Love At The Endings reel

Composed by the late Ed Reavy who also wrote Maudabawn Chapel, Fisherman’s Island, The Hunter’s House, and In Memory of Coleman.

The 2nd half of bar 4 is more often played:
B,EEF

Here’s another version, based on A Clare Conscience, where it’s played a fifth lower. I’ve bumped it back up into the usual key, but kept Anthony Quigney and Aidan McMahon’s sense of the tune.

X: 1
T: Love At The Endings
C: Ed Reavy
D: A Clare Conscience, Anthony Quigne, Aidan McMahon
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Dmaj
|:DEFA B2 dB|A~F3 BFAF|DEFA B2 AF|GEED B,EEF|
|DEFA B2 dB|A~F3 ABde|~f3e dfec|1 dBAF D3 E:|2 dBAF D3 e||
|:~f3e defg|afbf afeg|~f3e dfbf|afdf efde|
|~f3e ~d3B|A~F3 ABde|~f3e dfec|1 dBAF D3 e:|2 dBAF D3 E||

à la Dr. Angus MacDonald

X:1
T:Love At The Endings
P:Reel
M:C|
L: 1/8
C:Ed Reavy/Arr. D. Angus MacDonald
D:A’ Sireadh Spòrs
K: Amix
|:c|ABce f2fa|ecc/c/c ecBc|ABce f2ec|B/B/BcA ~B3c|
ABce f2af|ecc/c/c ~e3f|~a3f efaf|ecBc A3:|
|:B|~c3B ABce|ecfc ecAB|~c3B Affc|ecAc B2AB|
~c3B Affc|ecc/c/c B2AB|cefg ~a3f|ecBc A3:|

Anyone know the meaning of the title? I’ve always kind of assumed it was about morning the loss of someone, but I don’t know and I’m curious.

Hi, Screetch. I seem to remember it was a line from a poem. A friend of mine loaned me the 3 cassette tapes which Ed Reavey’s son made of all of his compositions. He made a short introduction to each tune. I’ll check that for you.

“…takes its title from the speech of O‘Killigan to Avril in Sean O’Casey’s play Purple Dust. O’Killigan beseeches his beloved Avril to leave her British lord and make a home with him out in the west of Ireland, where they’ll both find ”things to say and things to do, and love at the endings."

From http://www.jimeagan.com/linernotes.cfm. I just went up to the loft to find my copy of the Reavey book, but couldn’t find it. Did I lend it to any of you? Come on, just tell me…

Thank you! 🙂

The notes from Joe Reavy’s book are as follows:

Who can forget the impassioned speech of O‘killigan in O’Casey’s Purple Dust, especially when he sets out to woo Avril away from her British lord? O’Killigan has only the simple things in his favor. But Avril finally succumbs to his grand talk as he urges her “to spit out what’s here” and make a home with him out in the west of Ireland where they’ll both find “things to say and things to do, and love at the endings.”

I just learned to play this tune last week (and all of this week) and just think it’s excellent. Fun to play too.


Hope that helps - a year later.

No - I don’t have your book either, mine was a gift.

What a fantastic reel this is just love it to the end ha ha.

Is there anybody out there who happens to have an unornamented version of the ABC’s for this tune? just the straight-up melody? I love the tune but I keep getting tripped up by the notation. I am not yet skilled enough to get all of it by audio. Any help would be appreciated. Am working on learning a few new tunes to prevent musical stagnation.

Hear them playing the present tune followed by The Knotted Cord :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqw5ZZ9ASCQ

play video

A lovely version by Michelle O’Brien:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RKSwl_7bXw

play video

Lovely flute version by Catherine McEvoy. Starts at 0:13.

https://youtu.be/yjbCPGkw3pw

play video

Key signature for X:3 should be three sharps (A major). There’s only one G, in the penultimate bar, but it’s presumably sharp.

Hi Bazza, sorry to disagree, but as X:3 is an arrangement by a player of, and presumably for, the Highland pipes, the G is likely to be natural, and the key correct at A mix. You could always just side step the uncertainty by starting the penultimate bar ‘cefe’, rendering the version hexatonic.

recorded by De Dannan on ‘Star Spangled Molly’ as the ‘Head of Cabbage’