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Jerry's Čoček

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COMMENTS

Jerry Kissinger Jerry Kisslinger writes regarding Jerry's Čoček:

  1. I am Jerry.
  2. It is not my Čoček.
  3. It is a catchy tune and one with deep personal resonance for me. As far as I know, it made it's way into our world of reflected (refracted?) Balkan culture through a recording I made in 1984 at a sunset–Moslem circumcision–arty in Ohrid. This was music played by and for the Rom community in Ohrid. The clarinetist is Irfan Malik, the drummer is Eko Selim, on "indianki." It is, so far as I can tell, an Indian tune, probably from a movie, but I haven't ever succeeded in tracking it. On the recording it is first sung in a language I cannot identify that is not Turkish or Romanes or any Slavic language and well may be the "original." Then the singer switches to Serbian.
  4. After I brought it home I culled it from a typical field tape – motorcycles, beer bottles, children crying, mysterious grunts, and American chit chat overlay – and distributed it and a few other tunes to Stewart Mennin and either directly or indirectly to George Chittenden.
  5. Fast forward five years. I hear the tune coming out of the woods at Balkan camp. Stewart has taught it. George, I think, has taught it. It went into the repertoire of several bands, including Zlatne Uste. It was a smash hit at Mendocino, but alas, like Popeil's pocket fisherman, has faded in popularity.
  6. I am not sure who was playing among the "Americans" on the version that prompted this whole thread.
  7. The words mean "Spring will come again, and our love will never die." Hard to argue with that . . .

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