John Kelly’s reel

I transcribed this off a session recording taken in the Gaelic Club in Sydney a few years ago. The tune was played as transcribed by a couple of fiddlers, but their original source was Tola Custy and Cyril O’Donoghue’s album "Setting Free". Everyone I’ve ever heard play this tune seems to have got it off this album. TC plays the A-part as transcribed the 1st time through but then swaps bars 1 and 5. This means that some people have picked up the tune this way, as shown by this transcription from Shelta’s website @ http://perso.orange.fr/shelta/Page2_.htm (I’ve taken out the chords).

X: 1
T: John Kelly’s
D: The Real Reels Of Ireland
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
R: reel
K: Gmaj
~G3F GABG|AGEF GABc|d2Bd g~d3|egdB AcBA|
DEGA ~B2GB|AGEF GABc|d2Bd gedB|1 cAFA GDEF:|2 cAFA GABd||
|:egfg edBd|~d2gd B3d|c2cA ~B2dB|cBAG FDEF|
~G3F GABG|AGEF GABc|d2Bd gedB|1 cAFA GABd:|2 cAFA GDEF||

Wierd. ABCs look fine, but there is no indication on the sheet music of a first ending for the A part. Obviously not hard to figure out where the first ending is. Just strange it didn’t show up. Anybody else notice this or am I just delusional?

I remember Frankie Kennedy and the Belfast crowd playing this some 20 years ago in Miltown. I’m sure I had a name for it at one time. If it comes back to me , I’ll let you know.

Didn’t Kevin Burke record this - or a version of it at least - on "Portland" as "Morrison’s" ?

That’s wrong - ignore it.

This is also called John Kelly’s. I got from a video clip featuring Paddy Glacklin.

T:John Kelly’s
R:reel
S:YouTube.com
N:TG4 Frances Mooney Tribute show: John Kelly’s/Merry N:Sisters/Silver Spear
N:Played by Paddy Glacklin and Micheal O’Domnhaill
Z:Bill Reeder
M:C|
L:1/8
DE|G2 G2 GABG|AGEG GABd|d2gd edBd|d2ed dBAE|!
G2 G2 GABG|AGEG GABd|d2gd edBG|1 A2 G2 GE:|2 A2 G2 A||!
Bd|e3e edBd|d3d dBAB|c3A B2dB|BAAG AGEG|!
G2 G2 GABG|AGEG GABd|d2gd edBG|1 A2 G2 GA:|2 A2 G2 2||

T:John Kelly’s
R:reel
S:YouTube.com
N:TG4 Frances Mooney Tribute show: John Kelly’s/Merry Sisters/Silver Spear
N:Played by Paddy Glacklin and Micheal O’Domnhaill
Z:Bill Reeder
M:C|
L:1/8
DE|G2 G2 GABG|AGEG GABd|d2gd edBd|d2ed dBAE|!
G2 G2 GABG|AGEG GABd|d2gd edBG|1 A2 G2 GE:|2 A2 G2 GA||!
Bd|e3e edBd|d3d dBAB|c3A B2dB|BAAG AGEG|!
G2 G2 GABG|AGEG GABd|d2gd edBG|1 A2 G2 GA:|2 A2 G2 G2||

That first version didn’t display correctly. I’ll try again.

Yeah, Bill - that’s more like the Belfast version I’ve heard.

Gosh I’m really shocked. That’s obviously the same tune but it’s really different. Sounds like it must be derived from a Scottish tune then, no?

It’s possible, Dow, but I’ve no evidence. Bill’s source above is Paddy Glackin, and I do have a recording of Kevin Glackin playing it somewhere, from RTE, so that’s a possible Donegal connection, which in traditional music terms, is only a shaky egg’s throw from Scotland. Would be nice to find out.

Isn’t the version above more barndance-like (or German if Donegal) than reel-like? I’m reminded of Mickey Callaghan’s hornpipe.. https://thesession.org/tunes/774

I’ve just read on the Fiddler’s Companion that "O’Callaghan was a neighbor of fiddle John Kelly’s in County Clare, from whom he learned the tune" - the "tune" being a different tune to this one, but at least it shows they swapped tunes. Is there something in this?

Lovely simple reel. I first heard it played by Paddy Glackin. But i don’t know anything about the tune’s story.

This is not the reel played on "The Boston Edge by Joe Derrane, Seamus Connolly And John McGann". See thesession.org/tunes/1808

I just posted this a few weeks ago https://thesession.org/tunes/7076

Ok. Sorry, there wasn’t a link from Paddy Glackin’s "Reprise".

Don’t apologise Washoo! You’re comments are really welcome. We were trying to establish what Paddy Glackin recording this tune was on, but weren’t getting anywhere…

…is the name given to it on Paddy Glackin’s "Reprise". Washoo has kindly transcribed it for us here https://thesession.org/tunes/7130.

A little similar.

The URL of the Shelta band version of John Kelly’s is now http://shelta.pagesperso-orange.fr/Images/kelly.jpg

it’s very hornpipy in the shape of the tune, this is pretty much the setting I learned from an East Clare box player but I forgot to ask where she had it from.

I transcribed this from Michael McGoldrick’s album “Arc”.

simple chords addition

From Jack Talty · Cormac Begley - Na Fir Bolg

I included B/C chord annotation for boxes with only a push C bass/chord.

My transcription X:8 is arranged for B/C Box with only Push C bass and chord buttons.
Chord markings: Upper Case = Bass button / Lower Case = Chord button

I got this setting from slowplayers.org. It is played ABB and it is said to have been transcribed from an album titled Setting Free played by Tola Custy and Cyril O’Donoghue. This tune is played often in the sessions around Kansas City.

This is not the same tune Michael, or the transcription is very odd. There are also 10 bars in the second part.

https://slowplayers.org/2014/08/12/john-kellys-favorite-reel/

This is the tune you’re looking for, and the first transcription from slow players was taken from Dr Dow’s transcription here
https://thesession.org/tunes/15388

There are too many spaces in the abc of Michael McDonald’s setting: https://thesession.org/tunes/1808#setting39965 of https://thesession.org/tunes/15388.

The time endings don’t show if you leave a space between the bar line and the number so "| 1" should be "|1".
Similarly, repeats won’t show with a space between the colon and the bar line so ": |" needs to be ":|".
Second time endings work better with a double bar line at the end of the line so "||" rather than "|".
Finally, including a blank line will exclude everything underneath it from appearing in resultant score.

The abc as below will result in a better presentation:

"A"DEBA B2GB | AGEF GABC | d2Bd gdd2 | egdB acba |
G3f GAB2 | AGEF GABC | d2Bd gedB |1 CAFA G3E :|2 CAFA GABd ||
egfg edBd | d2gd B3d | C3A B2dB | CBAG EDFE |
G3f GAB2 | AGEF GABC | d2Bd gedB |1 CAFA GABd :|2 CAFA G3E ||
"B"G3F GABG | AGFE GABC | d2Bd gd3 | egdB ACBA |
DEGA B2GB | AGFE GABC | d2Bd gedB |1 CAFA GDFE :|2 CAFA GABd ||
egfg edBd | d2gd B3d | C2CA B2dB | CBAG FDEF |
G3F GABG | AGFE GABC | d2Bd gedB |1 CAFA GABd :|2 CAFA GDFE ||

And here it is with notes corrected (all the Cs were in the wrong octave as well as other errors):

"A"DEGA B2GB|AGEF GABc|d2Bd gdd2|egdB AcBA|
G3F GAB2|AGEF GABc|d2Bd gedB|1cAFA G3E:|2cAFA GABd||
egfg edBd|d2gd B3d|c3A B2dB|cBAG FDEF|
G3F GAB2|AGEF GABc|d2Bd gedB|1cAFA GABd:|1cAFA G3E||
"B"G3F GABG|AGFE GABc|d2Bd gd3|egdB AcBA|
DEGA B2GB|AGEF GABc|d2Bd gedB|1cAFA GDFE:|2cAFA GABd||
egfg edBd|d2 gd B3d|c2cA B2dB|cBAG FDEF|
G3F GABG|AGEF GABc|d2Bd gedB|1cAFA GABd:|2cAFA GDEF||

Feel free, Michael, to copy and paste in place of your abc transcription.