Shalom Hanoch

Hanoch was born on September 1, 1946, at Kibbutz Mishmarot in Mandatory Palestine; his surname is also transliterated as Hanokh or Chanoch.[1][2] His childhood musical environment included classical music, Russian folk songs, gospel-blues and Broadway musical soundtracks.[2] He received compulsory lessons on mandolin and recorder before teaching himself guitar as a young teenager.[2][3] Recalling that experience later, he contrasted making music for himself with conventional lessons, which had felt to him like “arithmetic exercises.”[3]

At Mishmarot, Hanoch grew up alongside Meir Ariel, who would become an important collaborator.[3] He belonged to the kibbutz singing group Mishmaron with Ariel and Hanan Yovel, developing his music within the community before embarking on a professional career.[4] His early compositions included “Laila,” or “Layla” (“Night”), written during his youth.[2] At sixteen he moved to Tel Aviv and studied at the Beit Zvi School of Dramatic Arts, initially hoping to become an actor.[2] Popular music from abroad, especially the Beatles and the British Invasion, subsequently became important influences.[2]

Hanoch entered the Nahal entertainment troupe at nineteen after auditioning twice.[5] During his service he continued composing and performing, including appearances in Tel Aviv clubs with musicians such as bassist Eli Magen and Hanan Yovel.[5] Before his military service ended, he was already performing at the High Windows club.[4] His songwriting also began reaching commercial recordings: the duo Hedva and David recorded “Stav” (“Fall”) in 1965.[2][5]

In 1967 Hanoch and Yossi Pollak wrote the satirical song “Jacques Aboutboul”; after hearing Hanoch perform it, Arik Einstein recorded four of his compositions, beginning a collaboration that would continue across decades.[2][5] Hanoch left the army in 1968 and relocated from Kibbutz Mishmarot to Tel Aviv, writing music for performers including Yossi Banai, Ili Gurelitzki and Hanan Yovel.[5] His contributions to Einstein’s album “Mazal Gdi,” including “Ruach Ruach” and “Hayamim Ha’arukim Ha’atzuvim,” formed part of his early breakthrough.[4] His music for “Prague” accompanied Einstein’s win at the 1969 Israeli Song Festival.[5]

The partnership with Einstein encompassed the albums “Puzi,” “Shablul” and “Plastelina.”[1] The latter two emerged in 1969–1970, using electric guitars and keyboards in a sound connected with underground bands moving from Ramla to Tel Aviv.[2] The collaboration brought Hanoch to the forefront of the developing Israeli rock scene.[2] He also appeared in the film “Shablul” and two episodes of the satirical television program “Lul,” extending his work beyond recording and concert performance.[2]

Songs associated with the Einstein partnership included “Maya,” “Ma Ata Oseh K’she’ata Kam Baboker?” (“What Do You Do When You Get Up in the Morning?”), “Kach Lecha Isha” (“Take Yourself a Wife”) and “Lama Li Lakh-at Balev” (“Why Take It to Heart?”).[6] Hanoch was simultaneously composing for other performers, among them Oshik Levy, Shula Chen, Popik Arnon and Shovvei Tzion.[6] His early career thus combined his own appearances with an expanding body of work interpreted by other Israeli singers.[5][6]

In 1969 he joined HaShlosharim, a trio formed by Benny Amdursky with Hanan Yovel.[7] Hanoch’s compositions for the group included “Mi Mefached Me’Gveret Levin” and “Tzarot Tovot.”[7] The trio released a successful album late that year, alongside the work Hanoch was undertaking with Einstein.[1]

In October 1970 Hanoch moved to London with his wife, Lihi, and their infant daughter, Maya, seeking an international career.[6] British music entrepreneur Dick James offered him a contract and supported the project that became his English-language solo debut, “Shalom,” released in 1971.[2] Arranged by Robert Kirby and produced by Kay Kaplan, the album featured London studio musicians and combined American country influences with British rock.[2]

“Shalom” brought together translated versions of earlier Israeli songs and newer material.[2] Its repertoire included English versions of “Avshalom” and “Al Tivat’ri Alai,” as well as “Never Kissed the Sun.”[6] Sales were insufficient to establish the international career Hanoch had sought, and his contract ended.[2] He returned permanently to Israel in 1973, drawn back by his attachment to the country and to Hebrew.[2][8] Looking back on London, he recalled recognizing that he would not compete with performers such as Elton John, Cat Stevens and John Lennon.[9]

After returning from Britain, Hanoch wanted to form a band with a sound resembling the British group with which he had played there.[9] While living with Lihi and Maya at his in-laws’ home in Petah Tikva, he wrote songs beside the orchards at night, including “Street Light” and “I Can’t Sleep Now.”[9] He also recorded early versions of “Don’t Know How to Tell You,” “Come Dance” and “Go See a Psychiatrist” with Sons of Noah, although they did not complete an album together.[6][9]

A further attempt brought Hanoch together with Mati Caspi, Danny Litani and Ariel Zilber in a group conceived in the style of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.[8] The musicians played together for several months, but the combination did not cohere; after Caspi and Litani stopped attending, Hanoch and Zilber continued toward the formation of Tamuz.[9] Einstein’s invitation to Hanoch and Zilber to appear in his 1974 “Go Slowly” concert was another step in the band’s emergence.[9]

Tamuz’s lineup included Hanoch, Zilber, drummer Meir Israel, guitarist Yehuda Eder and bassist Eitan Gidron; bassist Adam Zeidel also participated in its early development.[8][9] Einstein helped the group with rehearsal space, financial support and opportunities to open his concerts, and supplied its name.[9] Producer Louis “Louie” Lahav, recently returned from the United States, brought experience and artistic influences associated with American rock.[8]

Active from 1974 to 1976, Tamuz developed a loud, heavy sound with extended guitar and drum solos.[2] Hanoch wrote most of its songs and explored hard rock against the somber atmosphere following the 1973 war.[2] He also drew on music he had heard in Britain, including Genesis and Yes, and wanted audiences to feel involved in the performance rather than detached from it.[9] Lahav helped shape both the recordings and the band’s stage approach.[9]

Meir Ariel contributed lyrics, including those for “Walking Idly” and the jointly written “End of the Orange Season.”[9] The latter supplied the title of Tamuz’s sole album, “Sof Onat HaTapuzim,” released in 1976.[2] Eder later recalled that the title song had initially possessed a markedly different, Greek-influenced character before Lahav helped transform it into a rock recording.[4]

Artistic recognition did not translate into financial stability: the album sold poorly at the time, and the band left its members with substantial debts.[8] Serious artistic disagreements between Zilber and the other musicians contributed to its breakup, while Zilber released his debut album independently.[8] Tamuz disbanded in 1976 without recording a follow-up, and its members pursued other musical careers.[2][10] Its sole album nevertheless became a lasting classic of Israeli rock, continuing to influence later local music.[4][8]

Hanoch recorded his first Hebrew-language solo album, “Adam Betoch Atzmo” (“A Man Within Himself”), in late 1976 after Tamuz dissolved; CBS released it on February 23, 1977.[8] Produced by Louis Lahav, the seven-song record moved away from the band’s forceful sound toward quieter, melancholic and personal writing.[8] Hanoch explained the change directly: “You play rock music with a band and I wanted to be more personal.”[2]

The album addressed loneliness and earlier failures, with its introspection shaped by setbacks in Hanoch’s personal life and in Tamuz.[8][11] Hanoch composed every song and wrote most of the lyrics.[8] Meir Ariel supplied the words for “Shvita,” while “Bo’i Lirkod” emerged from a collaborative writing session involving Ariel, Ya’akov Rotblit, Dori Ben Ze’ev and Hanoch.[8] Despite its marked departure from his previous style, the album achieved relative success, particularly through its title song.[8]

Its musicians were Alona Turel on piano, percussion and vocals; Ohad Inger on bass and vocals; Alon Hillel on drums, percussion and vocals; and Haim Kario on electric and acoustic guitar, with Hanoch playing acoustic guitar.[8] The record allowed considerable space for individual songs: “Lailot Shketim” lasts approximately seven and a half minutes, while “Tiyul LeYafo” exceeds ten minutes.[11] A concert tour followed, and performances at the 1977 and 1978 Neviot festivals helped lead Hanoch toward adding more upbeat material to his live act.[2]

“Hatuna Lavanah” (“White Wedding”), released in November 1981, marked another substantial change.[2] Conceived around a broken marriage, it combined dense arrangements with a heavy sound.[2] Electric guitars and saxophone were prominent, with Lahav and Yaroslav Yakobovitch central to its musical character.[6] Hanoch described planning a sequence of twelve chapters and writing the songs in that order, beginning with a song about leaving the kibbutz.[6] Its subjects ranged across relationships, success, failure, life and music.[6]

The record and its tour initially struggled commercially.[2] Radio played its songs infrequently, some listeners found the sound difficult to accept, and the tour was shortened.[11] Its importance became clearer over time, and it came to be regarded as a milestone in Israeli rock.[2] The project also marked the beginning of Hanoch’s long collaboration with keyboardist and arranger Moshe Levi.[2] Across the period following Tamuz, Hanoch released “A Man Within Himself,” “Shalom Hanoch Live” and “White Wedding” within four years.[10]

The 1985 album “Mechakim LaMashiach” (“Waiting for the Messiah”) became Hanoch’s best-selling album, with more than 70,000 copies sold.[12] Its social and economic criticism represented a shift from the more personal relationship themes of “Adam Betoch Atzmo,” “Hatuna Lavanah” and “Al Pnei HaAdamah.”[12] Hanoch linked the writing to his anger at the worsening situation in Israel, including the aftermath of the Lebanon War and the economic crisis.[12]

A personal financial loss also preceded the title song’s composition.[12] Hanoch and Dafna Armoni paid a deposit on a rented apartment in Tel Aviv, found it too noisy for living and working, and could not recover their money.[12] Armoni recalled that he began composing the song while she was making meatballs; Hanoch later remembered losing $10,000 in the dispute.[3][12]

The recording acquired its distinctive pace through an accident.[12] Hanoch originally intended a slow song, but producer and keyboardist Moshe Levi accidentally doubled the tempo.[12] After unsuccessful attempts at the vocal, Hanoch sang a complete take over a monotonous beat from his daughter Maya’s toy organ.[12] He sang ahead of the beat while exploring the song’s nuances, and on playback he and Levi decided to retain the performance.[12] Another unintended detail—an electric-guitar entrance before the drums and bass—was kept because Levi liked the effect, becoming an early use of a guitar sample in the production.[12]

The title song’s refrain, “The Messiah isn’t coming; the Messiah doesn’t even call,” became a defining feature of the hit.[1][3] The album’s commercial breakthrough was followed by twenty-eight large-scale concerts over two years.[2] By this period Hanoch was among Israel’s leading rock singers, releasing albums while appearing at music festivals and major park concerts.[1][2]

His 1980s output also included “Al Penei HaAdamah” and “Rak Ben Adam.”[1] The latter, released in 1988, was a nearly seventy-minute double album featuring guitarist Ronnie Peterson, bassist Ray Peterson, drummer Roy Martin, keyboardist Moshe Levi and saxophonist Yaroslav Yakobovitch.[11] It was unsuccessful at the time but included “Neged HaRuach,” “Nehimat HaDemamah” and “Besof Emtza Otach.”[11] Hanoch’s work across the decade therefore encompassed both substantial popular success and recordings whose initial reception was more difficult.[2][11]

“BeGilgul HaZeh,” released in 1991, included “Kacha VeKacha” and “Bediuk Kamocha,” alongside two songs with lyrics by Meir Ariel, “Omrim Shebli” and “Victoria.”[11] Further releases included “A-Li-Mut” in 1995 and “Erev Erev” in 1997.[1][2] The latter combined personal songs, including its title track, “Met Lishon” and “LeOlam Lo E’ezov Otach Od,” with politically oriented material such as “Helikopter,” “Oznayim LaTelefon” and “Al Tikra Li Am.”[11]

“Erev Erev” was recorded live in the studio using an unusually immediate working method.[11] Musicians received the songs in the morning, learned them and recorded without rehearsals or stops.[11] In 1999 Hanoch reunited on record with longtime collaborator Arik Einstein for the joint album “Muscat.”[1][2] Beyond his own performances, he composed songs for other singers.[6] He also produced Meir Ariel’s debut album and Daphne Armoni’s debut album.[3][4]

In 2003 he released “Or Yisra’eli” with the band Monica Sex.[2] Its song “Prime Minister” directly criticized Ariel Sharon’s policies.[2] The following year, the live-concert album “Yitziah,” made with Levi, sold more than 20,000 copies.[2] Hanoch received the Landau Prize for Life Achievement in 2004, and in summer 2005 joined Shlomo Artzi for a highly successful series of joint concerts.[2]

Hanoch released “Herzl Lilienblum” in 2021 as an intimate, minimalist studio album recorded live.[11] Its ensemble featured Levi, bassist Eli Magen and drummer and sampler Tamir Muskat, with Hanoch’s daughter Romi providing backing vocals.[11] The four musicians produced the album together, and its songs addressed work and financial hardship, social and political protest, personal crises and romance.[13] The recording continued his use of close musical partnerships while bringing family participation into the studio.[11][13]

At eighty in 2026, Hanoch was still performing and recording after a career spanning more than six decades.[3] Reflecting on his experiences onstage, he singled out performing with his daughter Romi and grandson Omri as a particularly happy occasion.[3] His career also extended beyond Israel through performances around the world and a body of work encompassing seventeen full-length studio albums in a biographical account of his output.[14]

Hanoch’s collaboration with Arik Einstein on “Shablul” helped establish the foundations of Israel’s homegrown rock scene, combining Beatles-like psychedelic effects with humor.[15] His subsequent work with Tamuz and his solo recordings placed him among the most influential Israeli rock figures from the 1970s onward.[5] Across those projects, his repertoire encompassed blues-inflected songs, high-energy rock and gentle ballads.[5]

His career also formed part of a broader change in Israeli popular music.[16] Musician Adi Renert recalled a transition from the music of military entertainment bands toward the rock ’n’ roll associated with Einstein, Hanoch and their contemporaries.[16] Hanoch’s own path—from the Nahal troupe to electric-band experimentation and Hebrew solo songwriting—spanned these musical settings.[1][2]

Several recordings gained lasting stature despite difficult initial commercial results.[2][8] Tamuz’s “Sof Onat HaTapuzim” continued to influence local rock after the group’s brief existence.[4] “Hatuna Lavanah” came to be recognized as a landmark after its disappointing early reception.[2] Alongside these albums, the popular reach of “Waiting for the Messiah” demonstrated Hanoch’s ability to connect social criticism with a large concert and record-buying audience.[12][2]

Individual songs have also acquired meanings beyond their original circumstances.[17] Hanoch wrote “Song Without a Name” in memory of a nephew killed in an IDF naval commando training accident in 1980.[17] At a June 2025 concert, an orchestra paused its program to play the song at the request of the mother of hostage Alon Ohel.[17] She had asked people to listen at a particular time as an act of sending strength and prayers to her son.[17]

The political and religious implications of “Mechakim LaMashiach” have prompted varied interpretations.[18] Hanoch acknowledged that listeners connected it to businessman Miki Albin’s suicide, but declined to prescribe a single audience response, saying that he welcomed its ability to affect people on several levels.[18] He called it “not only anti-religious, but anti-secular,” connecting it with the pursuit of easy solutions in Israeli society.[18] Some listeners interpreted “Lo Otzer BaAdom” as directed at Ariel Sharon; Hanoch neither confirmed nor denied that reading in interviews.[12]

In May 2015, before opening the Israel Festival in Jerusalem, Hanoch objected to Culture and Sports Minister Miri Regev addressing the audience from the stage.[19] He said the performance platform should not advance a politician’s position, while emphasizing that his objection was not personal and that he did not intend to cancel.[19] Regev expressed surprise and argued that an invited artist should not determine whether she appeared.[19] At the opening, she spoke amid extensive booing and whistling, after which Hanoch began with “A man lives within himself.”[19]