Shlomo Artzi (Photo by Nati Shochat Flash 90)
One of the things that characterizes Shlomo Artzi, one of the great singers Israel has known, is that it is not always clear what he means by his songs. But there is one song whose meaning is easier to understand, and perhaps that is why it has become one of the most exciting songs in Hebrew, and that is the song “King of the World”.
It’s no secret that this song is a translation of a foreign song, it is not clear how well known, called When You Are A King by the band White Plains. Now, Shlomo Artzi is hosted on a podcast about him in Galgalatz – “The Big Albums” – and tells about the successful cover album “Their Loves” from 2000, and of course about that hit.
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“The White Plains song is my youth song, I was crazy about it. Somewhere I always knew I would translate it, but I never understood its lyrics. Then suddenly I caught the words chariots – chariots will lead you, and something with mother … and then I wrote the lyrics In five minutes. “
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He further says, “Associatively I had this song in my head about an older boy whose mother keeps it, even though the original song is not about it. And I was very blown away after I wrote it, the lyrics just flowed from me … this song invited me to sing it.”
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