Papirosn Cigarettes lyrics Herman Yablokoff music traditional
(verses 1 and 3 of the original)
| A kalte nakht, a nepldike, finster umetum | A cold night, foggy, darkness everywhere |
| Shteyt a yingele fartroyert un kukt zikh arum | A boy stands sadly and looks around |
| Fun regn shitst im nor a vant, a koshikl halt er in hant | Only a wall protects him from the rain He holds a basket in his hand |
| Un zayne oygn betn yedn shtum | And his eyes beg everyone silently: |
| Ikh hob shoyn nit keyn koyekh mer arumtsugeyn in gas | Hungerik un opgerisn, fun dem regn nas |
| Hungerik un opgerisn, fun dem regn nas | Hungry and ragged, wet from the rain |
| Ikh shlep arum zikh fun baginen | I walk around from dawn |
| Keyner git nit tsu fardinen | Nobody gives me any earnings |
| Ale lakhn makhn fun mir shpas | Everyone laughs and makes fun of me |
| REFRAIN | REFRAIN |
| Kupitye, koyf zhe, koyf zhe papirosn | Please, Buy my cigarettes! |
| Trukene, fun regn nit fargosn | Dry ones, not wet from the rain |
| Koyf zhe, bilik benemones | Buy real cheap |
| Koyft un hot oyf mir rakhmones | Buy and have pity on me |
| Ratevet fun hunger mikh atsind | Save me from hunger now |
| Kupitye, koyf zhe shvebelekh antikn | Buy my matches, wonderful ones, the best |
| Dermit vet ir a yoseml derkvikn | And with that you will uplift an orphan |
| Umzist mayn shrayen un mayn loyfn | My cries and my running will be for nought |
| Keyner vil bay mir nit koyfn | Nobody wants to buy from me |
| Oysgeyn vel ikh muzn vi a hint | In the end I’ll perish like a dog |
| Ikh hob gehat a shvesterl a kind fun der natur | I had a little sister, a child of nature |
| Mit mir tsuzamen zikh geshlept hot zi a gantse yor | Together we moved around for an entire year |
| Mit ir geven iz mir fil gringer. | With her, it was much easier for me |
| Laykhter vern flegt der hinger | My hunger would become lighter |
| Ven ikh fleg a kuk ton nor oyf ir | When I glanced at her |
| Mit a mol gevorn iz zi shvakh un zeyer krank | Suddenly she became weak and very sick |
| Oyf mayne hent geshtorbn iz zi oyf a gasnbank | She died in my arms on a street bench |
| Un az ikh hob zi farloyrn, hob ikh alts ongevoryrn | And when I lost her I lost everything |
| Zol der toyt shoyn kumen oykh tsu mir | Let death come already for me, too. |