What did the creators mean, and in general, what language is it? This is the question that preoccupies the popular Jewish rock band Hayom Hashmiin – and this is what happens when you release a hit song with lyrics that sound like Spanish, but actually quote an old saying in Yiddish (“An a messer est a ki”, which can be translated as “a cow eats without a knife” ).
Another proverb in the Yiddish song “Fiing an von Anfiing”, says “Start from the beginning”. While it is fun to recite it orally, it is also possible to make a mistake and think that it is a language other than Yiddish.
The brothers Shmuel and Bentzi, the duo behind the Eighth Day, cherish their father Rabbi Yitzhak Markos as the source of inspiration for the words of their prose songs.
They remember how in their youth the father used to quote these words and joke that “he speaks Spanish”. The song actually sends them back to the days of “once upon a time”, calm and innocent days, when we could think and do everything, without the pressure and noise, and the excessive influence and of course the incessant distraction of the digital and social networks.
“Even when we feel a little lost due to the media storm around us,” says Shmuel Markos, lead singer and composer of the Eighth Day band, “the best medicine is to simply remember to be human.”
And indeed, as the lyrics of the song say: “An a messer est a ki, manche should be”.
“Sometimes the important message is right in front of our eyes,” added Benzi Markos, guitarist and vocalist of the Eighth Day. “Who would have thought that we would compose a song based on these words, when we were young we used to joke about them. It’s amazing to see how the song has become something that the audience enjoys and connects with. That’s really the point.’
So what is the true message and meaning of the song? No one knows for sure, but for those who have heard the song several times it doesn’t matter anymore. The song dances and it works in any language! Una Meser is the eighth song on the Lucky album.
The eighth day duo lives in the USA but is very loved in Israel, their songs are frequently played on the radio stations and their hits have been successful in the charts. The team appears periodically in the Holy Land and is preparing for more performances in the near future.