W

hen Cantor Michael 
Smolash was tasked 
with booking the 
2023 Laker Concert, he knew 
that Dan Nadel from B’Nai 
Jeshurun in New 
York would be 
a natural fit for 
Temple Israel and 
the Greater Detroit 
Jewish community. 
And the show, 
“Like a Rolling 
Stone — Bob 
Dylan’s American 
Mythology,
” is free and open to 
the public on Sunday, May 7, at 
4 p.m. The concert is sponsored 
in loving memory of Sarah and 
Harry Laker, who through their 
family, have continued to help 
provide musical moments for 
Temple Israel and the greater 
Detroit Jewish community. 
“Sometimes you find the 
right music for the community 
and it’s good and wonderful; 
sometimes it’s just someone 
who is impressive and musical 
and magnetic and they kind 
of transcend everything else,” 
Smolash said. “
And Dan is one 
of those guys. He’s just spectac-
ular on the guitar and a huge 
voice in the future of Jewish 
music. So, I wanted to bring 
him in because he’s someone 
our music lovers would love to 
see on stage.”
Nadel will be adding some 
star power from both coasts. 
Fans of The Late Late Show with 

James Corden will recognize 
Hagar Ben Ari. Fans of John 
Zorn or Chrissie Hynde may 
recognize drummer extraor-
dinaire Yuval Lion, who tours 
regularly with both artists. 
Along with accomplished sing-
ers from the New York scene, 
and Nadel’s own consummate 
guitar chops, this show will be 
a delight both for Dylan fans 
and for those new to his music.
The show will be woven 
together by narration from 
Temple Israel’s Rabbi Paul 
Yedwab — a self-described die-
hard Dylan groupie. 
Nadel said the concept for 
this particular concert was 
born in 2017, when he pro-
duced a concert dedicated to 
the music of Leonard Cohen, 
where the set list was curated 
using many of the insights that 
Rabbi Aubry Glazer had writ-
ten in a book about the artist. 
Two years later, in 2019, 
Glazer wrote a book dedicated 
to Bob Dylan’s music and how 
it connected to Judaism, God 
Knows, Everything is Broken: 
The Great (Gnostic) Americana 
Songbook of Bob Dylan. 
“(Rabbi Glazer) came to us 
with the same idea, and I put 
together a set list independent-
ly and then he suggested a few 
songs that he explored in his 
book but are less well known 
and explore Dylan’s spiritual 
past and wanderings,” Nadel 
said. 

The Laker Concert will be 
similar, but more condensed 
and delivered within an hour, 
according to Nadel. 
“It’s going to be more of a 
collection of greatest hits that 
we are bringing to Temple 
Israel,” Nadel said. “But many 
of the same themes and ideol-
ogies from our original show 
will carry over.”
Nadel, an Israeli-born, New 
York-based musician, said, for 
him, Dylan’s music connects 
because of the simplicity and 
poetry of his writing. 
“To me, he has insight into 
the human condition in a way 
where he’s willing to look at 
darkness, the beauty, the cyn-
icism, in an incredible way,” 
Nadel said. “He brings this 
narrative in, but I never feel 
like he’s part of the narrative. 

It’s usually him looking at the 
scene and describing it — but 
describing it with this rare 
insight … it’s a way to analyze 
human emotions and tenden-
cies, where he’s 
looking to make it 
real. The poetry is 
beautiful because 
it’s real.”
Rabbi Yedwab 
will pick up where 
Rabbi Glazer left off 
and share insights 
and anecdotes to frame the 
brilliant Dylan lyrics and mel-
odies.
“I think with having Rabbi 
Yedwab up on stage adding 
anecdotes, it’s going to be a 
wonderful setup for Temple 
Israel and our community,
” 
Smolash said. “I think people 
are going to love it.
” 

Delve into ‘Bob Dylan’s American 
Mythology’ at Temple Israel Laker 
Concert on May 7.

‘Like a 
Rolling Stone’

Cantor 
Michael 
Smolash

SEAN SHAPIRO SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS 

Rabbi Paul 
Yedwab

Details

“Like a Rolling Stone — Bob Dylan’s American Mythology” is 
free and open to the public and will be held at Temple Israel 
on Sunday, May 7, at 4 p.m. This concert is sponsored in 
loving memory of Sarah and Harry Laker, who through their 
Temple foundation have provided the finest musical offerings 
for Temple Israel and the greater Detroit Jewish community 
for many years.

Dan Nadel
OUR COMMUNITY

26 | MAY 4 • 2023 

