Unspoken subtitles don't fare to well during oral transmission. And they are likely to be displaced in the memory by things like 'the one I learnt from the guy who's bow arm was walked into by the girl with the tray of beers"
Plenty of non-cheerful, argumentative and painful titles if you glance down the contents list of O'Neills - they sound like an average day on the Mustard Board. There's the Contradiction, the Quarrelsome Piper, the Piper's Despair, Denis Don't be Threatening, Do You Mistrust Me, Don't Bother Me, I Do Not Incline, I Leave You In Sadness, I'll Make My Love a Breast of Glass (just spotted that one - hmm, we had a lot of breasts the other day), It Would Not Do At All, Johnny With the Queer Thing, Love Is A Tormenting Pain, My Heart is Breaking, My Mind Will Never Be "aisy", How Paddy Was Fooled, My Little Bag that was Stolen, The Night Before Larry was Stretched, Sad is My Fate, Save Me from Death, You'll Never Be any Good, plus too many Laments and Lamentations to list.
"Oh No, Not That One Again"
"Can't He Learn A New Tune?"
"Jayzus, Carolans Again?"
"The One The Drunk At The End Of Bar Always Asks For"
"The Tired, Hackneyed, Played Out Jig"
"The Reel Everyone Knows"
"The Reel No One Knows"
Hotsauce - yes, must learn it myself too:
YOU'LL NEVER BE ANY GOOD (Ni Beid Tu Aon Mait Go Brat). Irish, March (6/8 time). D Major. Standard tuning. AABB. O'Neill (Music of Ireland: 1850 Melodies), 1979; No. 1841, pg. 346.
X:1
T:You’ll Never Be Any Good
M:6/8
L:1/8
R:March
S:O’Neill – Music of Ireland (1903), No. 1841
Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion
K:D
ABA A2G|F2E D3|ABA AFA|B3 d3|dcB ABG|FGE D3|def ecA|B2c d2:|
|:d2e fgf|e2d c2A|d2e fgf|e3 A3|d2e fgf|e2d cBc|dcB AGF|B2c d2:|
Some of those O'Neill titles make me think of those on pictures of dressed-up dewy-eyed dogs and cats expressing mild consternation about something totally fatuous, to be seen mildewing on pantry walls of decaying cottages by-passed by history.
I can't give chapter or verse, but I'm sure you'll know what I mean. (I spent a lot of my earlier life in a cottage like that...)
I.e., some O'Neill's titles were Of Their Time, like those pictures, and I should imagine it was the same time, round about 1900.
Tune Titles: why is it?
Tune Titles: why is it?
Why is it that so many tunes are called things like?:
"Miss Jamieson's Favourite"?
And yet you never get tunes called?:
"Joe Cooley's could Take it or Leave it Reel"
or,
"O'Keefe's Just Learned it to be Sociable Slide"
or,
"Maguire's Had to Learn it for the Ceili Band Barndance"
or,
"O'Donnell's Used to be a Favourite but he's became a bit Jaded by it Jig"
or,
"O'Leary's I hope I Never Have to Play this Fecker Again Polka"
It is one of life's mysteries.
Ok perhaps one of the lesser ones, but still a mystery.
- chris
# Posted on March 26th 2009 by ramblingpitchfork
Re: Tune Titles: why is it?
Unspoken subtitles don't fare to well during oral transmission. And they are likely to be displaced in the memory by things like 'the one I learnt from the guy who's bow arm was walked into by the girl with the tray of beers"
# Posted on March 26th 2009 by David50
Re: Tune Titles: why is it?
Could you say Charlie Lennon's #2 was a sh*t tune?
# Posted on March 26th 2009 by llig leahcim
Re: Tune Titles: why is it?
Plenty of non-cheerful, argumentative and painful titles if you glance down the contents list of O'Neills - they sound like an average day on the Mustard Board. There's the Contradiction, the Quarrelsome Piper, the Piper's Despair, Denis Don't be Threatening, Do You Mistrust Me, Don't Bother Me, I Do Not Incline, I Leave You In Sadness, I'll Make My Love a Breast of Glass (just spotted that one - hmm, we had a lot of breasts the other day), It Would Not Do At All, Johnny With the Queer Thing, Love Is A Tormenting Pain, My Heart is Breaking, My Mind Will Never Be "aisy", How Paddy Was Fooled, My Little Bag that was Stolen, The Night Before Larry was Stretched, Sad is My Fate, Save Me from Death, You'll Never Be any Good, plus too many Laments and Lamentations to list.
# Posted on March 26th 2009 by RichardB
Re: Tune Titles: why is it?
How about
http://www.thesession.org/tunes/display/2668
# Posted on March 26th 2009 by Henk Bos
Re: Tune Titles: why is it?
HA! Love it.
"Oh No, Not That One Again"
"Can't He Learn A New Tune?"
"Jayzus, Carolans Again?"
"The One The Drunk At The End Of Bar Always Asks For"
"The Tired, Hackneyed, Played Out Jig"
"The Reel Everyone Knows"
"The Reel No One Knows"
etc. etc.
Good fun ramblingpf!
# Posted on March 26th 2009 by SWFL Fiddler
Re: Tune Titles: why is it?
@RichardB: I have to find a copy of "You'll Never Be Any Good" to learn!
# Posted on March 26th 2009 by hotsauce
Re: Tune Titles: why is it?
Hotsauce - yes, must learn it myself too:
YOU'LL NEVER BE ANY GOOD (Ni Beid Tu Aon Mait Go Brat). Irish, March (6/8 time). D Major. Standard tuning. AABB. O'Neill (Music of Ireland: 1850 Melodies), 1979; No. 1841, pg. 346.
X:1
T:You’ll Never Be Any Good
M:6/8
L:1/8
R:March
S:O’Neill – Music of Ireland (1903), No. 1841
Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion
K:D
ABA A2G|F2E D3|ABA AFA|B3 d3|dcB ABG|FGE D3|def ecA|B2c d2:|
|:d2e fgf|e2d c2A|d2e fgf|e3 A3|d2e fgf|e2d cBc|dcB AGF|B2c d2:|
# Posted on March 26th 2009 by RichardB
Re: Tune Titles: why is it?
Some of those O'Neill titles make me think of those on pictures of dressed-up dewy-eyed dogs and cats expressing mild consternation about something totally fatuous, to be seen mildewing on pantry walls of decaying cottages by-passed by history.
I can't give chapter or verse, but I'm sure you'll know what I mean. (I spent a lot of my earlier life in a cottage like that...)
I.e., some O'Neill's titles were Of Their Time, like those pictures, and I should imagine it was the same time, round about 1900.
# Posted on March 26th 2009 by nicholas