I love this reel, “The Boys on the Hilltop”. I think I first learned it from Gavin Whelan’s album “In Full Flight”. It is played quite regularly in Doolin, I particularly enjoy playing it my friend JB Samzun on fiddle.
X:1
T:Boys on the Hilltop, The
R:reel
M:4/4
K:Ador
A2Ac B2AG|EGGF G2AG|E~A3 BABd|egdB BAAG|
A2Ac BGAG|EGGF G2AB|c2cA B2Bc|dBGA BAAG||
A2 (3Bcd egdB|GABc defg|a2fd egdB|GBdB BAA2|
a2fd egdB|GABc defg|afge fdef|gbaf gedB||
This is a great common session tune! I learned “Devaney’s Goat” (or Devanny’s Goat) through various sessions, but I associate it with the playing of Christy Barry. In the sleeve notes of John Carty’s album’s “Last Night’s Fun”, it says that, according to flute player Jack Coen, this reel was composed by Tommy Whelan, a flute player with the Ballinakill Ceili Band, who named the tune for a neighbor’s animal.
“The Galtee Ranger” is a reel which I learned from my good friend Stéphane. It was recorded by Mary Bergin and also by Kevin Crawford on his album “In Good Company”, and it is sometimes called “Callaghan’s” as well.
I learned “Happy to Meet and Sorry to Part” from James Cullinan & PJ Crotty’s CD “Happy To Meet”, one of my favourite albums ever. This jig is the first of a set from the album that we play regularly around Doolin. The two jigs that follow are “Dooney Rock” and “The Humours of Ballingarry“.
