Paddy O’Rafferty jig

I’m fairly sure I’ve heard words that go with this tune. I don’t remember the words except that every second bar was “Paddy O’Rafferty” so it went “Something something Paddy O’ Rafferty, something something Paddy O’ Rafferty”.

If you can associate that phrase that appears every four bars with the words “Paddy O’Rafferty”, I find it easier to remember the tune.

I’ve mentioned this before in connection to other tunes like “Geese in the bog” and “Merryily kissed the quaker” - having words really helps in remembering a melody. And it works the other way around of course, as any composer of radio jingles will tell you.

Unfortunately, i only remember one verse of the Irish and one full verse of the English words Len Graham used to sing.

Br

Great stuff! Thanks for posting those.

I think the full second verse is as follies:

She went to the bog just cutting some turf with me
Lilt
She fell in the bog going over the moor with me
Lilt
Now she is dead and I’ve fairly got shot of her
Lilt
The bog was too soft or I’d dance on the top of her
Lilt

Chris Droney plays this tune in G, as Jim Droney’s.

Source: The New Road by Charlie Piggot And Gerry Harrington
Transcription: gmp

Michael Gorman’s variation of ‘Paddy O’Rafferty’.

It would be a plus to see the information on the recording this was transcribed from. Did Michael Gorman really play it without the usual repeats, which would be: AABBCCDDEE, rather than as written or interpreted by the midi player?

Just questioning the physics of it ~
temporary alias ~ Metastable Aristotle

Which recording was this taken from ?

The repeats have been added. Sorry. Give you information on from where it was transcribed in a bit.

The way in which Robin Williamson worded the information about this transcription was something like “learned this one from Michael Gorman”. So, it could either mean that Gorman tought Robin this version of Paddy O’Rafferty in person (Robin is old enough, and lived in the same area as Gorman), or Robin simply meant he transcribed it from a recording, which he makes no mention of. Whatever the case, it’s a damned good version worthy of its own title.

Thanks for starting to fill in the blanks, much appreciated. But please do the courtesy of including further information on the ‘source’, the ‘text’…so others can chase it up for their curiosity and collecting…

I wouldn’t call this “a damned good version” of “Paddy O’Rafferty” at all. It seems rather to be a conflation of the more or less standard versions of both “P O R” and “Ten (aka Six) Penny Money”. Sticking two common tunes together to create a bigger tune does not constitute a version in any meaningful sense of the word.

Something not unknown to R.W and not typical of M.G….

As taught and played at the Catskills Tionol 2005, by Patrick Ourceau on fiddle and Ivan Goff on pipes. This is a 4-part single jig. Nice with short rolls on the “D” part.

X:1
T:Padghin O’Rafferty
M:6/8
L:1/8
C:Traditional (Willie Clancy version)
R:Jig
K:Dmix
S:Patrick Ourceau
N:Willie Clancy’s four-part single version of this standard jig.
GA|BDD EDE|{d}cBA GED|BDD EDE|GAG {A}GED|
BDD EDE|{d}cBA GED|(3Bcd B cBA|GAG GED||
GBB FAA|GAB {d}cBA|GBB FAA|GAG GED|
GBB FAA|GAB {d}cBA|(3Bcd B cBA|GAG GED||
d^cd ef{a}g|ded {e}dBG|d^cd ef{a}g|GAG GED|
d^cd ef{a}g|ded {e}dBG|{a}gfe dBG|(3ABA G FED||
~B2G A2G|~B2G AGE|~B2G A2G|GAG {A}GED|
BGG AGG|BGG AGE|(3Bcd B cBA|GAG GED||G2||

Ken

This does sound like another of the many settings of Padgin O’ Rafferty. I don’t think it’s any more or less unique than a multitude of others. I recently picked the Willie Clancy version which has melodic similarities to this setting but he played it as 4 part single jig.

Ken

Yup! ~ & also as a six parter…

Actually, I’m pretty sure I’ve also one version that’s 7 or 8 parts in length…and ‘old’…with sources…

Let’s see, at hand I’ve found at least the following ~

2-Part X at least a dozen on hand
3-Part X 3 so far
4-Part X at least a few
5-Part X at least one more than a few
6-Part X at least the one
7-Part X suspicious, but at least one
8-Part X a few… but nothing larger than that, not so far…
😉

& the few keys I’ve known this family of tunes by ~ A & Bb & C & D & G ~ I think that’s all I’ve got on hand, but that’s significant choice to fit any inclination you might have…

Dates, well, an 8-part from the first decade of the 1800s and a 2-Part from the 1700s, but print is only the shadow of something that has existed previously.

This definitely isn’t the tune on the Kevin Burke/Ged Foley record. They might just be related tho’ - I’ll post a transcription of that tune soonish.

X:4
T: Paddy O’Rafferty(K.Burke/G Foley)
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
R: jig
K: Dmaj
|:Ecc EBB|AcB AFE|Ecc EBB|ABA AFE|
Ecc EBB|ABc d2f|ecA BAF|AFE E3:|
|:cAF E2F|ABc BAB|cAF EFA|ABA AFE|
cAF E2F|ABc d2f|ecA BAF|ABA AFE:|
|:AcA AcA|Ace fec|BcB BcB|ABA AFE|
AcA AcA|Ace a3|fec BcB|[1ABA AFE:|[2ABA AFA|
|:cee aee|fee aee|cee fec|ABA AFA|
cee aee|fef a3|fec ABA|[1ABA AFA:|[2ABA AFE|
|:cAA BAA|cAA dAA|cAA BAA|AcB AFE|
cAA BAA|ABc d2f|ecA BAF|AcA AFE:|

This is how the k.burke version sounds to me .if I,ve got it off the mark please let us know

The standard D setting I hear in sessions is a bit different from the posted version in the 2nd part. This is the way I play it:

X: 1
T: Paddy O’Rafferty
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
R: jig
K: Dmaj
dff cee|def gfe|dff cee|dfe dBA|
dff cee|def g2e|f/g/af gfe|1 dfe dBA:|2 dfe dcB||
|:AFA ~B3|gfe fdB|AFA B2c|dfe dcB|
AFA ~B3|efe efg|f/g/af gfe|1 dfe dcB:|2 dfe dBA||
|:fAA eAA|def gfe|fAA eAA|dfe dBA|
fAA eAA|def g2e|f/g/af gfe|dfe dBA:|

Somebody mentioned this version of “Paidin O’Rafferty” about 2 weeks ago. It’s the 5-part version in the key of A major recorded by “Patrick Street”, and subsequently Kevin Burke & Ged Foley. Deserves to be included as a tune in its’ own right, as it’s very different from the more common version in D with only 3 parts.

Well, this has survived so far, I’m glad to say. I had contributed a multi-part, a few more parts than this, with links to all the relatives, and history, and it was axed. Yeah, I’m still a bit sore about it. This also comes from that same root, and there are a few other in the family. My fingers are crossed for you Kenny. Let’s hope this remains, whatever the ‘associations’ that might pre-exist… 😉

Uilleann piper Ryan Murphy from Fermoy, Co. Cork plays two jigs: “Sport”, which was composed by Peadar Ó Riada, and “Paidín O’Rafferty”.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=noJW6LOSKrk

play video

This is in the Gunn Book of Fermanagh (1865) as Padeen O’Raffery, with 3 parts
I read somewhere that Paddy O’Rafferty was the servant boy of O’Carolan, and that this was originally a harp tune - possibly accounting for the varying number of parts in different versions

https://thesession.org/tunes/4582

Lyrics and links: https://thesession.org/tunes/741

… That’s funny because I can hear in it at least one little drummer drumming!
Nice tune. I like it insistance. Its swaggering neat trimliness!

It’s played on 8 pitches/5 degrees only (if you play part 1 “dAB AGA| BGG G2:|” that gets rid of the only c in the tune therefore making it anhemitonic pentatonic Major: You can now play it on the black keys-only on your classically trained friends’s piano -to impress them- -the way I used to when I was a teenager!

Patrick Street have a different tune by this name on their On the Fly album, submitted here as ‘The Caravan’

https://thesession.org/tunes/8983

Back in the year 1990 or 91, I heard this tune, beautifully and originally paired with the song Inis Dhún Rámha on a RTE(?) program.
I don’t remember who performed it in this way.
The tune was played on tin whistle and the singer was male is all I can member now.
The pairing made use of similarities between the two tunes and created a natural harmony, a bit like what Luka Bloom would achieve weaving The Kesh jig into his chorus You couldn’t have come at a better time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gz0cWWPMmE8

play video

“Dessie O’Connor’s Paidin Ó Raffartaigh” from Mick O’Brien & Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh’s “Deadly Buzz”

is from the playing of Frances and Sean Cunningham (just transcribed Sean’s flute – 2nd jig, starts @ 1:09):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kk2RxXYg58o

play video

(As mentioned above, this isn’t the first submission of this tune, but it seems to be the more responsive one, so I’ve just added this setting here.)

The seventh setting above (!) is a distinctive setting in A from Beginish’s first album, where it’s called “Síos Chun Na Trá”.

I guess it’s the same tune, with a few variations
http://comhaltas.ie/music/detail/comhaltaslive_448_1_sarah_ogorman/
Tara Breen has an almost identical version somewhere on Youtube if I can find it.

That v8 is close to Dezi Donnelly’s version on “Familiar Footsteps”

Piping jig

A Willie Clancy Piping tune.

Nice post Kenny, I found part of it here being played by Kevin & Ged:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icaL8o2wYTs

play video

I would have called the 1st setting here Paddy O’Rafferty, but appears that setting is also called Paidin O’Rafferty

Moving Cloud does it in this - I suppose its sort of parts 2 and 3 of the 1st setting,
but I think it stands nicely as just those 2 parts
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggXkwo20RIw&t=1m28s

play video

Very nice version on harp and pipes here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LevEZaHbMVI

play video

Yet another version. From the playing of Seamus Begley, as best as I can make it out.

As learned from piper Sean Talty at WCSS 1993

Taken from ‘A Fine Selection of Over 200 Irish Traditional Tunes for Sessions’, compiled by David Speers with a Forward by Matt Cranitch. A tune of many variations!

Is any one of these the Dervish version?

Lovely clip of Bobby Casey and the McCarthy family playing this tune: https://youtu.be/IEVHUoOeNKM

play video

Version in Clinton’s Gems of Ireland, no. 19.

Version set by Beethoven in his 20 Irish Songs (WoO 153, no. 14), collected and edited by George Thomson.

The title for once is also “Paddy O’Rafferty,” rather than some new title devised by Thomson and his poets, and the lyrics are in fact about Paddy O’Rafferty.

Lyrics by Sir Alexander Boswell (1775 - 1822):

Paddy O’Rafferty, merry and vigorous,
Laugh’d at his lot, tho’ ‘twas somewhat too rigorous;
Poor was his prize from the wheel of life’s lottery,
Turning the wheel in old Dennis Keogh’s pottery.
Still he kept turning, and still the clay tapering,
Grew a black pot to hold ink for with paper in,
Sometimes a brown jar to hoard a small pension in,
Sometimes, faith, something not worth a word’s mentioning.

Arrah, quoth Paddy, and so goes the round about,
So come those fortunes they make such a sound about,
Some in their save-alls their thousands are gathering,
Some from these ink-pots great families fathering.
So Mister Keogh I no longer will stay with ye,
Luck, whispers Paddy, take heart and away with ye,
Stout are your limbs, a good countenance carrying,
Why should not Paddy catch money by marrying?

Pat took the hint and gambol’d like a mountebank,
Small were his dealings with town or with county bank,
Short his accounts were, and no need of docqueting,
Light was his money-bag, easy in pocketing.
Up with his bundle, his trusty stick shouldering,
Set them, quoth Pat, stay at home and be mouldering;
But a smooth shilling I’d willingly now wager,
Paddy O’Rafferty hooks an old dowager.

Thank you for posting this, NylonFlute. Much appreciated here!

You’re welcome! As I work through the old arrangements, I try to include the lyrics when I can find them (and they’re public domain). Even if, as with the Beethoven arrangements, most of them are quite bad.