Annotation:Game of Love (The)

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GAME OF LOVE, THE (Cluiche an Ghrá). AKA and see "Aberdeen Lasses," "Bloron's Fancy," "Bond's Reel," "Girls of Farranfore (The)," "Humors of Ballinacarrig (The)," "Humors of Rockstown," "Miss Brady," "New Custom House (2) (The)," "Paddy the Piper (1)," "Piper's Son (1) (The)," "Pride of Rathmore (The)," "Rory MacNab." Irish, Reel. E Minor. Standard tuning (fiddle). AB. "The Game of Love" is in O'Neill's Waifs and Strays of Gaelic Melody (1922), but an earlier version was printed by William Bradbury Ryan in Ryan's Mammoth Collection (1883) as "Paddy the Piper (1)." Breathnach (1976) finds it as "Aberdeen Lasses" in the Gunn manuscripts of County Fermanagh. Co. Kerry fiddler Paddy Cronin played a variant called "Girls of Farranfore (The)" [1]. A Scottish version is "Rory MacNab," printed by the Gows at the turn of the 19th century, but which derives from the still earlier "Jacky Stewart's Reel" published in Edinburgh by Robert Bremner in 1757. "New Custom House (The)" is a closely related tune, or a variant. See also the related "Pride of Rathmore (The)" family of tunes.

Additional notes

Sources for notated versions: - flute player and fiddler Peter O'Loughlin, 1966 (Kilmaley, Co. Clare, Ireland) [Breathnach]; manuscripts in the possession of Chicago Police Sergeant James O'Neill, originally from County Down, many of which were from the playing of his father [O'Neill].

Printed sources : - Breathnach (CRÉ II), 1976; No. 293, pp. 148-149. O'Neill (Waifs and Strays of Gaelic Melody), 1922; No. 259.

Recorded sources: - Gael-Linn CEF-057, "Jackie Daly & Séamus Creagh" (1977), Green Linnet 1040, Touchstone - "New Land." Kells Music 9501, Dervish - "Playing with Fire."

See also listing at:
Alan Ng's Irishtune.info [1]
Jane Keefer's Folk Music Index: An Index to Recorded Sources [2]
Hear Séamus Creagh and Jackie Daly's recording on Soundcloud [3]



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  1. Paul de Grae, booklet "Tribute to Seamus Creagh on World Fiddle Day, 20 May, 2017, Scartaglin, County Kerry."