Glasgow City Police Pipers jig

Tricky one this, especially on the whistle.Composed by the late Pipe Major Donald McLeod, thought by many to be the greatest composer of bagpipe music in the last century.He recorded an entire double album of pipe tunes, many his own compositions, in one take in New York in 1967. How many traditional musicians, on any instrument, could do that? Many of his tunes have been recorded by Scottish folk bands, such as “Ossian”.This was recorded by the “Boys Of The Lough”, I think.
“Wee Donald” ’s tunes go very well on whistle.

While it’s a venerable highland pipe tune, I wouldn’t exactly put this tune into the tricky department.

The AAA and BBB parts are best played with the first eighth held and the second cut. I play this on the pipes. Thanks for the info on it Kenny.

Hey everyone,
I actually play this piece on the harp…its alot of fun. Sileas does a great version of this tune with another (I can’t remember its name). I hold the first eighth note on the AAA and BBB parts. Also on the
B section of the AAA part, I turn the second and third and fifth and six eighth notes into triplets. Same for the B section of the BBB section. THis is a great tune.

Harp…most excellent instrument. Nice ornamentation.

According to preeminent piping authority Agnus J. MacLellan (who was very close to Donald MacLeod almost his entire life, and who carries a vast store of knowledge about Wee Donald and his tunes) who was present at a recent piping camp I attended, this tune was inspired by a bunch of sick drummers who got motion sickness in the back of the band bus. He described those somewhat jarring High A’s as being the drummers getting sick on the bumps!

Definitely an anecdote worth sharing, that one.

One point of note is that this is not the tune as DM originally wrote it - it started life (and was published) as a rather nice lilting two-parted 9/8 and was re-arranged by someone else in the seventies. Donald did not like the update.

Here’s a recent recording of this tune (2nd tune in the set) by Renee Doucet, Seph Peters & Ellen Gibling
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWQQ9mCMhwI

play video

Nice Scottish jig.