Celebrating Irving Berlin’s Birthday with “Ragtime Violin” — In English, Yiddish, and on Piano Roll!

This May 11th, we’re celebrating the birthday of one of America’s most iconic songwriters: Irving Berlin (1888–1989). Born in Imperial Russia and raised on the streets of New York City’s Lower East Side, Berlin went on to write more than 1,500 songs, many of which are considered standards of the American songbook. From White Christmas to God Bless America, his music has left an enduring legacy—but long before those classics, Berlin had a knack for catchy tunes that captured the spirit of their time. Read More About This…

Now you can celebrate the 4th of July and your Jewish heritage at the same time.

This new compilation of songs from the Judaica Sound Archives at Florida Atlantic University Libraries in Boca Raton, FL is about the American Jewish experience.

It contains  Yiddish songs recorded during the early 20th century and expresses a Jewish immigrant perspective on New York, Coney Island and other things distinctly American. Read More About This…

You might be able to imagine the excitement that is generated at the Judaica Sound Archives whenever we uncover a genuine piece of history. Today I will share with you three 78 rpm albums from the Jack Saul Collection which have sitirred up some nostalgia here at the JSA.

(1)  Fanny Brice starred in the Ziegfeld Follies in the 1920s and 1930s. A pioneer female comic, she was one of the most popular Jewish entertainers of her day. And her fame became even greater when Barbra Streisand played the starring role in Brice’s life story, “Funny Girl” (1968). From 1938 until her death in 1951 Brice had an incredibly successful radio show based on just one character, Baby Snooks, a precocious, bratty toddler. This album of three double-sided 78 rpm recordings was produced in 1949 on the Capitol Records label. Read More About This…