Song attributed to Ben Zion Wittler (1907-1961). Popularized by Mike Burstyn.
A person who only has luck
is all set,
when you have a little bit of luck
the whole world belongs to you.
Where can you get a little bit of luck?
Where can you get a little happiness?
Let the wheel give itself a spin
and bring back my luck.
The world was made
the same for all people.
Where do you get a little bit
even a little bit
where do you get a little happiness?
People strive day and night,
how to make more and more money
is everyone’s thought;
people run around and hurry
back and forth
because the more you have
the more you want.
Everyone is jealous
of what someone else has,
but I ask only one thing of God:
Where can you get a little bit of luck?
A mentsh vos hot nor mazl,
lz dos festgeshtelt,
Az du host a bisl mazl,
Gehert dir di gantse velt.
Refrain:
Vu nemt men a bisele mazl?
Vu nemt men a bisele glik?
Dos redele zol zikh shoyn dreyen
Un brengen mayn mazl tsurik.
Di velt, zi iz dokh bashafn
Far ale mentshn glaykh.
Vu nemt men a bisele,
Khotsh oyf a bisele,
Vu nemt men a bisele glik?
Mentshn, zey shtrebn bay tog un bay nakht,
Vi azoy tsu makhn vos mer gelt,
Yeder eyner trakht;
Men loyft un men yogt zikh
Ahin un aher,
Vayl vifl men farmogt,
Vil inen alts mer.
Men iz nor mekane
Vos a tsveyter hot,
lkh ober freg nor eyn zakh bay got:
Vu nemt men a bisele mazl?
אַ מענטש װאָס האָט נאָר מזל,
איז דאָס פֿעסטגעשטעלט,
אַז דו האָסט אַ ביסל מזל
געהערט דיר די גאַנצע װעלט.
רעפֿרײן:
װוּ נעמט מען אַ ביסעלע מזל?
װוּ נעמט מען אַ ביסעלע גליק?
דאָס רעדעלע זאָל זיך שױן דרײען
און ברענגען מײַן מזל צוריק;
די װעלט, זי איז דאָך באַשאַפֿן
פֿאַר אַלע מענטשן גלײַך,
װוּ נעמט מען אַ ביסעלע,
כאָטש אַזאַ ביסעלע,
װוּ נעמט מען אַ ביסעלע גליק?
מענטשן, זײ שטרעבן בײַ טאָג און בײַ נאַכט,
װי אַזױ צו מאַכן װאָס מער געלט;
יעדער אײנער טראַכט;
מען לױפֿט און מען יאָגט זיך
אַהין און אַהער,
װײַל װיפֿל מען פֿאַרמאָגט,
װיל מען אַלץ מער.
מען איז נאָר מקנא
װאָס אַ צװײטער האָט,
איך אָבער פֿרעג נאָר אײן זאַך בײַ גאָט:
װוּ נעמט מען אַ ביסעלע מזל?
Song Title: Vu Nemt Men A Bisele Mazl?
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.”
