CD Reviews
Shwekey
The Wedding Album
2003 Project Productions
projectprod@aol.com
Yacov Shwekey is a man so popular they made a parody album of his music. In just a couple years, the young singer has become one of the most well known names thanks in part to his sad and soulful Rachaim.
His latest is a wedding album, meaning the songs are long medleys of previous material. The music is a mix of Shlomo Carlebach, Chassidic niggunim and contemporary singers such as Dedi, Avraham Fried and his own music. There are plenty of familiar tunes here and the beat is fast and catchy, perfect for dancing.
The track Chupa is slower, invoking the bride and groom walking up to the chupa canopy. HaToiv has an Israeli/middle eastern feel with conga drums and Spanish like guitar. The full backing band including horns, keyboards and electric guitars is provided by The Negina Orchestra with Shwekey, the lead singer as the focus of attention. Lyrics are all in Hebrew and either from Pslams or other religious sources.
