Many A Wild Night polka

Source: Jackie Daly : Many’s a Wild Night
Transcription: gmp

This is the same as the ‘C’ and ‘D’ musics of Ballyoran Polka which I submitted on March 2nd 2004 with just a few negligable differences. Sliab Luachra play this tune faster than I tend to play the Ballyoran Polka.

I used to, and still do, play the two polkas as a set, and I don’t remember coming across them slammed together as a four part polka as suggested here - The Ballyoran Polka, ‘ABCD’. However, I do remember folks, usually ‘from away’ who would not repeat polkas, only once through, whatever the mix of melodies they chose.

https://thesession.org/tunes/2593

Key signature: G Major
Submitted on November 25th 2008 by JACKB
~ /tunes/9120

X: 2
T: Many a Wild Night
T: Begley’s
M: 2/4
L: 1/8
R: polka
K: Gmaj
B/c/ |:\
dg ge | dB BA/B/ | ce ed | Bd GB/c/ |
dg ge | dB BA/B/ | ce ed | G2 G2 :|
|:GD/G/ Bd | cA AG | FD/F/ Ac | BG GF |
GD/G/ Bd | cA AG | Fe dF |[1 G2 G2 :|[2 G2- G |]

Note: I’ve added the second ending, which wasn’t given in Jack’s transcription ~ |[2 G2- G |] B/c/ | ~ and converted the first lead-in from Bc to B/c/. If the first of a set, and I’ve also played it that way, you can start the intro slowly, in other words ~ B2 c2 || ~ & the tune follows…

Forgot to say, the above is a rescued duplication… Since I’m here, why not another take for comparison, one of the ways I’ve learned to play this one…

X: 3
T: Many a Wild Night
M: 2/4
L: 1/8
R: polka
K: Gmaj
|: B/c/ |\
dg gf/e/ | dB BA/B/ | ce ed | BG G/A/B/c/ |
dg/f/ gf/e/ | dB BA/B/ | ce ed | G2 G :|
|: D |\
GD/G/ Bd | cA A/B/A/G/ | FD/F/ Ac | BG G/c/B/A/ |
GD/G/ Bc | BA A>G | Ae ed | G2- G :|

X: 1
T: Many A Wild Night
M: 2/4
L: 1/8
R: reel
K: Dmaj
| Ad dB | AF FD | GB BA | F/G/A D>B |
| Ad dB | AF FD | GB BA | D2 D>B :|
|: Ad fa | ge e>c | Ac e/f/g | fd d/e/d/B/|
| Ad fa | ge ed | ce ba | d2 d>B :|

First tune here ~ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VGwMnppEOQ

play video

This tune and the Ballyoran Polka can be found together as “Ballyoran Polkas” in Eamonn Jordan’s 1974 book “Whistle and Sing”. It can also be found in Moylan’s “Johnny O”Leary of Sliabh Luachra“ under the title ”Pa Keane’s" in the key of D.

The Ballyoran / An Gallope

X: 1 ~ # Added by hetty - March 2nd, 2004
- & -
X: 4 ~ # Added by Kevin Rietmann - October 14th, 2013

https://thesession.org/tunes/2593

S: John Brosnan

From the playing of John Redmond.

Some combination of previous settings.

The background to this tune, seemingly originally in four parts, is explained here: https://tunearch.org/wiki/Annotation:Many%27s_a_Wild_Night and the dots are on the related, linked main page, so I won’t paste them here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwPPWz2jrrs

play video

Here’s the quirky 3-part version of Many A Wild Night (you could call it a 4-part, if you consider the last two as being played singly), which is called Pa Keane’s in the book Johnny O’Leary of Sliabh Luachra. The version here is from the playing of Connie O’Connell and Eibhlín de Paor on the video below. The setting in Johnny’s book is fairly close. I’ve heard it being played by Connie, Timmy O’Connor, Matt Cranitch, Jackie Daly and others, and I’m not sure if anyone knows at this stage who’s the source for this many-part version. Did it fit a particular figure of the polka set better with an extra part attached, or did someone want their favourite march mixed with their favourite polka? Need more information!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZojJgZqMOY

play video