Moshe Aaron Yess (April 18, 1945 – January 8, 2011) was an
Orthodox Jewish
Orthodox Judaism is the collective term for the traditionalist and theologically conservative branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as revealed by God to Moses ...
musician, composer and entertainer from
Montreal, Quebec
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-p ...
, Canada.
A member of the
Chabad
Chabad, also known as Lubavitch, Habad and Chabad-Lubavitch (), is an Orthodox Jewish Hasidic dynasty. Chabad is one of the world's best-known Hasidic movements, particularly for its outreach activities. It is one of the largest Hasidic groups ...
community in Montreal, Yess was a regular performer at
Chabad House
A Chabad house is a centre for disseminating traditional Judaism by the Chabad movement. Chabad houses are run by a Chabad Shaliach (emissary), and Shalucha (fem. for emissary) and their family. They are located in cities and on or near college ...
events and shows, together with general music festivals and the annual
''A Time for Music'' concert.
In the 1960s, Yess shared stages with
David Crosby
David Van Cortlandt Crosby (born August 14, 1941) is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. In addition to his solo career, he was a founding member of both the Byrds and Crosby, Stills & Nash.
Crosby joined the Byrds in 1964. They got ...
,
Jefferson Airplane
Jefferson Airplane was an American rock band based in San Francisco, California, that became one of the pioneering bands of psychedelic rock. Formed in 1965, the group defined the San Francisco Sound and was the first from the Bay Area to ach ...
, and
The Association
The Association is an American sunshine pop band from California. During the late 1960s, the band had numerous hits at or near the top of the ''Billboard'' charts (including " Windy", " Cherish", " Never My Love" and " Along Comes Mary") a ...
. For a time he was part of a
psychedelic music
Psychedelic music (sometimes called psychedelia) is a wide range of popular music styles and genres influenced by 1960s psychedelia, a subculture of people who used psychedelic drugs such as LSD, psilocybin mushrooms, mescaline, and cannabis ...
group named
Research 1-6-12
Research is "creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge". It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness ...
which produced one album in 1968. As a solo performer he played in Las Vegas, Reno, and other hot spots. In 1978 he moved from Hollywood, California to
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
, where he enrolled in the
Dvar Yerushalayim Yeshiva. There he met Rabbi Shalom Levine, who became his mentor in
halacha
''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws which is derived from the written and Oral Torah. Halakha is based on biblical comm ...
and his musical partner in
Megama. They spoke about harnessing American-style music to communicate the beauty and values of Judaism. Thus was Megama (Hebrew for "trend") born.
One of Yess's biggest hit songs was "My Zaidy," in which the speaker remembers his grandfather, who was his last link to Judaism. "My Zaidy" — "zaidy" is the Yiddish word for ''grandpa'' — touched several generations of American and Canadian Jews. Other hits by Megama included "Ain't Gonna Work on Saturday" and "Not Ashamed," and one of their successful children's shows was called "Judeo Rodeo".
Yess collaborated with
Abie Rotenberg to produce the children's audio series called ''
The Marvelous Midos Machine'' composed of three volumes, with all-original material. When Rotenberg produced the 4th volume in December 2011, he made the album in tribute to Yess. In the 1990s, Yess started a rock band called Burnt Offering with the blessing of
The Lubavitcher Rebbe. He eventually became a follower of
Lubavitch Messianism, creating a website promoting his views. Yess and the noted American composer/lyricist and scholar
Maury Yeston
Maury Yeston (born October 23, 1945) is an American composer, lyricist and music theorist.
He is known as the initiator of new Broadway musicals and writing their music and lyrics, as well as a classical orchestral and ballet composer, Yale Un ...
are first cousins, whose fathers were brothers who'd emigrated from London to Montreal.
Last years and death
Yess retired from music in his later years when his health began to decline. Moshe Yess died of cancer on January 8, 2011, in
Tucson, Arizona
, "(at the) base of the black ill
, nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town"
, image_map =
, mapsize = 260px
, map_caption = Interactive ...
. He was 65 years old. He left the world with 6 children. His second to oldest, Tali Yess is a Jewish singer, songwriter, and producer like his father who has performed and covered several of his late father's popular songs. Tali Yess had released a few previously unreleased songs written by his father over the years since Moshe Yess passed away.
Discography
Megama Duo
*''Megama'' (1980)
*''Megama – G-d is Alive and Well in Jerusalem'' (1982)
*''Megama – Farewell Concert'' (1988)
*''Megama – Greatest Hits Plus'' (1999)
Solo albums
* ''Kein Yevarech'' (with
Kol Salonika) (1984)
* ''Moshe Yess'' (1984)
*''Pintele Yid'' (1986)
*''Shabbos on My Mind'' (1987)
*''Art Imitates Life'' (1991)
*''No Limitations''
*''Rock for the Redemption''
With Other's
*''The Jerusalem Echoes – Coming Home'' (guitar & vocals) (1983)
*''Journeys – Volumes 1-3'' (with
Abie Rotenberg) (1984,1989,1992)
*''משיח'' (with Avi Piamenta)
*''The Yess Legacy – A Tribute to the Music of Moshe Yess'' (2013)
Children's Albums
* ''The Marvelous Midos Machine – Episode 1: Up Up & Away'' (with
Abie Rotenberg) (1986)
* ''The Marvelous Midos Machine – Episode 2: Shnooky to the Rescue'' (with
Abie Rotenberg) (1987)
*''The Marvelous Midos Machine – Episode 3: Does Anyone Have the Time?'' (with
Abie Rotenberg) (1988)
*''The Amazing Torah Bike – Yetziyas Metzrayim'' (1988)
*''The Amazing Torah Bike – Brochos'' (1989)
*''The Amazing Torah Bike 3''
*''The Jewish Kids Show''
*''Roburg'' (1991)
*''Songs about Safety''
*''Silly Tales of Chelm and other Stories''
*''Project Majestic – A Purim Story'' (with Reuven Stone)
*''Stories My Zaidy Told Me 1–3'' (with Reuven Stone)
*''Story of Noah's Ark'' (with Reuven Stone)
*''Story of Yonah & the Big Fish'' (with Reuven Stone)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yess, Moshe
1945 births
2011 deaths
Canadian Orthodox Jews
Baalei teshuva
Hasidic singers
Jewish Canadian musicians
Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidim
Musicians from Montreal
20th-century Canadian male musicians
Jewish folk singers
Deaths from cancer in Arizona
Jewish rock musicians