The Lads Of Laois reel

A tricky reel, this one, but it sounds great.

There’s a huge range in this tune. Tin whistle players may have to pass this one up, I’m afraid. An A whistle could handle the range; the the tune doesn’t go lower or higher than A in two different octaves, but it would hard to transcribe the tune, and reach all those notes.

For the rest of us, the tune still prevents some problems. There’s a lot of movement involved, and some sneaky phrases in the second part. It’s worth sticking at it for this tune, though. When it’s played right, it rocks.

This tune also works well at a moody, sinister slower pace.

It’s quite easy for whistles etc. to just jump and octave for the first bars. |EB,~B,2 EGFE|DA,~A,2 DEFD| becomes |eB~B2|EGFE|dA~A2 DEFD| or |eB~B2|EGFE|DA~A2 DEFD|
You can also raise the rest of those bars an octave. It all works and gives different effects. Of course it doesn’t have the kick of the original but it lets you play this great reel along with the fiddles and boxes.

Hello,can anybody tell me what chords does Arty McGlynn use when he backs "The Lads of Laois" in the superb recording with Sean Keane, Matt Molloy and Liam O’ Flynn: The Fire Aflame. It is the middle tune in the J.B Reel Set.Thanks

Here’s a version i picked from a Session tape.

|:E2EF G2FE |DA, ~A,2 DEFD |1ECEG ADFA |Bgfe dBAF:|2 E2BE dEBE| DEFA B2A
F:||:e3e efge |d2ff gfed |^cdef ~g3e| fBdf gfed |efed BA^GA| BE~E2 Bde
f|~=g3e ~f3f |1efed BABd:|2efed BAFD||

I LOVE how rose flanagan plays this in the Cherish The ladies cd!!!

This can be worked out on flute and whistle. It’s a great tune. You’ll spend a while figuring out the octave jumps, but it can be done. The ornaments fit beautifully on the whistle and flute. Don’t be afraid of it. It’s worth pursuing though it will take a while before it sits comfortably.

A few months ago, somebody posted a link to a track of Tommy Potts playing the "Lads of Laoise". I’ve been looking around, but unable to find a copy of that track.

Is there a chance that someone could re-post that track, or at least tell me from whence it came?

Thanks in advance!

I found this on the net

‘It appears that another line of influence for the “Lads of Laois”
stems from Liberties area, Dublin, fiddler Tommy Potts, somewhat altered to make it his own, although it does not appear in his commercially recorded output.’

http://www.ibiblio.org/fiddlers/LAD.htm

Yeah, I saw that. But it clearly exists out there somewhere, in some context, since somebody posted it as part of a discussion.

I think it might have been in this thread: https://thesession.org/discussions/12620 but I’m not sure. The link to claddagh records in there is dead now.

It’s believed to be Tommy Potts composition.

Not so, Paddy. I seem to remember there’s a Scottish tune, much older than Tommy Potts, called "The Lads Of Leith" - the tune and the title both got changed when they got to Ireland.

Andy McGann played this tune with reel in A major after it (The First Month of Summer) on the great album A Tribute to Michael Coleman. These two tunes have been played together often ever since.

As Kenny says, there appears to be antecedents of this tune; one of these, which was pointed out to me by Jack Campin, is given below.

X:227
T:Sir Adam Ferguson’s Reel
T:The Lads of Leith
T:Sic a Wife as I Hae Gotten
S:J.Riddell of Ayr (1718-95)
Z:Nigel Gatherer
M:4/4
L:1/8
K:Em
B,EEF E/F/G FE | A,DDE D/E/F ED | GFED EFGA | Bedc B2 E2 :|
eB BA/B/ gfed | Adfa gfed | eB BA/B/ gfed | g>bag f2 ed |
eB BA/B/ gfed | Adfa gfed | g>bge fafd | gfed e2 E2 ||

That’s true. I remember hearing of it being related to that tune some time ago. Well, I was just going by the sleeve notes on Seamus Walshe’s album "Clare Accordion." Obviously, it is mistaken.

You can find it here.

http://beemp3.com/download.php?file=2209996&song=Lads+of+Laois

Wonderful piece.

Here’s a version based in part on the playing of Caitlin Warbelow, who recently toured with the Celtic Legends troupe, and is now sitting in with Cherish the Ladies.

X: 1
T: Lads Of Laoise, The
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Edor
E~B,3 EGFE|D~A,3 DEFD|GEED EFGA|B/c/d ec dBAF|
E2 B,E GEB,E|D2 A,D FDA,D|E/E/E BE dEBE|1 dBAF GAFG:|2 DEFA BEEB|||
e~B3 egfe|defa gfed|(3Bcd ef ~g3e|dfaf gfed|
e~B3 GBFB|EBBA (3Bcd ef|~g3e effe|1 dfed BA B/c/d:|2 dBAF GAFG||

in resent years a grope called shiona recorded that reel brill

In sessions I often hear a version with variations in both the 1st and 2nd parts. That setting happens to have been recorded by Siona, the band mentioned above.

X: 1
T: The Lads of Laois
S: Siona - Launching the Boat
R: reel
M: C|
K: Edor
EB,~B,2 EGFE|DA,~A,2 DEFD|GEED EFGA|B2ec dBAF|
EB,~B,2 EGFE|DA,~A,2 DEFD|E2BE dEBE|DEFA BFAF|
EB,~B,2 EGFE|DA,~A,2 DEFD|GEED EFGA|B2ec dBAF|
E2B,E GEB,E|D2A,D FDA,D|(3Bcd ec dBAF|DEFA BE~E2||
eB~B2 egfe|defa gfed|(3Bcd ef ~g3e|fgaf gfed|
efed BAFA|BE~E2 (3Bcd ef|~g3e ~f3d|efed BAgf|
eB~B2 egfe|defa gfed|(3Bcd ef ~g3e|fgaf gfed|
eB~B2 GBFB|EBBA (3Bcd ef|~g3e ~f3d|efed BAFD||

When did Siona record it?

1999 I think

Great playing here by Sadhbh Peat, (Lads is the second tune)… take note of the excellent use of the phantom button on the low triplets.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYO9jftkFBk

play video

I love the energy in this tune.

I’ve just noticed on the liner notes for ‘The Fire Aflame’ (Seán Keane, Matt Molloy, Liam O’Flynn) that it says: "The Lads of Laois comp. T.Potts."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrUoPdakmtM

play video

A simplified version of X:6

one of the best versions of this tune is on youtube…nollaig ni chathasaigh on fiddle with the donal lunny band….great sound also includes art mcglynn among others….underrated player is nollaig.

https://youtu.be/l_PHtMA3doY

play video

…………………. from approx. 1.min.

A quick blast of The Lads Of Laois (X: 1) on mandolin:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78mxn-7ZDnY

play video