Norman Greenbaum----What?

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I was pretty young when I first heard the rock song Spirit in the Sky come blasting out of the car radio. It was catchy as hell, with a great chorus: 

Going up to the spirit in the sky, that’s where I’m gonna go when I die / When I die, and they lay me to my rest, I’m gonna go to the place that’s the best.

Anyone who knows this song cannot help but sing the words as they read them on this page. Spirit in the Sky, released in 1970, soared to the tops of the charts. It is a staple of oldies’ rock stations and has been featured in many films. 

Spirit also had the somewhat off-putting line “I got a friend in Jesus”. A bit off-putting if you're Jewish, that is. Hearing Jesus’ name in a song I liked was usually not so strange. I had heard many a gospel or old blues song that mentioned Jesus and I had no problem with that. Mentioning Jesus was part and parcel of these musical genres and Jesus was an important part of the culture the music sprang from. One could certainly enjoy the music without being or becoming a Christian. 

But hit rock songs rarely mentioned Jesus. And-- this was what was really weird--- the singer was a guy named Norman Greenbaum. First of all, how often has there been a big solo rock hit by a guy with a very Jewish name like Norman Greenbaum? It is almost as rare as a good pastrami sandwich in Mississippi. I can only think of three solo rock hits by guys with pretty Jewish names: Greenbaum, Art Garfunkel, and Henry Gross.  

Well, here was a rock song—which mentioned Jesus—being sung by Norman Greenbaum. Strange to say the least. The thought crossed my mind that Greenbaum was one of these new-fangled hippie types for Jesus. A Jewish guy who had become “born again”. 

But the song is, as I said, amazingly catchy and I found myself singing along wherever I’d hear it on the radio. I didn’t think much about Greenbaum in the years to come because Spirit was his only hit. 

Well, about two weeks ago, a Jewhoo! visitor asked me if I knew whether Norman Greenbaum was a born-again Christian type. I did a quick web search and found two sites that were helpful. The first site was run by an evangelist who proclaimed that all rock music was sinful. He noted that even Spirit in the Sky was not theologically “correct” and that it was written by one Norman Greenbaum. Greenbaum, the preacher said, has “admitted” he is not a believer in Jesus. I didn’t trust this guy as an unimpeachable source as to Greenbaum’s beliefs. It was, however, comforting to know that someone still considers all rock music sinful. Made me feel younger. 

The second site was Mr. Greenbaum’s own web site. This is a very nice site and it features the lyrics to Spirit, a brief biography of Mr. Greenbaum, letters from fans, movies that Spirit has appeared in, and some merchandise for sale. You can also listen to Spirit. I e-mailed Mr. Greenbaum and we arranged a telephone interview. 

Mr. Greenbaum was born in Malden, Massachusetts in 1942. His parents ran a bakery. Mr. Greenbaum had a traditional Jewish upbringing. He went to Hebrew school and was bar mitzvah. His early musical influences included the folk revival stuff of the late ‘50s and early ‘60s. He was also influenced by traditional black blues musicians from the South. Mr. Greenbaum told me he played in high school bands with a bunch of other Jewish guys. These guys, as Mr. Greenbaum put, ended up following the normal career path of young Jewish guys—they became doctors, lawyers, and accountants. Mr. Greenbaum says he stuck with the music. 

Mr. Greenbaum went to Boston University for two years, but dropped out to pursue his musical career full time. I asked Greenbaum if he ever thought of changing his name to help his professional career. He said he never seriously considered changing his name and no one ever seriously suggested he should. 

Greenbaum moved to Los Angeles in 1965. He quickly became the founder and the leader of a rather unique group: Dr. West’s Medicine Show and Jugband. It was a “psychedelic jug band”. Jug bands were popular in the folk revival of the early to mid-60s. Jugs, like Southern “moonshiners” use, were blown into. A washboard bass was also a feature of jug bands. But a psychedelic jug band has to be truly unique.  

Greenbaum tells me his band had jugs, a washboard bass, AND a trippy light show. The band had one single that climbed to near 50 on the charts, The Eggplant that Ate Chicago.  

This title is fairly humorous and Greenbaum says he was influenced by Jewish comedians. Unfortunately, this record was the band’s only success and Doctor West broke up in 1968.  

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