If music has the power to transport us back in time, the distinctive voice of Reb Abish Brodt singing on last month’s release Mashmia Shuloim took listeners back a few decades. The Regesh series of albums were a well-loved heimishe sound in the 1980s and 1990s, and Reb Abish — also famed for his singing at the Siyum HaShas in MetLife Stadium — is back in a guest-appearance duet with his grandson Shulem Brodt, the album’s child soloist. Together they sing Regesh’s iconic “Kavei” — an updated sound to a beloved classic.

Mashmia Shuloim, which showcases the versatility of young Shulem’s voice, offers four medleys. Producer Avrumi Berko explains that they are categorized according to genre. “Listeners have their different preferences, so this seemed like the best way to organize the album,” he says.

The album is a collection of familiar oldies, like MBD’s “Mame Rochel” and Abie Rotenberg’s “Habeit,” supplemented by newer songs with a timeless feel, like “Shivisi Hashem” from the last Shwekey album. There are also several songs from composer Duddy Kalish. Avrumi Berko couldn’t resist adding one new song of his own, titled “Torosoi,” the words taken from the last stanza of the piyut “Ve’amartem Koh Lechoi Rabi Shimon Bar Yochai.”

“I know there are several niggunim to these words,” he says, “but they’re all fast tunes. I thought that a slow niggun would bring out the depth in a different way.”

 (Originally featured in Mishpacha, Issue 746)