Change The World With A Sound review Written by Cat Delaney, Lucid Forge March 5, 2006 If the title of this album sounds idealistic, and it is, but it's quite serious about carrying through on its message, that the universality of music can change the world, or at the very least, how we view the world. In this album I heard jazz, folk, rock, even rap. The music being played is in its most global form but with a linear message. A quick word of advice, this CD is not to be used as banal background music, so please give its due and listen like you mean it. The music that influenced RebbeSoul (known to friends as Bruce Burger) are audible, and quickly apparent: Led Zeppelin is there; and Jimi Hendrix, too. But their influences are nuanced within the framework of a statement steeped in Judaic heritage, proud but not bold, spiritual but not drowning in religious tones. Most importantly: it rocks! Years ago, Burger stumbled upon a traditional Hebrew prayer called “Avinu Malkenu” and was consumed by the “haunting beauty” of it that he produced an acoustic instrumental version, which was met with rave reviews. Since then it has appeared in different incarnations on every album he has recorded. If you don’t speak Hebrew though, it doesn’t matter. This is about us, as in the big “us”, not about individuals, biases, cultural clashes or any of that other clutter that junks up our daily lives. This album is about how we are more alike than different. Listen to the bond forming; this is human glue. The range of instruments is staggering. Forget guitars and bass, here we get balalaika and mandolin. The musicianship that RebbeSoul demonstrates is outstanding, whether it’s the almost honky-tonk, brassy Middle-Eastern percussions found in “Tzamah L’Cha Nafshi” or the flamenco-style guitar in “Qaafilah.” RebbeSoul also includes a new version of “Rock of Ages,” a song often called one of the most powerful ever written. On this disc it’s got an element of sound that can almost be described as East Coast, as well as a hint of Rod Stewart’s “Maggie May.” The seventh track, “Shmelke’s Nigun,” was an instrumental track, quick, jazzy, and with remembrances of a day I spent in Jerusalem in ’72. It’s polished, professional, and finished off  with stellar production. My only criticism is that the poignant lyrics are not printed in the liner notes. RebbeSoul dedicates this album to “peace in the Middle East and the rest of the world”, and precedes that with a moving blank verse in justification of the CD’s title: “While the Baal Shem was praying, / he climbed a ladder of prayer / reaching a place where he saw / a golden bird, whose lovely song / would bring tranquility to all who / heard it… He knew that if its song / were brought to the physical world, / it would surely bring peace and / change the world with a sound…” Amen, brother. The Bio... The Story Behind RebbeSoul A versatile musician with an innate gift for telling a story, RebbeSoul brings a new voice to the sometimes-stagnant realm of Jewish music. He blends rock sensibilities, world-fusion stylings and traditional Hebrew melodies to create a sound that is ageless yet completely progressive. It took many years before he ever discovered his musical identity, however. His evolution as an artist, just like his journey to the heart of Judaism, has been an unorthodox one. RebbeSoul’s first influences were the old-school rockers -- Jimi, Zeppelin, etc -- that he heard on the radio while growing up in Utica, New York. From the time he first began to play guitar at 13, he had an innate ability to hear, understand and reproduce any style of music. This ability opened many doors for him when he made the move to Los Angeles. Producers appreciated his ear and his versatility. Though he kept busy with sessions and rock/jazz collaborations, he never really took the time to discover his own musical voice - until he heard the traditional Hebrew prayer "Avinu Malkenu" at a temple one day and, inspired by its haunting beauty, produced an acoustic instrumental version in his living room. People loved it. RebbeSoul felt a connection to it that went far deeper than anything he’d experienced previously. He collected an eclectic group of players - a Tanzanian drummer, a funk bassist, etc. - to round out his energetic live shows. Several months later, the acoustic rendition of "Avinu Malkenu" garnered the highest-ever amount of listener call-ins when played on maverick San Francisco radio station KKSF. Propelled by the success of "Avinu Malkenu", RebbeSoul’s first full-length, self-titled release became an instant hit with Jewish and non-Jewish listeners alike. It landed him a record deal for the second album, Fringe of Blue. This album went on to sell more copies than almost any other Jewish music album in the country. RebbeSoul followed it with Rebbe Soul-O, the soundtrack to the award-winning one-man show written by Richard Krevolin about RebbeSoul’s life and musical journey. RebbeSoul’s latest album, Change The World With A Sound, shows RebbeSoul moving to the next level musically - mixing Mizrahi chant and electronic beats with the signature funk/folk/ethnic rock style that his audience has come to know and love. The latest version of "Avinu" - ever since the auspicious beginning, there has been one on every album - is the first to be recorded with vocals. "Kaddish" features samples recorded during an evening pilgrimage to Amuka in Northern Israel. Various artists lend their talents to the album: Prophet X, the Los Angeles-based rapper; Neshama Carlebach, daughter of the beloved late songwriter Shlomo Carlebach; and vocalists Lynn Rose and Lena Katz are among them. Another inimitable touch is Rabbi Zalman Schacter’s narrative of I.L. Peretz’s famous tale "Reincarnation of a Melody." RebbeSoul traveled to Boulder, Colorado to record Rabbi Schacter reciting the famous Yiddish story. RebbeSoul is known to say that "music is the common language" in an increasingly troubled world. Upon listening to Change The World, one can hear that he is becoming more fluent in that universal language with each passing day. 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