President Garfield's

hornpipe

Key signature: Cdorian

Submitted on December 7th 2001 by Mad Baloney.

This tune has been added to 109 tunebooks.

Also known as Blue Water, The Blue Water, Garfield's, Lament For President Garfield, President Garfield, President Garfield’s.

Recordings of a tune by this name:

Cat Out Of The Bag by Beverwyck String Band
Close To The White Bear by Dave Swarbrick And Simon Nicol
Fiddle by Cape Breton Symphony
First Things First by Ailie Robertson
Fit As A Fiddle by Natalie MacMaster
Humours Of Lissadell by Seamus And Manus McGuire
Jerry Holland by Jerry Holland
Let Down The Blade by John Regan And Paddy Glackin
Live In Concert by Brid Harper And Dermot Byrne
Live It Up by Reeltime
Live: Rough Around The Edges by Syncopaths
Magic Fiddle by Johnny Mooring
Music From A Little Known Planet by Wild Asparagus
One by 422
Pipes, Rods 'n' Reels by Ray Sloan
Punctured by Garry Shannon
The Blue Lamp by Jonny Hardie And Gavin Marwick
The Dusty Bridge by Fergal Scahill
The Fiddle Music Of Prince Edward Island by Various Artists
The Mighty Box by Luke Daniels
The Road To Riley by Riley School Of Irish Music
The Tidy Cottage by Turlach Boylan
Three Around The Table by Poljez Trio
To Welcome Paddy Home by Boys Of The Lough
Tom Byrne by Tom Byrne
We Won't Go Home 'Til Morning by Brendan Begley
Whenever by Munnelly Flaherty Masure
Within A Mile Of Dublin by Paul O'Shaughnessy And Paul McGrattan

Details ABC Sheetmusic Comments

This tune is in Bb, but Cdor will produce two flats.

This tune is totally off the wall, but fun to play and even more fun to listen to. I play it transposed to G on the fiddle, but in the fife & drum world they play it in A, on Bb instruments putting it in the key of B. I think that Bb or G are the easiest keys for normal session instruments for this difficult tune.

# Posted on December 7th 2001 by Mad Baloney

We sometimes played this up a third in the key of 'D', mrrreowrrr!, and 'straight', without swing...

# Posted on June 3rd 2005 by ceolachan

"President Garfield's Hornpipe" ~ G & D & different takes

K: G Major
|: BA |
GDB,D GDB,D | GFGA BABc | dAFA dAFA | d^cde d=cBA |
GDB,D GDB,D | GFGA BABc | defe dcBA | (3GAG FA G2 :|
|: (3agf |
ecGE CEGe | dBGD B,DGd | ^cded =cAFA | GABc dGgf |
ecGE CEGe | dBGD B,DGd | ^cdfe d=cBA | G2 F2 G2 :|

K: D Major
|: (3fge |
dA (3FGA dAFA | dc (3def fe (3fga | aece ae (3cde | a^gab (3a=gf (3edc |
dAFA dAFA | d2 de f2 fg | (3aba c'b agfe |1 d2 c2 d2 :|
2 (3ded ce dA ||
|: d'c' |
bgdB (3GAB db | afdA (3FGA da | gcba gcba | fdba fdd'c' |
bgdB GBdb | afdA FAda | ^gac'b (3aba (3gfe | dA fe d2 :|

& I've enjoyed it both ways, straight and swung, though, maybe something to do with 'age', I love swinging it now more than ironing it out...

# Posted on July 20th 2005 by ceolachan

"Lament for President Garfield"

Key signature: B Mixolydian
Duplication submitted on December 12th 2005 by Ptarmigan.

K: B Mixolydian
|: AECE AECE | AGAB c_ccd | eBGB eBGB | edef e=dcB |
AECE AECE | AGAB c_ccd | efgf e=dcB |1 A/B/AGB A=dcB :|
2 A/B/AGB A2ag||
|: f=dAF =DFAf | ecAE CEAe | defe defe | cefe ceag |
f=dAF =DFAf | ecAE CEAe | ^degf e=dcB |1 A/B/AGB A2ag :|
2 A/B/AGB A4||

I would be surprised if this doesn't go "POOF!", and just in case, I've added Ptarm's notes for it here with the others...

# Posted on December 12th 2005 by ceolachan

# Posted on Monday, December 12th 2005 by Ottery

Not forgetting wise cracking Ottery's addition:

This is President Garfield's Hornpipe (In a different key and with a different name) and I claim my £5.
As featured in "Kerr's Merry Melodies'.
Whatever Next?

Bobby Casey's Lament?
The Late Lamented Boys Of Bluehill?
The Home Ruler, Deceased?
The Dead Peacock's Feather?
The Greencastle Graveyard?

I could go on .....

# Posted on December 12th 2005 by ceolachan

B Mixolydian???

But Ptarmigan, it resolves on "A"... Damn, not so exotic afterall, it's just plain ol' A Major...

# Posted on December 12th 2005 by ceolachan

"President Garfield" ~ 20th President of the U.S.A.

Elected and assassinated in the same year ~ 1881...

# Posted on December 13th 2005 by ceolachan

Oh yeah, about keys, it can be and is also played in C & A Major too...

# Posted on December 13th 2005 by ceolachan

Here's a C Major transcription ~
http://asuwlink.uwyo.edu/~burek/tradam.htm

# Posted on December 13th 2005 by ceolachan

Those who want to try it in Dmaj. need 'only' read this score in the bass (F) clef.
This tune is borderline trad. and/or Irish, isn't it? (and if it isn't, it is border line for my ears! Only the out of tunest fife band could do it justice!)

# Posted on September 29th 2006 by birlibirdie

It was recorded by Joe Hutton the Northumbrian piper, whose instrument had the two low notes necessary.

# Posted on November 26th 2006 by nicholas

Hear Will Atkinson play this on the moothie: http://www.asaplive.com/FARNE/RadioFARNE.cfm?ccs=150&cs=771 Dunno what key he's in here. I like playing this on the Irish pipes in D, all the way up to the third octave.

# Posted on October 4th 2007 by KLR

President Garfiled's Hornpipe

I play it in nominal G (actually F) on a seven-keyed Northumbrian pipe. Not having the lower notes means you just go up the octave. Played as a hornpipes, that actually gives it more "bounce".

# Posted on November 27th 2009 by borderpipe

According to 'Ryan's' this tune was composed by one Harry Carleton, American fiddler, who also wrote 'President Grant' 'THe Constitution' and 'The Democratic Rage', among others. The Fiddler's site gives more info about him.

# Posted on November 2nd 2011 by The Archivist