“Wacky Jewish indie-rock for kids.” – The Star-Ledger
“Mama Doni … is part ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic (for the hilarious and surprisingly insightful lyrics), part Sarah Silverman (but much cleaner and only the parts of Sarah’s show where she innocently sings her little heart out), and that adorable mom down the street who manages to wear bright red lipstick and cute track suit to put out the recycling at 6 a.m.”
– KIWI magazine
MONTCLAIR, NJ (September 1) – In a spirit of outrageous fun, MAMA DONI, brings her special brand of “funky music with a Jewish twist” to the holiday season, with the November 24 release of her new CD, Chanukah Fever (Mama Doni Productions, $15, run time 36 minutes, all ages). The album, resplendent with MAMA DONI’s signature wild and wacky style, features 10 new MAMA DONI originals, plus 4 favorites from last year’s EP, I Love Chanukah!,
Chanukah lasts only eight days, and Doni Zasloff Thomas, aka MAMA DONI, says, “Enjoy!” The popular singer/songwriter expands the horizons of traditional Jewish music, with a contagious and unexpected blend of reggae, rock, disco, Latin, klezmer and “Jewgrass” – all woven together with a hip Jewish sensibility. In Chanukah Fever, MAMA DONI spices these eclectic, colorful elements with a razor-sharp, sophisticated humor that makes latkes, dreidels and Yiddish expressions cooler than ever.
If Spike Jones and his City Slickers were Jewish, they might have created Chanukah Fever. Quirky, zany, off-beat, and unpredictable, the album’s highlights include such songs as the title track, a dyno-mite ditty about disco dreidels, a million latkes, and dancin’ for eight whole days and nights (with as much variety as could possibly be put into one song); “Honey, This Ain’t Money!,” in which Johnny Cash meets Bubbie meets “Hot Rod Lincoln”; a completely nutty “Jewgrass” sing-along in “Bubbie’s Mi Yamelel"; “Latke Man,” a retro-swing pop song about a potato-lovin’ fella; "The Funky Gold Menorah," a kid-friendly hip-hop dance tune about a “Super Fly” Judaica sensation; "La Vida Dreidel," a Jewish twist on Latin style; and "I Say Chanukah (You Say Hanukah!)," a quirky steel drum, island-style number.
According to Carrie Stetler in The Star-Ledger, Doni Zasloff Thomas “is proud to have a schtick. And that schtick, she says, is to ‘Jewify’ all forms of music – from country to reggae to holiday songs.” Kids’ media authority Amy Kraft, of Media Macaroni, enthused, “We were all laughing out loud … Listen as Mama Doni spreads around some challah-day spirit in her inimitable cross between Sheryl Crow and Tone Lōc.”
THE MAMA DONI BAND came away with one of the top prizes at the 2008 International Jewish Music Festival, held in Amsterdam, competing against more than 100 ensembles from 15 countries. At the Festival’s invitation, they will return to Amsterdam to perform and lead workshops in October 2009. I Love Chanukah! was named one of the Top 10 Chanukah Music for Kids albums of 2008 by About.com. Recognized in The New York Times, New York Post, The Star-Ledger, The Record, Time Out New York Kids, New Jersey Jewish News, The Jewish Week, and Jewish Woman International Magazine, THE MAMA DONI BAND is delighting families throughout the country.
MAMA DONI, a resident of Montclair, New Jersey, hopes that her music will add some Jewish flavor to the lives of people everywhere. She speaks with great passion about preserving the priceless Yiddish and Jewish spirit by imbuing it with a contemporary vibe that connects to life in our times.
Chanukah Fever will be available at CDBaby.com, MamaDoni.com, itunes, and at Mama Doni concerts.
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CHANUKAH FEVER SONG LIST:
Intro, Chanukah Fever, Latke Man, Honey, This Ain't Money!, The Legend of Sour Cream vs. Applesauce, The Funky Gold Menorah, Bubbie's Mi Yimalel, Eight, A Land Called Sufganiyot, Dear Hanukah Harry, Mac A. Bee, I Say Chanukah (You Say Hanukah), La Vida Dreidel, Ma-oz Tzur Finale.
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