) for all your songs.
Chorus:
Yerushalayim shel zahav
V'shel nechoshet v'shel or
Hallo lechol shirayich ani kinor.

2.
Alas, The water cisterns have all dried up.
The market square is empty.
None visit the Temple Mount
In the old city.
Winds wail in the rock caves.
None go down to the Dead Sea
By the road through Jericho.
2.
Eicha yabshu borot hamayim
Kikar hashuk raykah
V'ain poked et har habayit
Ba'ir ha'atikah.
Ubema'arot asher basela
Meyalelot ruchotv V'ain yordim el yam hamelach
Bederech yericho.

3.

But when I come to sing to you
And to place crowns upon you
I am smaller than your youngest sons
And your lesser poets.
For your name burns the lips
Like a burning kiss
If I forget you, Jerusalem
That is all gold.
3.
Ach bevo'ee hayom lashir lack
Velach likshor ketarim
Katanti mitza'ir banayich
Umeacharon ha'meshorerim.
Ki shmech tzorev et hasfatayeemv Keneshikat saraf
Eem eshkachech Yerushalayim
Asher koola zahav.

4.
We have returned to the water cisterns
To the market and the square
A shofar * sounds on the Temple Mount
In the old city.
A thousand suns shine in the stone caves
We will again go down to the Dead Sea
By way of Jericho.

4.
Chazarnu el borot hamayim
Lashuk ve'lakikar
Shofar koray behar habayit
Ba'ir ha'atikah.
U'bama'arot asher basela
Alfay shamshot zorchot
V'shuv nered el yam hamelach
Bederech yericho.

*Referring to the Western wall of the ancient temple
*A shofar is a ram's horn which is blown by Jews in synagogue on the high holidays and which is still used as a call of alarm or call to celebration.

The song was written by Naomi Shemer, a very well known Israeli songwriter, before the six - day war, when Jerusalem was still divided and the old part of the city inducing the Temple Mount and the road to Jericuo were still in Jordanian hands. The fourth verse was written after 1967 as an answer to the second.

Subject: RE: Jerusalem of Gold
From: Felipa
Date: 26 Feb 99 - 10:15 AM

I didn't get sheet music or chording; it sounds like Sarah has the words already! (Is this indeed the song you seek, Sarah, or the first one Joe offered, or...?) Will she be able to get a transcription from the midi link you provided? It appears to me to just be audial.

Subject: RE: Jerusalem of Gold
From: Sarah
Date: 26 Feb 99 - 10:29 AM

Thanks everyone for all the help. It turns out we're doing the song accapella so the chording wasn't needed. I did need all the Hebrew words, however. Toda raba!

Subject: RE: Jerusalem of Gold
From: Victor
Date: 26 Feb 99 - 05:22 PM

The main thing to know about this cliched song is that it was the first choice tune to be played at the end of the film Schindler's List. However when the movie was tested in Israel the audience research people found everyone doubled up with laughter.

Subject: 'Jerusalem of Gold'
From:
Date: 13 Aug 01 - 03:56 AM

Hello Mudcat Folks, I've just heard of your database, but don't know how large it is to download for my Mac (and I'm a technoNovice). What I'm looking for at the moment is the lyrics to a song that came out of one of the 20th C. Israeli-Arab wars, called (English transl.) "Jerusalem of Gold" or in transliteration, "Yerushalayim Shel Zahav". Is there a way to search your database online for that, without having to download the whole database?

Thanks for your help! And for the great idea of a trad. music database online!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'Jerusalem of Gold'
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 13 Aug 01 - 04:11 AM

LASprite, here is a link to a webpage telling you everything you could possibly want to know about the song Jerusalem of Gold, or Yerushalayim Shel Zahav. It includes a number of English translations. I hope that gives you the info you need. It's a beautiful song, one I've loved since I first heard it in 1967.

Regarding your other question, it isn't necessary to download the Digital Tradition; it can be searched from this site. If you type the title or some text from a song you are seeking into either the "DigiTrad Lyrics Search" or "DigiTrad and Forum Search" boxes at the top of the Mudcat Forum page, you will more often than not find what you're looking for. The second one will also lead you to discussions of the songs in question that have taken place in the Forum.

Welcome to the Mudcat, and I hope you'll become a member: it's easy, free, spam-less, and you have the benefits of exchanging personal messages with other Mudcatters, tagging discussion threads you're interested in so you can follow them, and others I can't think of at the moment. Check the FAQ thread at the top of the list for more details.

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'Jerusalem of Gold'
From: masato sakurai
Date: 13 Aug 01 - 04:11 AM

For several translations, Click here.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'Jerusalem of Gold'
From: masato sakurai
Date: 13 Aug 01 - 04:50 AM

P.S. And see also other sites (1 & 2 are articles):
(1) "'Jerusalem of Gold' writer reflects on music";
(2)"'Jerusalem of Gold' Chosen Top Song"; and
(3) a tablature (from Schindler's List)with words and translations.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'Jerusalem of Gold'
From:
Date: 14 Aug 01 - 01:34 AM

Thank you both! It was a fascinating site, and the Hebrew lyrics were at least half of what I'm after. Does anyone perhaps remember the female singer whose recording of this -- in both Hebrew and in a non-literal but singable English translation -- was played popularly in the US around 1968-ish? I would love to find the particular English words she sang to it, and the literal translations on the web site do not include that one.

Thanks again for your help --

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'Jerusalem of Gold'
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 26 Aug 01 - 11:44 PM

I still haven't found the translation LASprite was looking for, or the name of the person who sang it. I remember it as the version that was popular in the US around the time of the Six-Day War.

Thanks for the link, Felipa, though the version Joe provided back then is also not the one being sought. This may be too tough even for the 'Cat. You may just have to find someone with a better memory, Sprite! Maybe if you contacted Naomi Shemer?

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'Jerusalem of Gold'
From: GUEST,LASprite
Date: 27 Aug 01 - 03:59 AM

Thanks, Felipa; although not the partic. version I was after, it is a nice one.

Thanks, also, Mark, for your idea, and for following up on this for me. I'll try a search for her and see if any contact info comes up.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'Jerusalem of Gold'
From: Jack The Lad
Date: 27 Aug 01 - 01:51 PM

The person who sang it was Shuly Natan- a lovely person who still sings at various shows and occasionally at folk clubs. She sang at Jacob's Ladder Folk Festival in 1996 .I have her phone number, if you really need it PM me. Shalom, Jack The Lad([e-mail])

Subject: RE: Jerusalem of Gold
From: masato sakurai
Date: 26 Jun 04 - 09:39 PM

From The New York Times Obituaries:

Naomi Shemer

JERUSALEM (AP) -- Israeli composer Naomi Shemer, one of the country's most beloved and prolific songwriters, died Saturday after a long illness. She was 74. Shemer wrote dozens of songs during a career that spanned more than half a century. Her most famous work was "Jerusalem of Gold," which Shemer wrote shortly before Israel captured east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war. "Jerusalem of Gold" quickly became a symbol of the military victory. The song continues to serve as an unofficial national anthem and is frequently heard on the radio and at national ceremonies. In 1983, Shemer was awarded the prestigious Israel Prize for her contributions to Israeli music. Along with her original works, Shemer composed Hebrew versions of foreign verse. After Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated in 1995, she translated "O Captain! My Captain!" by American poet Walt Whitman into Hebrew, set it to music and dedicated it to Rabin. Israel radio stations aired Shemer songs throughout the day Saturday, and Israeli leaders praised her accomplishments.

Subject: RE: Jerusalem of Gold
From: Rabbi-Sol
Date: 26 Jun 04 - 11:44 PM

This song was featured on an album that came out right after the 6 day war in 1967. The album had many other good songs on it, all about the war. One was "Sharm El Sheikh" which described the Israeli capture of the stategic heights overlooking the Gulf of Aquaba. The other one I remember was a funny song entitled "Nasser Mechake L'Rabin" (Nasser Waits For Rabin). The late Yitzchak Rabin was at that time the chief general of the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces). He was prepared to march all the way into Cairo, had not the US, Britian, & France put pressure on Israel to stop at the Suez Canal, for fear of Soviet intervention. When that album came out, it was the most popular and hottest item in the Jewish community for about a year. I had it on 8 track and later on casette. I believe that it was recently re-issued on CD and is available in most stores that specialize in Judaica items. SOL ZELLER

Subject: Chords ADD: Jerusalem of Gold
From: GUEST,Allen
Date: 05 Jun 05 - 04:04 PM

From the Naomi Shemer Songbook:

D7                   Gm
A-vir ha-rim tsa-lul ka-ya-in   ve-re-ach o-ra-
D7                         Gm
nim   ni-sa be-ru-ach ha-ar-ba-im im kol pa-
Dm6/4 A7 Dm                  
a - mo-nim -----    Ye-ru-sha-
Gm      C      F               C7             F
la-im shel za-hav ve-shel ne-cho-shet ve-shel or ha-lo le-
Bb       Am       Dm6/4 A7    Dm
chol shi - ra-ich a-ni    ki- / nor ye-ru-sha- [repeat section]
Dm          Gm      C      F             Bb      C7      F
nor ye-ru-sha-la-im shel za-hav ve-shel necho-shet ve-shel or halo le-
Bb       Am         Gm      A7          Dm
chol shi - ra-ich a - ni ki - nor - ki - nor -

Subject: RE: Chords Req: Jerusalem of Gold
From: GUEST
Date: 06 Jun 05 - 06:46 AM

saw this message from "Allen" in another Mudcat thread;

2I was watching the news on one of the Israeli channels, and a letter by the late Naomi Shemer (the most prolific Israeli lyricist) has laid to rest a controversy about the tune's origins.
The claim had been made that the melody was in fact from a Basque song, Joseba's Hair, performed by Paco Ibanez among others, a claim which Shemer had hotly denied.

"Turns out she had used it unintentionaly, something she hadn't realised until it was brought up years later, and panicked."
see:
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/572475.html

Subject: RE: Chords Req: Jerusalem of Gold
From: GUEST,Allen
Date: 06 Jun 05 - 07:53 AM

It's really more a variant, so not identical.

Subject: RE: Chords Req: Jerusalem of Gold
From: Genie
Date: 30 Dec 05 - 01:04 AM

Victor said, "The main thing to know about this cliched song is that it was the first choice tune to be played at the end of the film Schindler's List. However when the movie was tested in Israel the audience research people found everyone doubled up with laughter."

FWIW, when I saw Schindler's list -- uncut -- on TV here in the US, that was the song played (and sung by the cast) at the end of the film.   I can't speak for Sabras and other Israel residents, but the staff and residents of some Jewish retirement homes where I do music really like the song and find it very moving.

Subject: RE: Chords Req: Jerusalem of Gold
From: GUEST,Uncle Jaque
Date: 30 Dec 05 - 12:53 PM

I just ran one of those MIDIs linked on Joe's post, and it certainly is an intriguing melody - in one of those haunting, minor keys it sounds like (the chords sort of look like it too).

Back around 1989 while I was in hospital recuperating from surgery I looked out over the lights of Portland (ME) and despite my general aversion to cities, it was sort of pretty.

It made me wonder what the "New Jerusalem" might look like, and how beautiful it must be - then this song sort of "unrolled" in my head.

This is the first time I've seen anything about this "Jerusalem of Gold" song, but the similarity of subject sort of struck me.

What do you think?

****************

"NIGHT IN JERUSALEM"

"Uncle Jaque"

All day long in streets of darkness, Lord
I've failed to pass the test;
Fallen far short of your glory, Lord
though I've tried my level best...
There's lots more I need to do here, Lord;
Much more I need to learn;
Though my weary heart for sanctuary
frequently does yearn.

Refrain:

In my dreams the golden spires of your Temple meet the sun;
In your streets the children dancing;
Hear them sing, and laugh, and run....
Your sweet flowers soothe my spirit,
Though it's not time to come home -
Let me spend this night...
Dear Lord....
In Jerusalem.

City of God; city of David;
Priceless pearl beyond worth;
Shining light upon Mount Zion -
Capital city of the Earth;
Let me drink from your crystal fountains,
wander through your rainbow halls;
Hear the trumpet sound the Sabbath
From your alabaster walls!

Ref.

Say there Pilgrim; have you seen her?
Shining high upon the hill -
Ancient city of our Fathers -
Are her banners flying still?
Or when back towards the Kingdom
wandering souls begin to start -
Is Jerusalem that city
God rebuilds within our heart?

Ref.

**********************

And here I'm a Yankee Baptist living in Maine.
Go figure, eh?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Jerusalem of Gold
From: cnd
Date: 24 Oct 22 - 09:04 PM

Shockingly, pretty much all the links are dead. See

http://www.jerusalemofgold.co.il/

/http://www.jerusalemofgold.co.il/translations.html

http://www.jauko.nl/tot/tab/t/themes/schindle.htm

http://israeliculture.about.com/library/blstory/blsongs.htm

http://www.jewishsf.com/bk000609/etgold.shtml

Subject: RE: Lyrics/Chords ADD:Jerusalem of Gold (Naomi Shemer)
From: GUEST,Elizabeth Block, by email to Joe Offer
Date: 03 Apr 23 - 08:20 PM

Naomi Shemer wrote "Jerusalem the Golden," or "Jerusalem of Gold," shortly after the 1967 Six-Day War. Hugely popular among Israeli Jews and their supporters. But it portrays Jerusalem as an empty city until the Jews conquered it. I finally wrote new words. The tune was adapted from a Basque folk tune.

Jerushalayim shel zahav
(New lyrics by Elizabeth Block)

At the gate of the old city
A troop of soldiers stands,
To stop the people who are trying
To go on living on their lands.

This city, home to many peoples,
Now is held in thrall.
Friends and kinfolk are divided
By the apartheid wall.

Chorus:
Jerushalayim shel zahav,
A place of pilgrimage,
They're not allowed to go there
Though it's their heritage.

Jerushalayim shel zahav,
Built of golden stone,
They cannot walk its streets
But it is still their own.

In their dreams they see the city,
The place they once called home,
But Jewish settlers dispossessed them
And sent them forth to roam.

Their great-grandfathers built these houses,
The houses where they were born.
The Jewish families who live there
Would only treat them with scorn. (Chorus)

From distant lands, Jewish settlers
Came to rule the town.
The olive trees that stood in silence
Poisoned or cut down.

Forbidden now to all but Jews
By soldiers and police,
This city, holy to three faiths,
Whose very name means peace. (Chorus)

"The olive trees that stood in silence" comes from the original song. And I have seen poisoned olive trees.