Rock of Ages

Ma'Oz Tzur, or as it is translated into English, Rock of Ages, is the classic Hanukkah song, or perhaps more rightly, the Hanukkah hymn.  So in celebration of the Festival of Lights, let's sample some renditions of this timeless classic.

The SHIRAH Chorus performs Ma'oz Tzur, led by Matthew Lazar is a lovely choral rendition of the hymn in Hebrew and English (first verse only), recorded live in concert (with some background noise):

Stuart Marcus - Maoz Tzur is a traditional but more intimate, folk version that includes the Hebrew and two English verses:

Maoz Tzur by Craig Taubman is a mellow hip hop (or is it trance?) version of the Hebrew song:

Rock of Ages - מָעוֹז צוּרby offers a creative arrangement of the English verses, with acoustic and slide guitar, to give it an island feel, performed by Marc Cohn:

And to return to a beautiful, tradition choral version of the Hebrew, take a listen and look at PS22 Chorus "MAOZ TZUR" Chanukah Song, with a cute epilogue:

And finally, Chanukah Jewish Rock of Ages - Official Hanukkah Song (Video) is NOT Ma'Oz Tzur, but it is rock through the ages, with a Chanukah twist.  You may laugh, you may cringe, you may shake your head in disbelief or dance for joy, but you gotta appreciate their effort and creativity, and Chanukah spirit:

And one thing we can say for sure is, Hanukkah Rocks!