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The Charleston reel

By Jimmy Keane

Also known as Joe Skelton’s.

There are 16 recordings of this tune.

This tune has been recorded together with

The Charleston has been added to 3 tune sets.

The Charleston has been added to 64 tunebooks.

Download ABC

Three settings

1
X: 1
T: The Charleston
R: reel
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Amaj
c2cB cBAB|cABA FADF|EAAG ABca|
fdBA GBed|BccB cBAB|cABA FADF|
EAAG Acfc|1 ecBc A3B:|2 ecBc A3z||
|:bafa eAcf|eAce f3g|ae~e2 faec|dBcA Bfed|
BccB cBAB|cABA FADF|EAAG Acfc|ecBc A3z:|
2
X: 2
T: The Charleston
R: reel
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Amaj
~c3B cBAB|c2BA ~F3A|EAAG Acfc|ecBA GABd|
~c3B cBAB|c2BA ~F3A|EAAG Acfc|1 ecBc A3B:|2 ecBc A3g||
aefa e2cf|eAce ~f3g|aeea faec|dBBA BcdB|
c2ec cBAB|cABA ~F3A|EAAG Acfc|1 ecBc A3g:|2 ecBc A3B||
# Added .
3
X: 3
T: The Charleston
R: reel
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Amaj
|:c3e cBAB|cABA FADF|EAAG Acfc|ecBA GBed|
c3e cBAB|cABA FADF|EAAG Acfc|1 ecBc A3B:|2 ecBc Aaga||
|:baga fedf|eAce f3g|aee2 faec|dcBA GBed|
c3e cBAB|cABA FADF|EAAG Acfc|1 ecBc Aaga:|2 ecBc A3B||

Twelve comments

Firstly, I apologise to all pipers, whistle and keyless flute players (except any flash gits who can play it anyway). Not to be confused with the popular dance of the 1920s(? - excuse my historical ignorance), this a mighty infectious little number composed by London-born piano-box player Tommy Keane (who now resides in New York, I believe). I like to lean liberally into that open e-string in the first bar-and-a-half - I don’t know how traditional that is, but it works for me.

Charleston

This was composed by Jimmy Keane, the piano accordion player, now living in Chicago, and who frequently plays with Mick Moloney & Robbie O’Connell and they recorded it on “There were Roses” Album. It is also commonly known as Jimmy Keane’s.
Jimmy plays with a number of others, including Bohola.
Note from the album There were Roses : “Embarrased at not having a title for it, we christened it during a live public radio broadcast from Charleston, West Virginia.”

Shame on me! I got the composer’s name AND the place where he lives wrong. Well, his name’s only two letters different, and the city’s in the same country.

Here’s how Four Men and a Dog play it on their Wallop the Spot album. They call it Joe Skelton’s.

X: 1
T: Charleston, The
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
C: Jimmy Keane
K: A
~c3B cBAB|c2BA ~F3A|EAAG Acfc|ecBA GABd|
~c3B cBAB|c2BA ~F3A|EAAG Acfc|1 ecBc A3B:|2 ecBc A3g||
aefa e2cf|eAce ~f3g|aeea faec|dBBA BcdB|
c2ec cBAB|cABA ~F3A|EAAG Acfc|1 ecBc A3g:|2 ecBc A3B||

Posted .

Great version!
The occasional G# can be played by any intermediate whistle player 😉

Nice tune alright! Nice sound too!

Drop the 7th’s version

we don’t have to play any of the G-Sharp’s here: they can all be changed for E’s.

Anyone looking for the “Charlestown” Reel as played by Darren Breslin, it’s actually the Derry Reel, not this tune altho’ it’s very similar in the A-part. Go here https://thesession.org/tunes/7671.

I think Ray Gallen calls this the Bush in Bloom

… in his set with Craig’s pipes. A very nice set it is too

Re: The Charleston

I just updated the story behind my tune “The Charleston” and Eugene O’Donnell’s tune “The Derry Reel” if you’d like to know how they came about…

I think this is the link:

https://thesession.org/tunes/7671#comment797753

All the best,

Jimmy