Annotation:Cooleen Bridge
COOLEEN BRIDGE (Droicead Na Ciulin). AKA and see "Hatton Burn (1)," "Tarbolton Reel," "Wild Irishman (5)." Irish, Reel. E Minor. Standard tuning (fiddle). AB. The source for notated version was fiddler Johnny Allen of County Clare, who gave this tune and "Maids of Feakle (The)" to O'Neill when the latter was visiting in the area. Allen had a local reputation which still lingers. The tune, however, is the earlier Scots melody best known as "Tarbolton Reel." Gearóid Ó hAllmhuráin (1999) says the tune was collected by O'Neill during a trip to East Clare in 1906, where, in the Sliabh Aughty area, he had several tunes from fiddler Johnny Allen, a dance musician and contemporary of Pat Canny and a blind fiddler named Paddy MacNamara. The latter taught music in the region in the early part of the 20th century.
