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Lough Isle Castle reel

Also known as Lough Island Castle, Loughisle Castle, Seán Sa Cheo.

There are 5 recordings of a tune by this name.

Lough Isle Castle has been added to 1 tune set.

Lough Isle Castle has been added to 15 tunebooks.

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Two settings

X: 1
T: Lough Isle Castle
R: reel
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Amix
e2Ag eABd|e2Ag dGBd|e2Ag eAcA|~B2gd BGBd:|
cA~A2 cABe|cA~A2 BGBd|cA~A2 cABA|G2gd BGBd|
cA~A2 cABa|cA~A2 dGBg|afge fded|~B2gd BG~g2||
fedg eAAg|edeg dGBa|gedg eAAd|~B2gd BGBa|
gedg eAAg|edeg dGBa|gedg eAAd|~B2gd BGBd||
X: 2
T: Lough Isle Castle
R: reel
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Amix
a>g|:e2 dg eABd|e2 Ad BGBd|e2 dg eAAd|B2 gd BGBd:|
cA A/A/A cAcd|cA A/A/A dGBd|cA A/A/A cAdc|Bdgd BGBd:|
a^gae cBAf|gfgd Bda^g|a^gae cBAc|Bdgb a^geg|
a^gae cBAf|gfgd Bda^g|afge fded|Bdgb afge||
fedf eAAf|gedg (3efg fg|fedf eAcA|Bdgb afge|
fedf eAAf|gedg efg^g|afge fded|Bdgb afge|]

Four comments

Lough Isle Castle

This is related to Sean Sa Cheo but I think it should be considered a separate tune. It is also rarer, at least in my neck of the woods. To be honest, I haven’t heard it played in a session yet but it’s on a few very popular albums. Its recent appearance on Lunasa’s Kinnitty Sessions (albeit labelled as Sean Sa Cheo) will undoubtedly popularise it further.

X: 1
T: Lough Isle Castle
N: Listed as Sean Sa Cheo
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
S: Lunasa – The Kinnitty Sessions
R: reel
K: Amix
e2Ag eABd|e2Ae dGBd|e2Ag eABA|~B2gd BGBd:|
cA~A2 cABd|cA~A2 dGBd|cA~A2 eAcA|~B2gd BGBd|
cA~A2 cABd|cA~A2 dGBd|afge fded|~B2gd BGBg||
|:fedg eABd|edeg dGBg|fedg eABA|1 ~B2gd BGBg:|2 ~B2gb afgf||

My reason for posting this separately is that the two tunes, Lough Isle Castle and Sean Sa Cheo, have been recorded as distinct tunes with different names by the same artists. John Doherty recorded both tunes on separate albums: Sean Sa Cheo appears in a different key and with a different 3rd part on The Floating Bow, while (New) Lough Isle Castle appears on 1) The Star of Donegal (this is the setting I’ve transcribed as the main submission); 2) The Celebrated Recordings; and 3) a recording with Mickey Doherty:

X: 1
T: Lough Isle Castle
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
S: John Doherty – The Celebrated Recordings
N: Listen to this on YouTube here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYdM_HoAKuM

R: reel
K: Amix
e2Ag eABd|e2Ag dGBd|e2Ag eAcA|~B2gd BGBd|
e2dg eABd|e2Ag dGBd|e2dg eAcA|~B2gd BGBd||
cA~A2 aA~A2|eAce BGBd| cA~A2 cABA|GABc dfed|
cA~A2 cABa|cA~A2 dGBg|afge fded|~B2gd BG~g2||
fedg eAAg|edeg dGBa|gedg eAAd|~B2gd BGBa|
gedg eAAg|edeg dGBa|gedg eAAd|~B2gd BGBd||

I found this on the net:

X: 1
T: Lough Isle Castle
R: reel
N: Paddy O’Brien and James Kelly recorded this. James Byrne plays a four-part version. A distinct tune from, but obviously related to, "Sean Sa Cheo."
Z: Transcribed by Larry Sanger from a recording of John and Mickey Doherty, the only duet they ever played on record. The first two times through; fairly close transcription.
M: 4/4
K: Amix
a3g|:e/g/e dg eABd|e/g/e Ag dGBd|e/g/e Ag eABA|Bdgd BGBd:|
cA A/A/A {d}cABa|cA A/A/A dGBd|cA A/A/A aged|efgd BGBd|
cA A/A/A {d}cABe|cA A/A/A dGBg|afge fded|{c}B{A}Bgd BGBa||
|:gedg eAAg|edeg dGBd|gedg eAAd|1 {c}B{A}Bgd BGBa:|2 {c}B{A}Bgd BGBd||
e/g/e dg eABd|e/g/e Ag dGBd|e/g/e dg eAcA|{c}B{A}Bgd BGBd|
e/g/e dg eABd|e/g/e Ag dGBd|e/g/e Ag eABA|{c}B{A}Bgd BGBd||
cA A/A/A {d}cABe|cA A/A/A dGBd|cA A/A/A cAce|{d}BGBc dfed|
cA A/A/A cABe|cA A/A/A dGBg|afge fded|{c}B{A}Bgd BGa{b}a||
|:gedg eAAg|edeg dGBd|gedg eAAd|1 B2gd BGBa:|2 {c}B{A}Bgd BGBd||


James Kelly, Paddy O’Brien & Daithi Sproule also recorded the two tunes separately – Lough Isle Castle as “John in the Mist” on “Is it Yourself?” and a version of Sean Sa Cheo on “Spring in the Air”, both LPs now being on a single CD release creatively entitled “Traditional Irish Music”.

X: 1
T: Lough Isle Castle
N: Listed as John In The Mist
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
S: James Kelly, Paddy O’Brien & Daithi Sproule – Traditional Irish Music [Is It Yourself?]
R: reel
K: Amix
e2Ag eABd|e2Ae dGBd|e2Ag eAcA|~B2gd BGBd:|
cAcA cABd|cAcA dGBd|cAcA eAcA|(3Bcd gd BGBd|
cA~A2 cABd|cAcA dGBd|afge fded|~B2gd BGBg||
|:(3gfe dg eABd|edeg dGBg|(3gfe dg eABA|1 ~B2gd BGBg:|2 ~B2gd BGBd||

A similar 3-part setting of Lough Isle Castle appears on Ciarán ó Maonaigh & Dermot McLaughlin’s “The Music of the Glen”:

X: 1
T: Loughisle Castle
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
S: Ciarán ó Maonaigh & Dermot McLaughlin – The Music of the Glen; also reissued on the Rough Guide to Irish Music
R: reel
K: Amix
e2dg eABd|e2d=c BGBd|e2dg eAA=c|Bagd BGBd:|
cA~A2 cAca|cA~A2 dGBd|cAAB cABA|GABc dfed|
cA~A2 cAca|cA~A2 dGBg|gfge faed|Bagd Befa||
|:gedg eAAg|edeg dGBa|gedg eAA=c|1 Bagd BGBa:|2 Bagd BGBd||

There is also a 4-part version of this tune which James Byrne apparently plays (though unfortunately I don’t have a transcription of his playing of the tune). This 4-part setting has been recorded by Alan Kelly as Loughisle Castle:

X: 1
T: Loughisle Castle
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
S: Alan Kelly – Out of the Blue
R: reel
K: Amix
e2dg eABd|eEd=c BGBd|egdg eAAd|Bdgd BG (3B=cd|
e2dg eA (3Bcd|eEd=c BGBd|gedg eAB=c|~B3c dEFA||
cA~A2 cABd|cAAc dfed|cA~A2 eAcA|(3Bcd gd BGBd|
cAAd cedB|cAaf gGBd|cAec EFGA|~B3c defg||
^gaae ceaf|gd~d2 BdGb|~a3e ceAd|(3Bcd gG BAAb|
^gaae ceaf|g3G (3Bcd (3efg|afge fded|(3Bcd gb afge||
feda eA~A2|gedg (3efg fa|geda eAAd|~B3b afge|
feda eAAa|gedg (3efg fg|afge fded|(3Bcd gb afgf||

A similar 4-parter was also recorded by Providence, altho’ it’s a bit more like Sean Sa Cheo in its 1st part and it is labelled as such on the CD:

X: 1
T: Lough Isle Castle
N: Listed as Sean Sa Cheo
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
S: Providence – A Fig for a Kiss
R: reel
K: Amix
e2df eA (3Bcd|edef deed|Beed efgd|(3Bcd ge dG (3Bcd:|
=cA~A2 cA (3Bcd|=cA~A2 BGBd|=cBAG EFGA|(3Bcd ge dG (3Bcd|
=cA~A2 cedB|=cA~A2 BGBd|=cBAG EFGA| (3Bcd ge defg||
a^gae ceaf|~g3d Bdgd|a^gae ceA=c|~B2gB BA~A2|
a^gae ceaf|~g3f efge|afge fded|(3Bcd gb afge||
fedf eA~A2|gedf (3efg fa|gedf eA~A2|(3Bcd gb afge|
fedf eA~A2|gedf (3efg fg|afge fded|(3Bcd gb afgf||

I found a transcription of the same tune by Henrik Norbeck. He says “Here’s an unusual tune for you all. I got it from a session tape with Tony Linnane and some other players. It sounds a lot like "Sean sa Cheo", and even more like "Sean is Sinead", which is in CRE II as number 297, though it has a fourth part which I don’t know where it comes from. Does anyone know any more about this tune?"


X:519
T:Sean is Sinead
T:Jack and Jill
R:reel
H:An unusual version of "Sean sa Cheo" (#313).
H:See also CRE II no. 297.
H:Also related to "Jenny’s Chicken’s", #75
Z:id:hn-reel-519
M:C|
K:Amix
e2dg eABd|(3efe dg dGBd|egdg eAAd|Bdgd BGBd:|
cA~A2 cABd|cAAd BGBd|cA~A2 EAcA|BGBc dfed|
cA~A2 cABd|cA~A2 gGBd|cA~A2 agfa|gfge defg||
agae ceAf|gfgd Bdgb|agae ceAc|(3Bcd gd BAAa|
eaae ceAf|gfge defg|afge fded|Bdgb afge||
fedf eA~A2|gedf (3efg fa|fedf eAAd|(3BcB gb afge|
fedf eA~A2|gedf (3efg fg|afge fded|Bdgb afgf||

X:2, posted by me above, is from the playing of the late James Byrne. Copied from a transcription (onto paper) made in about 1994 by a friend from a tape of James playing in a session that I had but which has since gone walkabout.

The nonsensical title has always intrigued me: a lake called "island"? Surely a corruption of something else.

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyle_of_Lochalsh

“Kyle of Lochalsh” = Scottish Gaelic Caol Loch Aillse, "strait of the foaming loch". There is a castle nearby, too.

Re: Lough Isle Castle

@Stiamh: Most Irish placenames have been rendered nonsensical by lazy Anglicisation (take Recess, Co. Galway, for example - "… Sraith Saileach, … translates as ‘stream of the willow tree’." [Wikipedia]).

There is a Loch Eil in Scotland - and a Loch Eil Castle to boot.