Veteran Hebrew singer Gabi Berlin passed away Thursday morning at Ichilov Hospital after a battle with cancer, at the age of 80.
Gabi Berlin was born in August 1942 in the Yad Eliyahu neighborhood of Tel Aviv. He served in the Armored Corps Band, with whom he sang the well-known song "Fat Hawks", and began his career in the music world independently upon his release.
Among other things, he took part in the bands "The Seven Species" and "The Promenade" (remembered for its hits "Night to the Promenade" and "Wadi Ara"). In 1968, he released his debut CD, Song for the Unknown, which was not commercially successful, but its title track was popular. Among his well-known songs are "Night Coming" and "What the Birds Said".
In the 80s he became a prominent figure in the world of public singing, after a series of tapes he released containing various strings. Since then, Berlin's name has become identified with the genre and he has been considered one of its leaders for many decades.
According to him, he began his steps in the field after playing songs of the Land of Israel that he loved on the beach and passersby would gather around him. Over the years he recorded less material, but continued to sing and host singing evenings. "I am sure that public singing has not disappeared and will not disappear," he said in an interview five years ago. "We are one of the peoples who likes to sing in public more. This is an Israeli phenomenon that has existed in Israel for almost a century."
Gabi Berlin and Tsadi Sarfati, photo: Coco
In other interviews in recent years, he has said that he sees himself as the standard-bearer of the genre and that for him it is about preserving a disappearing culture. "I still see it as a mission to preserve the Hebrew singer," he said in a 2018 interview. "Singing in public is a great way to do that. There are a lot of Hebrew songs that are so beautiful and good, created by the best artists, and today you can no longer hear them on the radio. Unless it's Hebrew Shabbat on Radio 103FM. These songs are usually sung in public singing evenings, which is a shame, because this is the beautiful and good Land of Israel. Today they don't make songs like that anymore." Alongside his musical career, Berlin worked as a biology and chemistry teacher.
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