Browse Content (338 total)
Port an Deoraí
This lovely and unusual slip jig is played here by Geraldine Cotter. It may also be found in her collection of fifty traditional Irish tunes called Rogha, Geraldine Cotter's Choice.
Polka for Matt, A
Matt Cranitch, the well-known fiddle player and scholar from County Cork, came to visit Sandy and me in Maine a few years ago. Matt loves to play polkas, so I composed this three-part tune for him. I play it here with my friends Kevin McElroy on…
Poke and a Tickle, A
While reflecting on Eric Eid-Reiner's musical compositions, my first thought was that he created 'happy music'. Indeed, as Eric himself described it, this is 'a light-hearted jig with a sense of humour'. Eric kindly arrived at Boston College one…
Planting Stick, The
'The Planting Stick' is a variant of the venerable jig 'Bryan O'Lynn', a tune I first learned from my grandmother, Elizabeth Collins (née Rochford). A number of versions of 'Bryan O'Lynn' are to be found in this collection. The tune appears in…
Plains of Mayo, The
This jig is tune number 304 in [George] Petrie's Complete Irish Music. It is given a special melodic lift by Larry Gavin and Micheál O'Rourke on accordion and fiddle. Charlie Lennon adds his own unmistakable accompaniment on piano. They…
Peig and Mick Ryan
Traditional Irish music is on a strong footing, due in no small way to Peig and Mick Ryan from Murroe, County Limerick. At a time when the music was unpopular, Peig and her husband Mick worked diligently to promote Irish music and culture in all its…
Peggy Monaghan's
Peggy Monaghan was Sean Nugent's sister, and he honoured her with this fine reel. It is played here by his son Larry Nugent. Thanks, Larry, for the tunes!
Patsy Hanly's
I played a recording of this reel for my friend Jimmy Noonan. The identity of the player was a mystery to me, but Jimmy's astute judgment identified the musician as Patsy Hanly, the flute player from County Roscommon. Who better, then, to play this…
Parting Glass, The / The Peacock's Feather
The majestic vocals of the one and only Len Graham bring us near the end of this collaborative collection as he sings 'The Parting Glass'. His is an old County Antrim setting of the song, one that he and Joe Holmes sang together in the Guild Hall,…
Parkersburg Landing
The music of Ed Haley, a fiddle player born in West Virginia in 1883, has for over twenty years given me much enjoyment and pleasure. My good friend Mr. Joe Wilson, former director of The National Council for the Traditional Arts, gave me a tape of…
Pádraig O'Keeffe's
I first heard this tune played by Nicky McAuliffe and Connie O'Connell on two fiddles. They played it at a concert in Miltown Malbay at the Willie Clancy Summer School in 1988. They learned the tune from a Pádraig O'Keeffe manuscript. Here we…
Paddy the Piper
Brendan Bulger plays a lovely version of 'Paddy the Piper' on this track. Another version may be found in Ryan's Mammoth Collection. I first heard the tune played by Paddy Cronin, who loved playing tunes from that wonderful nineteenth century…
Paddy Cronin's Reel
Paddy Cronin was always very eager to learn new tunes. Paddy loved 'going through the books' with his fiddle in hand. He had a vast store of old tunes and an amazing repertoire, including this reel, played here for us by the lovely ladies of music,…
P.J. Conlon's
The accordion master Peter 'P.J.' Conlon recorded an amazing series of 78 RPM records. He recorded this jig (under the title 'Clancy's Jig'), as did his friend Bill Sullivan, who called it 'Conlon's'. Here it is played on melodeon by my nephew Damien…
One-Horned Buck, The
Another tune from the legendary Cathal McConnell. He gave me this tune, and the others in this collection, during that visit to Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts, over thirty years ago (see 'Cathal's Reel').
Old Wheels of the World (Larry Redican's version)
'The Wheels of the World' is known to musicians as the title of both a reel and a jig. The two tunes are not related musically, and both are unrelated to the tune presented here. I learned 'The Old Wheels of the World' from pianist Eleanor Kane Neary…
Old Wheels of the World (Johnny McGreevy's version)
Some of the lovely variations in Shannon Heaton's playing of this reel came from Johnny McGreevy, the Chicago fiddle master. They were given to Shannon by the one and only Liz Carroll, who also comes from that City by the Lake.
Old Torn Petticoat
I believe it is important to feature master fiddle player Julia Clifford and her son Billy playing the first dance tune in this collection. It was the first reel that they recorded for me that night in Tralee over fifty years ago, when Julia invited…
Old Tipperary
A great old jig that I first played with the legendary Clare piper Willie Clancy. It seems appropriate that Padraic Mac Mathúna, son of Ciarán Mac Mathúna, the radio and television presenter, should play it with me for this…
Old Times
I found an old brown manuscript page and remembered that my former sister-in-law Maureen Glynn had given it to me. Maureen grew up in Brooklyn, New York. She was a talented lady and widely respected in the Irish music and dance world. Maureen was a…