A song from the early Yiddish theatre in America by Arnold Perlmutter and H. Wohl, praising Columbus for discovering the new land.
America is quite the shtetl,
a delight, I swear;
the dear Shekhine rests upon her,
may we live to see it continue like this.
Wars, guns, bloodshed,
there’s no need for it,
no governors are needed
to hell with Czars.
Oh, it’s good,
Let’s all sing together:
Long live Columbus,
Drink, my brothers, “To Life!”
Long live Columbus,
for this, the new land.
Be happy,
don’t believe the grumblers.
Go ahead and shout, Jews,
Long live Columbus!
A shtetl iz amerike
A mekhaye, khlebn;
Es rut oyf ir di shkhinele,
Mir zoln azoy lebn —
Milkhomes, biksn, mentshn-blut
Darfn mir oyf tsores,
A gubernator darf men nit,
A keyser oyf kapores.
Ay-s’iz gut —
Zingt zhe ale mit:
Lebn zol Kolombus,
Trinkt, briderlekh, lekhayim!
Lebn zol Kolombus
Far dem land dem nayem.
Zayt tsufridn —
Gleybt nit in di trombes,
Shrayt zhe, yidn:
Lebn zol Kolombus!
אַ שטעטל איז אַמעריקע
אַ מחיה, כ’לעבן
עס רוט אױף אור דו שכינהלע,
מיר זאָלן אַזױ לעבן.
מלחמות, ביקסן, מענטשנבלוט
דאַרפֿן מיר אױף צרות,
אַ גובערנאַטאָר דאַרף מען ניט,
אַ קײסער אױף כּפּרות.
אײַ — ס’איז גוט —
זינגט זשע אַלע מיט:
לעבן זאָל קאָלאָמבוס,
טרינקט ברידערלעך לחיים!
לעבן זאָל קאָלאָמבוס
פֿאַר דעם לאַנד דעם נײַעם.
זײַט צופֿרידן —
גלײבט ניט אין די טראָמבעס,
שרײַט זשע, ייִדן:
לעבן זאָל קאָלאָמבוס!
Song Title: Lebn Zol Kolombus
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.