This is a very strange juxtaposition -first off, this song is based upon Psalm 137 which laments the very personal of Jewish captivity in Babylon. Here, it is presented almost comic, as a polka? Perhaps merely a schism of cultural perception. 'How can we sing The Lord's song in a foreign land?' Oh, and if you read to the end of the Psalm, it speaks of slaughtering your infants so that they shall not be raised as slaves to the enemy. But then, the next Psalm uplifts with praises.
5 years later. This is a Rasta song about the oppression of the Jamaican people by their government. Such a song wouldn't have been allowed to air at the time they wrote it, but songs about the bible were fine. So they came up with this beautiful song, using the enslavement and oppression of Jews as allegory for their own struggle. And it worked. The song was allowed to air, and it was a huge hit, eventually gaining international fame, which is how we got to here; A German Polka band who, oblivious to the meaning of the English lyrics and in a moment of incredible irony, sings a joyous and upbeat diddy about the oppression and enslavement of Jews. To be fair, it is a beautiful song, and I would also sing it even if I didn't understand the lyrics.
@@seth468 It is not a German band: They are Slovenian, just as the original Oberkrainer were from Slovenia. Seeing how well they pronounce English (not) I think it's likely that they have no clue what they are singing about, but on the other hand it was the German act Boney M that took the song out of context and turned it into a happy pop hit. But Boney M always managed to give the impression that they did know what they were singing about - and happy singalong songs about sad affairs are of course quite common in European folk music.
Schöne Version. Besten Dank.
Rivers of Babylon im Oberkrainer-Sound - Cool
Great
eine ungewöhnliche Version, sehr gewühnungsbedürftig,......aber nicht schlecht.
Banda sinaloense alemana
This is a very strange juxtaposition -first off, this song is based upon Psalm 137 which laments the very personal of Jewish captivity in Babylon. Here, it is presented almost comic, as a polka? Perhaps merely a schism of cultural perception. 'How can we sing The Lord's song in a foreign land?' Oh, and if you read to the end of the Psalm, it speaks of slaughtering your infants so that they shall not be raised as slaves to the enemy. But then, the next Psalm uplifts with praises.
5 years later. This is a Rasta song about the oppression of the Jamaican people by their government. Such a song wouldn't have been allowed to air at the time they wrote it, but songs about the bible were fine. So they came up with this beautiful song, using the enslavement and oppression of Jews as allegory for their own struggle. And it worked. The song was allowed to air, and it was a huge hit, eventually gaining international fame, which is how we got to here;
A German Polka band who, oblivious to the meaning of the English lyrics and in a moment of incredible irony, sings a joyous and upbeat diddy about the oppression and enslavement of Jews.
To be fair, it is a beautiful song, and I would also sing it even if I didn't understand the lyrics.
@@seth468 It is not a German band: They are Slovenian, just as the original Oberkrainer were from Slovenia. Seeing how well they pronounce English (not) I think it's likely that they have no clue what they are singing about, but on the other hand it was the German act Boney M that took the song out of context and turned it into a happy pop hit. But Boney M always managed to give the impression that they did know what they were singing about - and happy singalong songs about sad affairs are of course quite common in European folk music.