Annotation:Gem of Ireland
X:1 T:Gem of Ireland M:C| L:1/8 R:Reel B:Ryan's Mammoth Collection (1883) Z:AK/Fiddler's Companion K:D D2 DE FEDF|(3AAA AF ABdA|BABc dBAF|GEFD EDB,A,| D2 DE FEDF|(3AAA AF ABdA|BABc dBAF|GBAF D2z2:| fefg afdf|(3eee ed efge|fefg afdf|edef d2 de| fefg afdf|(3eee ed efge|fdec B2 dB|BdAF D2z2:||
GEM OF IRELAND. AKA and see "Clarkson's Reel," "Green Pointed Rush Reel," "Post-Oak Grove," "Sweet Ellen (2)/Sweet Ellum (2)." Irish, Reel. D Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB. The reel probably has an Irish provenance (not yet discovered); Francis O'Neill thought so, perhaps taking a cue from Ryan's title, although the Chief called it "Clarkson's Reel" in his Music of Ireland (1903). See also the Cape Breton/Prince Edward Island tune "Homeward Bound (1)," which is derivative of this reel. The second strain of "Gem of Ireland" is cognate with the second strain of James Goodman's "Lady E. Douglas's Reel." Boston music publisher Elias Howe, whose company also published Ryan's Mammoth Collection, included the tune in his Musician's Omnibus Nos. 6 & 7, published around the same time as Ryan's collection. However, Howe's title for the tune was "Green Pointed Rush Reel."
