Roving Rhythm from Merrijig Creek by Fintan Vallely, Caoimhín Vallely, Sheena Vallely, Brian Morrissey

Set 4: Roving rhythm.
This set opens with the song-air ‘The Wounded Huzzar’, the tune of 18th-century Scottish poet Thomas Campbell’s popular lyric. Campbell was an unrepentant Jacobite whose poetry in print was immensely favoured in Ireland. Born in Glasgow, and a contemporary of Edward Bunting, he was an ardent believer in political reform. He is known for ‘The Pleasures of Hope’, 1799, memorable for the line therein “Tis distance lends enchantment to the view”. A popular poet, he was three times elected Lord Rector of Glasgow University, on the last occasion defeating Walter Scott; he retired to Boulogne in 1843 to get out of the rat-race. The subject of the lyric may be one of the gallowglasses who, after Culloden, left Scotland with their families and went into the service of Poland. English fiddle-player Pete Cooper saw that the air to which it has been sung is the same as the following tune, ‘Captain O’Kane’, a piece attributed to the 17th-18th century harper Turlough Carolan. This leads to one of many variations of a terrific reel, this one named for a famous music bar in West Clare ‘The Crosses of Annagh’. It was made by the East Galway fiddler Tommy Coen, and in its original form is usually known as 'Coen's Memories'.

Tracklist

4.	Roving Rhythm	4:33

Credits

from Merrijig Creek, track released January 1, 2021
Fintan and Dáithí

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