Browse Content (338 total)
Sporting Nell
A fine version of 'Sporting Nell', played here for us by one of my favourite young fiddle players, the talented Tina Lech from Boston. I first heard this reel in Chicago in 1972 played by another of my favourite fiddle players, the great Johnny…
Michael Relihan's
A lovely tune that came from the playing of John Kelly, the fiddle and concertina master from west County Clare. John had a storehouse of unusual tunes and was ever so generous in handing them down to other interested musicians. Michael Relihan was a…
Waltzing Down the Aisle
Another tune from the pen of Kathleen Boyle from Glasgow in Scotland. She wrote this waltz for her sister's wedding, for her to walk down the aisle to. Here we hear 'K.T.' beautifully playing her own composition on piano and piano accordion.
Rock Point Lane
'Rock Point Lane' is the name of the street in California where Sandy's parents live. One Christmas day, around 1990, when she and I were visiting them, the basic outline of this jig came to me. After working on it for a while and deciding which key…
Brosna Reel, The
This reel is another composition of Eamon Flynn, taken from his CD recording with permission. It is named for the village of Brosna in County Kerry, a place well-known for great Irish music and whose name has been given to a number of tunes including…
Four-Fingered Fisherman, The
The young Chicago fiddle player Devin Shepherd composed this fine jig. He plays it on this track with his musical friend, flute player Sean Gavin from Detroit, accompanied by Brian Miller on guitar and Jackie Moran on bodhrán.
Mike Duggan's Polka
On this track we once again hear Eamon Flynn on fiddle as he plays 'Mike Duggan's Polka'. Thanks to Brosna-born accordionist Michael Mulcahy for the tune title.
Margaret Lawrie's Galliard
Margaret Lawrie wrote this third and final tune that she and Michael Burnham recorded for this collection. It may also be heard on their own CD Bygone Days, a recording dedicated to Meg's grandfather, fiddle player Michael Cullen from County…
North Road, The
My young friend Meghan Mette composed this reel. I was delighted that she asked me to play it with her, along with Nicole Rabata on flute and Kevin McElroy on mandolin. She tells us how the tune came about: 'I wrote this tune for Séamus first…
Séamus Connolly's
I am so honoured that my great friend, the prolific composer Bob McQuillen, wrote this tune for me. 'The Professor', as I call him, is a special person in my life and I have for many years admired his compositions and music. Bob is heard playing his…
Gracie M. Parker, The
Sung here by Edward and Ruth Fitzgerald from Prince Edward Island in Canada, this song tells the story of a ninety-one-ton, two-masted schooner built in Massachusetts in 1869. According to Edward, the boat was based in Tignish, PEI, and it was…
Rakish Highlander, The
Larry Redican, the great New York fiddle player and composer, once told me he loved going through old books and manuscripts 'looking for strange tunes'. The reel on this track is certainly a version of the tune found in Ryan's Mammoth Collection,…
G. Craig and Maureen Sullivan
Brian Hebert plays a hornpipe he wrote to honour my special friends Craig and Maureen Sullivan. I will forever be grateful to them for their benevolent generosity to me, to Boston College, and to the world of Gaelic music and song. It is through…
I'll Always Remember You
Performed by my friend Bonnie Bewick Brown on violin, along with her friends Julianne Lee on viola and Mickey Katz on cello, this tune came to me on the morning in 1988 when my mother passed on to her place of eternal joy and rest. Being away from…
Emmet's Double
Emmet is Seán Óg Nugent's twin brother, and their father Larry Nugent composed this tune (Seán has his own tune in this collection). The young Nugent twins are well-placed to carry on the great family legacy of Irish music.
Linda Ray's
The great fiddle player from New York City, Mr. Tony De Marco, composed this reel for his friend Linda Hickman, herself a lovely flute player. When I heard this reel performed by Tony and Charlie Lennon on Tony's CD The Sligo Indian, I fell in love…
Mist on the Ocean
This reel comes to us by kind permission of my good friend Richard 'Richie' Dwyer, its composer. It is taken from his CD In a Creative Mood, which he recorded in his native West Cork looking out to sea and the mist on the ocean. Richie is again…
Gallant Tipperary Boys, The
This tune may be found in the O'Neill's Music of Ireland collection under the title 'Gallant Tipperary'. It also appears in The Roche Collection of Traditional Irish Music in the 'Airs' section of that book. The tune, played here by Laurel Martin,…
Edward on Lough Erne's Shore
There are a number of songs that mention Lough Erne in County Fermanagh, and much has been written about this beautiful spot. Rita Gallagher's performance of this song is a dream. Listen as one of Ireland's great singers tells the story.
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…