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The Yellow Tinker reel

Also known as An Ṗaḃaí Ḃuí, The Golden Traveller, The Jaundiced Itinerant.

There are 75 recordings of a tune by this name.

A tune by this name has been recorded together with The Sally Gardens (lots of times), The Jolly Tinker (a few times), The Merry Harriers (a few times), Paddy On The Turnpike (a few times) and The Foxhunter (a few times).

The Yellow Tinker has been added to 15 tune sets.

The Yellow Tinker has been added to 368 tunebooks.

Download ABC

Seven settings

X: 1
T: The Yellow Tinker
R: reel
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Gmix
DG~G2 DFCF|DG~G2 dGBG|DG~G2 DF~F2|1 cAFA c2FE:|2 cAFA c2Bc||
K:G
dG~G2 dGBc|dg~g2 fdcA|dG~G2 dGBd|cA=FA c2Bc|
dG~G2 dGBc|dg~g2 ^fgag|f2de f2de|fgag fdcA||
K:Gmix
d2BG (3Bcd BG|(3Bcd BG c2Bc|d2BG (3ABc de|fdcA FGAc|
d2BG (3Bcd BG|(3Bcd BG c2Bc|~d3e ~f3d|cAFA G3F||
X: 2
T: The Yellow Tinker
R: reel
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Gmix
|:DG (3GGG DEFE|DG (3GGG BcAF|DGGF D2CD|F3A c2AF|
DGGF D2CD|DG (3GGG BcAF|DGGF D2CD|F3A c2Ac|
dG (3GGG dGcA|dG (3GGG d2cA|dGGA dcAG|F3A c2Ac|
dG (3GGG dGcA|dG (3GGG d2cA|d3e fefd|BcAF CFAF:|
X: 3
T: The Yellow Tinker
R: reel
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Gmaj
|:DGGF DEFA | DGGF dBcA | DGGF DEFA | cAFA c2 BA |
DGGF DEFA | DGGF dBcA | DGGF DEFA | cAFA c4 ||
|:Bc| dG G2 dGBc | dg g2 fdcA | dG G2 dGBd | cAFA c2 Bc |
dG G2 dGBc | dg g2 fgaf | g2 de fgaf | gbag fdcA ||
|:d2 BG (3Bcd BG | (3Bcd BG c2 BA | d2 BG (3Bcd BG | cAFA c2 Bc |
d2 BG (3Bcd BG | (3Bcd BG c2 BA | dcde f3d | cAFA c3 ||
# Added by JACKB .
X: 4
T: The Yellow Tinker
R: reel
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Gmix
DG~G2 DF~F2|DG~G2 dGcG| DGGF DCDF| cAFA c2AF:|
G2BG dGeG| G2BG ABcA|dG~G2 defd|cAFA c2Bc|dG~G2 eG~G2|dG~G2 ABcA|dcde fefd|cAFA c2AF|
# Added by arkle .
X: 5
T: The Yellow Tinker
R: reel
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Gmix
|:DG~G2 DEFE | DG~G2 BdcA | DG~G2 DEFA | cAFA c2 BA |
|DG~G2 DEFE | DG~G2 B/c/dcA | DG~G2 DEFA | cAFA c2 Bc ||
||dG ~G2 B3c | dg g2 ^fdcA | dG ~G2 B3d | cAFA c2 Bc |
dG ~G2 ABBc | dg g2 ^fga^f | g2 de ^fga^f | gbag ^fdcA ||
||d2 BG (3Bcd BG | (3Bcd BG c2 BA | d2 BG Bcde | fdcA FG Bc |
d2 BG (3Bcd BG | (3Bcd BG c2 BA | ~d3e ~f3d | cA^FA G4 :||
X: 6
T: The Yellow Tinker
R: reel
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Gmix
||:DG (3G^FG D=F (3FEF | DG (3G^FG dGBG | DG (3G^FG D=F (3FEF | cAFA (3cec Bc :||
|| dG (3G^FG dGBc | dg (3g^fg edBc | dG (3G^FG dGBd | cAFA c2 Bc |
|dG (3G^FG dGBc | dg (3g^fg edBd | g2ef gaba |g2fd edBc ||
||d2 BG (3Bcd BG | (3Bcd BG c2 Bc | d2 BG GABd | fdcA FAce |
d2 BG (3Bcd BG | (3Bcd BG c2 Bc | d^cde f3d | cAFA G4 ||
X: 7
T: The Yellow Tinker
R: reel
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Gdor
|:DGGF DFCF|DG ~G2 eGdG| DGGF DCDE |~F2 DF AdcA:|
|:~G2dG eGdG| eGdG cAFA |~G2dG eGdG| ~c2 AF DFAF|
|~G2dG eGdG| eGdG cAFA |dcde f3d| ~c2 AF DFAF||

Fifteen comments

This tune is adorable isn’t it? It’s more or less the version played at a recent Sydney session by site member bandjalong - (ta for the tune). It is related to an Amix tune called "The Drunken Tinker" which has a similar 1st part. Confusingly, that tune sometimes also goes by the name of "The Yellow Tinker", e.g. on Altan’s album "The Red Crow".

I’m willing to bet that "The Drunken Tinker" came about because a drunken session player tried to remember "The Yellow Tinker", and could only remember the 1st part of the 3, so he/she made up a new 2nd part. Or maybe not.

Sheetmusic readers watch out for the key changes

Modal reels

Loads of fun. Melodic contours in the 1st part are nearly the same for both "Tinkers." The Drunken Tinker in Amix falls more comfortably on my mandolin. Lots of open A string to ring through.

The Gmix is more interesting though. Now I must learn both tunes so I can get them mixed up. 🙂

Maeve Donnelly’s version

Her version is different from the posted version and is as follows:

|:DG (3GGG DEFE|DG (3GGG BcAF|DGGF D2CD|F3A c2AF|
DGGF D2CD|DG (3GGG BcAF|DGGF D2CD|F3A c2Ac|
dG (3GGG dGcA|dG (3GGG d2cA|dGGA dcAG|F3A c2Ac|
dG (3GGG dGcA|dG (3GGG d2cA|d3e fefd|BcAF CFAF:|

This goes second in a set of reels with The New Road/The Yellow Tinker/Delia Crowley’s. A grand set indeed!

My Version

X: 1
T: The Yellow Tinker
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
R: reel
K: Gmaj
|:DGGF DEFA | DGGF dBcA | DGGF DEFA | cAFA c2 BA |
DGGF DEFA | DGGF dBcA | DGGF DEFA | cAFA c4 ||
|:Bc| dG G2 dGBc | dg g2 fdcA | dG G2 dGBd | cAFA c2 Bc |
dG G2 dGBc | dg g2 fgaf | g2 de fgaf | gbag fdcA ||
|:d2 BG (3Bcd BG | (3Bcd BG c2 BA | d2 BG (3Bcd BG | cAFA c2 Bc |
d2 BG (3Bcd BG | (3Bcd BG c2 BA | dcde f3d | cAFA c3 ||

Posted by .

Based on Bobby Casey’s version

DG3 DF3|DG3 dGcG| DGGF DCDF| cAFA c2AF:|
G2BG dGeG| dG3 ABcA|dG3 defd|cAFA c2Bc|dG~G2 eG~G2|dG~G2 ABcA|dcde fefd|cAFA c2AF|

Posted by .

Second bar of B part he alternatively does this
G2BG dGeG|G2BG ABcA|

Posted by .

Ending resolution?

Dow does the end really resolve on a G after an F natural? I think it sounds better to play the C there as in the ending of the A part.

The Yellow Tinker, X:5

A version that’s based on how Craobh Rua plays it (and pretty close to the Solas version as well)

Re: The Yellow Tinker

Oops, sorry, mean to say based on how Dervish (and friends?) plays it on the album "The Leitrim Equation" (not Croabh Rua, brain fart).

The Yellow Tinker, X:7

As played by Eamon Cotter, Conor McCarthy, Oisin MacDiarmada & Padraic O’Reilly
on track 11 of "The Riches of Clare". I think this is an old Clare setting of the Yellow Tinker that probably
pre-dates Paddy O’Brien’s famous version. I think Noel Hill taught us this version at one of his concertina schools, too. I like it a lot. It can be played all on the C-row of the concertina.
(There is no B in the tune, so it doesn’t matter whether there is a B-flat in the key signature or not.)

Re: The Yellow Tinker

I now see that versions similar to the one I just posted are being called
"The Drunken Tinker" https://thesession.org/tunes/1555 .
But I’m sure that Noel Hill thinks of this as a version of the Yellow Tinker, so we’ll leave it here
and people can go to tune 1555 for more similar versions (and in other keys).