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The Rooskey polka

Also known as A Kiss Behind The Door, The Church Street Polkas #1, The Church Street Polkas No. 1, Roosky, The Roosky, Sligo To Dublin.

There are 12 recordings of this tune.

This tune has been recorded together with

The Rooskey appears in 1 other tune collection.

The Rooskey has been added to 13 tune sets.

The Rooskey has been added to 40 tunebooks.

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Five settings

1
X: 1
T: The Rooskey
R: polka
M: 2/4
L: 1/8
K: Gmaj
d2 de/f/|g/f/e/d/ B/A/G/A/|Be d/B/e/d/|BA AB/c/|
d2 de/f/|g/f/e/d/ B/A/G/A/|Bd g/f/g/a/|1 ba g>e:|2 ba g>d||
Bd g/f/g/a/|ba a/b/a/g/|fd fa|gf e>d|
Bd g/f/g/a/|ba a/b/a/g/|fd fa|1 g2 g>d:|2 g2 ge||
2
X: 2
T: The Rooskey
R: polka
M: 2/4
L: 1/8
K: Gmaj
d/|Bd de/f/|g/f/e/d/ BG|Be e/d/G|BA AB/c/|
d2 de/f/|g/f/e/d/ BG|Bd g>a|ba g>:|
d/|Bd g>a|ba a/b/a/g/|fd fa|g (3f/g/f/ (3e/f/e/ (3d/e/d/|
Bd g>a|ba a/b/a/g/|fd ef|g2 g>:|
3
X: 3
T: The Rooskey
R: polka
M: 2/4
L: 1/8
K: Gmaj
|d>^c de/f/|g/f/e/d/ BG|Bd gg/a/|ba aB/c/|
d>^c de/f/|g/f/e/d/ BG|Bd gg/a/|ba g2:|:
Bd gg/a/|ba a/b/a/g/|fd fa|gf ed
Bd gg/a/|ba a/b/a/g/|fd fa|gg/f/ g:|
4
X: 4
T: The Rooskey
R: polka
M: 2/4
L: 1/8
K: Dmaj
|:A2 A B/c/|d/c/B/A/ FD|FA A/F/D/E/|FE EF/G/|
A2 A B/c/|d/c/B/A/ FD|FA d>e|fe d2:|
|:FA d>e|fe e>d|cA ce|dc BA|
FA d>e|fe e>d|cA ce|d2 d>G:|
5
X: 5
T: The Rooskey
R: polka
M: 2/4
L: 1/8
K: Gmaj
|:d2 de/f/|g/f/e/d/ BA|Be dG|BA AB/c/|
d2 de/f/|g/f/e/d/ BA|Bd g>a|ba g2:|
|:Bd g>a|ba a/b/a/g/|fd fa|gf ed|
Bd g>a|ba a/b/a/g/|fd fa|gf g2:|

Seven comments

Russian? In Ireland they often assumed unusula tunes were from somewhere a bit different. The dances Polkas, Quadrilles, Waltzes Mmazurkas were of coursein their day

The Roosky (polka)

This tune was recorded by accordionist James keane on his 1998 album ‘With Friends Like These’ (https://thesession.org/recordings/1603) as the first of “The Church Street Polkas” - that setting is No.2 given above. The second is what I know as “The Church Street Polka” (or “Memories of Ballymote” (https://thesession.org/tunes/1560). He ends the set with his own composition “Hugo’s Polka” (https://thesession.org/tunes/13277).

Keane learned “The Church Street Polkas” from John Egan, a Sligo flute player. Egan formed the St Mary’s Music Club, also known as the Church Street Club or The Fiddler’s Club, where many young musicians met on a Wednesday evening in Dublin and played music in the early 1960s, including Paddy Moloney and, if I remember correctly, Matt Molloy.

Rooskey

Source: Kevin Henry_One’s Own Place, a Family Tradition.
Transcription: gian marco pietrasanta