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13 May 04 - 11:23 PM (#1185323) Subject: Lyr Add: THE LITTLE BIRD From: Rabbi-Sol Here is a song that was popular in Jewish summer camps 55 years ago. The author and composer are unknown. Rumor has it that it was written by a 16-year-old junior counselor in an all-girls Orthodox camp called Camp Bais Yaakov (Beth Jacob) in the Catskill Mountains sometime between the end of World War 2 and 1948 when the State of Israel was created. The Holocaust was still fresh in her mind. Many of you may know the tune which is the same as the Israeli folk song B'Arvot Hanegev. This song, "The Little Bird" preceded it, but the tune was never copyrighted.
He wishes to return The little bird is wounded He cannot cry but yearns He's captured by the vultures And is crying bitterly Oh to see my nest again Oh to be redeemed The little bird of silver So delicate and rare Still chirps among the vultures Outshining all that's there How long, how long it suffers How long will it be When will come the eagle And set the little bird free The little bird is Yisroel (Israel) The vultures are our foes The painful wound is Galus (exile) Which we all feel and know The nest is Yerusholayim (Jerusalem) Which we yearn to see once more The eagle is Moshiach (Messiah) Whom we are waiting for SOL ZELLER |
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14 May 04 - 12:13 AM (#1185343) Subject: RE: Lyrics: The Little Bird From: GUEST,.gargoyle Thank you Rabbi-Sol - a nice addition.
What is YOUR first connection to the piece and what is YOUR source for the lyrics?
Sincerely, |
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14 May 04 - 06:36 PM (#1185847) Subject: RE: Lyrics: The Little Bird From: Rabbi-Sol Hi Gargoyle, My first connection with the lyrics was when I heard them as a camper in a Jewish camp, Camp North Star located in Duane, N.Y. The year was 1951. The counselors taught us the words to the song that summer, but I forgot them. I was searching the web for the past 4 years and I finally re-discovered them on a special web site run by Princeton University. The URL is http://www.princeton.edu/zemerl Although I had been to that web site many times before, the song was added to it last August 2003. SOL ZELLER |
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15 May 04 - 11:50 PM (#1186591) Subject: RE: Lyrics: The Little Bird From: Rabbi-Sol Although this song is over 55 years old it is still very appropriate for today. I would like to see someone record this song as part of a future album. I think that Priscilla Herdman with her operatic voice would be the best candidate. I will try to talk to her at the next festival that I attend where she will be appearing. SOL ZELLER |
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16 May 04 - 01:37 AM (#1186618) Subject: RE: Lyrics: The Little Bird From: Joe Offer The only mention I found of "B'Arvot Hanegev" and "The Little Bird" was at Zemerl, and I couldn't find a tune for either one. Do either of these songs appear in print? Anybody have a MIDI they can send me for posting here? Thanks. -Joe Offer- joe@mudcat.org |
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16 May 04 - 07:41 PM (#1186958) Subject: RE: Lyrics: The Little Bird From: Rabbi-Sol Hi Joe, I just did some searching. If you have Windows Media Player, you can actually hear a woman singing the song with the words. The site to go to is http://www.geocities.com/matovou/littlebird.htm You might be able to save the file and bring it over here. I do not have the computer expertise to do it. I hope that this helps you. SOL ZELLER |
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25 May 04 - 02:10 PM (#1193859) Subject: RE: Lyr Add: The Little Bird From: Wolfgang Click for tune Wolfgang |
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26 May 04 - 01:15 PM (#1194334) Subject: RE: Lyr Add: The Little Bird From: McGrath of Harlow That link Wolfgang gave there doesn't seem to work for me anyway - but Sol's does, - The Little Bird. Very moving and delicate. Songs about exile do often have a strange power. |
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30 May 04 - 07:22 PM (#1197366) Subject: RE: Lyr Add: The Little Bird From: McGrath of Harlow Here are couple of other little bird songs. Nothing to do with that one, but I like it when you get songs echoing each other, especially when they come from completely different places and times. Little birdie, little birdie Come and sing me you song Got a short time to stay here And a long time to be gone There are verses that go with this, but I've never heard any that match up to it - but it goes well added on to Will the Circle be Unbroken. And here's the other, recorded y Doc Watson with these words: Free Little Bird I'm as free a little bird as I can be I'm as free a little bird as I can be I'm free at my age as a birdie in the cage I'm as free a little bird as I can be Carry me home little birdie carry me home Carry me home little birdie carry me home Carry me home to my wife she's the joy of my life Carry me home little birdie carry me home I'll never build my nest on the ground Neither in the forks of a tree I'll build my nest in the ruffle of her dress Where the bad boys can never bother me |
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30 May 04 - 09:41 PM (#1197426) Subject: RE: Lyr Add: The Little Bird From: Q (Frank Staplin) Palestinian folk song ('Ataba) The breeze of our homeland revives the body And surely we cannot live without our homeland The bird cries when it is thrown out of its nest So how is the homeland that has its own people? Verse from a Palestinian 'Ataba naseem eblaadna lal-jesem mon'esh bedoon el-waTan iqna' yowm ma n-'eesh bebky eT-Teir eTha ben Tarad men' esh fa keef el-waTan elly loo S-Haab? Palestinian Popular Songs |
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30 May 04 - 11:25 PM (#1197463) Subject: RE: Lyr Add: The Little Bird From: Rabbi-Sol Hi Q, Can you tell me in what year this verse of the Palestinian 'Ataba was written ? SOL ZELLER |
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30 May 04 - 11:59 PM (#1197470) Subject: RE: Lyr Add: The Little Bird From: Q (Frank Staplin) 'Atabas are constantly revised. Cannot translate Arabic in any case.I don't think the 4arabs website 'three hour course' would be suficient. |