Date: Mon, 13 Feb 1995 20:25:35 -0500 (EST)
From: dschrag@acs.bu.edu

I perform Yidl Mitn Fidl very often in concerts. Here are the lyrics:

Iber felder vegn, oyf a vogn hey
Mit zun un vint un regn, forn klezmer tsvey
A khidesh, oy, a khidesh, zog ver zenen zey?

Yidl mitn fidl, Arye mitn bas
Dos lebn iz a lidl, to vozhe zayn in kas.
Hey, Yidl, fidl, shmidl, hey, dos lebn iz a shpas.

A tsig shteyt oyf der lonke
Un meket troy'rik "me!"
Hey, du tsig, du shoyte, tro'rik zayn is fe!
Shoklt er dos berdl: "Take, take fe!"

Yidl...

A foygl flit "gut morgn, gut morgn, a gut yor"
Der troyer un di zorgn tsu al de shvartse yor!
Dem vint a lakh in ponem, un Yidl, Yidl for!

Yidl....

And here's the translation:

Across fields we go, Atop a wagon of hay With sun and wind and rain, Ride two musicians. A novelty, oh a novelty, Tell me who are they? Yidl with his fiddle, Aryeh with his bass, This existence is a song, Why should I be upset? Yidl, fidl, shmidl - Hey - This life is a pure fun. A goat stands in the meadow And bleats a sad "meh!" Hey you goat, you foolish one, Being sad is "feh"! He nods his little beard, "Truly, truly 'feh'!" Yidl... A bird flies by, "Good morning, Good morning a good year" The sadness and the worries Should go to the devil. Laughing in the wind's face, Yidl travels on!

Yiddish oysyes were made possible by Rafael Finkel's Yidishe Shraybmashinke.

To learn more about star Molly Picon and Joseph Green's films, try these links. Much thanks to Thomas from Austria for pointing them out to me!

A complete exhibit on Molly Picon by the Jewish Women's Archive. This site is really excellent.

Ergo Media's collection of Joseph Green films.

Back to Avivale's Yiddish Page...