Key signature: Dmajor
Submitted on March 4th 2007 by Joe CSS.
This tune has been added to 17 tunebooks.
Also known as Road To The North.
Recordings of a tune by this name:
X: 1
T: Road To The North, The
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
R: reel
K: Dmaj
ag|f2 d2 cdec|d6 AB|=c4 cBcd|B2 G2 A2 ag|
f2 d2 cdec|d2 A2 FGAF|Dagf e2 dc|d6 ag|
f2 d2 cdec|d6 AB|=c4 cBcd|B2 G2 A2 FG|
A2 d2 =cAGF|G6 FG|Aagf e2 dc|d6 ||
|:FG|A2 d2 d2 cd|e6 d2|AB=cd B2 G2|A6 FG|
A2 d2 d2 cd|e2 dc d2 AB|=c2 g2 fed^c|d6 :|
The Road to the North
By Alistair Anderson, a brilliant English box player from up north. He also wrote a second part to go with it, a sort of counter-harmony thing, but I don't really know it. I don't really think it's a reel, cos it shouldn't be played fast at all, but I don't know what else to call it.
# Posted on March 4th 2007 by Joe CSS
Road to the North
Its generally played as a bricsk march up here - including by Alastair.
TGreat tune.
Alastair and everyone else up here play it as a brisk march.
Two picky points -
Alastair is generally regarded as the worlds best English Concertina player - up here box would imply melodeon.
English ?-Alastair has been in the forefront of Northumbrian music for several decades. Whilst it is technically correct to call him English, it doesn't really hit the nail on the head.
Noel
Angels of the North
Noel
Angels of the North
# Posted on March 4th 2007 by noelbats
My favorite recordings of this tune include Kathryn Tickell (Debatable Lands) and Andrew Davidson (Sharing a good tune).
Brilliant tune.
# Posted on March 4th 2007 by Colin E.
The Road To The North - Features on the "Steel Skies" album
In the 80s Alistair Anderson composed a suite of tunes called "Steel Skies", played in concerts and on an album by himself and three friends (instruments used were English concertina, Northumbrian pipes, fiddles, whistle, and maybe flute and mandolin though I can't be positive about the last two). The parts were carefully arranged. It was a pleasant, fresh piece of music. The Road To The North was one of its strongest tunes.
Alistair followed this up with at least one other suite of this kind, probably more. People requested him to publish the sheet-music for "Skies" - maybe he did. He may have a website giving details of the availability of his albums or sheet music.
# Posted on March 4th 2007 by nicholas
Good points well made, Noelbats. I stand corrected.
# Posted on March 4th 2007 by Joe CSS
Steel skies
Yes, Steel Skies is still in print and some of the arrangements have the orchestral parts.
The 3/2 tune "Dog Leap Stairs" is another popular one in the collection.
# Posted on March 5th 2007 by geoffwright