The Land of Goshen is named in the Bible as the place in Egypt given to the Hebrews by the pharaoh of Joseph, and the land from which they later left Egypt at the time of the Exodus. It was located in the eastern Delta, and the name helps place the date in which this story was redacted during the period from the 7th to the 4th centuries BCE, the period in which the name was in use. The actual Exodus event would have preceded the writing and redaction of the Biblical story by anywhere from seven hundred to one thousand years. See the article on Jewish history.

Goshen in Egypt[link]

Goshen

According to the Joseph narrative in the Book of Genesis, the sons of Israel who were living in Hebron, experienced a severe famine that lasted seven years. Since word was that Egypt was the only kingdom able to supply food, the sons of Israel journeyed there to buy goods. In the second year of famine,^[1] the Vizier of Egypt, Joseph,^[2][3] invited the sons of Israel to live in Egyptian territory. They settled in the country of Goshen.^[4] Goshen is described as the best land in Egypt, suitable for both crops and livestock. It has been suggested that this location may have been somewhat apart from Egypt, because Genesis 46:34 states, "Ye may dwell in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd is an abomination unto the Egyptians." After the death of Joseph and those of his generation, the following generations of Israelites had become populous in number. The Egyptians feared potential integration or takeover, so they enslaved the Israelites and took away their privileges. The Egyptians forced them to build store-cities at Pithom, Raamses and Heliopolis (On).

Centuries later, Moses was called to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, from the Goshen to Succoth,^[5] the first waypoint of the Exodus. They pitched at 41 locations crossing the Nile Delta, to the last station being the plains of Moab.^[6]

Identification[link]

Pithom

Raamses

On

Locations of Pithom, Raamses and On (Heliopolis) in northern Egypt

In 1885 E.H. Naville identified Goshen as the 20th nome of Egypt, located in the eastern Delta, and known as "Gesem" or "Kesem" during the Twenty-sixth dynasty of Egypt (672-525 BC). It covered the western end of the Wadi Tumilat, the eastern end being the district of Succoth, which had Pithom as its main town, extended north as far as the ruins of Piramesse (the "land of Rameses"), and included both crop land and grazing land.^[7] (Donald Redford, while not disputing the location of Goshen, gives a different origin for the name, deriving it from "Gasmu," the rulers of the Bedouin Qedarites who occupied the eastern Delta from the 7th century BC, but John Van Seters thinks this unlikely).^[8]

References[link]

Paul Cebar is a songwriter, singer, guitarist, and bandleader from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, who has a penchant for African, Latin American and Caribbean music. He has released four albums and an EP with his band, Paul Cebar & the Milwaukeeans, which have received airplay from triple-A stations across the US, one album with his current band Paul Cebar and Tomorrow Sound, and one solo album.

Early performing[link]

Cebar graduated from Pius XI High School in Milwaukee and began performing in coffeehouses on the local folk scene in the mid-1970s. His repertoire consisted in large part of rhythm and blues and jump blues songs, played solo on his guitar. He attended New College in Sarasota, Florida. Afterwards, he played in New York while working with the R&B Cadets in Milwaukee.

The R&B Cadets[link]

Throughout the early 1980s, Cebar was a member of a rock and R&B combo, The R&B Cadets, along with Jon Sieger, Mike Sieger, Robyn Pluer, Bob Jennings, Juli Wood and Bob Schneider. The band played Sieger's compositions, along with obscure songs from the mid-century that Cebar had unearthed.

The R&B Cadets released an album entitled Top Happy in 1986, and a 7-inch 33⅓ entitled Get a Move On in 1981, including song titles Hook, Line, and Sinker, One Is Green, Headin' for the Poor House, and Down by the River.

During this period Paul and Claudia Schmidt released a 7-inch 45 The Outskirts Of You b/w Baby, It's Cold Outside.

Paul Cebar & The Milwaukeeans[link]

Parallel to his work with the R&B Cadets, Cebar had his own group, Paul Cebar and the Milwaukeeans. The group played many R&B, jazz,and bebop songs, by Louis Jordan, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and others. The members were Cebar (acoustic guitar and vocals), Robin Pluer (vocals), Rip Tenor (sax), and Alan Anderson (bass). They were often joined by percussionist Guy Hoffman.

After the Cadets disbanded in 1986 Cebar reconstituted the group, which then was made up of Cebar (guitar, vocals), Pluer (vocals), Juli Wood (saxophone), Anderson (bass), Tenor (sax) and Randy Baugher (drums). The band explored African, Latin American and Caribbean sounds in a rhythm and blues context.

Reggie Bordeaux (who still performs with Paul in his current band Paul Cebar and The Tomorrow Sound), was taught drums by his father from an early age. He had much experience under his belt when he met Paul Cebar; he had already performed with The Artist Formerly Known as Prince as the lead drummer. His talents combine with his performing experiences made him a perfect fit for Paul Cebar's sound. Reggie's groove, and gospel biased drumming style brought an incredibly unique element to Paul's already unique music. If there is anything that stands out about Paul Cebar's music it is the drums, they carry the songs in a way that only a talent like Reggie can. Garrison Keillor has even commented on Reggie's drumming after the band's performance on his show A Prairie Home Companion, saying "Mr. Reggie Bordeaux... You got a great percussion section there mister." (speaking to Paul)

Patrick Patterson was one of the longest acting members of Paul Cebar & The Milwaukeeans and one of the most talented members that has ever performed with Paul. His talents with bass (as well vocals) were impeccable and made a perfect fit to Paul's groovy and rhythmic sound. Patrick sang back up vocals (in falsetto), that truly complemented the band's sound. Sadly Patrick left the band after expressing concerns about the instability of "road life" and a personal desire for a more formal life. He is now living in Atlanta, Georgia and is currently teaching at an elementary school, he has said he is very happy with his work. He attends all the band's performances in the Atlanta area. He still plays bass and posts videos of his one man performances online.

All of the original members other than Cebar have moved on. Some alumni are:
sax: Tony Jarvis, Greg Tardy (briefly), Paul Scher
guitar: Peter Roller, Rob Gjersoe, Terry Vittone
bass: Mike Kachou, Ethan Bender (briefly), Patrick Patterson
percussion: Michael Walls, Romero Beverly

Paul Cebar & Tomorrow Sound[link]

The current lineup includes former R&B Cadet Bob Jennings (sax, keyboards), Mike Fredrickson (bass), Reggie Bordeaux (drums), and McKinley "Mac" Perkins (percussion). While earlier incarnations of the band were more pop-oriented, more recently the band is heavily into African, Latin, Caribbean, reggae, zydeco, R&B and soul styles.

The band continues to perform regularly, and tours the US.

Discography[link]

• That Unhinged Thing - 1993
• Upstroke for the Downfolk - 1995
• I Can't Dance for You (EP) - 1996
• The Get Go - 1997
• Suchamuch - 2001 (live album)
• Tomorrow Sound Now for Yes Music People - 2007
• One Little Light On - 2009 (solo album)

Radio[link]

Cebar began guesting on local musician Steve Cohen's show on WMSE radio in Milwaukee in the early 1980s. At the suggestion of another DJ there, he applied for, and received his own show, which he has hosted since 1985. The show runs Wednesdays from 9:00 a.m. - noon. In the late 1980s, he also began hosting a show Sunday afternoons on WYMS in Milwaukee, which ran until the station changed its format in 2002.

External links[link]

• Paul Cebar homepage
• Paul Cebar and Tomorrow Sound performance schedule
• An Alternative Paul Cebar Home Page