Annotation:Pigeon on the Gate (1)
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PIGEON ON THE GATE [1] (“An Colm Air An Gata” or “An Colúr ar an nGeata)”. AKA and see "The Atholl Brae(s)," "Bank of Ireland," "The Drinking Reel," "The Drunken Tailor," "Gallagher's Best," "Gearrchaile Oilean Pice,” “Hills of Clogher,” "Lagan Slashers," "League and Slasher," "Pigeon on the Pier [2]," "Reidy's Reel,” "Roddy Joe’s Reel,” "The Scotch Braes,” “The Wandering Tinker.” Irish, Reel. E Dorian. Standard tuning (fiddle). AB (Miller & Perron, Roche): AABB (Cranitch, Mallinson, Mulvihill, O'Neill/Krassen, Taylor {Half-Door}, Tubridy): AA'BB (Breathnach): AABB' (Flaherty, Phillips): AA'BB' (Brody, Taylor, Vallely). A popular reel in many versions in Donegal, although usually known as “The Swallowtail.” Paul Stewart Cranford (1995) remarks that Cape Breton fiddler Johnny Wilmot played this tune in the key of E minor, after Michael Coleman (although A minor or G dorian was the usual Cape Breton setting {see version #2}); when he did so without accompaniment he was wont to tune the bass string down to a low E (EDae tuning). O’Neill (1922) remarks: “Altho' this splendid reel does not appear in the Bunting, Petrie or Joyce Collections, it was pretty generally known to the pipers and fiddlers of Chicago, hailing from the west, and south of Ireland and always by the same name. Occasionally variants of the tune are found in manuscript collections. In arrangement, (famed piper Patsy) Touhey's setting differs both in key and style from that printed in former O'Neill Collections.” Paul de Grae finds related tunes in “Dan McCart(h)y’s Fancy,” “Drunken Piper [2],” “Drunken Reel,” and “Old Pigeon on the Gate.” Irish, Reel. The melody is at least as old as the latter 19th century, for it was mentioned by O’Neill (1913) in his brief sketch of uilleann piper and fiddler William F. Hanafin (a Callinafercy, Kilcoleman, County Kerry musician born in 1875 who emigrated to Massachusetts in his adolescence), as one of the first reels he learned as a boy. Similar to "Pride of the Ball."
Sources for notated versions: Breathnach (CRÉ II), 1976; No. 250 [2], p. 130. Brody (Fiddler’s Fakebook), 1983; p. 217. Bulmer & Sharpley (Music from Ireland, vol. 3), 1976; p. 7. Cranitch (Irish Fiddle Book), 1996; No. 57, p. 147. Fiddler Magazine, Summer 2008, vol. 15, No. 2; pp. 42-43 (two versions). Flaherty (Trip to Sligo), 1990; pp. 64-65. Jordan (Whistle and Sing), 1975; 61. Mallinson (Essential), 1995; No. 42, p. 19. Miller & Perron (Irish Traditional Fiddle Music), 1977; Adendum (appears as “Denis Murphy Reel”). Miller & Perron (Irish Traditional Fiddle Music), 2nd Edition, 2006; p. 98. Mulvihill (1st Collection), 1986; No. 142, p. 38. O'Neill (Krassen), 1976; p. 132. O’Neill (Waifs and Strays of Gaelic Melody), 1922; No. 290. Phillips (Fiddlecase Tunebook: British Isles), 1989; p. 39. Roche (Collection of Traditional Irish Music,vol. 1), 1912; No. 168 and 169, p. 66. Taylor (Where’s the Crack?), 1989; p. 14. Taylor (Through the Half-door), 1992; No. 15, p. 12. Tubridy (Irish Traditional Music, Book Two), 1999; p. 24. Vallely (Learn to Play the Fiddle with Armagh Pipers Club), 197?; No. 44, p. 39. County 725, The Riendeau Family "OldTime Fiddling." Folkways FG 3531, Jean Carignan "Old Time Fiddle Tunes" (1968). Great Meadow Music GMM 2003, “Rodney Miller’s Airdance” (2000). Green Linnet 1020, Brendan Mulvihill "The Flax in Bloom." Green Linnet SIF1092, Liz Carroll "Liz Carroll" (1988). Green Linnet SIF104, Liz Carroll "The Celts Rise Again" (1990). Island ILPS9432, The Chieftains - "Bonaparte's Retreat" (1976). Kicking Mule 206, Eric Thompson "Kicking Mule's Flat Picking Guitar Festival." Mulligan 028, Kevin Burke "Promenade." Nimbus NI 5320, Proinsaias O Maonaigh, Mairead Ni Mhaonaigh, Paula Doohan, Liz Doherty - “Fiddle Sticks: Irish Traditional Music from Donegal” (1991). Philo 2018, Jean Carignan "Plays Coleman, Morrison and Skinner." Shanachie 29008, Frankie Gavin "Traditional Music of Ireland." Shanachie 29009, "Andy McGann and Paul Brady." Shanachie 29003, Tommy Peoples and Paul Brady "The High Part of the Road." Viva W103, Sean McGuire – “Irish Jigs and Reels” (c. 1960’s, a reissue of “Sean Maguire Plays,” the first recording of McGuire that Josephine Keegan accompanied on piano). Shaskeen - "Joys of Life" & "Shaskeen Live." Danny O’Donnell – “Ón tSean-Am Anall.”
See also listings at:Jane Keefer’s Folk Music Index: An Index to Recorded Sources Alan Ng’s Irishtune.info
Sources for notated versions: Jean Carignan (Montreal, Canada) [Brody]; Andy McGann (New York) [Phillips]; Kerry fiddler Denis Murphy (b. 1912) [Miller & Perron]; flute player Laurence McDonagh, 1972 (Ballinfad, Co. Sligo, Ireland) [Breathnach]; fiddler Peter Horan (b. 1926, Kilavil County Sligo) [Flaherty]; “my mother” [Muvlihill]; Paddy Canny (Co. Clare) via Brendan Taffee [Fiddler Magazine]; Liz Carroll (Chicago) via Brendan Taaffe [Fiddler Magazine].
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