By Sruly Meyer – COLlive
In the months since the October 7 massacre and the Gaza War, one song that has provided hope and expressed faith for IDF soldiers and Jews worldwide has been an older song based on the “Vehi Sheamda” passage in the Pesach Haggadah.
Composed by Yonatan Razel and sung by Yaakov Shwekey, it debuted on the Jewish music scene in 2001. Shwekey had already released some hit songs—such as Mehairah, Racheim, and Shomati—yet some could argue that “Vehi Sheamda” cemented his status as a worldwide sensation.
“Wow, has it really been 15 years?” Shwekey responded when asked about the background of this song, today viewed as an anthem of emunah and resilience over antisemitism.
“We were working all day on songs for the Ad Bli Dai album with famed composer and arranger Ken Burgess, A”H,” Shwekey recalls. “We worked with many composers, and the last one was Yonaton Razel. We hadn’t found what we were looking for. As we were wrapping up and putting on our coats, Yonatan said he had one more song he wanted us to hear. He said it was a very special song that he hadn’t put on his most recent album.”
Shwekey says that he liked it and structured the song slightly differently from its original form (“Matzileinu was moved to be the high part, instead of the low part where it was originally.”) Initially, Shwekey says, “people in the music business asked me why I made a Pesach song. ‘It’ll never be sung year round,’ they said.”
A few months later, Shwekey and Razel performed the song at the Live in Caesaria show in northern Israel. “I’ll never forget the response,” Shwekey says. “The song really came together and had an enormous impact. The song just had this power, and we see 15 years later how this song took over the nation and became a mantra of hope.”
Shwekey adds, “Had we put our coats on a little faster or stopped the session earlier, this song might not have been. It shows you that the Ribono Shel Olam orchestrates everything in life and everything is meant to be as Hashem planned. It’s been a tremendous zechus to bring this song to the world.”
VIDEO:
Vehi Sheamda 2021: Razel and Shwekey reunite at Shwekey Live Park
Shwekey is launching a new album, released in 4 different parts, consisting of 6 songs, a total of 24.
Each part will reflect a different segment of the Jewish world and honor how we are all one body, one soul. The newest song is titled “Guf Venshama.”
VIDEO:
Yaakov Shwekey – Guf Uneshama
Since YonatanRazel also recorded this so at least some people would know about this song. Yes the Shwekey live version with him was great but come on. Razel is an excellent performer in his own right so this seems rather provincial to say.
How many songs do you know that yonatan sang?
I’m familiar with quite a lot of his songs. Tht point is the song is an excellent song with or without him. Maybe not in the tri state area but Razel is well known in Israel, and this article reflects a myopic and provincial outlook.
Yacov Young did a live performance last year, I think its on YouTube absolutely phenomenal
The Sheweky himself is probably one of the best singers and Jewish dancers
But where is th jacket
Before shwekey hit the music scene, he sang with his yeshiva ” band”.(early 1990’s) We made a chuppa/ wedding for a couple from Russia, that hadn’t had a kosher chuppa at our Chabad house, and he sang with the band as a chessed at the wedding. Little did we know, that he would be one of the top Singers in the Jewish world one day.
Schwekey’s V’hi She’amda and Abie Rotenburg’s Acheinu are arguably the most universally accepted songs in the Jewish world from over the past few decades.