Jacob’s Ladder rocks out – a musical review

May 9, 2010 - 12:02 PM by

Fun at Jacob's Ladder

We just got back from the annual Jacob’s Ladder folk music festival and musically it was one of the best in recent years. Not necessarily the headliners, although they were excellent as well, but some of the smaller discoveries on and off the main stage.

Interestingly, the performers I enjoyed the most sang nearly exclusively in English even though the band members were clearly fluent Hebrew speakers (many were probably children of Anglo parents).

Red Meadow is a staple of Jacob’s Ladder. Most of the band are members of the Schmalz family who live in the Jordan Valley, not far from the festival’s home at the Nof Ginosar kibbutz north of Tiberius, and made aliyah years ago from Montana. I’ve been a fan of Red Meadow for several years now and even turned one of their songs – “Hey Sister” – into the ringtone that plays when my wife calls my cell phone. Hearing it played live was a personal highlight of the show.

A newcomer to Jacob’s Ladder, Tal Cohen-Shalev performed a set of mostly down-beat emo pop in English that would easily fit on an Internet alternative rock station. He also does a fine job of channeling Gordon Lightfoot during a rendition of “If You Could Read My Mind.”

Holler has been to the festival before. A country band with a healthy does of bluegrass in their repertoire, their stand out tune was the infectious “Jerusalem” (and not just because that’s my home city).

Ummagumma – named for an early Pink Floyd album – rocked out Friday night with an all-cover set of classics from the late 60s and early 70s, exactly when many of the festival-goers – including me – were first learning to love rock and roll. It reminded me of the counterintuitive creativity of Top 40 radio in those days, when you could hear Led Zeppelin and The Turtles back to back.

On Shabbat afternoon, two singer-songwriters – Amos Zimmerman and Natalie Geva – teamed up for an acoustic set of lovely folk pop performed at the intimate “Lobby Stage” – just right after a hot day sucking down ice cream under the tarps outside at the main stage.

To prepare, I listened to many of the performers before the show on their MySpace pages. Compulsive groupie that I am, I even recorded the music and put it on my iPod to enjoy on the drive up. So, with that in mind, here are links to my favorite Jacob’s Ladder bands’ MySpace pages. Enjoy!

Tal Cohen-Shalev http://www.myspace.com/talcohenshalev

Ummagumma: http://www.myspace.com/israelummagumma

Amos Zimmerman http://www.myspace.com/amoszim

Natalie Geva http://www.myspace.com/nataliegeva

Red Meadow http://www.myspace.com/eliredmeadow/

Holler http://www.myspace.com/thebandholler

Tags: • Category: Music 

Comments

4 Comments on Jacob’s Ladder rocks out – a musical review

  1. Chilling on the Kinneret | ISRAELITY on Sun, May 9th 2010 4:49 PM

    2. [...] for all at Jacob's Ladder (Photo: Ilan AmihaiBrian wrote about the music at the Jacob’s Ladder Festival which took place over the weekend, but equally compelling for [...]

  2. Hank on Tue, May 11th 2010 4:31 PM

    3. Tal Cohen-Shalev is definitely NOT emo and far from pop! I find this a strange characterization of his style. Go see him and make up your own mind people!

  3. The Business of Jacob’s Ladder on Thu, May 13th 2010 10:14 AM

    4. [...] My review of the music. [...]

  4. Cyprus hotels on Mon, Feb 28th 2011 12:23 PM

    5. I am especially grateful for the links!

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