The Primrose Lasses

reel

Key signature: Gmajor

Submitted on June 20th 2002 by no longer exists.

This tune has been added to 209 tunebooks.

Also known as 4 Nights Drunk, Byrne's, Four Nights Drunk, Patrick's Night, Patricks's Night, Primrose Lass, The Primrose Lass, Primrose Lasses, The Primrose Lassies Highland Fling, The Primrose Lassies, St. Patrick's Night, Windwood.

Recordings of a tune by this name:

A Touch Of Clare by Kitty Hayes
Ah, Surely! by Eddie Cahill
ALive by Kúla
An Gaoth Aduaidh - The North Wind by Various Artists
An Toilean Aerach by Johnny Connolly
As We Got Them: Traditional Flute And Fiddle Music From County Sligo by Various Artists
Bad Turns And Horse-Shoe Bends by Harry Bradley
Barking Mad by Four Men And A Dog
Classic Recordings Of The Irish Fiddle Legend by Paddy Reynolds
Close To Home by Dónal Clancy
Crank It by Dan Stacey
Dance Music Of Ireland: Volume 10 by Matt Cunningham
Dawn In The Hills Of Ireland by Marty O'Keefe
Days Of Doolin by Dulsert
Deora An Deorai [ The Emigrant Suite ] by Charlie Lennon
Fierce Traditional by Frankie Gavin
Foxglove by Moving Cloud
Gaelic Storm Special Reserve by Gaelic Storm
Hand-Me-Downs by Mary Rafferty
Happy Days by Trad Lads
Harmony Hill by Dervish
Herding Cats by Gaelic Storm
Humdinger by Paul Brock And Enda Scahill
In Praise Of Lissycasey by Various Artists
Irish Accordion by Timmy Cronin
Irish Accordion Masters by Joe Derrane And Jerry O'Brien
Irish Traditional Flute Solos And Band Music From Kerry And Tipperary by Billy Clifford
Jackie Daly And Seamus Creagh by Jackie Daly And Seamus Creagh
Jealousy by Touchstone
Kerry Fiddles - Fiddle Music From Sliabh Luachra by Padraig O'Keeffe, Denis Murphy, Julia Clifford
Live At Johnny Fox's by Dervish
Live In Alaska by Surreel
Live In Belfast by Cathal Hayden
Live-Disc 1 by Natalie MacMaster
Loozin Air by Garry Shannon
Mike MacDougall's Tape For Father Hector by Mike MacDougall
Mind The Pipes by Leonard Barry
No Boundaries by Natalie MacMaster
Noonday Feast by Joe Shannon And Johnny McGreevy
Notes From My Mind by Seamus Connolly
Past Masters Of Irish Fiddle Music by Various Artists
Sporting Nell by Tommy McCarthy
Stony Steps by Matt Molloy
Stormy Brew by Rig The Jig
Sunny Spells And Scattered Showers by Solas
Take The Bull By The Horns by Tom Doherty
Ten Man Mop Or Mr Reservoir Butler Rides Again by Steeleye Span
That's What You Get by Wendy MacIsaac
The Barley Grain by Larry Kinsella
The Chieftains 2 by The Chieftains
The Dangerous Reel by Mike And Mary Rafferty
The Fairy Bridges by Josephine Keegan
The Fiddle Workshop by Karen Steven
The Frost Is All Over by Paul McGrattan
The Galway Rambler by John G. Walsh
The Groves by Laurel Martin
The Heart Of Cape Breton by Various Artists
The Hidden Fermanagh by Various Artists
The Lark In The Morning by Steeleye Span
The Last Of The Travelling Pipers by Felix Doran
The Long Finger by Barry Carroll And Joe McHugh
The Master Pipers Volume 2 by Tommy Kearney
The Moneymusk by Hammy Hamilton
The Piper's Rest by Jimmy Morrison
The Road From Ballinakill by Mike And Mary Rafferty
The Road Of Tears by Battlefield Band
The South West Wind by Ronan Browne And Peter O'Loughlin
The Very Best Of The Claddagh Years: Vol. 2 by The Chieftains
The Wheels Of The World, Early Irish American Music, Vol 2 by Various Artists
The World Pipe Band Championships 2006 by Various Artists
Traditional Irish Music From Doolin Co. Clare by Terry Bingham
Traditional Music From Cape Breton Island by Natalie And Buddy MacMaster
Within A Mile O' Jamestown by Mick Mulvey
Wooden Flute Obsession Disk 1 by Various Artists
Wooden Flute Obsession: Volume 3, Disc 1 by Various Artists

Details ABC Sheetmusic Comments

A traditional reel... Apparently there's notation on the highland pipes for this, called "The Drunken Piper", also the name of the set that this is usually played in, but I can't find it....

# Posted on June 20th 2002 by no longer exists

The Drunken Piper I know - well, I've met many - but the one that usually goes by that name is a very different tune - a Bagpipe reel in Amixolydian, played as a march in Donegal.

# Posted on June 21st 2002 by ragaman

My own 2 cents: I know this as the Primrose Lass and more commonly played at sessions in A major.

# Posted on June 26th 2002 by Will CPT

It's in O'Neill's as the Primrose Lass pretty much as the setting here. Good tune.

Geoff Pollitt

# Posted on June 28th 2002 by Geoff Pollitt

Dervish list this as "Byrne's" on "Harmony Hill", and the parts are switched round.

# Posted on February 10th 2003 by Dow

Number three in Garry Shannon's set Windwood

# Posted on April 28th 2003 by tufbo

A Cape Breton Setting

K: G
g | edBA G2 GE | DEGA BAAg | edBA G2 GE | DEGA BGG2 |
BdAB G2 GE | DEGA BAAg | edBA G2 GE | DEGA BGG ||
z | d2 gd edgd | Bdgd BAA2 | d2 gd efge |dBAc BGG2 |
d2 gd edgd | Bdgd BAA2 | dBde g2 ge | dBAc BGG||

This is almost identical to what Wendy MacIsaac played on the compilation album "The Hear of Cape Breton." Nice one on the flute and whistle.

# Posted on July 3rd 2003 by slainte

Sister Tunes

The Camber Lasses (in G): http://www.thesession.org/tunes/display/1947
The Camber Lasses (in A): http://www.thesession.org/tunes/display.php/4275
The Primrose Road: http://www.thesession.org/tunes/display/5073

# Posted on February 28th 2006 by slainte

The Primrose Lassies (Highland Setting)

R: highland
K: D
f2f>e d2d>B|A>Bd>e f<BB>e|f2f>e d2d>B|1 A>da>g f<dd>e:|2 A>da>g f<dd>B||
A>df>d a>df>d|A>df>d e<BB2|A>df>d a>df>d|f/g/a e>g f<dd>B|
A>df>d a>df>d|A>df>d e<BB>e|f2f>e d2d>B|A>da>g f<dd>e|]

As played by Harry Bradley. You could play this as a reel, transposing it in G.

# Posted on February 28th 2006 by slainte

"The Primrose Lasses" ~ ask and you shall recieve ~ in G

K: G Major
|: G>A |
B2- B>A G2 G>E | D>EG>A B>AA>c | B>cB>A G>AG>E | D>EG>A B>G :|
| G>c |
(3Bcd g>d e>dg>d | B>dg>B c>AA>c | (3Bcd g>d e>d g2 | B>c (3ABc B>GG>c |
(3Bcd g>d e>dg>d | e>dg>B c>A (3AAA | B2 (3cBA G2- G>E | D>EG>A B<G ||

Hallelujah! An improvement, the 'less than' sign now works here in yeller land. Thanks for telling me 'slainte', I had to give it a try, besides, I like highlands a bit lower down and the key of G suits this one nicely. You could throw in a few more 'snaps' if you were so inclined, and if you wanted it as a reel, well, just play it 'flat out'...
;-)

# Posted on March 7th 2006 by ceolachan

It also goes nicely in the key of 'A'...

# Posted on March 7th 2006 by ceolachan

'i' before 'e' except after 'c' - haha - geddit? :-)

# Posted on March 7th 2006 by Dow

"The Three Stooges"

Larry, Moe & Curly Joe... Now that was threesome that had an interesting upbringing. Anyone remember a theme tune?

# Posted on March 8th 2006 by ceolachan

Hmmm, actually, three is a wildly conservative estimate. Stop slapping my head guys I'm not a drum. Anyway, as I was saying, OK, that hurts, alright already, I'm getting to it. I was wrong, so what's new eh? I was way off the mark, there are more than 3 of us...

# Posted on March 9th 2006 by ceolachan

Go here for a tune that might be a variant of this http://www.thesession.org/tunes/display/6577.

X: 1
T: The Primrose Lass
R: reel
D: Dervish - Harmony Hill
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Gmaj
~b3a ~g3e|dB~B2 dega|~b3a ~g3e|dBGA BA~A2:|
|:Bd~d2 edgd|edgd edgd|Bd~d2 edge|1 dBGB A2GA:|2 dBGB A2G2||

# Posted on February 12th 2007 by Dow

Stop me if im crazy

isnt this the tune that steeleye span sings "5 drunken nights" to?

and also i think its on the planxty live album but listed as the pullet.

# Posted on March 27th 2007 by Kevo32A

3-Part Version?

Major Moran's: http://www.thesession.org/tunes/display/6762

# Posted on June 5th 2007 by slainte

this is very interesting. it is known that "4 nights drunk" is an English folksong (the English variant of "7 drunken nights") and that a melody so simmilar (if not identical), is that of an Irish tune.

# Posted on August 22nd 2007 by Osher

Recorded by Leo Rowsome in 1944:
http://www.archive.org/details/LeoRowsomePrimroseLassTheIvyLeaf

# Posted on August 27th 2008 by Ramiro