Dear Friends,
 It's great to be alive
during this beautiful winter. L.A.
has been gorgeous lately. It's
hard to get any work done when one day after the next is so spectacular; clear,
deep blue skies, warm days, cool nights. Not to rub it in but this weekend I surfed with
my brother Yom Tov in overhead waves and then rode the beach bike path with my
family.
We
just completed Jesse's Bar Mitzvah week and what a week it was. Thank you for your well wishes and mazeltovs. How do these occasions get so blown out
of proportion? My wife and I
pulled several all-nighters during the weeks prior in order to get everything together, largely because economics require us to do the do-it-yourself thing. She
custom made invitations, centerpieces and placecards herself. I recorded a hora CD in the studio with my band and then taught
myself how to make a video montage.
Yes, it's up on YouTube and if you are wondering why you hear
Beethoven's 5th as the soundtrack, that's because YouTube is
automatically protecting the rights of the copyright holders of the dozen or so
of Jesse's favorite songs that I used.
My
wife's "keep it simple" motif failed completely. Friends and family pitched in to help host parties and out of town guests but it
was still totally overwhelming.
First there was the Bar Mitzvah at school on Thursday, then the Friday
night services, out of town guests Shabbat dinner, Saturday official Bar
Mitzvah, the Kiddush for the whole community, the lunch featuring my Kol Sason a capella choir, the out of town guests Saturday night party, the kid's DJ
thing on Sunday night, more family and more food on Thanksgiving and then the
following Shabbat the whole exercise began again at my parents' home so that they
could "shep nachas" hearing Jesse read Torah at their own shul. Next time we're eloping.
Jesse's sudden manhood has me pondering
lifecycle events and the power of transitions; I welcome you to peruse my
musings in Rights of Passage below.
I am frantically finishing the vocals and mixdowns on my Songs We Sing
Volume 2 CD. It has twenty eight
songs...yes you read correctly, in rich, fully arranged splendor featuring my
all-star eight-piece band and an array of vocalists performing the greatest
hits of the Jewish people. Please pre-order your copy today! I am featuring the new CD during this coming year on the road on the Chai Tour,
commemorating my eighteenth year performing in Jewish communities worldwide. Please visit samglaser.com and learn
about the power of a concert or Shabbaton for a spiritual supercharge for your
community!
Shalom,
Sam Glaser
Glaser Musicworks
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Preorder The Songs We Sing Volume Two!
Sam is currently wrapping up his 21st CD...the follow up to the ever popular Songs We Sing released in 2000.  Volume Two has twenty-eight lovingly recorded songs by Sam and his full eight-piece band and an array of guest vocalists. This monumental work breathes new life into these classic "common denominator" hit songs that unite the Jewish world. Preorder yours now at a 20% discount...it will ship in the first quarter of 2010 and you can count yourself among the first to hear it.
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Chanukah Special! $100 for a box of 20!
It's not too late! Get your Sam Glaser's Rockin' Chanukah Revue CD
while supplies last! It's a
perfect gift for any friends or families on  your list. Rowdy, funny and meaningful and the
winner of the Parent's Choice award, Rockin' Chanukah is a guaranteed hit this
season. As always, buy three, get one free, or take advantage of the 20 box this week only! For the special call 800-972-6694.
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Announcing the
CHAI TOUR 2010!
 Be a part of Sam's 18th year on the road! Get your organization signed up on this commemorative tour while the best dates are still available! Click here for the concert options and click here for the full schedule; dates are added weekly.
Event programmers: Uplifting contemporary Jewish music will bring all ages in your community together like no other activity. As always, we discount significantly for midweek shows and when Sam is already in your area. Sieze the date!
Upcoming stops include:
Orlando, FL
Bryn Mawr, PA
Wilmington, DE
Boca Raton, FL
South Palm Beach, FL
Los Angeles, CA
Chattanooga, TN
Albany, NY
Dallas, TX
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Rights of Passage
by Sam Glaser
December 2009
 I've seen
it time and time again. Your friend's kid, whom you know since he was in diapers,
is transformed into a young adult who can read from the Torah, lead a prayer
service and give an intelligent speech in front of hundreds of people. Other cultures engage in body
mutilations, the hunting of big game or mock combat. Jews train their kids to head a board of directors.
The
mechanics of transition and transformation are mysterious and yet the results
are palpable. My Jesse, now a man
of thirteen is vastly more responsible, thoughtful and capable than he was at
twelve. It seems that something
more than chronology is at play here.
My theory is that the key word in life transitions is expectations. That as a species we rise up and answer
the call; in our spiritual DNA we are hardwired not to disappoint.
Perhaps
the most universal and fundamental transition is marriage. With a few words we leave single life
behind and enter a committed, caring relationship, forever. Incredible to think that for some, the
night before the wedding a drunken bachelor party ensues. These vows are usually
accompanied by a tremendous expense for a catering hall and a great band (yes,
a band and not a DJ!) On the most
basic level, if one is spending all this cash he/she had better be serious
about this union. But operating on
a deeper plane, the expectations and prayers of all assembled help the marriage
succeed, offering invisible support for the partners to find the desire and strength to
maintain fidelity and nurture their loving bond so that it remains unbreakable.
In
"Supernature II," author Lyall Watson investigates phenomena that are beyond the
scope of scientific research. One
of his case studies involves the power of human will as observed at
professional basketball games.
Many factors are involved in creating the home court advantage but Dr.
Watson argues that the most powerful force is the focused desire of the fans
that the ball drops into the hoop.
Harvard researcher Ryan Boyko studied 5,000 soccer games in the UK to
determine the formula that for every 10,000 people attending, the home team
advantage increases by 0.1 goals.
My
brother Yom Tov is a Pinsk Karlin chassid in Jerusalem. He has transformed himself from a
dreadlocked, tie-dyed surfer dude into a shtreimel (fur hat) and robe wearing
chassid indistinguishable from the  others in his sect. One of his good buddies recently became
the Pinsk Karlin rebbe, the head honcho.
From one day to the next, he went from being "one of the guys" to
conducting the tishes (ceremonial meals), answering shylas (questions) and
performing miracles. Yes, even
performing miracles. I am
convinced that this radical transformation came about because the community
NEEDS him to be the rebbe. They
invest their collective will in him, lifting him to great heights, giving him
capabilities that even he didn't know he possessed.
My
career offers me momentary glimpses into the transition towards rebbe-hood. When I show up in any given city for a
successful Shabbaton or concert, the preparation is often very extensive. Ads and interviews have been placed in
the papers, my video is playing in the synagogue or JCC lobby, the choir kids
have been learning my songs, my CDs have been circulating in the carpools. The producer of the event needs me to
be a smash hit. The congregants
come to the services and/or the show hoping to be touched and uplifted. At the meals I am surrounded by those
who want to share an anecdote, a musical memory or a crisis, or simply to find
out if I know so-and-so in L.A. I
truly feel uplifted by all this attention. It's not an ego thing.
It's empowerment. And with
that empowerment I can sing higher and longer, my workshops are more profound,
my delivery more lucid and I am able to look into a new friend's eyes and
respond with the deepest knowing.
It
seems that if we can harness the power of the "I do" marital transformation
that we can accomplish anything in our lives. Maybe it's a matter of enlisting
others to stand behind us in our personal commitments. Just as we honor our
word while under the canopy, so too can we honor our commitment to anything to which we aspire. I would surmise that
the reason that Alcoholics Anonymous is so successful is because the group with
whom the ex-drinker meets regularly has expectations and is pulling for the
individual. But another factor in
AA's efficacy is connecting one's efforts with Divine assistance. In the text Ethics of the Fathers we
learn that "it's not up to us to finish the task, but neither are we free to
desist." G-d is a most powerful
teammate, but G-d waits for us to make the first move.
One of
the first Jewish songs I wrote was Hineni (here I am.) It became a summer camp standard and
was recorded by many artists, my friend Craig Taubman among them. In my fledgling Torah study back in 1990
I  was fascinated by the common response of our biblical heroes when called upon
for greatness. Hineni, according
to our master commentator Rashi, signals alacrity, the readiness to act with
heroic zeal. That year the Jewish
community was mobilizing to aid the Jews of the former Soviet Union who were
able to emigrate freely for the first time in their lives. This seemed to me like my generation's
"Hineni moment." I believe we
all are preprogrammed to be called upon and respond Hineni. But someone has to do the calling.
My
late friend Lou Rudolph was a famed Hollywood producer who found his "Letter in
the Torah" while in his 50's. He
got turned onto the power of Judaism and filled his days with learning,
tzedakah (charity) and outreach.
Singlehandedly he mobilized our Pico-Robertson community. When Lou Rudolph phoned, you took the
call. And when he told you what he needed you to do, you said "Hineni!" Lou had a heart attack in his Lexus and
couldn't call for help. His wife gave me his wardrobe. I feel his
presence every time I don one of his Armani or Hugo Boss suits. And I hear his voice every time I am
about to go back to sleep and avoid doing what needs to be done.
We
live lives in quiet desperation, waiting to be called upon to make a difference. I believe that the necessity of daily
prayer is to hear G-d's voice in our heads on a regular basis repeating the
mantra "I need you! I'm calling
you to choose life, to be great, to help others, to avoid selfishness and close-mindedness,
to ask Me for anything you desire."
In truth we are called everyday. It's not just our friends and family
that empower us. It's the Creator
of the universe.
Life
is throwing curve balls everyday.
This economy has so many of us in states of confusion, hopelessness and
depression. In a G-d centered
universe, everything that happens to us is for our good. Please G-d, let us find strength in our
hearts. Let us take the
initiative. Let us find new and
better ways to express ourselves, to support our families, to realize our
dreams, to leave a lasting legacy.
We
bless our boys at a bris (ritual circumcision) by saying "just as he has entered into the
covenant, so may he enter into the Torah, the marriage canopy and good
deeds." A bris is painful. We anesthetize the baby with a few
drops of wine but he still screams.
Transitions hurt. Remarkably,
we  pray that with the same pain with which the baby has entered the covenant, so too may
he go through his life. Nike has
it right. No pain, no gain. In
other words, no pain, no pleasure.
The opposite of pain is comfort.
Comfort is for wimps.
My son
Jesse worked almost nightly with me for the past year to learn his Torah
portion, haftorah and how to lead the prayer service. He cried and moaned and quit and tried again the next evening. Any good marriage requires hard
work. Attention to detail, self
sacrifice, gestures large and small, carpools, changing diapers, taking out the
trash and weekly date nights.
Every decent movie has an engaging plot, with a villain and a
hero and challenges to overcome, or else we'd just walk out of the
theater.
Each
transition we face can be seen as a disaster or as an opportunity. Try to see each test as a love note
from G-d who believes in you enough to push you to the next level. The "right"
of passage is the allowing oneself to accept pain as part of this loving process. And to know that our friends, community, family
and Creator are with us in the trenches, pulling for us, praying for us and
serving as the wind beneath our wings.
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Chanukah on Youtube!
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SPECIAL NEWS BULLETIN:
Sam Does Simchas!
You want your wedding or Bar/Bat Mitzvah to ROCK! Sam specializes in customizing music for your event to ensure that it will be unforgettable! With top musicians, great vocals, pro sound and lights...there are few bands that can deliver the same impact nationwide. The band draws upon the deepest repertoire in the Jewish world combined with  authentic rock, jazz, motown, disco and standards. Many clients opt to supplement their private event with a Sam Glaser concert or Shabbaton for the whole community. Whatever your needs, visit the Sam Glaser Orchestra site to learn more.
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Cool Links:
Gourmet Kosher Recipes
Rabbi Simcha Weinberg
Israel National News
CAJE Lives!
The Coaliton for Advancement in Jewish Education is an international group of educators, rabbis, cantors musicians and artists that gather together over 1200 strong each summer. They have invited me to perform anually for the past sixteen years and those concerts and workshops are some of the most fulfilling of my tour. Just to give you an idea of the serious fun and true unity, here are highlights from my 2006 show at Duke University. Sadly, the organization declared bankruptcy this year...but there is hope! MANAJE is a new offshoot attempting to resurrect CAJE from the ashes. I regaled the attendees at their Baltimore conference last month and it was an amazing week for all. A group of invincible women are banding together to keep the dream alive and they need your support. For more information and to link up with the cause, visit the MANAJE website. Here's a short video from one of the evening programs.
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Thank you!
Thank you for reading, for listening, for your support and friendship.
Glaser MusicWorks
800-972-6694
Outside of the US 310-204-6111
sam@samglaser.com
1941 Livonia Av.
Los Angeles, California 90034
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