Pello Joxepe

"Pello Joxepe" is a traditional Basque song. It is very popular in Basqueland, as its music is used by bertsolariak to improvise their compositions. Therefore, it may be sung with different lyrics.

In 2005 "Pello Joxepe" became known worldwide, when it was published that the Israeli song "Yerushalayim Shel Zahav" (Jerusalem of Gold) was partially based on its melody. The Spanish singer Paco Ibáñez offered a concert in Israel in 1962, where the famous Israeli song writer and singer Naomi Shemer could hear the lullaby. After the recovery of Eastern Jerusalem by Israel in 1967, "Yerushalayim Shel Zahav" became the symbol for the united city."Pello Joxepe" is seen as an example of Basque anticlericalism by some.