Rick Recht, American singer-songwriter
Richard Samuel "Rick" Recht (born August 28, 1970) is an American rock musician who is especially known for his live performances at Camp Kinder Ring, Camp Poyntelle, Camp Ramah, Shwayder Camp, Herzl Camp, Camp Barney Medintz, URJ Camp Coleman, and for groups of Jewish youth all over the United States as well as performances at synagogues and Jewish rock festivals. Recht and his band tour nationwide, delivering about 150 performances a year, which included an appearance at the 11th Los Angeles Jewish Festival in 2003 in front of an estimated audience of 30,000. He has released four Jewish albums, one live DVD performance, and also three secular albums.Recht performed with other Jewish musicians on Oy Baby 2, the sequel to the bestselling compilation of modernized traditional Jewish songs geared toward Jewish infants and children.In 2006, Recht released Tear Down the Walls. As part of the recording process, Recht gathered a group of Jewish teens, took them to Memphis to Stax Academy, a charter school operated by Soulsville, a non-profit organization that also operates the Stax Museum of American Soul Music. The students, along with African American students, recorded "Avadim Hayinu," which blends Hebrew lyrics describing the Israelites' journey from slavery to freedom with the lyrics to "We Shall Overcome." The song featured one-time American Idol contestant Phillipe Crymes. The group later performed the song at the National Civil Rights Museum on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.Recht is also the founder and executive director of Jewish Rock Radio, launched in 2010.Recht lives in Chesterfield, Missouri with his wife Elisa Heiligman-Recht, and their two sons.