The Hag At The Spinning Wheel jig

Also known as An Cailín Fionn, Cailín An Túirna, Cailleach An Túirne, Garrett Barry’s, Gearoid De Barra, Kiss Me Darling, The Ladies’ Fancy, Maid At The Spinning Wheel, The Maid At The Spinning Wheel, Maid At The Spinnning Wheel, The Maid Of The Spinning Wheel, The Maid On The Spinning Wheel, Maire An Phortair, Nora Kista, Nora Likes Cake, Nora With The Purse, Nora’s Purse, Noran Kista, Noresnkeesta, Norickystie, Port An Achreidh, The Road To Lurgan, Sergeant Early’s, The Spinning Wheel, Tune The Fiddle, The Wild Irishman, Wreathe The Bowl.

There are 58 recordings of this tune.

This tune has been recorded together with

Do You Want Any More? (a few times),
Tatter Jack Walsh (a few times),
The Gander In The Pratie Hole (a few times) and
The Hag With The Money (a few times).

The Hag At The Spinning Wheel appears in 4 other tune collections.

The Hag At The Spinning Wheel has been added to 48 tune sets.

The Hag At The Spinning Wheel has been added to 408 tunebooks.

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Twelve settings

X: 1
T: The Hag At The Spinning Wheel
R: jig

M: 6/8
L: 1/8
K: Gmaj
D|:GBG BcA|BcA B2D|GBG BcA|F2G AFD|
GBG BcA|BcA Bge|fed cAF|1 GAG G2D:|2 GAG Gdc||
|:BAG AFD|~D3 AFD|~D3 AFD|EFG ABc|
BAG AFD|~D3 FEF|ded cAF|1 GAG Gdc:|2 GAG G2D||
|:GBd gba|gdB ecA|ded cAG|F2G AFD|
GBd gba|gdB ede|fed cAF|1 GAG G2D:|2 GAG Gdc||
|:BAG Aed|Bed Aed|Bed AFD|EFG ABc|
BAG AFD|~D3 FEF|ded cAF|1 GAG Gdc:|2 GAG G2D||

X: 2
T: The Hag At The Spinning Wheel
R: jig

M: 6/8
L: 1/8
K: Gmaj
|:~G3 B2G|BcA B2D|~G3 cAG|F2G AFD|
~G3 B2G|BcA Bge|fed cAF|1 GAG G2D:|2 GAG G2c||
|:BAG AFD|~D3 AFD|~D3 AFD|EFG ABc|
BAG AFD|~D3 FEF|ded cAF|1 GAG G2c:|2 GAG G2D||
|:GBd gba|gdB ecA|dBG cAG|F2G AFD|
GBd gba|gdB ~e3|fed cAF|1 GAG G2D:|2 GAG G2c||
|:BAG Afd|Bfd Agd|Bfd AFD|EFG ABc|
BAG AFD|~D3 FEF|ded cAF|1 GAG G2c:|2 GAG G2D||

X: 3
T: The Hag At The Spinning Wheel
R: jig

X: 4
T: The Hag At The Spinning Wheel
R: jig

X: 5
T: The Hag At The Spinning Wheel
R: jig

X: 6
T: The Hag At The Spinning Wheel
R: jig

X: 7
T: The Hag At The Spinning Wheel
R: jig

M: 6/8
L: 1/8
K: Gmaj
D|:G3 B2G|BcA B2D|Gc/A/G cAG|F3 AFD|
Gc/A/G B2G|BcA B2c|df/g/d cAF|1 AGF G2D:|2 AGF G2c||
|:BAG AFD|D3 AFD|D3 AFD|EFG ABc|
BAG AFD|D3 AFD|df/g/d cAF|1 AGF G2c:|2 AGF G2D||
|:GB/c/d gba|gdB ecA|dBG cAG|F2G AFD|
GB/c/d gba|gdB ecA|fed cAF|1 AGF G2D:|2 AGF G2A||
|:c/B/AG Afd|Bfd Afd|Bfd AFD|EFG ABc|
BAG AFD|D3 AFD|df/g/d cAF|1 AGF G2A:|2 AGF G2D||

X: 8
T: The Hag At The Spinning Wheel
R: jig

X: 9
T: The Hag At The Spinning Wheel
R: jig

M: 6/8
L: 1/8
K: Gmaj
|:A|{g}d{e}d{c}d {g}f2 d|{g}fge {gfg}f2 A|{g}d{e}d{c}d {g}f2 d|{gcd}c2 d {g}ec{d}A|
{g}d{e}d{c}d {g}f2 d|{g}fge {gfg}f2 A|a/ {GdG}a/ ge{g}c|{Gdc}d3 {gdc} d2:|
|:g|{a}fed {g}ec{d}A|{g}A{d}A{e}A {g}ec{d}A|{g}A{d}A{e}A {g}ec{d}A|{g}Bcd {g}efg|
[23 {a}fed {g}ec{d}A|{g}A{d}A{e}A {g}ec{d}A|a/ {GdG}a/ ge{g}c|{Gdc}d3 {gdc} d2:|
|:g|{a}fed {g}ea{g}a|fa{g}a ea{g}a|fa{g}a ec{d}A|{g}Bcd {g}efg|
[1 {a}fed {g}ea{g}a|fa{g}a ec{d}A|a/ {GdG}a/ ge{g}c|{Gdc}d3 {gdc} d2:|

X: 10
T: The Hag At The Spinning Wheel
R: jig

M: 6/8
L: 1/8
K: Gmaj
D|:~G3 B2G|BcA B2D|~G3 cAG|F2G AFD|
~G3 B2G|BcA B2g|fed cAF|1 AGF GED:|2 AGF GBc||
|:BAG AFD|~D3 AFD|~D3 AFD|EFG ABc|
BAG AFD|~D3 AFD|ded cAG|1 AGF GBc:|2 AGF G2d||
|:GB/c/d gba|gdB ecA|dBG cAG|~F3 AFD|
GB/c/d gba|gdB ecA|fed cAF|1 AGF GED:|2 AGF ~G2c||
|:BAG Afd|Bgd Afd|Bgd AFD|EFG ABc|
BAG AFD|~D3 AFD|ded cAG|1 AGF ~G2c:|2 AGF G2||

X: 11
T: The Hag At The Spinning Wheel
R: jig

X: 12
T: The Hag At The Spinning Wheel
R: jig

M: 6/8
L: 1/8
K: Gmaj
|:G3 ~B3 |BcA ~B2(D |G)FG cAG |~F3 AF(D |
{G}D)GD ~B2D|BcA ~B2(g|{fg}f)ed ({d}cA)F|1 AGF GD/E/F:|2 AGF GA/B/c||
|:{c}BA(G A)F(D |{G}D)({F}ED) AF(D |{G}D)({F}ED) AF(D |E)FG ABc |
~B3 AF(D |{G}D){F}ED AF(A |d)ed ({d}cA)F |1 AGF GA/B/c:|2 AGF GD/E/F ||
|:GB/c/d gba|gdB ec(A|d)BG cAG|~F3 AFD|
GB/c/d gba|gdB ecA|g/f/ed ({d}cA)F|1 AGF GD/E/F:|2 AGF GA/B/c||
|:{c}BA(G A)f(d |{A}B)g(d A)f(d |{A}B)gd AFD |EFG ABc|
~B3 AF(D |D){F}ED AF(A |d)ed ({d}cA)F |1 AGF GA/B/c:|2 AGF GD/E/F ||

Twenty-eight comments

The Hag At The Spinning Whee

I learned this from Brian McNeill’s first solo album.Is it a modern tune? I only began to hear it in sessions in the late 80’s.

It’s an old tune, favourite from the pipers.

among the pipers.

The Hag At The Spinning Wheel (jig)

T:Hag at the Spinning Wheel, The
M:6/8
L:1/8
S:Paddy Moloney & Sean Potts : “Tin Whistles”
R:jig
Z:g.m.p.
K:G
~G3 B2G|BcA B2D|~G3 cAG|F2G AFD|~G3 B2G|BcA Bge|fed cAF|1 GAG G2D:|2 GAG
G2c||
|:BAG AFD|~D3 AFD|~D3 AFD|EFG ABc|BAG AFD|~D3 FEF|ded cAF|1 GAG G2c:|2 G
AG G2D||
|:GBd gba|gdB ecA|dBG cAG|F2G AFD|GBd gba|gdB ~e3|fed cAF|1 GAG G2D:|2 G
AG G2c||
|:BAG Afd|Bfd Agd|Bfd AFD|EFG ABc|BAG AFD|~D3 FEF|ded cAF|1 GAG G2c:|2 G
AG G2D||

The Road To Lurgan

Essentially a 2-part version of “The Maid At The Spinning Wheel” (or the Maid At The Spinning Wheel is a 3- or 4-part version of this tune … take your pick). One of the few tunes named after the town in whose hinterland I grew up.

A true story … I was playing this one night and somebody asked me the name. “The Road To Lurgan” I answered. A sour face … “Jayz. I’d sooner hear the road *out of* thon kip!”

Jerry O`Sullivan & Hag at the Spinning Wheel

Will, on what recording(s) does Jerry O`Sullivan play the Hag At The Spinning Wheel?
I would like to learn this tune but have not heard any piping versions so far.

It’s on Eileen Ivers‘ “Wild Blue” cd, 2nd track. They do Maid at the Spinning Wheel, Scatter the Mud, and Jimmy Ward’s Favorite. In the sleeve notes, Eileen says she learned “the last part--the really piping, cranny, fun part” from Jerry O’Sullivan.

I’ve heard the two of them do the same set live, and they’re both just cranking on all three reels. Good stuff.

thanks Will.

Er, “reels”??? Sorry, don’t know what I was smoking on March 24. Jigs, obviously. :8)

Like most of the other pipe jigs, this sounds nice on banjo. Enda Scahill recorded it, and one of my friends in Yorkshire sometimes plays it on banjo too.

“The Road to Lurgan” ~ the first two parts on their own:

Submitted on September 1st 2004 by Aidan Crossey.
https://thesession.org/tunes/3474

“The Maid at the Spinning Wheel” ~ 4-parts

Submitted on August 29th 2003 by dafydd.
https://thesession.org/tunes/2254

The first two parts of this tune are “The Road to Lurgan”, maybe the next two are “The Road out of Lurgan”?

Box and Banjo Duet

Watch Martin Ryan and Marcus Maloney play this jig: http://comhaltas.ie/music/detail/comhaltaslive_249_1_martin_and_noel_ryan_and_marcus_maloney/

Discussion: Anyone recognize this tune? ~ rescued transcription?

~ | Agf G2 :|

Oops! forgot to remove that D, the A-part, bar 8… 😛

“The Hag At The Spinning Wheel” ~ revisiting Gian Marco’s transcript

In O’Neill

This tune appears twice in O‘Neill’s ’Music of Ireland‘ (“the 1850”), as #830 ’The Road to Lurgan‘, and again (in a different setting) as #920 ’Kiss Me Darling".

The Road To Lurgan, X:2

This great version appears in Breandan Breathnach, Ceol Rince na hÉireann, vol. 1, 1963, p. 3, no 1 as Cailleach an Túirne.
According to the Fiddler’s Companion and Breathnach, this tune has many other names : “Cailín an Túirna”, “Garrett Barry [’s Jig]”, “Gearoid de Barra”, “Is Maith Le Nora Ciste” (Nora Likes Cake), “Kiss Me Darling”, “The Ladies’ Fancy”, ”The Maid at/of the Spinning Wheel“, ”Maire an Phortair“, “Noran Kista”, “Nora’s Purse”, “Nora with the Purse”, ”Norickystie“, ”Port an Achreidh”, “Sergeant Early’s Jig“, “The Spinning Wheel”, ”Tune the Fiddle”, “The Wild Irishman”, ”Wreathe the Bowl”.

Re: The Hag At The Spinning Wheel

This lovely tune invites you to be playful and inviting you to an abundance of variations and inventions. I would like to invite you to have a listen to Fergal Scahill’s project “a Fiddle tune a day (2017)” where he in his creative and playful way is fiddling, frolicking and rollicking around with this maid ;+). The tune doesn’t sound as a hag at all! For your conveniance : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSC-KaA9ydE