Since I chose to marry a Jewish girl with red hair who looks more Irish than I do, this is an album that is near and dear to my heart.

Dublin singer Susan McKeown has teamed up with the Klezmatics’ lead vocalist Lorin Sklamberg to create a lively collection of tunes on Saints and Tsadiks: Rare Yiddish and Irish Songs collections that blends traditional Irish melodies with traditional Yiddish flavors.

Since both cultures rely heavy on acoustic instruments, fiddles and percussive beats, the sound is not as out there as you might think. As if this tall musical order was not enough, they mix the occasional Argentine tango called “Buenos Aires” into the mix for a little Latin drama that makes this a delicious bowl of global gumbo.

Culled from rare archive material and old recordings, McKeown and Sklamberg have selected songs on various themes from the Jewish and Irish traditions -- love, death, betrothal, betrayal and the demon drink, as well as cumulative and macaronic songs.
The bulk of the Jewish material is being drawn from the papers of the legendary collector and performer Ruth Rubin, specifically from the recently published Yiddish Folk Songs from the Ruth Rubin Archive, drawn from her field recordings held at the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, where Sklamberg serves as sound archivist.

“Part of the thrill of this project is having the privilege of being the first to commercially record most of these treasures,” enthuses Sklamberg.

The Irish songs come from both the popular and the ancient Gaelic sean nós traditions.

This is the second collaboration between McKeown and Sklamberg. The two garnered a Grammy for Best Contemporary World Music Album in 2006 for Wonder Wheel.

Since her debut Bones (1995) McKeown has produced 10 albums of original and world music and built an impressive career through her many releases, extensive touring and performances on programs such as A Prairie Home Companion, All Things Considered, World Café and Mountain Stage and for PBS, Absolutely Irish, Sessions at West 54th and American Masters.

McKeown’s album Sweet Liberty (World Village 2004) was nominated for a BBC folk music award. She has performed with Pete Seeger, Natalie Merchant, Linda Thompson, Billy Bragg and Johnny Cunningham.

McKeown has branched into film in recent years too, contributing bluesy songs to the soundtrack of the Irish coming of age film 32A, which won a Best First Feature Award at the Galway Film Fleadh in 2007.

I spoke with McKeown about the relationship between Irish and Yiddish cultures. Here’s how it went.

How did you first get together with Lorin?
Lorin is the lead singer of the Klezmatics, and the band invited me to be guest vocalist on its recent Woody Guthrie project. Woody's daughter Nora approached them to set some of his lyrics to music, on which they did a wonderful job, and the work resulted in two albums, Wonder Wheel and Happy Joyous Hanukkah.

I subsequently toured with the band over a few years and Lorin and I, having begun as mutual fans of each other's voices, became good friends. We'd spoken over this time about our mutual interest in each other's music, and the idea for this album very naturally evolved.
Did you have goals in mind for this project?
Just one -- to have fun.
A sound you were looking for and a market you wanted to target?
Well, I suppose we did have specific sound in mind that developed as we started to select the songs for the album, but in general we were just looking to have fun.
What has been the response to this music?
People seem delighted and intrigued, as we hoped they would be.
What has surprised you the most?
That the first e-mail I got in response to my announcement that we were recording the album, which was from the director of Harmonia Mundi, asking if they could put it out.
What are the main differences or similarities between the musical cultures of both?
We share an exuberance in our instrumental music, and we both have really wonderful miserable songs.
Phonetically, the Gaelic and Yiddish languages have harsh phrasings; they are not known for their romantic touches. Yet the lyrics blend well together on this somehow. How did you accomplish taking “the rough edges” off these languages?
I have found a lot of romance in Gaelic song and have always loved the sound of it being spoken or sung. Yiddish, on the other hand, is Germanic, so I hadn't felt that way about it.

I had a hard time getting my tongue around some of the phrases, particularly the first line of "Fin Mayn Mamelyu/My Mother's House." But it's very enjoyable listening to the singers on some of the recordings we had access to, and hearing how they relish some of the lines and play with the phrasings, so it added to our interpretation and our own performance of the songs.
It was interesting how the song “Buenos Aires” sounds simultaneously Yiddish and a Latin tango at the same time. Is that fair to say and, if so, describe the fun/challenges of playing with genres like that?
Because the song tells of Jewish girls who were lured to Argentina for prostitution, we deliberately wanted to give a musical flavor of the exotic attractions supposedly awaiting them as the man tries to persuade them to leave all they love and go to this place where there is excess of material wealth.

I usually feel that if a song is too much of a challenge then it's not working. With this one we have tremendous fun doing it live and there is a lot of play involved -- going back and forth from verse to verse.

Saints and Tsadiks: Rare Yiddish and Irish Songs is available on World Village Records. Check them out on worldvillagemusic.com.

Jersey Shore Heats Up

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Seanchai.
EVEN though the summer is winding down, summer festivals are not.

One of my favorite hooleys is the Jersey Shore Irish Festival. Gael Force, Seanchai and the Unity Squad, Celtic Cross, Bogside Rogues, Round the House and the Bear Knuckle Boxers are just some of the entertainers sharing two stages during a day that is chock full of beer suds, culture and good times!

The festivities begin on Saturday, September 19 at 10 a.m. and ends at 6 p.m. at the Sea Girt National Guard Armory (6th Avenue and Sea Girt Avenue).

Tickets are $10, an entertainment bargain if ever there was one for these tough economic times. For more information, log onto njshoreirishfestival.com.

If you would like to get tickets in advance, you can drop by the Irish Center in Spring Lake, New Jersey (732-449-6650).

Morrissey’s Back

STEPHEN Patrick Morrissey fans are in luck. The former lead singer of The Smiths and self proclaimed “English-hearted, Irish-blooded singer” will be touring a new album, Swords, an 18-track compilation of B-sides of singles from his recent albums.

It goes on sale next month on CD and double vinyl LP, and will also include a bonus disc of eight songs recorded live in Warsaw during Morrissey's 2009 tour.

Irish fans of Morrissey get a double treat as The Moz plays the National Stadium in Dublin on November 23. If you have ***68.20 and are going to be in Ireland this Thanksgiving, this might be the show for you!