Folk song (textual variant published in 1901 by S. Ginzburg and P. Marek; text and melody published in 1927 by Y.L. Cahan). The popular melody was used in the Soviet-Yiddish song “Baleytn, baleytn zaynen mir gegangen yunge prizivnikes in armey.” (We escorted recruits to the army).
A dream, I had a dream,
In a dream, my dear, it seemed to me, oh, it seemed!
you drew me to you with your dark eyes,
and made a man of me. [made a real person out of me]
I don’t eat, I don’t drink, i don’t sleep at night,
and I long, my dear, long for you, oh, for you!
when I think about you, my darling, my dearest,
I grow faint for the love of you!
We went, oh, my love, went strolling together,
outside it was snowing, oh, snowing!
Do you remember, my fine love, how you vowed to be true to me,
and now it turns out, you have two others!
A kholem, a kholem hot zikh mir gekholemt,
A kholem, lyube, hot zikh mir gedakht, oy, gedakht!
Mit dayne shvartse oygn hostu mikh tsugetsoygn,
Un far a mentshn hostu mikh gemakht.
lkh, es nisht, ikh trink nisht, ikh shlof nisht durkh di nekht,
Un benken, lyube, benk ikh nokh dir, oy, nokh dir!
Ven ikh dermon zikh, dushe, on dir, mayn tayer-lebn,
Geyen mir di koykhes oys nokh dir!
Shpatsirn, oy, lyube, zaynen mir gegangen,
In droysn iz gevezn a shney, oy, a shney!
Gedenkstu, lyube sheyne, du host mir tray geshvorn,
Tsum sof hostu gor andere tsvey!
אַ חלום, אַ חלום האָט זיך מיר געחלומט,
אַ חלום, ליובע, האָט זיך מיר געדאַכט, אױ געדאַכט!
מיט דײַנע שװאַרצע אױגן האָסטו מיך צוגעצױגן,
און פֿאַר אַ מענטשן האָסטו מיך געמאַכט.
איך עס ניט, איך טרינק ניט, איך שלאָף ניט דורך די נעכט,
און בענקען, ליוכע, בענק איך נאָך דיר, אױ, נאָך דיר!
װען איך דערמאָן זיך, דושע, אָן דיר מײַן טײַער-לעבן,
גײען מיר די כּוחות אױס נאָך דיר!
שפּאַצירן, אױ, ליובע, זײַנען מיר געגאנגען,
אין דרױסן איז געװעזן אַ שנײ, אױ, אַ שנײ!
געדענקסטו, ליובע שײנע, דו האָסט מיר טרײַ געשװאָרן,
צום סוף האָסטו גאָר אַנדערע צװײ.
Song Title: A Kholem
First published in 1972, Mir Trogn A Gezang: Favorite Yiddish Songs was reprinted six more times (in 1977, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988, 2000) due to popular demand. The songs in this anthology represent a sampling of beloved folk and well-known Yiddish songs, many of which are scattered in various song collections; some appear in very rare and inaccessible collections; and some were never before published. Folk songs comprise about a third of this volume and were selected mainly on the basis of popularity and sometimes for their historic significance. Needless to say, they are only representative of the vast, rich treasure of Yiddish folk material. The selection was made not only on the basis of personal preference, but in the knowledge they are favorites of many who sing these songs. Most of the songs represent the repertoire that was sung at Yiddish summer camps, May 1st demonstrations and at social gatherings. Many songs were introduced to American Jewry by Jewish immigrants who came to the United States after World War II, for whom these songs had been favorites in Poland and other East European communities destroyed by the Nazis.
