Chips And Shavings reel

I got this by ear from a friend when I was in England. It was one of the first reels I learnt, and I used to make this tune sound so stupid when I tried to play it. I’m afraid I don’t know much about the tune, other than that it might be English.

I’ve just checked the Fiddler’s Companion, which has some notes about it but no abc. Looks like it might be from the northeast, so I’ll go with that until I hear otherwise.

Didn’t Alistair Anderson record this?

Recorded by the High Level Ranters "Four in a Bar?" in a set with Jacks Alive and Dear Tobacco. I think its in the Vickers Manuscript. An early favourite.

So it is, thanks Alex. That setting has 3 parts. The way the semiquavers runs are arranged suggests that it might have been played a bit slower than reels are played now. I suppose that would have been the way they ornamented them on the fiddle, rather than with rolls etc.

From William Vickers 1770 (+ note value correction for 1st 3 notes), entitled "Chips And Shavins or Blind Man’s Ramble":

|:(3A/B/c/|dAFD G2FE|D/E/F/G/ AF GEEB|dAFD G2FE|A/B/c/d/ AG FDD:|
|:B|ABAG F2DF|ABAF GEEB|ABAG F2ED|B/c/d AG FDD:|
|:A|dfaf g2fe|dfaf beef/g/|afge fdec|dBAG FDD:|

On JC’s you can find some settings from the 1800s including George Spencer (1831) and HSJ Jackson 1823, which are (unsurprisingly) closer to the posted version. They are all 2-part settings.

I’m guessing that it’s most likely that the person who gave the tune to me got it from the High Level Ranters recording. I don’t have it, and was wondering if their setting was taken from Vickers or whether it was the standard 2-part.

The High Level Ranters play the version from the Charleton Memorial Book It is slightly different from your version the A is:~
B/c/||: dAFA G2FE| DFAF BEE B/A/|dAFA G2FE|
DFAg fdd:|| In the 8 bar"B" bar 6 is:~
|dfaf gee f/g/|( I hope my abc is correct) I will post the other tunes in the set soon.

Yes please do. I’m also interested to know what speed they played this set at, if you can give us a rough idea in bpm. Do they play it like a reel or straight and more at the speed of a polka? I’m thinking that |DFAF BEE B/A/|d… looks a bit odd on paper if it were to be played like a reel.

Not quite a rant, not quite a reel. Best to play it like a Quebequois reel with stacks of drive and slightly less speed than an Irish or Scottish reel. Its not a regular tune up here in the North-east of England but it does get played every now and then.
Noel