Crossing The Shannon reel

making the ‘c’ natural also sounds good

I learned this tune in the key of C from the playing of the Kane Sisters. They play it after what sounds like a Fahy-ized version of Ed Reavy’s “Red Tom of the Hills” (almost all F’s totally natural in the A part).

They credit this tune as being composed by Paddy O’Brien (not sure which one they meant).

I’ve heard the B-part as Ad~d2 fage|f2df afdB|A…

The “Crossing the Shannon” on Na Connerys isn’t this tune at all. Closest is the reel Man of the House.

On the album by Brian Fitzgerald, Oisin MacDiarmada and Michael Rooney, the tune is attributed to Paddy Fahy. Apparently Fahy gave the tune to Joe Burke saying “it’s a funny kind of old thing and you might make something out of it”. Thus, it was christened the Funny Reel.

This is another title on it from Paul Bradley’s album. Cooley being indeed the great Joe Cooley.

I wonder where this tune came from … hhmm

this tune (the repeated d’s in it especially) sounds a bit like the chattering of the teeth of the swimmer who’s just reached the other bank

https://thesession.org/recordings/968

I seem to remember that the source of Oisin MacDiarmada’s information [ listed above by “52Paddy” ] came from this album. Unfortunately I no longer have it, so can’t check. Joe Burke would generally be regarded as an impeccable source of information on Irish traditional music.

Got this version from the second tune here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JG0Le-546Vc&t=1m58s

play video

Yes, the recording has it in C, but I moved it up to D - Easier for me anyway.

Here’s my favorite version.

https://youtu.be/FXqlUCOZBcc

play video

This is Joe Burke’s version of Fahy’s “Funny Reel” that I posted a YouTube of below.

Opening reel on James Keane’s Roll Away the Reel World album.

I learned this version from Páraic Mac Donnchadha at a banjo workshop he gave at Scoil Cheoil na Botha in 2018.