Planxty Davis hornpipe

You’ll probably realise this not a polka and shouldn’t be played too fast. This was the only 2/4 possibilty!

Russell’s House do a nice version on their album.

John

Known in Scotland - where it may, or may not have originated -as “Killiecrankie”. Recorded as such by Alison Kinnaird. My favourite version ( of “Planxty Davis” ) was recorded by Finbar Furey.

Plaxty Davis is definitly a hornpipe set( Im an irish dancer)

This should be in 6/8, it is a hornpipe. The notes are all there though.

Never seen a hornpipe notated in 6/8 before.

This is a lot like John J’s post, just written a little differently.
From the “Makin’ the Rounds” setting of B. McComiskey, as I recall it. Donny Golden’s dancing was the percussion.

X: 1
T: Planxty Davis
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
R: hornpipe
K: Dmaj
| FG |: A2AB A2FG | A>FA>B A3B | A>GF>E D>EF>G | A2AB A2FA |
|B2Bc B>AF>A | B>AB>c B2dB | A>GF>E D>EF>A | B2Bc B2b2 |
b>af>b a>fe>g | f>ed>f (3efe de | f>ed>B B>Ad>F | A2AB A2dc |
B2AB d2Bd | (3efe de f2ed | B>AB>c d2F2 |1 E4 D2FG :|2 E4 D2fg ||
a2ab a2fg | a>fa>b a3b | a>gf>e d>ef>g | a2ab a2fa |
b2bc‘ bafa | b>af>a b2c’b | a>gf>e d>ef>a | b2ba b2fa |
b>af>b a>fe>g | f>ed>f (3efe de | f>ed>B B>A d>F | A2AB A2dc |
B2AB d2Bd | (3efe de f2ed | B>AB>c d2F2 |1E4 D2fg :|2 E4 D4 ||

Under one of these names, rendered beautifully on guitar by singer - guitarist Nic Jones on his album “Penguin Eggs” - IMHO the best or at any rate equal best (!) to come out of the English trad revival; they didn’t come better, at any rate. Nic’s career was finished by a car crash a long time ago, although he is still alive.
(The penguin eggs feature in a song about whalemen working in the South Atlantic, where these were a treat in their diet.)

check out tony byrne playing planxty davis on youtube- real sweet

This is one of the dozen or so surviving tunes composed by Thomas Connellan, an Irish harpist, who spent a lot of time in Scotland around the 1600s and named this tune after the battle of Killiecrankie. Brother of William Connellan - between them they composed over 700 tunes, only a handfull survive

here’s that tony byrne link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HF8YqUHjxAk

play video

I learned this tune with straight 4/4 rhythem, like a slow reel.

Plaxty Davis is definitly a hornpipe set( Im an irish dancer)

That fact should automatically disqualify you from saying anything about any trad tune. Dancers usually know f*** all about tunes. They may know dances, but there is not a one-to-one correspondence between the nomenclatures used by dancers and musicians.

played by Seán McAloon on the uilleann pipes….
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-5Gd_g-zKI

play video

This the the piping version of this tune by the great Finbar Furey, always intrigued me this tune, Finbar remains one of the greatest uilleann pipers today, his early recordings are just amazing.

https://thesession.org/tunes/2937

This is not a polka it’s obviously a hornpipe, maybe the other versions need to come over to here.

“it’s obviously a hornpipe”

Or a set dance, song, march or whatever (Henry Atkinson even pencilled it in as as a “Highland Pibroch” - “Irish Gilikrankey”). It’s here in two other places too:

https://thesession.org/tunes/8937

https://thesession.org/tunes/5961

As the tune appears in the earlier manuscripts as “Gilly Cranky” (Killiecrankie) etc, perhaps all versions should go to one of those entries.

It’s #973 in my copy of “O’Neill’s 1001 Gems”. It’s placed in the section “Long Dances and Set Dances”.

“Weejie” - your first link to #8937 is to the tune of the song “Braes O’ Killiecrankie”, nothing to do with this tune. #5961, posted by “ceolachan”, is a version of the same though.

Indeed, Kenny. I should have looked more carefully. The first link is the well known song.

Anyone know for sure if the origin of this tune is scottish (Killiecrankie) of irish (Planxty Davis)???
thanks in advance!

The latest version I’ve heard of this is by uilleann piper Leonard Barry on his CD “New Road”. His sleeve notes state :
“Planxty Davis was composed by Thomas O’Connellan on the occasion of the Battle of Killiecrankie, fought on July 27th 1689”
He, Leonard Barry, “learned this tune from the great piper Finbar Furey”.

Kimberley Fraser plays this as an air (in A min.) on her ‘Heart Behind the Bow’ cd. Beautifully accompanied by Sheumas MacNeil on piano.
It’s listed as a marching air in Jerry Holland : The Second Collection, edited by Paul Cranford. The accompanying notes tell us that
“The tune first appeared with this title - (Killiecrankie) - in manuscript form in 1694 (Atkinson Ms.). It was later published in Henry Playford’s Collection of Scotch Melodies (London, 1701). Known in most Irish circles as Planxty Davis (O‘Neill, 1903),it appeared in 1742 as The Two William Davises as one of the blind harper O’Carolan ’s compositions.”.

Apologie. Correction to the above. It’s in C. Mea culpa!

Apology. Mea maxima culpa.. (for now).

Audio only on “Youtube” - played by Peadar Broderick on flute, at the Willie Clancy Summer School Flute / whistle recital in 1980.

https://youtu.be/XbJoQ4TC2WY

play video

Works well in the lower Key on fiddle as per “Castor Bay” Album - Barry and Laura Kerr

Whatever it is,
it is what you make of it when you play it.

Leo Rowsome:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3QcmqcA3rA

play video

It’s a Set Dance