Israeli rock/pop lyrics

[AlanF_US]

I'm trying to expand my knowledge of Hebrew by learning Israeli songs by כוורת, גזוז, משינה, and others. I'm going through a lot of songs, and I have many questions, so I thought I'd make this a separate thread.

Question 1: The phrase שק של סנטימנטים comes up in a number of כוורת songs, such as היא כל כך יפה:

הייתי נותן לה שק של סנטימנטים
אך אני מתבייש לתת

Is סנטימנט used to mean something like a physical souvenir/gift, or is it metaphorical, used to mean something like "a piece of my heart"?

Question 2: The song גוביינא by גזוז begins as follows:

טילפנתי לאמריקה לשמוע קצת אנגלית
ענתה לי מנומסת אחת מרכזנית

How would that second line be translated? Does it mean something like "a central operator answered me politely"?

Question 3, same song:

‏גוביינא ‘ני יודע שאת עסוקה,‏
יושבת שם בדואר אצבעות על החוגה‏.‏
אך תני לי לדבר איתך כמה מילים‏,‏
הוצאת אותי מהכלים. ‏

ׁWhat does that last line mean? Does it mean something like "take me out of this mundane life of doing the dishes"?

Question 4: What kind of name is גוביינא anyway? What does it mean? Do women in real life have that name?

Thanks in advance!

[AlanF_US]

Here's another one: משענת

The word comes up in ציפי פרימו, by גזוז:

עזבה את סוניה ואת הדירה
עזבה משענת וחברה

Morfix says that it means "back rest", but that sounds a little off to me. After reading this page: עברית שפה קשה:משענת קנה רצוץ I wonder if it's something more like a chair, perhaps a rocking chair?

[Baldanders]

1.Metaphorical.
2.some polite operator answered me.
3.להוציא מהכלים - Make one lose his temper.

I am not sure as to the origin of the phrase,but I don't think it has anything to do with dishes.

My only guess is it might be a paraphrase on נחבא אל הכלים,concealed behind the instruments,a biblical phrase that describes a shy or humble person,which gain its meaning from the yet-to-be-king Saul who hid himself on his coronation ceremony.

So להוציא מהכלים might have originally meant to make a feeble or hesitating person to step up,and later changed its meaning to drive a calm person to anger.

Another possibility that occurred to me is an English-influenced origin to the phrase,stemming from the similarity in sound between Hebrew כלי and English "cool".
כלי was also once used as a slang similar in meaning to "cool".

5.It is a general term for a method in telephony and delivery services where the receiver is the paying party.

6.Backrest is correct,but it may be used to describe any object that is used as a support for another.

[AlanF_US]

ׁWow, Golv, great answers! Of course, this will only encourage me to ask more questions...

[Babelfish]

Oh no, Golv, look what you've done!

[Baldanders]

and I have so far been under the impression that my comments actually discourage people from visiting here again and make them wish to abandon Hebrew altogether [why would they all be so quick to disappear otherwise?].

Guess I'll have to work harder on this one. (all said in jest)

[TrampGuy]

I'll give it a go :

1. סנטימנט is actually an English word used in a borrowed manner in Hebrew. It translates directly to "sentiment" which in context means feeling. The use here is obviously metaphoric as you can not give someone a "sack of feelings". I think the metaphor requires no special explanation.

2. Either as Golv said, or perhaps "I was answered by this polite operator". Anyway, it surely can't be translated 1-to-1 - passing the exact meaning.

3. להוציא מישהו מהכלים is an idiom meaning "to drive someone mad/crazy" so
הוצאת אותי מהכלים translate to "you drove me mad (already)" but actually in context it would sound better as "you're driving me crazy".

4. גוביינא translate directly to "collect call". In this case the singer refers to the woman operating the collect call service as גוביינא. This is of course not a real person's name, but an oldish way of speaking indicating some tone of plead.

That's it I know it's quite an old thread but I hope I was able to help. If you need any more clarifications I'll be around - glad to see you chose this music over sarit hadad

[AlanF_US]

That was very helpful. Thanks!

I had never heard of Sarit Hadad before. After I saw your note, I checked out a video of hers. A few seconds was enough to convince me that Gazoz is more my type of music.

[AlanF_US]

By coincidence, my next question is about the word חדד, but in this case it has nothing to do with שרית חדד!

The song התותח מצלצל פעמיים by the group משינה is about a soldier who comes back from war with battle trauma. His exposure to a cannon causes him to hear persistent ringing. The song ends with this stanza:

כך עברה לה עוד שנה
והוא נשאר בנוף
עד שיום אחד בהיר
קיבל מכת אגרוף
הצלצול פתאם נפסק לבד
נישק לו את היד, אתה כל כך נחמד
אני כבר לא לבד
החבר'ה של חדד

I'm trying to figure out what that last stanza and particularly that line mean. Literally, he receives a blow from a fist and the ringing stops; he kisses the hand ("you are so kind"), and he is no longer alone. (Perhaps he dies from a second cannon shot?) But I don't understand what החבר'ה של חדד means. The Morfix dictionary says that חדד means "to sharpen, to clarify". But that doesn't sharpen or clarify the point of the line to me. Anyone?

[Baldanders]

4. גוביינא translate directly to "collect call". In this case the singer refers to the woman operating the collect call service as גוביינא. This is of course not a real person's name, but an oldish way of speaking indicating some tone of plead.

It refers to it [the full term being שיחת-גוביינא],but I would be surprised if it directly translated to that,considering the word was in use at least a millennium before Bell was invented.
The word functions nowadays as a general term for this method and is applicable to any service of a similar nature [e.g., משלוח גוביינא].

The other part of your answer had me scratching my head.
גוביינא is only a slangy nickname,referring to the service she provides instead of the proper name of the job; in the same manner I could address קונדיטור as "עוגה".

I can't see how is it oldish in any way or what tone of pleading does it exactly suggest.

...The Morfix dictionary says that חדד means "to sharpen, to clarify". But that doesn't sharpen or clarify the point of the line to me. Anyone?

חדד is a Mizrahi surname,but more relevantly - a word that rhymes with לבד.

[AlanF_US]

I'm wondering whether the phrase "החזקתי אצבעות" means something like nervously doing something with one's hands while waiting (maybe like the English phrase "twiddling one's thumbs"). Here's the stanza, from the משינה song "הכל עוד אפשרי":

ביום שישי ישבתי
וכתבתי מכתבים
שלחתי גם תמונות
עם כל מיני בגדים
החזקתי אצבעות
ולא אכלתי די
כן עד שהיא תבוא
לחיות זה לא כדאי איאיאי

The narrator is writing letters to the women who have placed personal ads in the newspaper.

[Baldanders]

It refers to the gesture of crossing your fingers.

I am not entirely sure as to the origin of the phrase and can't confidently say whether it is a direct translation to the English phrase,or some variation of it from another language,and such an unapt choice of words is to be explained by a desire to avoid the religious connotation or,and I am tending towards this option,that it was originally used to refer to another hand-gesture of a similar meaning,which has been later replaced by finger-crossing [a phrase/gesture of a similar meaning in Russian,for instance,is держать кулаки,to which "להחזיק אצבעות" sounds a much more fitting translation].

[AlanF_US]

I see. You really are the go-to guy for questions like these!

[Baldanders]

Glad to be of some assistance.

[AlanF_US]

In the song מילים יפות by גזוז, I'm wondering whether the line

מילים יפות ללא כיסוי

means something like "Pretty words with nothing behind them" or "Pretty words with nothing concealed". I suspect the former, since that would make more sense in the context of the song. However, both dictionaries I've looked at say that the word "כיסוי" means "concealment" or "coverage"; they don't give any kind of meaning like "support" or "substance".

[Baldanders]

First is correct.

ללא כיסוי means "without cover", as in "a cheque without cover [/funds]" [is there a more proper term in English?], implying empty promises without the means to back them.

[AlanF_US]

Oh, that kind of cover. I see. In the United States, at least, we would probably call it a bounced check, but the bank would be likely to say "You must make a deposit to cover your latest check."

Next question (you knew there had to be one!): later in the song, the singer says:

שמעתי דיבורים
של כל מיני גברים,
לכל אחד סיפור
עם תשע בחיבור

What does the last line mean? Something like "They've got nine more (stories) ready"?

[Baldanders]

This is the only good line in an otherwise weak effort from Sanderson [whose lyrics are known for their wit].

9 here is referring to an academic grade [that would be an "A" or so] and חיבור means 'Composition'.

...
each got a story
with an A for composition.

[AlanF_US]

Aha! I never would have known that. Thanks!