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Galway Bay hornpipe

Also known as The Democratic, The Drunken Sailor, Galway Bay, The Galway Bay.

There are 66 recordings of this tune.

This tune has been recorded together with

Galway Bay appears in 4 other tune collections.

Galway Bay has been added to 20 tune sets.

Galway Bay has been added to 229 tunebooks.

Download ABC

Seven settings

1
X: 1
T: Galway Bay
R: hornpipe
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Gdor
GA|:~B3 c dcdf|~g3 a gabg|fdbg fdcd|B{c}AGF GFDF|
GFGA BABG|~F3 G AGFD|GABc dcBA|(3BcB G2 G2 z2:|
|: g{a}fdf gabg|gfdf dBGA|~B3 c dcde|fc (3dcB AGFD|
BFdB cFcA|BFdB Acd_e|dfga bagf|d2 g2 g2 z2:|
# Added by edl .
2
X: 2
T: Galway Bay
R: hornpipe
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Gmin
GA|BABc dcd^f|g^fga gabg|=fdbg fdcd|BAG^F GFDF|
G2GA BABG|=F2FG AGFD|GABc dcBA|B2G2G2:|
|:g2|gfd^f gabg|g=fdf GFDF|BABc dcd=e|fcdB AGFD|
G^FGA BABc|BFdB AFec|d^fga bag=f|d2g2g2:|
3
X: 3
T: Galway Bay
R: hornpipe
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Emin
EF | GFGA ~B3d | edef dfge | dBge dBAB | GFED EDB,D |
~E3F GFGE | D2DE FEDB, | EFGA BAGF | G2E2 E2:|
~e2- | edBd efg~e- | edBd EDB,D | ~G3A BABc | dABG FEDB, |
GDBG FDcA | GDBG FDcA | Bdef gfed | B2e2 e2 :|
# Added by gone .
4
X: 4
T: Galway Bay
R: hornpipe
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Emin
EF | GFGA ~B3d | edef dfge | dBge dBAB | GFED EDB,D |
~E3F GFGE | D2DE FEDB, | EFGA BAGF | G2E2 E2:|
~e2- | edBd efg~e- | edBd EDB,D | ~G3A BABc | dABG FEDB, |
GDBG FDcA | GDBG FDcA | Bdef gfed | B2e2 e2 :|
# Added by Nico .
5
X: 5
T: Galway Bay
R: hornpipe
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Edor
EF|:~G3 A BABd|e2 ed efge|dBge dBAB|GFED EDB,D|
E2 EF GFGE|D2 DE FEDB,|EFGA BAGF|(3GAG E2 E2 z2:|
|:edBd efge|edBd BGEF|~G3 A BABc|dA (3BAG FEDB,|
G2 BG F2 A2|G2 BG F2 A2 |Bdef gfed|B2 e2 e2 z2:|
6
X: 6
T: Galway Bay
R: hornpipe
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Edor
E | F G3 A B3 | d e3 e>fg>e | d>Bg>e d>BA>B | G>FE>D E>DB,>D |
E3 F G3 E | D3 E F>ED>B, | E>FG>A B>A (3FGA | G2 E2 E3 :|
|:e>dB>d e2 g>f | e>dB>=c B>GE>F | G3 A B3 c | d>AB>G F>ED>F |
G>DB>G F>DA>F | G>DA>G F>D=c>A | B>de>f g>fe>d | B2 e2 e2 :|
7
X: 7
T: Galway Bay
R: hornpipe
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Gdor
GA|:B2 Bc d2d^f|g2dg gabg|fdbg fdcd|BAGA GFD2|
~G3A BABG|~F3 G AGFD|GABc dcBA|B2 G2 G2:|
|: g2dg gaba|gfd_e dAGA|B2Bc dcde|fdcB AGF2|
BfdB ABcA|BfdB cd_ec|d2ga bagf|d2 g2 g2 z2:|

Sixteen comments

This name has already been used as an alt. for the Drunken Sailor but this is the tune that’s in O’Neill’s and recorded by both Joe Burke and Andy McGann as Galway Bay, so I hope it’s ok to use it.

I’ve relied on the McGann recording. If you like his use of double stops you could try |:[B3D3]c [d3F3]f| for the first bar of the A and |d [g2d2] [g2d2]| for the last bar of the B part.

Posted by .

Another version from O’Neill 1001gems

X:2
T:Galway bay
R:hornpipe
S:O’Neill
M:4/4
L:1/8
K:Gmin
GA|BABc dcd^f|g^fga gabg|=fdbg fdcd|BAG^F GFDF|
G2GA BABG|=F2FG AGFD|GABc dcBA|B2G2G2:|
|:g2|gfd^f gabg|g=fdf GFDF|BABc dcd=e|fcdB AGFD|
G^FGA BABc|BFdB AFec|d^fga bag=f|d2g2g2:|

Galway Bay

It’s also recorded by John McGann in his Octave Mandolin & Bouzouki book.

The Democratic

Someone asked in a discussion thread what people played with The Rights of Man. I remember someone playing this with it (not what I use myself - that’s Kemp’s, to be submitted soon).

I’ve known this tune ever so long. But now I discover that it’s from Kerr’s Merry Melodies Vol II. There, it is in G minor, but since I’ve always thought of it (and, as far as I know heard it played this way) in Eminor, that’s what I’ve used here.

Posted by .

In a set with the "Rights of Man"

My preference is to go into "The Blackbird". Nice change of key I feel.

Posted by .

Which one?

Which Blackbird, hetty?

Posted by .

"The Blackbird"

This one!
https://thesession.org/tunes/1104

It’s the only one I’ve ever known but thank you for the prompt, I hadn’t realised there were so many.
I’ve never had the need to research it. Just shows there is always something new to learn.

Posted by .

Paddy Carty, Conor Tully etc. played this tune a lot - in the key of Gm and basically as a slowish reel rather than a hornpipe (no dotted notes)

Another version in a different key

https://thesession.org/tunes/10145/comments

X: 1
T: Democratic, The
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
R: hornpipe
K: Emin
EF | GFGA ~B3d | edef dfge | dBge dBAB | GFED EDB,D |
~E3F GFGE | D2DE FEDB, | EFGA BAGF | G2E2 E2:|
~e2- | edBd efg~e- | edBd EDB,D | ~G3A BABc | dABG FEDB, |
GDBG FDcA | GDBG FDcA | Bdef gfed | B2e2 e2 :|

The Democratic
Someone asked in a discussion thread what people played with The Rights of Man. I remember someone playing this with it (not what I use myself - that’s Kemp’s, to be submitted soon).
I’ve known this tune ever so long. But now I discover that it’s from Kerr’s Merry Melodies Vol II. There, it is in G minor, but since I’ve always thought of it (and, as far as I know heard it played this way) in Eminor, that’s what I’ve used here.
# Posted on December 27th 2009 by ethical blend

Posted by .

The Democratic is also the name for this tune in Cole/Ryan’s, where it’s in g.

Posted by .

Paddy Carty Transcription

I have done a transcription of Paddy Carty’s version of this tune this afternoon. It’s a quick job but consists of most of the important elements in his playing. If anybody is interested, feel free to email me and I can send you on a MuseScore file with the score attached. It would be too much hassle for me to write it out in ABC with all of the ornaments and such included.

The Drunken Sailor

Tommy Potts called this "The Drunken Sailor" on his excellent solo fiddle album "The Liffey Banks" (which Frankie Gavin just highly recommended to an audience in Austin a couple nights ago, and rightly so).

And yes, the one listed above (https://thesession.org/tunes/10145/comments) does seem to be a duplicate. Is there a way to request a merge?

Galway Bay, X:5

This is the version I originally learned many years ago in the key of G Dorian. This is the same version only in E Dorian.

Galway Bay, X:6

This seems to belong in the Pride of Petravore / Rights of Man / King of the Fairies stable of tunes. Nice to throw in as a contrast to some of the lighter, major scale hornpipes. Or maybe just put all the minor / dorian ones together - fill yer boots!

Taken from ‘A Fine Selection of Over 200 Irish Traditional Tunes for Sessions’, compiled by David Speers with a Forward by Matt Cranitch.

Galway Bay, X:7

This is Matt Molloy’s version from his cd "Back to the Island" (https://thesession.org/recordings/6041)

youtube link : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQHCDGnXDXI


The A part is a lot like the other settings posted here but the B part has some differences.

Throughout the A part except for the last two measures, Mr. Molloy uses the cross fingering on the c natural, causing it to be a bit to sharp and to have an effect similar to what a c# would achieve.