Annotation:Irish Lamentation (1)
Tune properties and standard notation
IRISH LAMENTATION. AKA and see "Limerick Lamentation," "King James' March to Limerick." Irish, Scottish, English; Slow Air, Waltz or Country Dance Tune (3/4 time). G Mixolydian. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB. Peter Barnes dates the melody to c. 1735 where it was used for a longways dance; he thinks "it's triple time measures were probably once danced with a six-count minuet step." The dating may be based on dance use, however, the melody as an air is quite a bit older in both Irish and Scottish tradition (see notes for "Limerick Lamentation" and "Lochaber No More,").
Source for notated version:
Printed sources: Barnes (English Country Dance Tunes), 1986. Matthiesen (Waltz Book II), 1995; p. 25.
Recorded sources: Flying Fish FF90564, Bare Necessities - "Take a Dance" (1991).