Browse Content (338 total)
Terry's Jig
Here we have another melody composed by the Grand Lady of New Brunswick fiddle music, Mrs. Matilda Murdoch. Its performer on this track, who once again gives Matilda's music a genuine Irish flavour, is none other than Maeve Donnelly.
Green Mountain Boys, The
I first fell in love with this tune when I heard fiddle master supreme Winston 'Scotty' Fitzgerald from Cape Breton playing it on a recording. I had in my collection a tape of my friend, pianist Barbara MacDonald Magone, playing the jig in two…
Laurel Martin's Jig
My musical colleague and friend Laurel Martin made this lovely tune. Laurel did not think highly of her composition, nor did she think it good enough for this collection. Laurel, I love your jig, as do many others who have heard it. Thanks for…
Seán Óg
Another composition of Larry Nugent, who plays a reel named for one of his twin sons, Seán. The contribution of the boy's father and his grandfather, Sean Nugent Sr., to Irish music and culture will have a lasting impact. Let's hope that…
Johnny McGreevy's Own
A happy reel given to me in the early 1970s by Johnny McGreevy. Johnny told me it was the only tune that he composed and that he did not think too much of it. Brendan Bulger from Boston, Marty Fahey from Chicago, and Kathleen Gavin from Balbriggin…
Molly, Put the Kettle On
Joanie Madden gives us her interpretation of a tune I first learned from Larry Gavin. It also appears in O'Neill's 1001. I temporarily mislaid the recording Joanie made for me, so the tune almost didn't make it into this collection. I'm glad I found…
David Grady's
I love slip jigs and I enjoy playing them. Patrick W. Joyce collected this one from David Grady, a flute player from Ardpatrick in County Limerick, but he did not get the tune's name. 'David Grady's' sounds good to me. Mr. Joyce's collection was…
Night Above the Abbey, The
A tune composed by Sean Gavin when he was nineteen years old. The tune is in honour of good musical times that were had at the famed Abbey Pub in Chicago, a traditional music hub for many years. Sean plays his creation on flute (he is a…
Men of Ulster, The
Seán Maguire recorded this tune and gave it the above title. It may be found in Ryan's Mammoth Collection in the key of G-major under the name 'Norfolk'. The beginning of the tune always brings to mind the hornpipe 'The Wily Bachelor'. Laurel…
Maurice O'Keeffe's
Máire O'Keeffe is the fiddle player on this track. It is once again a delight to hear my good friend Máire demonstrate the captivating fiddle style of County Kerry. Máire learned this polka from fiddle player Maurice O'Keeffe, a…
Mary of the Grove
A slightly different version of this reel may be found in The Roche Collection of Traditional Irish Music. On this track, we again hear Kevin Crawford giving us a lovely performance.
Gentle Ann
Eamon Flynn first recorded his above-titled composition for the Boston branch of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann. It was featured on their 1981 LP We're Irish Still. It is played here for us in fine traditional style by Manus McGuire…
Ger Brooks' Polka
My next door neighbour when I was growing up in Killaloe was known to me as Mister Brooks. He loved to play the accordion, and he had many fine polkas in his repertoire. The polka I play on this track was one of his favourites. In almost sixty years…
Curragh of Kildare
The Curragh is a flat open plain in County Kildare, an area well-known for Irish horse breeding, training, and racing. My original source for this tune was Cathal McConnell, the master musician and singer from County Fermanagh. He played it for me…
Crooked Hurricane, The
My good friend Cindy Polo made this tune and dedicated it to another friend, Randy Bridgman. I enjoyed playing this tune with Cindy and Gabriel Donohue. In Cindy's own words, she tells us about 'The Crooked Hurricane': 'What else to do while the…
Drumnagarry Strathspey
Tommy Peoples played this tune for me at a recording session at Boston College. The tune may also be found on Tommy's fine albums Traditional Irish Music Played on the Fiddle and Waiting for a Call.
Montague Processional, The
David Kaynor graciously played his own composition for me, with Pete Sutherland at the piano, at the Northeast Heritage Music Camp held at Johnson State College in Vermont in 2009. David told me that this tune occurred to him after he hosted a fiddle…
Shoemaker's Fancy, The
The young fiddle player Liam Lewis played this jig on a tape given to me by a friend one night after a concert. I stuck the tape into the cover of my fiddle case and forgot about it. Finding it later was a lovely surprise. My friend Laurel Martin…
For Betty Killoran
Another composition of accordionist and concertina player Charlie Mulvihill from New York. It is played on this track by Charlie and his children Tommy on fiddle, and Geraldine on piano. It is another of the tunes on the tape that Mr. Mulvihill made…
Miss Chrysandra Walter
Writing the stories of these tunes brings back many memories. When Sandy, my late wife, was diagnosed with kidney cancer, my life was turned upside down. We were so happy together and loved doing and planning different things: places to see, friends…