March 23: Janis Joplin’s Dybbuk

Israeli folk-rock musician Asaf Avidan was born in Jerusalem on this date in 1980. Avidan is founder and leader of Asaf Avidan and the Mojos, a band that released its first of three albums, The Reckoning, in 2007 and has toured with Robert Plant, Ben Harper, and Lou Reed, among others. Avidan has simultaneously pursued a solo career and has toured with Bob Dylan, whose song, “In My Time of Dying,” you can see him cover looking below. His vocal style recalls Janis Joplin and Robert Plant (Led Zeppelin); he sings in English most of the time and is fast developing an international following. His most recent album, Asaf Avidan – In a Box, consists of 30 songs recorded in 48 hours, without overdubs.

“[W]e still produce from A-Z all our albums, with our graphics, we give them [Sony Columbia] a product. They cannot touch anything. We record in Israel. Everything is done here. Not because of some patriotic thing but because it’s our home, and we can communicate better with the people here.” —Asaf Avidan