The Liffey Banks

reel

Key signature: Gmajor

Submitted on January 13th 2002 by Miss Lonelyhearts.

This tune has been added to 51 tunebooks.

Also known as The Banks Of The Liffey, Colleen Ban, Colleen Bawn, Liffey Banks.

Recordings of a tune by this name:

• Archives #1 by Jean Carignan And Gilles Losier
• Dance Music Of Ireland: Volume 4 by Matt Cunningham
• Dance Music Of Ireland: Volume 5 by Matt Cunningham
• Dance Music Of Ireland: Volume 6 by Matt Cunningham
• First Through The Gate by Brian Conway
• In The Footsteps Of Coleman by Various Artists
• Like Magic by Todd Denman And Bill Dennehy
• Live From The National Concert Hall Dublin by Sean Maguire
• Masters Of Irish Music by Martin Byrnes
• Music Of A Champion by Brendan McGlinchey
• Oldtime Records Vol 2 (U.S. Recordings) by Various Artists
• Pure Banjo by Brian McGrath
• Revenge Is Sweet by Molly's Revenge
• Saffron And Blue by Manus McGuire
• Teada by Teada
• The Best Of Seamus Tansey by Seamus Tansey
• The Enduring Magic by Michael Coleman
• The Liffey Banks by Tommy Potts
• The Merry Love To Play by Peter Horan And Gerry Harrington
• The Music Makers: Celebrating 35 Years Of Comhaltas In Leeds by Leeds CCE
• The Phantom Shadows Of A Connaught Fire (2 Of 3) by Seamus Tansey
• The Road From Ballinakill by Mike And Mary Rafferty
• The Spirit Of West Clare by Bobby Casey
• The Wyndy Turn by Dan Healy And Ciaran O'Raghallaigh
• Traditional Irish Fiddle Music by The Kilfenora Fiddle Ceili Band

X: 1
T: Liffey Banks, The
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
R: reel
K: Gmaj
|:G2 GF GBdB|~c3e g2 dc|(3BdB GB AEGE|DEGB A~E3|
|GEDE GBdB|~c3e g2 dc|(3BdB GB AEGE|1 DEGB A2 GF:|2 DEGB A2 G2||
|~g3e (3ded Bd|gabg aged|~g3e (3ded Bd|gabg a2 gf|
|~g3e (3ded Bd|gabg agef|gabg efge|dedc BcdB|

The Liffey Banks

This is the second of two tunes in the set by Mike and Mary Rafferty from The Road From Ballinakill, as described in my comments under The Fox on the Prowl.

The Liffey Banks has never stunned me with its melody line, but the Raffertys' version is more playable than most. On flute, Mike rolls the opening G of the first measure ( |~G3F GBdB| ) every time he comes back to it, though it's played as written the very first time. They also play the B Part only once each time through, despite playing the A Part twice. So they do it: AABAAB To my tastes, this makes the tune a little easier on the ears since that B part is so repititve to begin with.

Mary's accordion covers what Mike is doing on flute for that long c in the 2nd and 6th measures of the A part. C natural is not an easy note to roll on flute (though some players manage it), so he may be simply holding it for the dotted quarter not count, or "tapping" it. The roll works find on fiddle, or you could play |cBce g2 dc| for that measure.

I heard Mike and Mary in person some years ago at a music festival, and again at an after-hours session of a half dozen flutes and Brendan Begley (of Beginish fame) on button box. All of the flute players deferred to Mr. Rafferty as he swung through tune after tune in his lively but always sweet and understated East Galway style. They HAD to defer on some tunes because he and Mary were the only ones that knew them--a repertoire passed down from his father, Tom Rafferty of Ballinakill.

# Posted on January 13th 2002 by Miss Lonelyhearts