The Boys Of Bluehill

hornpipe

Key signature: Dmajor

Submitted on April 19th 2002 by Caoimghgin.

This tune has been added to 1077 tunebooks.

Also known as Beaux Of Oak Hill, The Beaux Of Oak Hill, Beaux Of Oakhill, The Beaux Of Oakhill, The Boys From The Blue Hill, The Boys Of Blue Hill, The Boys Of Blue Oak Hill, Boys Of Bluehill, Boys Of The Blue Hill, Buachaillí An Chnoic Ghoirm, The Lad Of Bluehill, The Lads Of North Tyne, Mildew On My Mind, Na Buacaillide Ua Cnoc-gorm, Na Buaichallí Gorm.

Recordings of a tune by this name:

An Calmfhear: The Trooper by Johnny O'Leary
An Ceoltoir Fanach by Cathy Custy
An Mileoidean Scaoilte by Johnny Connolly
An Tobar Glé by Neil Mulligan
An Toilean Aerach by Johnny Connolly
Annie's Song by James Galway
Behind The Mist by Various Artists
Between The Strings by Adrian McAuliffe And Cathal Flood
Champions Of Ireland: Tin Whistle by Ciarán Marsden And Gráinne Kelly
Classic Ceili Bands by Various Artists
Crashing Through The Trees by Warblefly
D Is For Dulcimer by Glenn Morgan
Dance Music Of Ireland: Volume 9 by Matt Cunningham
Farewell To A Friend by Green Highland
Farewell To Evening Dances by Colm O'Donnell
Farewell To Ireland CD 1 (of A Box Set Of 4) by Various Artists
Foinn Seisiun 1 by Ceoltóirí Cultúrlainne
Fonn Le Fonn by Tomas O'Ceannabhain
Gallain2 by Barry Mcgandy
Gerry MacFadden by Gerry McFadden
Golden Vanity by Modesty Forbids
Harthope Burn by Joe Hutton, Willy Taylor & Will Atkinson
Her Mantle So Green by Margaret Barry And Michael Gorman
Hit The Bricks... by Waking Maggie
In Your Ear by Seamus Egan
Into Folk by Rapalje
Ireland's Best Session Tunes CD 2 by Waltons Recording
Ireland's Whistling Ambassador by Micho Russell
Irish Dance Music by Various Artists
Irish Dance Music - Folkways LP by Various Artists
Irish Music In London Pubs by Various Artists
Jack In The Box Irish Session by Tionol
Jig Away The Donkey by Gabriel McArdle
Last Night's Fun by John Carty
Learning Irish Fiddle by Paul McNevin
Live At Winkles by The Lahawns
Live In Corofin by Cruinniú
Many Happy Returns by Arcady
McGreevy And Cooley by John McGreevy And Seamus Cooley
Melodeon by John Gannon
Musical Ireland by Derek Bell
Northumberland Forever by High Level Ranters
One More Time by McComiskey, Mulvihill And McLeod
Past Masters Of Irish Dance Music by Various Artists
Rattlin' Banjos (part 2) by David McNevin
Set Dances Of Ireland, Volume II by Various Artists
Slow And Easy by John Weed And Stuart Mason
Slowplay Jigs, Reels And Hornpipes by Jeffrey Hillgrove
Special Instrumental - Le Fiddle Irlandais Par Ted Furey by Ted Furey
Step This Way by David Lindquist
The Art Of Traditional Fiddle Playing by Matt Cranitch
The Best Ever Traditional Irish Pub Session Volume Two by Various Artists
The Boys From The Blue Hill by Vinnie Kilduff
The Celtic Ray by Marcille Wallis
The Gentlemen Pipers by Various Artists
The Good Fairies Of New York (novel) by Martin Millar
The Irish Concertina Two by Noel Hill
The Lark's Air by Dan Brouder
The Road Out Of Town by The Itinerant Band
The Side Over by Jeremy Spencer And Sean Leahy
The Sligo Champion (CD 1) by Michael Gorman
The Wandering Minstrel by Seamus Ennis
Tom Carey by Tom Carey
Toss The Feathers by Ted Furey And Brendan Byrne
Traditional Fiddle Music Of Cape Breton Volume 4 Mackinnon's Brook by Various Artists
Traditional Irish Music by William Sullivan
Traditional Irish Music (traditional Music Session From Belfast) by Various Artists
Traditional Music From Clare And Beyond by Gearoid O HAllmhurain
Tunes For Practice by Seamus Creagh
Waltons Irish Whistle CD Edition by Waltons
Whistle Wizardry by Vinnie Kilduff

Details ABC Sheetmusic Comments

This one of those tunes done to death by every beginner (no offence to beginners - I've been one for almost a decade) and the default hornpipe for accompanying dancers, so it's easy to forget that it's a good tune. Its simplicity makes it a good basis for variation, yet it is very catchy in its unaltered state. It has also found popularity in the Northeast of England, where it is known as The Lads of North Tyne, and the Scots have a version called The Beaux of Oak Hill.

# Posted on April 19th 2002 by CreadurMawnOrganig

Boys Of Bluehill does have the stigma of a 'beginners tune', which might explain why it was never posted before. However, it is a wonderful tune at any experience level. Thanks for the other tune names.

# Posted on April 20th 2002 by Caoimghgin

Here's a version I play in a fingerstyle guitar arrangement. I left out ornaments and a few syncopations that probably don't work outside this guitar setting. In the cadence that ends both parts there's a chord change (to G) instead of going to the F# note.

For me this version makes all the difference between "hating" and loving this tune. Actually, the important difference for me is just two or three notes in the phrase that shows up in measures 3,4 and 7 (not counting the pickup measure) and again in the B part.

X: 1
T: Boys Of Bluehill, The
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
R: hornpipe
K: Dmaj
||A (3EFA|BA FA DE FA| BA Bd e2 de |fa af eg fe|de fd B2 dc|
| BA FA DA FA| BA Bd e2 de |fa af eg fe|d2 d2 d2 :|
|: fg| af df a2 gf | gf ga b2 ag |fa af eg fe |de fd Bc dc|
| BA FA DE FA| BA Bd e2 de |fa af eg fe|d2 d2 d2 :|

# Posted on February 20th 2005 by Bob himself

Oh, ...

I should mention that I learned this version from Duck Baker.

# Posted on February 20th 2005 by Bob himself

Set

This is good in a set before The Harvest Home

# Posted on August 21st 2005 by irishimp

it made me laugh when some of you said its a beginner tune, because it is, its the first one that i learnt and it is even played for beginner dancers doing the hornpipe

# Posted on September 4th 2006 by Champ_irish_dancer

Set

This is a good tune played after The Road to the Isles

# Posted on December 31st 2006 by dinn2

Gearoid O'hAllmhurain's setting (for fiddle)

Here's my stab at a fiddle version of Gearoid O'hAllmhurain's lovely concertina setting on "Traditional Music from Clare and Beyond". I just love his playing.

X:1
T: The Boys of Bluehill
M:C
K:D
dA|:{c}BAFA A,DFA|{c}BAAa eade|(3{g}fed df ed{g}fe|d2 (3fed Bd{e}dB|
(3ABA {B}Ad AdFA|{c}BAAa eade|(3{g}fed df ed{g}fe|1 d2 (3fed B d FA:|2 d2 (3fed ddef|
|:a3 f adfa|g2 Ba bdgb|aBfd edfe|d2 (3fed Bd{e}dB|
(3ABA {B}Ad AdFA|{c}BAAa eade|(3{g}fed df ed{g}fe|1 d2 (3fed d efg:|2 d2 (3fed d2 z2 |]

Here's a discussion about this very setting:

http://thesession.org/discussions/display/9554/comments#comment202169

# Posted on May 13th 2007 by fidkid

History of The Boys of the Blue Hill

Does anyone know anything about the history behind this tune? Thanks. ~ Jan Farrar-ROyce

# Posted on June 8th 2008 by jan farrar-royce

Boys of the Blue Hills

Does anyone know something about the origins of this name? Could it be battle related? Thanks for any help you can offer me.
STRINGcerely, Jan FR

# Posted on June 11th 2008 by jan farrar-royce

Re: Boys of the Blue Hills

It's The Boys Of Bluehill and it's not battle related.Bluehill is a place in Ireland.Knockgorm; Cnoc-gorm, blue hill.

# Posted on June 11th 2008 by dafydd

Re: Boys of the Blue Hills

There is a Blue Hill just west of Bantry, Co. Cork, opposite Whiddy Island. I don't know if it's the Bluehill of the tune, although the Boys of Bluehill is a popular tune in this area.

# Posted on June 11th 2008 by cathycook

Re: Boys of the Blue Hills

In the USA the tune usually went by different names--- Silver Lake, Twin Sisters, Beaux of Oak Hill among others but never Boys of Blue Hill.(pre 1900 tradition wise-or those from that tradition) There is some evidence that the tune was learned by the Irish in the USA and popularized from there.

# Posted on June 11th 2008 by McCracken

Re: Boys of the Blue Hills

How very strange. There was just an extensive discussion of this on the FIDDLE_L listserve. There's speculation about this being Irish, Scottish, even an American song that was brought back to Ireland. I'll be interested to see what the knowldgeble folk on the mustard board have to say.

# Posted on June 11th 2008 by tracywag

Re: Boys of the Blue Hills

I believe there's a Blue Hill area of Chicago. I couldn't find anything definite about it on the Net, but the name cropped up in businesses there - and also in various other regions, including New York and Maine. Maybe American posters will know.

# Posted on June 11th 2008 by nicholas

Re: Boys of the Blue Hills

You mean it is nothing to do with WGBH BOSTON great blue hill radio? I'm so shocked and disillusioned.

# Posted on June 12th 2008 by john knoss

Re: Boys of the Blue Hills

There is an old song called "The Blue Hills of Antrim". There are also `bluestack `mountains in Donegal.In fact a lot of Irish counties would have Cnoc Gorm or cruacha gorma in place names and probably a few Scottish hills as well.

# Posted on June 12th 2008 by cos

Re: Boys of the Blue Hills

Aye cos - we've got An Càrn Gorm - (The) Cairngorm, and at least a couple of places called Tullochgorm (Tulach Gorm in Gaelic I think) as well. There's a couple of good tunes associated with these names - "The Cairngorm Brooch" (there's a semi-precious stone called a cairngorm) and "Tullochgorm" - the latter of which Skinner put some pretty outrageous variations to (but I've heard some players actually make these variations work).

# Posted on June 12th 2008 by On Sabbatical

Re: Boys of the Blue Hills

In one of Matt Seattle's books it says that it is also known as 'The Beaux of Oakhill' and 'The Lads of North Tyne'.

# Posted on June 12th 2008 by Gran Cassa

Boys of Blue Hill

More abstruse information about the related tune "Boys of School Hill" on http://www.thesession.org/tunes/display/5479

# Posted on June 27th 2008 by Trevor Jennings

Bluehill

# Posted on January 8th 2010 by nigelg

Bluehill (once more, minus extraneous note)

# Posted on January 8th 2010 by nigelg

Matt Molloy & Lunny

a nice version here (not in D) : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbM-RQeP_4Y
by Matt Molloy, Donal Lunny and James galway.

# Posted on March 11th 2010 by harmonico