My Love Is Fair And Handsome reel

Another tune from Brian McNamara’s brilliant ‘A Piper’s Dream’ album. I did as many searches as I could which turned up nothing to suggest the tune was already here under another name, so apologies if it’s already in the database.

It shares a few characteristics with other tunes but I think it’s different enough that it’s not just a different setting of another tune.

There are a lot of tunes like this aren’t there? I can think of a couple - Coming Home From The Bog https://thesession.org/tunes/2965, and Kit O’Connor’s https://thesession.org/tunes/230.

Yeah, it reminded me a bit of the Kerry Reel that’s on Mick O’Brien’s ‘May Morning Dew’ too, and also of ‘The Sports at Listowel’. ‘Twas hard enough to judge whether it’s just an alternative setting of one of the ones you posted there, but it’s such a lovely tune I thought I’d shtick it on anyways!

I think of the 2 links I’ve posted it’s most like Coming Home From The Bog. I like this setting though. It’s nice as a single reel, and it’s nice in Amaj too. With a few tweaks it’d make a nice fling.

Hey Tize, I just found this @ the Fiddler’s Companion:

"COMING HOME FROM THE BOG —- The tune has some similarities to "McFadden’s Handsome Daughter," Breathnach (1985) says, but the turns are not the same. He records that “My Love is Fair and Handsome” is a Kerry title for the tune and the “The Gardener’s Daughter” is a name for it in Sligo. Source for notated version: fiddler Paddy Ryan (Co. Roscommon and Birmingham) [Breathnach]. Breathnach (CRÉ II), 1976; No. 141, pg. 76."

Well there ya go then 🙂 I did think it must be a Kerry tune, or at least setting, with the similarities to the afore mentioned kerry reel & tune about whatever sports they do in Listowel other than drinking! The whole Amaj, short reel, working better steadier and swingy and is it a reel/is it a fling thing always seems to point to a Kerry tune for me.

I too think it lends itself towards being fitted to a fling; I think the only time I played this tune in a gig I did it after ‘Kitty Got A Clinking Coming From the Fair’ - the Gmaj fling on the Pipering of Willie Clancy. Don’t know if that one’s in the database here… if someone who’s better at the ol’ tune searches than me can prove it’s not then I’ll submit that one ‘cos it’s a lovely tune!

Yes, it does explain the Kerry thing. I don’t have that Mick O’Brien album. I’d be interested to see a transcription of that Kerry Reel sometime.

That Mick O’Brien Kerry reel is actually a fling (I always get them mixed up - the first two tunes in the set are the Kerry reel and Kerry fling and I can never remember which way round they were) and is posted (more or less the setting) here:
https://thesession.org/tunes/1615

The Sports at Listowel is a very similar tune. I don’t know if it’s on here but it’s from A Clare Conscience by Aidan McMahon and Anthony Quigney.

Ah yes, The Road To Glountane. That’s one of my fave tunes!

Like "My love is fair and handsome", I also know another tune called "Maude Millar" (O’Neil’s #1220).

Brian McNamara got "My Love is Fair and Handsome" from an old Leitrim manuscript, but Sligoman Paddy Killoran applied the same name when he recorded it in the 78 rpm era. O’Neill’s tune by this name is a different reel (similar to the one now called "Maude Miller"), which he had picked up as a young man in America. When Mayo fiddler John McFadden gave O’Neill a three-part version, he published that setting as "McFadden’s Handsome Daughter."

Been listening tothis on Casey in the Cowhouse. Something like this:

X:1
T:My Love Is Fair And Handsome
M:4/4
L:1/8
R:reel
K:Amaj
E2EF AB c/B/A |eA c/B/A BF ~F2|E2EF AB cA|BF ~F2 BFAF|
E2,CEA,2CE| dBcA BAFE|,CE ~E2 AB c/B/A|BA^GB ABcd ||
e2cA EAcA|eA c/B/A BF~F2|ec ~c2 ac ~c2|ecBc BAFA|
ec ~c2 ac ~c2|ecBc BAFA|a2ae fgaf|edcA BFAF||

The tune posted under X:2 here is Kit O’ Connor’s:
https://thesession.org/tunes/230
RogueFiddler, did you find a recording of the tune under the name "My Love is Fair and Handsome"? If so, there might be a mix up of the names.
Although there are some similarities, and one could argue X:2 to be Kit O’ Conner’s setting of X:1, they kind of look like two different tunes to me.

Although the feeling of both tunes really IS very similar 🙂