Irish Traditional Music Tune Index
Tune ID#1960 (Toss the Feathers)
| Rhythm ? | Bars | 8-bar phrase structure | Mode ? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reel | 32 | AABB | D Mixolydian |
about these two bars
These two bars are the start of my transcription of how this tune was played – the first time through – on the recording TP 2 (details in the Discography below).
Titles given to this tune in the sources listed below (plus notes of mine about this tune):
Toss the Feathers / Toss the Feathers #2 / Toss the Feathers No. 2 (3rd in set Toss the Feathers on KB SD) (also singled) (compare Toss the Feathers #1959)
Discography
Here are all recordings of this tune considering only the indexed recordings. I have discovered by careful listening that these sources are in fact musically the same tune, regardless of the tune titles they use, key changes, retuning, etc.
| Year Recorded |
Track #Tune? |
[Album code] Artist. Title. Primary musicians (instruments). |
|---|---|---|
| 1966 | 2#2 | [BC 3] Bobby Casey. The Spirit of West Clare. Bobby Casey (fiddle, whistle). |
| 1973 | 7#3 | [KB SD] Kevin Burke. Sweeney's Dream. Fiddle Tunes from County Sligo, Ireland. Kevin Burke (fiddle). |
| ~1976 | 8#3 | [MM 1] Matt Molloy accompanied by Dónal Lunny. Matt Molloy. Matt Molloy (flute). |
| ~1976 | 3#2 | [TP 2] Tommy Peoples and Paul Brady. The High Part of the Road. Tommy Peoples (fiddle), Paul Brady (guitar). |
| ~1978 | 8(13:48)#12 | [KB Cap] Kevin Burke. If the Cap Fits. Kevin Burke (fiddle). |
| ~1978 | 7#2 | [Dbl] Paddy Glackin and Paddy Keenan. Doublin'. Paddy Glackin (fiddle, viola), Paddy Keenan (pipes). |
| ~1996 | 8#5 | [Sol 1] Solas. Solas. Seamus Egan (flute, whistle, guitar, pipes, bodhrán, vocals), Karan Casey (vocals), John Doyle (guitar, vocals), Winifred Horan (fiddle, vocals), John Williams (accordion, concertina, vocals). |
| ~1996 | 3#2 | [JB 4] Joe Burke, Charlie Lennon. The Bucks of Oranmore. Joe Burke (accordion), Charlie Lennon (piano). |
| 1999 | 10#2 | [JWh 2] John Whelan. Celtic Roots. John Whelan (accordion). |
| ~2002 | 1#2 | [JFtg] Joe Fitzgerald. Hills of Clare. Joe Fitzgerald (accordion). |
Bibliography
Here are all transcriptions of this tune under any title whatsoever – considering only the indexed books – listed in chronological order. I have discovered by careful comparison that these are very similar to this tune as played on the recordings listed above.
| As tune #26 in [P50] Brian and Eithne Vallely. Play 50 Reels. |
| As tune #63 in [DM 1] Dave Mallinson. 100 Essential Irish Session Tunes. |
| On page 112 of [M2] Phil Rubenzer. Midwestern Irish Session Tunes. Millennium Edition. |
| As reel #336 in [Cobb] Dan Cobb. Cobb's Music of Ireland. |
If you are considering using the above transcriptions to help you learn this tune, I invite you to check these practical Tips for Learning Irish Traditional Music. See also: So why do you bother indexing books and abc?
Year of the oldest source for this tune, considering the recordings and transcriptions listed above (note that I concentrate on sources after 1900): 1966