The First Of May hornpipe

Source: Mick Moloney, Eugene O’Donnell, Seamus Egan: “ Three Way Street“
Transcription: g.m.p.

Tune Recorded in the late 1920s by The Four Provinces Orchestra.

There is a mistake in the sheetmusic. ( the ABC is correct ).
All the “c”s in the 3rd and 7th bar of the 1st and 2nd part are actually c#.
I’m sorry.

Also the “c”s in the 4th bar of the 1st and 2nd part are actually c#.( Almost all the c are #, and the tune is in Ador. ) (!?)

I know this as the melody for the Culcanon song.

The chorus goes like:

Oh you did, so you did, so did he, and so did I.
And the more I think about it, the nearer I’m to cry.
Weren’t them the happy days, when troubles we knew not,
And our mothers cooked culcanon in the little porridge pot.

Can’t remember the verses, or even who I heard sing this.

M: 4/4
L: 1/8
R: highland fling
K: Ador
|: F>G |
E*AA>B c2 c2 | A>dd>e f2 e>f | g>fe^>c d*fe>c |1 d*^cA>F G2 F>G :|
2 A2 (3GAB A2 ||
|: (3efg |
a2 (3agf g2 g>e | f2 f>d e2 e>f | g>fe>^c d*fe>c | d>^cA>F G2 F>G |
E*AA>B c2 c>B | A*dd>e f2 e>f | g>fe>^c d>f (3edc | A2 (3BA^G A2 ||

This is better known as a hornpipe called “The First of May” and is found in O’Neill’s.

I would suppose that ‘better known as’ is relevant… However, the ending for the B-Part is less ‘classic’ of a Highland in being four measures in length, but not unheard of… I’d learned this as a ‘fling’ first, not from any of the O’Neill collections, but I can hear and feel the ‘hornpipe’ in it…

ceolachan said, “I would suppose that ‘better known as’ is relevant…”

I suppose you’re right. I think it’s known in US old-time circles as First of May, as played by James Bryan and others.

Hello.

I’m new to the Session, just signed up. My first question has to do wiht the ABCs posted above for The Four Provinces Fling. In the first full line and the last line of the tune, there are asterisks between notes. What are those? I don’t remember using asterisks for anything in ABC before, and Skink chokes on them. Are they really supposed to be “>“s?

Thanks.

I forgot to ask this question – Nigel says “I think it’s known in US old-time circles as First of May, as played by James Bryan and others.” Does anyone have a transcription of and Old-Time version of it? Any Old-Time discography for it?

I ran into this tune while looking through a book, “Rantin’ Pipe and Tremblin’ String” by George Emmerson, though I know I’ve heard it before.

This song about spuds has appealed to:
http://www.asonance.cz/view.php?cisloclanku=2004012705
you’ll find mor of the words there.

Well did you ever make colcannon
made with lovely pickled cream
with the greens and scallions mingled
like the picture in the dream.
Did you ever make a hole on top
to hold the meltin’ flake
of the creamy-flavoured butter
that our mother used to make?

Oh you did, so you did,
so did he and so did I.
And the more I think about it, sure
the nearer I’m to cry.
Oh weren’t them the happy days
when troubles we knew not
and our mothers made colcannon
in the little skillet pot.

Well did you ever take potato cake
and boxty to the school
tucked underneath your oxter
with your books, your slate and rule?
And when teacher wasn’t lookin’,
sure, a great big bite you’d take
of the creamy-flavoured soft
and meltin’ sweet potato cake.

Well did you ever go a-courtin’ boys
when the evenin’ sun went down
and the moon began apeepin’
from behind the Hill o’ down.
Did you wandered down the boreen
where the clúrachán was seen
and you whispered lovin’ praises
to your own dear sweet colleen.

I think this makes a crap fling. It sounds more like a barndance or set dance type thing to me.

X: 1
T: First Of May, The
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
R: hornpipe
K: Ador
|:AG|EAAB cBce|d^cde f2 ef|gfe^c dfec|d^cAF G2 AG|
EAAB cBce|d^cde f2 ef|gfe^c dfe^c|1A2 (3GAB A2 AG:|2A2 (3GAB A2 (3efg||
|:a3f g3e|fgfd e2 ed|(3B^cd ef gfe^c|d^cAF G2 AG|
EAAB cBce|d^cde f2 ef|gfe^c dfe^c|1A2 (3GAB A2 (3efg:|2A2 (3GAB A2 AG||

I like to play the following three versions in succession. The one in the middle makes most musical sense to me, but I like how weird the other two are too.

X:1
T:First of May
S:Cole’s 1000 Fiddle Tunes
K:Am
M:4/4
L:1/8
E:10
P:A
AF|EAAB cBcA|dcde f2 ef|gfed cdec|dcAF GFGE|*
EAAB cBcA|dBde f2 af|gfeg dfec|A2A2A2:|*
P:B
eg|a2 af g2 ge|f2 fd e2 ed|cdef geed|cAAF GFAE|*
EAAB cBcA|dcde f2 af|gfed cAdc|A2A2A2:|

X:2
T:First of May
S:Allan’s Irish Fiddler
K:AMix
M:4/4
L:1/8
E:7.5
P:A
A>G|E>AA>B =c>Bc>A|d>=cd>e f2 e>f|g>fe>c d>fe>d|c>AG>F G2 A>G|*
E>AA>B =c>Bc>A|d>=cd>e f2 e>f|g>fe>c d>fe>c|A2A2A2:|
P:B
f>g|a2 a>f g2 g>e|f>gf>d e2 e>d|c>de>f g>fe>c|d>cA>F G2 A>G|*
E>AA>B =c>Bc>A|d>=cd>e f2 e>f|g>fe>c d>fe>c|A2A2A2:|*

X:3
T:First of May
S:O’Neill
K:A
M:4/4
L:1/8
E:10
P:A
AG|EAAB cBcA|dcde f2 ef|gedc dfed|cAGF G2G2|*
EAAB cBcA|dBde f2 ef|gedc dfec|A AA A2:|*
P:B
fg|a2 af g2 ge|fgfd e2 ed|cdef gfed|cAGF G2G2|*
EAAB cBcA|dcde f2 ef|gedc dfec|A AA A2:|

This is my transcription of “The First of May” from the 2011 recording by Anglina Carberry and Martin Quinn

There’s a version of this tune on track 8 (first tune in the medley) of the album called All the Pretty Horses, by The Elftones with Rhiannon Giddens. Loosely based on O’Neill’s version, with some liberty taken on C naturals / C sharps.

The words of the song ‘The little skillet pot’ were written by Shaun O’Nolan, storyteller, actor, songwriter and uilleann piper from Barraderry, Kiltegan, County Wicklow. He was born John Nolan in 1872 and emigrated to Boston in 1903. He styled himself as ‘The Wicklow Piper’. More information is available on the ‘Lives of the Pipers’ website:
http://livesofthepipers.com/1o’nolanshaun.html

The tune is older and appears in ‘Anderson’s Fifty New Scottish and Irish Reels and Hornpipes’, published in Scotland in 1826 as “Lady Harrington’s Reel.” More information is on the Traditional Tune Archive website.

It is also included in Canon Goodman’s Collection of music made in Co. Kerry in the mid-19th century (vol 2. p 159). It is not included in the two published volumes from the Irish Traditional Music Archive but the original hand-written score can be viewed on line at the ITMA web site. Interestingly no C sharps are indicated but possibly this is an omission:
http://goodman.itma.ie/volume-two#?c=0&m=0&s=0&cv=162&z=-4813.5288%2C0%2C17803.0576%2C6432

Hello!
Does somebody know dots Cormac Breatnach´s “The First of May”?
From the Deiseal album “The Long Long Note”.
It is really amazing.
Thanks!

Opening track on “The Wild Geese’s” second recording :
https://youtu.be/HzyoOAuVswo

play video

With regard to the song “Colcannon” mentioned above, the only person I ever heard sing it was the late Tim Lyons [ RIP ]. I’ll see if I still have a recording of it.

From Angelina Carberry and Martin Quinn. Not sure which key would this be played in a session. I went for A Mixolydian.

This is the track of the recording:

https://youtu.be/dqWdfckuVV0

play video

There is an Australian tune, one of our ‘trad’ tunes ( though most are derivative of the Anglo- Celtic repertoire) which must have come from this. It’s called The Sofala Cuckoo.