Words and music by Ben Yomen (1901-1970), published in the composer’s collection Oneg shabbat songs, 1962. The song, in the repertoire of popular singer Ben Bonus, was revived by his wife actress-singer Mina Bern, in the musical Those Were the Days. Bonus added the musical refrain.
Friday night
when I come walking from shul
my dear little wife is standing there and she laughs–
oh, she is full of charm!
And the little challahs are covered,
with a napkin that gleams.
Only a Jew knows the smell
of Friday night.
After kiddush, a piece of fish
that my wife prepared herself,
it’s worth a bit of a kiss –
on Friday night.
Oh, on Friday night
every Jew is a king.
In every corner it gleams,
the whole house is happy.
After the noodle soup
the bit of meat is also very good.
and I can feel how it tastes
because I am a Jew.
After the tsimmes, a little glass of wine –
the one who thought that up was no fool,
and I lay myself down in bed,
on Friday night.
Poor or rich–
everyone sings at the meal,
all are equal, then –
until Sunday morning.
A mol iz geven a yid,
Hot er gehat a yidene,
Hot er geheysn, geheysn —
Zi zol im koyfn vayn oyf shabes.
Oy, shabes, shabes, shabes,
Zog, vu nemt men vayn oyf shabes?
S’iz nishto keyn zalts,
S’iz nishto keyn shmalts —
Iz vu nemt men vayn oyf shabes.
A mol iz geven a yid,
Hot er gehat a yidene,
Hot er geheysn, geheysn —
Zi zol im bakn khale oyf shabes.
Oy, shabes, shabes, shabes,
Zog, vu nemt men khale oyf shabes?
S’iz nishto keyn zalts,
S’iz nishto keyn shmalts —
Iz vu nemt men khale oyf shabes.
A mol iz geven a yid,
Hot er gehat a yidene,
Hot er geheysn, geheysn —
Zi zol im bakn fleysh oyf shabes.
Oy, shabes, shabes, shabes,
Zog, vu nemt men khale oyf shabes?
S’iz nishto keyn zalts,
S’iz nishto keyn shmalts —
Iz vu nemt men fleysh oyf shabes.
A mol iz geven a yid,
Hot er gehat a yidene,
Hot er geheysn, geheysn —
Zi zol im makhn khotsh tsimes oyf shabes.
Oy, shabes, shabes, shabes,
S’iz shoyn bald avek der shabes,
Un s’iz biter vi der toy,
On a shtick broyt,
Oy, vu nemt men a rubl oyf shabes?
אַ מאָל איז געװען אַ ייִד,
האָט ער געהאַט אַ ייִדענע,
האָט ער געהײסן, געהײסן —
זי זאָל אים קױפֿן װײַן אױף שבת,
אױ, שבת, שבת, שבת,
זאָג, װוּ נעמט מען װײַן אױף שבת?
ס׳איז נישטאָ קײן זאַלץ,
ס׳איז נישטאָ קײן שמאַלץ —
איז װוּ נעמט מען װײַן אױף שבת.
אַ מאָל איז געװען אַ ייִד,
האָט ער געהאַט אַ ייִדענע,
האָט ער געהײסן, געהײסן,
זי זאָל אים באַקן חלה אױף שבת?
אױ, שבת, שבת, שבת,
זאָג, װוּ נעמט מען חלה אױף שבת?
ס׳איז נישטאָ קײן זאַלץ,
ס׳איז נישטאָ קײן שמאַלץ,
איז װוּ נעמט מען חלה אױף שבת?
אַ מאָל איז געװען אַ ייִד,
האָט ער געהאַט אַ ייִדענע,
האָט ער געהײסן, געהײסן —
זי זאָל אים קאָכן פֿלײש אױף שבת.
אױ, שבת, שבת, שבת,
זאָג, װוּ נעמט מען פֿלײש אױף שבת?
ס׳איז נישטאָ קײן זאַלץ,
ס׳איז נישטאָ קײן שמאַלץ,
איז װוּ נעמט מען פֿלײש אױף שבת?
אַ מאָל איז געװען אַ ייִד,
האָט ער געהאַט אַ ייִדענע,
האָט ער געהײסן, געהײסן —
זי זאָל אים מאַכן כאָטש צימעס אױף שבת.
אױ, שבת, שבת, שבת,
ס׳איז שױן באַלד אַװעק דער שבת,
און ס׳איז ביטער װי דער טױט,
אָן אַ שטיקל ברױט,
אױ, װוּ נעמט מען אַ רובל אױף שבת?
Song Title: A Mol Iz Geven A Yid
The Songs of Generations: New Pearls of Yiddish Song anthology comprises songs that were either never printed before or appeared in rare and inaccessible publications — sometimes in different versions and without proper sources. Most of the songs in this book were submitted by readers of Chana and Yosl’s column “Perl fun der yidisher poezye” (Pearls of Yiddish Poetry) in the Yiddish newspaper Der Forverts (The Forward), initiated in October, 1970. Over 25 years, thousands of songs were collected in correspondence and on cassettes from readers throughout the world, and they represent a veritable national Yiddish song archive. Chana Mlotek, in her introduction, writes, “In the course of years the inquiries, contributions and enthusiasm of these readers have kept our own interest unflagging and have reinforced our dedication to this effort. And in recent years our participants have also been augmented by new readers from the former Soviet Russia, who receive our newspaper there or from newly-arrived immigrants in this country and Israel.”
