Ive been catching up on my shows this week so I just saw the finally of New Girl. I might not actually be as far behind as I think I am but time is all wibbly wobbly lately and usually is during summer. Anyway...
During the episode they try to stop whats her names wedding by playing Cotton Eyed Joe during the wedding walk. I instantly burst out laughing. Why?
Because Cotton Eyed Joe is a staple wedding reception song in Israel. (if you dont watch the show that makes it funny because Schmit [the guy trying to break up the wedding] is Jewish)
My wedding reception was in my husbands home country of Israel. Out of the many crazy customs I endured to make his family happy the one that caught me off guard was this song. It was getting towards the end of the evening, everyone was dancing, and VERY drunk. The DJ was playing a good mix of popular Israeli and popular American music, even though I was the only American around, when suddenly Cotton Eyed Joe started blaring on the speakers. Everyone young and old went NUTS! I stopped, pulled my husbands friend over and said "Who requested this song?" He looked at me like I was crazy and said, "Darling, we always play this song at weddings!"
I looked him in the eye and said "So its like your chicken dance?"
"What is a chicken dance?"
"You know, da nana na na na" (I did do the dance)
"I do not know what this is. But I swear this is a traditional wedding song in Israel."
So we busted a move to Cotton Eyed Joe.
Like "Cotton Eyed Joe" the bluegrass song and version??? How in the FUCK did that become a staple at Israeli weddings?? That blows my mind. Being from the South I have heard that song for a long time, but thinking about it and it's relationship with Israeli weddings is bizarre to say the least. For the writers of that show to incorporate that into the story is really pretty shrewd. I wonder what is older, the song or the country. I am off to Google to get my answer. Interesting post today.
ReplyDeletepatagonianshoerat@yahoo.com
Yep! It was the bluegrass version. I dont know how it came to be but not one person at that party was American or had ever lived in the US for any extended period of time. I was shocked and really amused that they were shocked that was not what I would think of as a mandatory wedding party song in the US.
ReplyDeleteSo have you gained a new appreciation for bluegrass now?
ReplyDeletepat