“The Wonder of Life,” with lyrics that touch on feelings from the lowest places, has already hit home with struggling teens
If variety is the spice of life, then YAAKOV SHWEKEY’s latest release, L’CHAIM: A TOAST TO LIFE, is packed with flavor. From the energetic title track with Miriam Israeli’s Hebrew lyrics, to Sruli Besser’s striking English “Wonder of Life” ballad, to some new dance tracks, coproducer Yitzy Waldner says that after the innovative Musica album of 2018, he and Shwekey decided to go back to their roots a bit — “while still keeping things interesting.”
The talents of composer Hershy Weinberger add that touch of the past. “I’ve been following Hershy’s career all along, and I worked together with him on ‘Kol Hamelameid’ for Shmueli Ungar,” says Yitzy Waldner. “So I’ve seen firsthand how extremely talented he is.”
Weinberger came from Williamsburg to the studio in Lakewood to meet with Yaakov Shwekey and Waldner. “We had hoped he would bring in a chassidish song, yet we found that Hershy is so versatile,” says Waldner. “He once walked in to a meeting, and Yaakov told the story of a certain teenager he knew of, challenging Hershy to compose a song about it. He began to play a tune that morphed into “The Wonder of Life.” And as he was singing aloud for all he was worth, another song came to me, and I ran out of the room singing into my phone the tune for ‘L’chaim: A Toast to Life.’ So two songs were born within one hour.”
“The Wonder of Life,” with lyrics that touch on feelings from the lowest places — “I don’t see tomorrow, I’m hanging on by a thread…” has already hit home with struggling teens who feel their experiences reflected in the song.
Create a free account to keep reading.
