The “New Year’s Eve in Tel Aviv” concert-celebration returns on Dec. 31 after a two-year hiatus. The party gets started at 3 p.m. at The Focal Point, 2720 Sutton Blvd. in Maplewood. This marks year six for the event, which originated as a holiday party for members of Congregation Neve Shalom in 2014.
It’s hosted by Will Soll, who will take the stage along with Joey Kenig and Andy Curry. The Jewish trio of 70-plus-year-olds play a variety of instruments. Soll alternates between guitar, steel guitar, mandolin and banjo. The idea of the event, he said, is to offer a laid-back midday New Year’s Eve gathering.
What the concert includes
“We’ll follow the same format as we did before with Andy and Joey and me performing some original material and songs from Jewish songwriters, including George Gershwin, Bob Dylan, Carole King, Steve Goodman and a number of other songs in our repertoire,” Soll said.
Halfway through the concert — at 4 p.m. St. Louis time, midnight in Tel Aviv—the new year is celebrated with a nod to Allan Sherman, the Jewish singer-songwriter who wrote “Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh” (the Camp Granada song).
“We’ll start ringing in the new year for New Year’s Eve in Tel Aviv with the New Year’s Eve Anthem, which is Allan Sherman’s ‘Old Lang’s Sign,’” Soll said.
A Jewish twist on midnight
Sherman gave “Auld Lang Syne” the Weird Al Yankovic treatment for the New Year’s classic with the lyrics: “I know a man, his name is Lang, and he has a neon sign, and Mr. Lang is very old, so they call it old Lang’s sign.”
For the second half of the show, Soll plans another New Year’s Eve in Tel Aviv tradition: a sing-along. Song sheets will be available for the audience. Admission charge is $10 at the door only. Cash, checks or Venmo will be accepted, but no credit cards. Snacks will also be available for purchase.
