Elizabeth Kelly’s Delight slip jig

Oops—A minor or A dorian (there’s no F note in the tune) that’d be.

A powerful little slip jig! I learned this years ago, probably from players in western Oregon.

I’m guessing the title’s Elizabeth Kelly is the mother of Co. Clare fiddler and concertina player John Kelly, and so grandmother to fiddler James Kelly.

Some common variations are to add the B part ending to the A part:

|:A3 ABA AGE|A2 E G2 E DEG|1 A3 ABA AGE|~G3 G2 E DEG:|2 cBA BAG AGE|~G3 G2 E DEG|

and to play the B part:

|cBA BAG AGE|c2 A BGE DEG|cBA BAG AGE|GAG G2 E DEG|

The tune first on the opening track on Lunasa’s Merry Sisters of Fate cd, with the Gaelic name, Aoibhneas Eilis Ni Cheallaigh. The boys play it in E minor on the cd:

|E3 EFE EDB,|E2 B,D2 B, A,B,D|~E3 EFE EDB,|
|DED D2 B, A,B,D:||
|:G2 E FGD EDB,|G2 E FDB, A,B,D|GFE FED EDB,|DED D2 B, A,B,D:||

and an octave higher too (which on fiddle is the same fingering as the sheet music posted here, just moved a string up).

This one has been recorded by Paddy Glackin and Michael O’Domhnail on their album ‘reprise’.

Martin Hayes recorded this on his "Under The Moon" album under the title "Catherine Kelly’s".

He plays it as a duet with concertina player John Williams. Lovely concertina playing it is, too.

Liz Carroll’s newest album, Lake Effect, has an absolutely stunning arrangement (and it’s definitely an arrangement) of this tune on it going into an original tune of Ms. Carroll’s, Lake Effect — it was arranged for her by Evan Price of the Turtle Island String Quartet, who play the track with her, one of the best groups of the innovators in classical music.

(For those of you who don’t know who Evan Price is, he was U.S. Scottish Fiddling Champion, the Kentucky State Fiddle Champion, two-time Canadian Junior Fiddle Champion, and five-time Canadian Novelty Fiddling Champion. Doesn’t count the rest of his work in other genres, including classical, jazz, rock, and blues. American Session members who have listened to Garrison Keillor’s Prairie Home Companion have probably heard TISQ. Mr. Keillor calls the TISQ "A real honest to goodness string quartet with beautiful shoes." *grin*)

The purists among us will hate it, but the musicianship of the track is still stunning, in the most exacting terms of any genre (but those who want their ITM to stay sean-nos will likely want to go elsewhere). As usual on anything TISQ is involved with, the arrangement involves all manner of influences, but works well with ITM because of their historical and present insistence on storyline and rhythmic pulse. Rock on, dudes.

There’s samples from Lake Effect, including this track of Catherine Kelly’s with TISQ, at http://www.greenlinnet.com/shopping/search_detail.cfm?productid=1043

Unfortunately it doesn’t include the arrangement getting into full swing on Lake Effect. Damn. But it almost goes from the start of Catherine Kelly’s through to not quite the next tune.

Zina

you can listening to john kelly playing a version of this tune on volume 1 of ceol an clair,traditional fiddle music from west clare.

i confess that this tune is n’t at the top of my ‘must learns’ but i only heard it a few days ago so maybe it will grow on me!

"Aoibhneas Eilis Ni Cheallaigh or ‘The loveliness of Elizabeth Kelly’ when roughly translated into English, is a mighty slip jig I learned from my great friend and fiddle palyer Mark Crickard and flautist Cian O’Sullivan with whom I played music for many years in Dingle and East Germany. Lizzy Kelly was a concertina player from Kilrush in Co.Clare"

By the way - we’ve just been to see Lunasa today (at Rheged, Cumbria, UK). They were excellent. It’s not the same without Donogh, but the new guitarist, Tim, is very good and seems to be bringing in something fresh. They said they were starting to record in Septeember for the new album - of which they played a couple of tracks - can’t wait

This is a fun tune. I think it soulds better in E Minor myself.

Submitted on June 19th 2004 by MooglePower.
https://thesession.org/tunes/3181

I play it highly double stopped, which gives it an accordiany feel on the fiddle:

T: Elizabeth Kelly’s Delight
M: 9/8
L: 1/8
R: slip jig
K: ADor
[D3 A3] [D2 A2] B AGE|[D2 A2] [G,E] [G,2 G2] [G,E] [G,D][G,E][G,G]|[D3 A3] [D2 A2] B AGE|[G,3G3] [G,2G2][G, E] [G,D][G,E][G,G]:|
c2 A BAG AGE|c2A BGE DEG|c2A BAG AGE|[G,3G3] [G,2G2][G, E] [G,D][G,E][G,G]:|

Key signature: A Dorian
Submitted on November 11th 2007 by mehitabel23.
~ /tunes/7957

Don’t shoot me, it’s Irish.
This is an Irish slip-jig! And you all doubted me, didn’t you!

# Posted on November 11th 2007 by mehitabel23

X: 1
T: Wandering Spirit
M: 9/8
L: 1/8
R: slip jig
K: A Dorian
|: A3 ABG AGE | A2 F G2 E DEG | A2 A ABG AGE | G2 G GED DEG :|
|: c3 BAG AGE | c2 c BAG A3 | c3 BAG AGE | G2 G GED DEG :|

This one was learnt by ear from a fiddler called Paddy Le Mercier…

# Posted on November 11th 2007 by mehitabel23

I learnt this tune off a flute player on a recent trip to France. He played it in B minor. Then I heard two fiddlers play it in A minor in a session in the Cobblestones. However, it was in my sub conscious anyway. John Kelly himself recorded it.

Catherine McEvoy has it on her new "Home Ruler" album too!

Here it is by Cormac Breatnach with Meristem. It’s the second tune from 1.30

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Je_SuQA3roI

play video

X: 1
T: Elizabeth Kelly’s Delight
M: 9/8
L: 1/8
R: slip jig
K: Ador
|:[A3 D3] AB[A D]|[A2 D2]E [G2D2]E DEG|A3 B[A D]G [A D]GE|G{A}G{F}G G2E DEG:|
|:[c3 G3] [B G]AG [A2 D2]E|{cd}c2A BG[B E] [B D][B E]G|[c3 G3] [B3 G3] A[B G]E| G{A}G{F}G G2E DEG:|

Kelly plays this after The Humours of Kilclogher [Single Jig] on Ceol an Cláir

Accidently left out one beat from the first bar! Below is corrected:

X: 1
T: Elizabeth Kelly’s Delight
M: 9/8
L: 1/8
R: slip jig
K: Ador
|:[A3 D3] AB[A D] [D A]GE|[A2 D2]E [G2D2]E DEG|A3 B[A D]G [A D]GE|G{A}G{F}G G2E DEG:|
|:[c3 G3] [B G]AG [A2 D2]E|{cd}c2A BG[B E] [B D][B E]G|[c3 G3] [B3 G3] A[B G]E| G{A}G{F}G G2E DEG:|

Note how the range is small here: the tune is ‘held’ all within a mixolydian 7th.

I’ll try to list Other Tunes With a restricted melodic range here (a Major 7th or less).

e.g.; Loch Altan https://thesession.org/tunes/4255

The tune’s narrow range and the absence of 6h (Hexatonic) makes it an excellent practice tune for these tonalities:
A, B, e (as on the Lunasa album quoted above) & even
high a minor!

Here is my adaptation for DADGAD fingerstyle guitar :http://youtu.be/lMF_IaPlWS0

play video

Hope you like it…

Deiseal: The Long Long Note: Track 01

Same tune as
https://thesession.org/tunes/953

I’m just going through albums that I’ve got and uploading unlinked tunes. I’ve added the name to that version so the link should work, but I don’t believe that I have the ability to delete this.

Une variation au debut du morceau interressante jouée par Brian Mac Namara
https://youtu.be/pAo1SWMGiN4

play video

From the playing of Patrick Madden & Friends.

Elizabeth Kelly’s Delight on mandolin:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0BGOkknK10

play video

Some more information from the John Kelly website:

http://johnkellycapelstreet.ie/project/elizabeth-kellys-delight/

“Elizabeth Kelly (1888 – 1964) (neé Keane) was John Kelly Senior’s Mother. Elizabeth was from a family of musicians and she herself was by all accounts a good concertina player. It was through her side of the family that John got the music. We know from John’s personal documents that most people called his mother Eliza.

Breandán Breathnach collected this tune from John Kelly Senior and it is in his book Ceol Rince na hÉireann, Cuid 1, as number 68, “Aoibhneas Éilis Ní Cheallaigh”.”

Here’s a version of Elizabeth Kelly’s Delight grafted onto the front end of our (Barde’s) recording of The Kerry Huntsman back in 1979. The fiddler at the top of the track is Elliot Selick :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnLcmyN3Avc

play video

Nice couple of variations played by Steven Blake on Rura’s CD - ‘Break it up’.