Annotation:Big Eyed Rabbit (4)

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X:1 T:Big Eyed Rabbit [4] T:Reel de la Malbaie, La S:The Stripling Brothers, Charlie (1896-1966) and Ira (1898-1967), west Alabama. M:C L:1/8 R:Reel, Country Rag D:Vocalion 5412 (78 RPM), The Stripling Brothers (1929). D:Vocalion 02770 (78 RPM), The Stripling Brothers (1934. Re-release of Vocation 5412) D:Melotone 93131-A(78 RPM), The Stripling Brothers (1936) F:https://www.slippery-hill.com/recording/big-eyed-rabbit-0 Z:Transcribed by Andrew Kuntz K:C (ef|g)^fgg aged|[Ec][E2c2]+slide+[e4e4] |+slide+edcc dcA2|G6 ef| g^fgg aged|[Ec][E2c2]+slide+[e3e3] (c|d)e2g ^f2d2|[B6g6] ef|| g^fgg aged|[Ec][E2c2]+slide+[e4e4] |+slide+edcc dcA2|G6 z(E| F2)G2A2AB|ca2 a- g2ed| [c2e2][ce][de] [ee][ee][d2e2]|[c6e6]:|| |:D2-|E2DE- EFGc|Ac2d c2(D2|E)DE2 +slide+A2G2|F4 FE| D2E2F2(_B2|=B)ABc B2D2-|DEFG A2G2|E6||

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BIG EYED RABBIT [4]. AKA and see "Reel de la Malbaie (Le)." American, Country Rag (cut time). C Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AB. The tune (unrelated to other tunes with the name "Big Eyed Rabbit) was composed and recorded in Chicago, Ill., by the west Alabama duo the Stripling Brothers, Charlie (1896-1966) and Ira (1898-1967), for Vocalion Records in 1929. It was the 'B' side of a recording with "Wolves Howling" on the 'A' side. It was re-released later by Vocalion with different record numbering, and was also released by Melotone in a Canadian issue on whose label the tune titles are given the same as the original Vocalion recording, however, the music on one side of Melotone 93131 is not "Wolves Howling" but rather is "Moonlight Waltz."

The Stripling Brothers with the Freeman Brothers

The Stripling's recording was also released in Québec, albeit with a new title; "Big-Eyed Rabbit," the tune was renamed "Reel de la Malbaie (Le)." The melody was also picked up in Ireland where it was rendered as a barn dance, where, for example the famous Belfast fiddler Sean Maguire recorded it as the first tune of his "Canadian Barndance" (a Canadian Barn Dance is a type of progressive couples dance popular in Ireland and Scotland-many 2/4 tunes have been the vehicle for the dance).