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Matti Caspi

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Matti Caspi
מתי כספי
Background information
Born(1949-11-30)30 November 1949
Kibbutz Hanita, Israel
Died8 February 2026(2026-02-08) (aged 76)
Tel Aviv, Israel
Genres
Occupations
  • Singer-songwriter

  • composer
  • arranger
Instruments
  • Voice
  • piano
  • guitar

  • bass guitar
  • drums
Years active1967–2025
LabelNMC Music
Formerly of
Websitewww.matticaspi.co.il

Matti Caspi (Hebrew: מתי כספי; 30 November 1949 – 8 February 2026) was an Israeli composer, musician, singer, arranger and lyricist. He has been hailed as one of Israel's most beloved and prolific musicians.

His music was influenced by classical music, Brazilian and Latin music, jazz, rock, and other genres. Among the composers who inspired him most he cited Sasha Argov, with whom he recorded two albums.

Music career

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Caspi performing on stage for his musical theatre program "País Tropical"

As a child Caspi developed an interest in music after listening to Shmuel Gogol play the harmonica. He begged his parents for piano lessons, which had to be approved by the kibbutz. His first public appearance was at the age of 16, performing on Kol Yisrael's Teshu'ot Rishonot, a talent show for teenagers. He recorded a song, "Leiẓan Kippurim", the following year.[1]

For his mandatory service in the Israel Defense Forces he performed with the Southern Command Band. He formed a trio with two of his friends, Gadi Oron and Ya'akov Noy, called The Three Fatsoes. With this trio Caspi came out with his first big hit, "Ani Met" (I'm dying).

After Caspi's military service, The Three Fatsoes was renamed the They Don't Care trio. In the Yom Kippur War, he toured army bases along with Leonard Cohen,[2] who arranged his 1974 song "Lover Lover Lover" with Caspi.[3] During the 1970s he worked closely with Ehud Manor, another Israeli songwriter, and released some of his most popular songs: "Lo Yadati SheTelchi Mimeni" (I Didn't Know You Would Leave Me), "Brit Olam" (Covenant of Love), and "Shir HaYonah" ( Song of the Dove).

Over the next few decades Caspi released dozens of records and collaborated with some of the most well known Israeli artists of the time: Shlomo Gronich, Ehud Manor, Yehudit Ravitz, and Shalom Hanoch, among others. His last album, Like in a Dance, came out in 2017.

Caspi released close to 1,000 songs, both remakes of older songs and original creations. Musicologist Tsippi Fleischer said:

"He is the genius among his fellow artists, he set an important milestone in the history of the music of the world. Caspi has invented his own new musical language. As I sit and analyze his harmonies I find myself amazed all over again each time. The fact that he functions as the performer, arranger and conductor has formed a certain reservedness and introversion, but the truth is that he is a musical wild man. He is the one who promoted sophistication and western standards to the region."

He wrote lyrics for other Israeli artists and in some cases even worked as a producer, as he did for Riki Gal in 1996, both writing the songs and producing her album Ohevet otcha yoter (I Love You More). At the 1976 Eurovision Song Contest, he also served as a conductor, leading the Netherlands' Metropole Orkest in his composition "Emor Shalom", performed by Chocolate, Menta, Mastik, which he also arranged.[4]

Personal life

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Matityahu (Matti) Caspi was born in Kibbutz Hanita, Israel on 30 November 1949, and was of Romanian-Bessarabian ancestry.[5] He studied piano at the conservatory in Nahariya.

After his military service he married Galia Superstein, whom he divorced in less than a year. In 1972 he met actress (Patty) Doreen Lubetzky. They married three years later and had two children, Brit (born 1981) and Bar (born 1985).

In 1990 Caspi separated from his wife and met Raquel Wenger. The couple emigrated to Canada and married in California in 1994. They had two children, Suyan (born 1992) and Sean (born 1995). Caspi was granted a divorce by the Beverly Hills Rabbinical Court, although at the time the case was still pending in Israel. In 1997 Caspi returned to Israel and appeared in several concerts, including the Arad Festival. In 2002 a Tel Aviv court determined that he was still legally married to Doreen and found him guilty of bigamy. The court imposed a six-month suspended sentence and a small fine. An appeal to the District Court failed, and in 2004 the original sentence was upheld.[6][7]

In May 2025, Caspi revealed that he was suffering from cancer and subsequently cancelled all of his future concerts;[8] and in July 2025 he launched a fundraiser to help pay for his medical care.[9]

Death

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Caspi died of cancer at Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv on 8 February 2026 at the age of 76.[10][11]

Discography

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  • They Don't Care (1970)
  • Behind the Sounds (1973, with Shlomo Gronich)
  • Matti Caspi – the First Solo Album (1974)
  • Matti Caspi – the Second Solo Album (1976)
  • Side A Side B (1978)
  • Another Side (1980)
  • Twilight (1981)
  • Behind the Sounds 1984 (1984, with Shlomo Gronich)
  • My Second Childhood (1984)
  • Side C Side D (1987)
  • Crazy País Tropical (1987)
  • One to One (1988)
  • Matti Caspi sings Sasha Argov / Mattityahu and Alexander (1990)
  • Songs in Tomato Sauce (1990)
  • The First Time A Caspi / They Don't Care Collection (1992)
  • Buba Matti (1992)
  • Matti (1993)
  • Matti Caspi and Ehud Manor: the Great Songs (1994)
  • Cherished Dreams (1995)
  • Live in Arad (1997)
  • Another World (1998)
  • Media Direct Collection (1999)
  • Duets (2000)
  • Behind the Sounds 2002 (2002, with Shlomo Gronich)
  • Songs of Matti Caspi (2003)
  • Ballads (2003)
  • The Best (2004)
  • You Are My Woman (2005)
  • Soul Mate (2010)
  • Like in a Dance (2017)

References

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  1. ^ "Caspi, Matti". www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  2. ^ "Leonard Cohen at the Yom Kippur War". Tablet Magazine. 4 May 2022. Retrieved 11 December 2025.
  3. ^ "When Leonard Cohen Crooned for Israel in Its Darkest Hour". The Forward. 11 November 2016. Retrieved 11 December 2025.
  4. ^ Tukker, Bas. "Matti Caspi". Andtheconductoris.eu. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  5. ^ Matti Caspi biography Archived 8 February 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ Mati Caspi convicted of bigamy; Haaretz, 6 February 2002
  7. ^ Singer Matti Caspi's conviction for bigamy upheld by court; Haaretz, 10 February 2004
  8. ^ בוקר, רן (15 May 2025). "מתי כספי: חליתי בסרטן מתקדם, עם גרורות בכל הגוף" [Matti Caspi: "I have been suffering from an advanced form of cancer, with metastases all over my body."]. Ynet (in Hebrew). Retrieved 28 November 2025.
  9. ^ כוכבי, הגר; בירנברג, יואב (14 July 2025). "מתי כספי ל-ynet: "יד שמאל משותקת, אני לא יכול לנגן. לא מתכוון לוותר, אני במאבק"" [Matti Caspi to ynet: "My left hand is paralyzed, I can't play anymore. I'm not going to give up, I'm in the fight."]. Ynet (in Hebrew). Retrieved 28 November 2025.
  10. ^ בוקר, רן; הדר, אור (8 February 2026). "מתי כספי, מגדולי היוצרים במוזיקה הישראלית, הלך לעולמו בגיל 76". Ynet (in Hebrew). Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  11. ^ "Israeli Music Legend Matti Caspi Dies of Cancer at 76". Haaretz. 8 February 2026.
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