Tag Archives: old-time

DDAD, key of G, march

Coleman’s March

Coleman's March

 

This tune is played by both old-time players and Irish players. I initially learned it from Mary Custy and Eoin O’Neill on their album With a Lot of Help From Their Friends.

Legend has it that Coleman played it on his guitar as he was sitting on his coffin while being carted away to the noose in the 1880s, having been wrongfully accused by his live-in sister-in-law of murdering his wife.

Also attached to the tune is the legend that before Coleman was hanged he offered his fiddle to anyone who could play the tune as well as he, and at least one source identified a Kentucky fiddler named Franz Prewitt as the recipient. 

As played by Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer on banjos.

As played by fiddler Pete Sutherland in DDAD tuning.

As played by Steve Baughman on Farewell to Orkney.

More information on the Traditional Tune Archive.

key of Am, reel

Cold Frosty Morning

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Last summer I had the opportunity to attend the Clifftop Appalachian String Band Festival with some friends. I figured that as a primarily Irish style player, I should have at least a couple of old-time tunes in my pocket, so I asked Mike Drayton to arm me with a few.

Here is a video of another local fiddler, Chris Carney teaching his version of the tune. Chris has a number of very helpful video lessons posted to youtube.

key of G, reel

Billy in the Lowland

IMG_0450

 

Last summer I had the opportunity to attend the Clifftop Appalachian String Band Festival with some friends. I figured that as a primarily Irish style player, I should have at least a couple of old-time tunes in my pocket, so I asked Mike Drayton to arm me with a few. This reel is one of them. Amazingly, it sounds crooked, but isn’t.

Here is a video of Alan Jabbour and Ken Perlman playing their version of the tune as learned from the VA fiddler Henry Reed.