The Humours Of Ennistymon jig

I learned this off a video of Dervish playing with flute player Seamus Tansey—a terrific rolling three-part jig. Dervish also put this on one of their cds in Cmajor (just jump down a string on fiddle).

All those big jumps across the strings—especially in Parts B and C—make this initially a tricky tune for fiddlers, but take it slow and the jumps will soon fall in place.

We do this one after Connaughtman’s Rambles, changing key while hanging on the B note that ends Connaughtman’s and begins Coppers and Brass. But it’d go well after almost an Dmajor jig, or before for that matter.
Will

I fell in love with this tune after hearing it on a Dervish album. Would love to see that video sometime.

This is an odd, G-heavy grouping, but it works for me on the bouzouki: Charles O’Connor, into Coppers and Brass/Humors of Ennistymon with chording, then Haste to the Wedding, with Donnybrook Fair thrown on the end.

Someone told me that if it’s just the A and B part, the tune is Coppers and Brass, but if you play all three parts, it’s the Humors of Ennistymon….

I learnt this from the High Level Ranters album "High Level" (1971) - it probably crept onto a Northumbrian record as the A part bears more than a passing resemblance to the "Keel Row".
They played "Tobins" after it, and we tag "Sweets of may, Dingle Regatta and Father Kellys" before it to make a super set of jigs.

I had this tune in my head one day in Miltown Malbay, myself and a friend were sitting sheltering from the rain in the car beside our tent, I took out the mandolin to get it down, and my friend said to me, "that’s a lovely jig, what’s it called?" I told him I hadn’t a notion, and that I didn’t even know where I’d heard it.

It was about two weeks later it hit me I’d heard Dervish play it, so I put on the CD and then realised there was a third part to it, I still didn’t know the name though. I was listening to Michael Coleman by chance and heard him play it, finally I was able to put a name to it.

T:Coppers and Brass
M:6/8
L:1/8
R:jig
Z:gmp
K:G
d/2c/2|BGB BGB|AFA AFA|~B3 ABA|GBd ged|
~B3 BAG|ABA DFA|ded cAF|AGF G2:|d|
~f3 fed|cAG FGA|g2g gfg|agf d2e|
f/2g/2fd e/2f/2ed|cAG FGA|BGB cAF|AGF G2:|

T:Coppers And Brass
R:Jig
S:Paddy Canny, Clare (fiddle)
Z:Bernie Stocks
N:As played
D:Home tape of unknown provenance
H:’f2’ in bar 17 slid heavily
M:6/8
K:G
{d}(3BABB GBd | ~c3 Adc | ~B3 GBd | (3cBAG FGA |
~B3 ~G3 | (3.c.c.Bc ABc | dfd cAF | AGF G2A |
{d}(3BABB GBd | ~c3 Adc | ~B3 GBd | (3cBAG FGA |
(3.B.B.GG (3.B.B.GG | AFF (3.A.B.cA | BdB {d}cAF | AGF G(5ABcde ||
f2f {g}fed | {e}dcA AGF | GBd ~g3 | afd {e}dcA |
^cde fed | cAG FGA | (3BcdB {d}cAF |1 AGF G2e :|2 AGF G2f ||
gdB (3.g.g.dB | (3.e.e.cA ecA | gdB {d}BAB | {d}cAG FGA |
(3.g.g.dB (3.g.g.dB | ecA ecA | ~B3 ~G3 | (3.c.c.AF G2f |
gdB (3.g.g.dB | (3efgf ecA | ~B3 ~G3 (3.c.c.AG FGA |
(3BcdB GEG | cec ABc | dfd (3cBAF | AGF G3 ||

I’ve never come across an Irish name for this in my travels, but out of interest it could be ‘Pinginí is Pinginí" (I don’t know if many people in the world still call pennies ‘coppers’, but we do here) pennies = pinginí, and the popular slang for brass is pinginí as well (the actual word being prás, but that doesn’t make the translation as interesting!)

It’s on Dick Gaughan’s record from 1977 and is the title of the record. It’s in In Brendan Brethneach’s book 1 with it’s Irish name copper pennies and brass

Johnny Doran the travelling piper played it and it’s on his record it’s a superb version with a wild opening phrase . I reckon he used it to gather a crowd at the horse fairs and races.

This is the version I know…….

X: 1
T: Humors of Ennistymon
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
R: jig
K: Gmaj
A| ~B3 GBd | cBc ABc | B/c/dB GBd | cAG FGA |
~B3 GBd | cBc ABc | ded cAF | AGF G2 :|
d | ~f3 fed | cAG FGA | dgg gfg | afd d2 e |
f/g/ag fed | cAG FGA | ~B3 cAF | AGF GB :|
d | gdB gdB | ecA ecA | ~B3 GBd | cAG FED |
gdB gdB | ecA ecA | B/c/dB GBd | cAF G2 :|

I believe that a copper is an outdated name for a cooking pot/pan, which must have been made of copper, I guess. The brass might refer to the candlestick holders, table necessities, etc. When I hear this tune, I imagine some vendor in a horse and wagon driving about calling out "Coppers and brass for sale" or something like that…Just a guess re: what this tune is about.

I think the title refers to money, c.smitty. Regardless, here’s some fun reading.😏
http://www.imt.ie/opinion/2009/11/gun_money_war_and_farts_for_th.html
http://www.businessballs.com/moneyslanghistory.htm#slang%20money%20meanings%20and%20origins

I don’t kow if I ever liked this tune but too many helpings at sessions have killed it for me. Nice wild f’s in the second part though!

I believe the two-part version Gian Marco transcribed is the traveller’s version of the tune. https://thesession.org/tunes/228#comment125457

It’s on Paddy Keenan’s self-titled album, and you can also listen to Felix Doran’s nephew John Rooney and his son Larry Rooney play it: http://www.grtleeds.co.uk/Culture/PointerSession/PointerSession14.mp3

A Session with John Rooney: http://www.grtleeds.co.uk/Culture/rooneyRecordings.html

Sorry, try this link to the transcription: https://thesession.org/tunes/228/comments/#comment125457

Sorry for a grammatical error this time.

X:1
T:Humours of Ennistymon
M:6/8
L:1/8
K:Gmaj
|:~B3 GAB|~c3 Adc|B2 D GBd|cAG FGA|
|~B3 GAB|~c3 ABc|ded cAF|1AGF G2 A:|2AGF GBd||
|:~f3 fed|cAG FGA|dgg gfg|afd d3|
|(3fga f ged|cAG FGA|~B3 cAF|1AGF GBd:|2AGF G3||

This is close to what is played on Boys of the Lough ‘good friends - good music’ (Philo CD PH 1051).

Just two parts and nice long rolls to play around with. A nice hard drinking jig.

-Dan

Just two parts, nice long rolls to play around with. A

https://thesession.org/recordings/3593

track 5. ) Jigs: Coppers and Brass / The Blarney Pilgrim / The Rose in the Heather
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uz_b2aFgtr0

play video

http://youtu.be/NWVtuyIKY9M

play video

2nd jig is "Tatter Jack Walsh".

I’ve learnt bits and pices from various pipers, this is an old gig, but it has great energy.

Piping Jig.

Unfortunately someone on this site named Hartigan’s Fancy as Coppers and Brass, when it’s different tune. This Jig is Coppers and Brass.

My first uilleann pipe jig.

Nobody noticed this?
https://thesession.org/tunes/228

When someone calls out "Coppers and Brass" or "Humours of Ennistymon" I’m fain to wait to hear their version start off because I’ve always thought of these two jigs as similar but different tunes. I’ve thought of "Coppers and Brass" as a two-part jig while "Humours of Ennistymon" a three-parter that shares only the "B" part in common with "Coppers".
But, over time, some tunes seem to merge parts and morph into commonality so I wasn’t particularly bothered to play either as the same tune. Apparently though, Willie Clancy thought of them as different tunes too.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMYA1n8_iWw

play video

Transcribed from the Open House album by Kevin Burke on which it’s called The Humours Of Ennistymon.

A fiddle version

https://youtu.be/IkDeIhbE2hg

play video

This three part version has been transposed down from C, the key that the box player received the tune from Padraig O’Keeffe. This comes from Dan Herlihy’s book of 2003, page 47 tune 7. The first part is closer to its cousin, Coppers and Brass, than the other versions here. I particularly like the 3rd part which makes a nice variation on the usual 3rd part. You can hear POK himself playing this tune on
https://thesession.org/recordings/738 It is a lovely rendition with essentially this third part but a variation on the 2nd part. As it happens the only known video of POK playing on Youtube has this jig as the soundtrack:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-7c0GTVh60

play video

There’s another POK setting for fiddle in the ITMA collection (tune 1 in the McCarthy manuscripts.)

Much as I like the usual 3 part tune, I really like this setting based on the playing of Padraig O’Keeffe. I’ve tried to catch a little bit of the flavour of his playing but… Again it’s the 3rd part that gets to me.