Old Lurgan Town jig

A tune which I came across recently, written by Marinie Toman, well-known in trad circles in Lurgan and beyond for his exquisite banjo playing. He wrote this jig when “in exile” in Donegal and was thinking about returning to his hometown. The first setting is converted into abc from Marinie’s own notation and playing in this video https://youtu.be/YEdhHz9yRIs. A second setting will follow which is how, after spending some time with the tune, I ended up adapting it to my own rather less accomplished style of playing…

play video

A simplified setting of the tune as played in this video, which Marinie was happy for me to share to YouTube. https://youtu.be/LQuqK3HVe-w

play video

Cheers Aidan Crossey, nicely done. Marinie.

Sadly, I learned yesterday that Marinie Toman passed away on Monday 7th May 2023.

Marinie brought much energy to the traditional Irish music scene in Lurgan and further afield and a great many players owe him a tremendous debt.

RIP to a local legend (but a legend, nevertheless).

Aidan