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Last Night’s Fun

By John Carty


  1. Tansey’s Favourite
    The Heather Breeze
  2. Devaney’s Goat
    The Whistling Postman
  3. The Old Grey Goose
    The Pathway To The Well
  4. The Bunch Of Keys
    Jackson’s
  5. The Champion
    Last Night’s Fun
  6. The Glen Of Aherlow
  7. McGovern’s Favorite
    Tom Ward’s Downfall
  8. The Home Ruler
    The Boys Of Bluehill
  9. Anderson’s
    Miss Thornton’s
  10. Farewell To Ireland
    Farewell To Erin
  11. The Luck Penny
    The Maid On The Green
  12. The Drunken Landlady
    Tom Steele
  13. The Silver Spear
    Over The Moor To Peggy
  14. Shandon Bells
    Brian Rooney’s
  15. Jimmy Duffy’s #1
    Jimmy Duffy’s #2
  16. George White’s Favorite
    The Lass Of Carracastle
  17. Danny Meehan’s
    Teetotaller’s Fancy

Ten comments

The pleasures of community radio

I found this lovely record down in the stacks at our local community radio station. Some great fiddling on here.
The liner notes are extensive - two sets of track notes, one by Carty and one by Don Meade (including citations for the tunes in various tunebooks), as well as short pieces of text by two other writers. If you’re the sort who likes to read about the tunes, you get an extra bonus here.

Last Night’s Fun.

In my opinion, one of the most important releases of the last century.

John Carty

Yes, i just got this CD, after i found out it’s one of the most important releases of the last century. 🙂
Very nice, “crunchy” music. It’s amazing that this guy is mainly a banjo player!

Track 3

Pathway to the Well can be found in the fiddler’s companion at: http://www.ibiblio.org/fiddlers/PAR_PAY.htm

Here are the ABCs:

X: 1
T: Pathway to the Well
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
Q: 325
S: Luke O’Malley vol 1
Z: Transcribed by Bill Black
R: jig
K: D
F | DFF AFF | BFF AFE | DFF dFF | EDE GFE |
DFF AFF | BFF ABc | dcd e/f/ge | fdd d2 :|
|: B | Add fdd | add fdd | A2 g {a}gfg | ede gfe |
|1 Add fdd | add e/f/ge | fed cAG | Add d2 :|
|2 def gfg | a/b/ag e/f/ge | fed cAG | Add d2 ||

Track 14

The second tune on track 14 is ‘Paddy from Portlaw’ as played by Brian Rooney on his album ‘The Godfather’. In London this jig, followed by Vincent Broderick’s ‘The Whistler at the Wake’ is sometimes known as the first of ‘The Godfather’s Jigs’.

John Carty?

Isn’t this recording by John Carty rather than James Carty? And isn’t the first tune a reel rather than a jig?

Yes and no…..

Don’t have the CD, but I think you’re right - John, not James. There is also a reel called “Tansey’s Favourite”, which I presume is being played here rather than the better-known jig, but I think it has another more common name, and should be here already under that name. I’ll check it out and try to post the correct link. Incidentally, in his first book, Seamus Tansey states that the jig “Tansey’s Favourite” was composed by Joe Tansey, a fiddler and relative of his.

Think so….

Someone sent me a recording of a Comhaltas Tour from 1982 with Ben & Charlie Lennon playing “Tansey’s Favourite” followed by “The Heather Breeze”. The first tune is the reel I’ve posted the link to above. Interesting that they play the same 2 tunes together.