After the Seder, sometime around midnightwhen everyone has said the grace after meals, the singing begins. People break out tunes like, “Echad Mi Yodea (Who Knows One)” and “Let My People Go.”
For years, comedian Daniel Lobell has sung a bluesy version of the song, “Chad Gadya,” about a kid goat who gets eaten by a cat, thus setting off a chain of events that culminates in Hashem showing us that He runs the world.
“I always loved ‘Chad Gadya,’” Daniel said. “It’s my favorite one of the Passover songs, and I have fun with it.”
“I always loved ‘Chad Gadya.’”
Every year, the other people at the Seder enjoy Daniel’s rendition of it; he belts out his own improvised lyrics to the familiar tune in the style of an old blues singer.
“It’s my party trick at our Passover seders,” Daniel said.
No two performances are exactly alike—some lyrics change from one seder to the next—but the rhythm and spirit remain the same.
After every Passover, Daniel’s wife, Kylie Ora Lobell, would tell him that he needed to record the song.
“And then, after the holiday, I’d forget about it until the following year, but it would be too late,” Daniel said.
This year, however, Kylie didn’t wait until seder night to urge her husband to record his fun “Chad Gadya.” A few weeks before Passover, she pushed him to take action. Daniel was hesitant—he had never sung professionally— but Kylie took matters into her own hands. She made a few calls, reached out to musicians and booked a recording session with producer Shmuel Levy LevYatan. There was no backing out now.
“At that point, I didn’t even have the song written down,” Daniel said. “As the recording session got closer, I knew I had to get moving. I had already paid and didn’t want to waste money or time, so I locked myself in a room for seven hours and wrote it.”
LevYatan, an accomplished musician, composed the music for the song, which features playful lines like:
“Then came the ox, he was a thirsty old soul.
He drank up the water, yeah, he finished the whole bowl.
He left it all dry and he left it all bare.
You wouldn’t even know that there was ever water there.”
“I was a little self-conscious,” Daniel said. “Everyone always told me I should record and that I have a great voice, but I’d never recorded anything before. I usually just sing in the shower.”
The recording has culminated in an epic 11-minute music video, created and edited by local musician Levi Paris. Daniel sings on a microphone as LevYatan plays instruments in the background and footage of a goat, cat, dog, stick and all the other imagery from “Chad Gadya” flash on the screen.
“I’m really proud of it,” Daniel said. “Passover is a very special holiday for me, since I was born right before it and brought home just in time for the first seder.”
Daniel, who does stand-up comedy all over the world and Passover programs every year, often explores themes of Jewish culture and faith in his work. He also co-hosts the podcast “We Think It’s Funny” with comedian Mark Schiff, where they discuss current events and the world at large with today’s top entertainers including Jay Leno, Caroline Rhea, Jon Lovitz and Brian Regan.
Now that he’s discovered a new talent, Daniel is open to recording more songs. “I wrote a few country songs in my twenties, so I might make them next,” he said.
This “Chad Gadya” rendition could just follow in the footsteps of Adam Sandler’s classic “The Chanukah Song”—becoming a festive favorite that everyone looks forward to every year.
Come Seder night, instead of just keeping sleepy guests awake by singing solo, Daniel might have them singing along to the “Chad Gadya” blues.
Daniel said, “To have my fingerprints in any way on people’s Passover seder would be a huge honor.”
You can watch the “Chad Gadya” video on Daniel’s YouTube channel: youtube.com/dannylobell
