A.K.A.Pella 3 Adaptation Review

I got to be honest, this review has been really challenging for me. I not only had to listen to the songs in this album, I had to go to the original tunes to find out what's novel and what is just copied. Since I didn’t know all the originals my wife joined in and this review quickly became a family song quiz. Anyways, it took me double the time to write this review and I admit it’s still a bit clumsy. But I decided to post it anyways, as I originally wanted to be done with it before Lag Baomer.

A.K.APella’s album cover is the nicest I’ve seen in many years, even cooler than Yossi Green’s in my opinion. The blue-colored Chameleon with the three-shaped tail is brilliant and I’m happy they dubbed this album Adaptations – it’s an accurate one-word description of what this album is all about. And the font – a detail usually ignored by most artists - used by the graphical team is also unusual and very cool.

The vocals in this album are exceptional. Each vocalist has a different style and they all mesh together very well, not to mention the harmonies, which are almost always smooth and cool. CD Eichler uses his falsetto very often, tastefully, and he is great at song interpretation – he doesn’t just say the words, he ads intensity to every note. The other soloists are also good at it and that alone made this album fun to listen.

I hoped to see one or two Jewish songs, like in their first two CD’s (Hashem Elokei and Hiney were great), but this time AKAPella focused in non-Jewish sources.

Etz Chaim, composed by Bon Jovi, is a very energetic rock song with lots of computerized effects and it is a great choice for the opening song. The arrangement and harmonies are identical to Bon Jovi’s original version but doing all that in an acapella setting really is a great accomplishment. I personally don’t enjoy the “guitar voice” in 2:25 as I think it takes away the acapella feel. Btw, the choice of words - Etz Chaim (i.e. Tree of Life) is a play with the original title of this song, It's My Life. ****

Although musically Halelu is very interesting I didn’t find any connection between the tune and the lyrics, so the song is somewhat “empty” as it has no message behind it. George Harrison had a message and he sang it with more heart than the soloists in this song. Despite this, I absolutely love the vocal improvisation in 4:18 – the vocals towards the end of the song are amazing, it saved this song from falling short. **

The Mi Bon Siach lyrics are probably the least original lyrics for a song these days and considering that song #7 is Mi Adir, which has the same lyrics in the second part, I think the lyrics choice here was bad. Their Mi Adir is great and I wouldn’t change that one, but this one deserved better lyrics. Despite this grudge, the song gets momentum after 3:15 when Avi Stewart storms in with a very good modulation, in addition to the fantastic light choir harmonies in the background (if you don’t know what I’m saying check 3:37, where the choir sound is more perceptible). Well done. ***

Adon Olam is comes from a goyish song I love, Hey There Delilah, and this is a perfect song for acapella - the arrangement is simple and the focus is in the vocals and harmonies. The vocals are smooth, which is what this song needed, and if you see the original tune you will see that AKAPella did a great job in this one. ****

After the success of Dror Yikra, a great adaptation from Simon & Garfunkel featured in their first album (I sing it in my Shabbos table), AKAPella revisits this group with Gam Ki Elech. The legendary Simon & Garfunkel were able to do a much better job than AKAPella - they sing it with more “heart” and they are (obviously) more authentic. The lyrics were not bad, but they did have to run them a bit in order to fit in the tune. ***

I don’t have much to say about Ma Tovu. The guitar in the very end (3:05) sounds way too much like a real guitar, unlike in Etz Chaim. That’s something I don’t like at all in an acapella setting, it’s a “Setirah”. Either you do acapella or you just throw in a real guitar. ***

Mi Adir is one of my favorites in this album – Celine Dion’s songs are just unbeatable. And this is a great slow song adaptation that does have a Chuppa feel, so the lyrics do make sense. Itsi did a great job and interpreted the song just like Dion does, employing the same shticks. Avi Stewart, who has a more Yeshivish voice, sings half-way in the song and keeps this song Chuppa-like. The falsetto in 3:10 worked well (I’m not sure if Dion also does this) and overall this song was very well put together. ****

I am again critical of the lyrics choice for Hiney since AKAPella already has a song with the same lyrics in their debut album. In addition to this, there’s not much coolness in this one.**

Ani Maamin is a very risky choice for lyrics, but for some reason it really fits well in this Moody Blue’s tune. It’s a great adaptation and it almost sounds like this song was composed for these lyrics. And the trumpet-like vocals (you can hear it in 1:15) worked perfectly, sounding very much like the original’s arrangement. ****

Chaveirim starts exactly like Lev Tahor’s Baruch Hagever and it is a home-run. The message – Friends – was untouched because of the lyrics choice and as a result this is one of the few songs that have a meaning. That alone pushes this song further that any other one featured in this album. CD Eichler went beyond and introduced the Always Coca-Cola theme in 1:30 as a bridge - pretty cool. *****

Oseh, like Chaveirm, has Hebrew lyrics with the same message of the original tune. Even the children cheering in the background was taken from the original, but this song it much too long and is not as cool as Chaveirim. ***

When the Children’s intro resembles Lev Tahor’s intro in Rachem (1st album). The vocals are not as good as the other songs, but the Kol Noar Boys choir was used smartly, first singing softly, just the “niggun” and then singing the words. I love that, especially in this song where the Boys Choir idea fit in the tune’s lyrics. ****

Ki Malochov has more original lyrics and I was happy to see that. Like Gam Ki Elech and Halelu the song loses a lot of its meaning with the lyrics switch and this adaptation didn’t work seamlessly. But the closing of the song is pretty cool – CD Eichler throws in the tune from The Sound of Music (“So Long Farewell”) and it has a double meaning: first, it fits in the original song, which is a song about a man leaving on a jet plane saying goodbye to his girlfriend. Secondly, it’s the last song of this album and AKAPella is saying goodbye to its listeners. **

So at this point you are wondering if this review is “positive or otherwise” (quoted from C.D. Eichler’s thank you note), and I want to stress a very important point about this album.

I came to the conclusion that AKApella is the sefirah version of Shlock Rock or Gershon Veroba’s Variations – their idea is to take famous non-Jewish hits and transform them in Jewish Music songs. I love many Shlock Rock songs – Abarbanel and Into the Sea are classics – and Veroba’s, but they cannot be placed in the same bag with Gabay and Yossi Green’s albums, which focus in new music.

AKApella is a different concept, completely. It’s a CD for the light-hearted, who don’t care much about who composed the songs, if the songs are authentic Jewish songs, or if the computerized shticks are improper for Sefirah – it’s an album for those who can simply sit back, relax and listen to interesting music. In that sense, I’m light-hearted and I was able to enjoy this album. At the same time, I believe Six13, another acapella group, is ahead of A.K.A.Pella specifically because they are more focused in originality. That’s the reason why I didn’t give five stars to any of the songs in this album - any way you slice it originality is missing here.

AKAPella was outstanding at what they set themselves to do – adaptations - but I still think they can dare to shoot higher and try to brake new ground in Jewish Music. In terms of vocals, they have an edge over other JM groups and if they take some risks I think they will be rewarded.

Positive or otherwise then? Positive/otherwise review I guess.