The Mill House reel

Another great tune from Andy Morrow and Tony O’Connell. They play it in Bb so I have transposed down to A coz I have yet to learn to play in Bb on my little concertina. According to the CD cover it is a John Martin Tune picked up via a circuitous route from the playing of Tom McElvogue. A fun tune to play.

Jamie, I played this tune to you at the session on Tuesday and you claimed you didn’t know it! Is my playing really that bad that you didn’t recognise it? 🙂

3 years have passed, maybe you’re playing has, like a fine wine layed down to mature, turned to vinegar… 😎

Or the bottle has exploded and spewed its ingredients all over the place…

The version John Martin plays is slightly different, i.e.

X: 1
T: Mill House, The
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
R: reel
K: Amaj
AB|:c2BA FEE2|A,B,CE FBAF|EFAB cfec|cBAc B2AB|
c2BA FEE2|A,B,CE FBAF|EFAB cfec|1BAcB ~A3B:|2BAcB A2cd||
eAce a2ga|fdaf ecAF|EFAB cfec|cBAc B2|
[1cd|eAce a2ga|fdaf ecAF|EFAB cfec|BAcB A2cd:||
[2AB|cBAc B2cd|c2BA FEE2|A,B,CE FDAF|EFAB cfec|BAcB ~A3B||

You can hear his original version on the “Fiddler’s Five” album

I seem to have too many bars in the repeat of the second part. It should read:

[2AB|c2BA FEE2|A,B,CE FDAF|EFAB cfec|BAcB ~A3B||

This is my take on the tune transposed up to G from the recording “Common Ground” with Crawford and Vallely
Last tune first track:
X: 1
T: Mill House, The
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
R: reel
K:G
GA|:B2AG ED~D2|GABD EDGE|DEGA BedB|BAAG Aded|
B2AG ED ~D2|~G3D EDGE|DEGA BedB|1AGAB G3A:|2 AGAB G3B||
dGBd fgfg|~e2 ge dBGE|DEGA BedB|BAAG ~A2BA|
[1G2Bd fgfg|ecge dBGE|DEGA BedB|AGAB ~G3B:|
[2B2AG ED~D2|GABD EDGE|DEGA BedB|AGAB G3A||

2nd time through the B section the 4th bar is played a bit differently: |BAAG Aded|
It was just a matter of expediency or laziness that I didn’t write it out fully….

Second tune in the set: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zE7SF3qE-PQ

play video

This is a cracker of a tune. Here’s a version for whistlers etc.

Hi all

This thread: https://thesession.org/discussions/42301 led me to this tune.

I’m not usually a fan of tunes in A major but this is one of the better ones; I’ve just about got it now and I’ll probably put it in G too when I get my head around it completely.

kiwi said it’s a John Martin tune - presumably of the Tannahill Weavers. Can anyone confirm it’s his? Kenny?

Regards
David

That’s correct David. I can’t remember where I first came across it as one of John’s tunes, but I’m 99% certain it’s one of his compositions. That would be John Martin of “Contraband”, “Ossian”, and “The Easy Club” before “The Tannahill Weavers”. John doesn’t get the recognition he deserves as a fiddler, because he’s been best known for his work in bands, but he’s as good as any of them. I posted a recording he made with Jack Evans on guitar which only ever came out on cassette. It’s one of my favourite Scottish fiddle recordings ever.
https://thesession.org/recordings/2392

From a post above : “You can hear his original version on the ”Fiddler’s Five“ album”. That’s where I heard it from.
https://thesession.org/recordings/2621

Make that 100%, Kenny. The tune was composed by John Martin and named after a house the North-East England where his wife’s parents lived.

Thanks Kenny & Nigel

I walked into the Roadside Tavern in Lisdoonvarna last Sunday 24/6/18 and what were they playing but this tune…

Regards
David

Mill House? Yeee-es, I remember him well!
It happened in the spring-time of the year of sixty four
When Englishmen were making pounds and fivers by the score
He beat them on the hollows, he beat them on the jumps
A pair of fancy fetlocks, well he showed them o’er the bumps

He’s English! He’s English! English as you’ve seen
A little bit of Arab stock and more from Stephen’s Green
Take a look at Mill House, throw out your chest with pride
He’s the greatest steeplechaser on the English countryside

Then a quiet man called Dreaper livin’ in the Emerald Isle
Said "That horse of yours called Mill House surely shows a bit of style
But I’ve a little fella and Arkle is his name
Put your money where you put your milk and then we’ll play the game"

Well the English racing gentleman laughed till fit to burst
"You tried before Tom Dreaper and then you came off worst
If you think your horse can beat us you’re runnin’ short on brains
It’s Mill House that you’re talking of and not those beastly Danes"

"Arkle now is five to two Mill House is money on
They’re off! and dear believe I do the Champion has it won
There are other horses in the race to test the great chap’s might
But deary me it’s plain to see the rest are out of sight"

"There are three more fences now to go he leads by twenty lengths
Brave Arkle’s putting in a show, poor chap he’s all but spent
Mill House sweeps on majestically great glory in each stride
He’s the greatest horse undoubledy within the whole world wide"

"Two to go, still he comes, cutting down the lead
He’s beaten bar the shouting, he hasn’t got the speed
They’re on the run-up to the last, my God, can he hold out
Look behind you Willie Robinson, man what are you about?"

"They’re at the last and over, Pat Taffe has more in hand
He’s passing England’s Mill House, the finest in the land
My God he has us beaten! What can we English say?
The ground was wrong? The distance long? Too early early in the day?"
(Dominic Behan)

https://youtu.be/V_PDZ8vcgVs

play video

Check out that guitar the dude in the paddy Callaghan band is rockin ? Its a D40 class martin
Thats a lot of gat.

He’s Adam Brown of Imar and Rura.

He’s pretty hot on the bodhran too. (Adam)
I gather John Martin is just retiring, having played with the Tannies 2 weeks ago at Edinburgh Folk Club: no doubt will still be seen around the sessions.

A couple of variations for flute players in the A part:

AB|c3B AFEF|A3B FEAF|EFAB cfec|cBBA B2AB|cefa feee|ABcE FEAF|EFAB cfec|BABc AEAB:||