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EST 1917

The Jacksons sing Yiddish

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No, really.

The Jacksons, appearing on the Carol Burnett Show in 1975, paid tribute to vocal groups.

Starting about 2:22, Jackie, Jermaine and Randy take on the Andrews Sisters and do a persuasive version of Bei Mir Bis Du Schoen.

Michael sits it out but is dragged into drag a little later in the performance, when he does Diana Ross.

Janet makes a "surprise" appearance toward the end, and is adorable.

It’s heartbreaking, knowing now what they suffered at their father’s hand, how much joy they’re able to convey.

UPDATE: It turns out the song has something of an African American provenance; According to the Yiddish Radio Project, it would have sunk into Yiddish theater oblivion after an inauspicious 1932 debut had Sammy Cahn not seen a 1937 performance by an African American duo at the Apollo – in Yiddish! Cahn translated it into English, pitched it to the Andrews Sisters, and made a mint. The Apollo, of course, is where the Jacksons had their breakthrough 40 years later.

Not only that, but the song, according to this 1938 account in the Camden Courier-Post, was a hit with Nazis.

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