Bei Mir Bist du Schein is Back -- Bigger Than Ever

Last year we did a long post about the Yiddish song Bei Mir Bist Du Schein. It was composed by Sholom Secunda and Jacob Jacobs as a love song for a Yiddish show in 1932, but really got started as an act at Grossinger's Hotel by two black singers, Johnnie and George, who brought it to the Apollo Theater in Harlem where it was heard by Sammy Cahn and Saul Chaplin, who bought the rights to the song for $30.

We went on about how it became a massive hit and was covered all over the world, even ending up as a kiddie song called "The Bear Missed the Train." 

What we didn't know then was how popular the song was becoming in Europe. It went viral among fans last winter as a dance track because of a new video featuring Azerbaijani singer Ilhama Gasimova.

It has a vibe reminiscent of the song "We No Speak Americano." The sound is very different from the original recorded by The Andrews Sisters in 1938. The black-and-white music video has a retro feel, incorporating some hilarious footage of old Laurel and Hardy silent movies. Go figure.

In June the video won the Best Music Video award at the Eldani Music and Media Awards in Berlin.

We found it infectious, and begging to be played again. We hope you'll like it, too. Enjoy! 

(A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.)




If you want to see how they made the video, here is a behind the scenes look and an interview with Ilhama.



(A tip of the kippah to Elliot Greene for bringing this video to our attention.)