Irish Traditional Music Tune Index
Tune ID# 549 (Drunken Landlady)

RhythmBars8-bar phrase structureMode
Reel32AABBE Dorian
Transcription of first 2 bars of Drunken Landlady
 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 NHTL (details in the Discography below).

Where do you get the tune titles?
Titles given to this tune in the sources listed below (plus notes of mine about this tune):
Drunken Landlady, The / Drunken Landlady / Bean an Tí ar Meisce (untitled E Minor Reel on Di; 2nd in set The Silver Spire on ADB) (also in A) (compare Pigeon on the Gate #1581)
What do the "track#tune" codes mean?

cd 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. They are listed in order of when they were recorded.

Year
Recorded
Track
#Tune
[Album code] Artist. Title. Primary musicians (instruments). Album details
and contents
19771#3[BB 3] The Bothy Band. Out of the Wind into the Sun. Paddy Keenan (pipes, whistle), Matt Molloy (flute, whistle), Kevin Burke (fiddle), Tríona Ní Dhomhnaill (vocals, keyboards), Dónal Lunny (bouzouki, guitar, bodhrán, synthesizer), Mícheál Ó Domhnaill (guitar).View album details
19781#2[NHTL] Noel Hill and Tony Linnane. Noel Hill and Tony Linnane. Noel Hill (concertina), Tony Linnane (fiddle).View album details
~19794#2[MB 1] Mary Bergin. Feadóga Stáin. Traditional Irish Music on the Tin Whistle. Mary Bergin (whistle).View album details
~19823#2[TP 4] Tommy Peoples. The Iron Man. Tommy Peoples (fiddle).View album details
~198512#1[TP 8] Tommy Peoples. Waiting for a Call. Tommy Peoples (fiddle).View album details
~1991B.4#2[Di] Ditherum. Reeling between Bars. Catherine Drapier (vocals, guitar), Eileen Healy (vocals, guitar), Edel Sullivan (fiddle), Pádraig Kelleher (flute), Donal Lyons (percussion).View album details
~199313#2[Shskn 6] Shaskeen. My Love Is in America. Tom Cussen (banjo), Benny O'Connor (drums, bodhrán), Sean Conway (flute, whistle, guitar, vocals), Charlie Harris (accordion), Kevin Rohan (fiddle, vocals).View album details
~199612#1[JCt 2] John Carty. Last Night's Fun. John Carty (fiddle, banjo, flute).View album details
~19969#2[ADB] various. Mighty Session! View album details
~199712#1[NaCnn 1] Na Connerys. Celtic Sessions. Paddy Glackin, Kevin Glackin (fiddle), Sean Og Potts (pipes, whistle), John Regan (accordion), John Wynne (flute), Tom McDonagh (bouzouki), Mark Kelly (guitar).View album details
~20024#2[Fns] Feenish. Rabharta. P.J. Hernon (accordion), Marcus Hernon (flute, whistle), Don Stiffe (vocals, guitar, whistle).View album details
~20051#2[MMhn] Martin Meehan. Three's Company. Martin Meehan (flute, bodhrán).View album details
20074#1[CMcEv 3] Catherine McEvoy. The Home Ruler. Traditional Irish Flute Music. Catherine McEvoy (flute).View album details

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.

On page 36 of [TP] Tommy Peoples. Fifty Irish Fiddle Tunes. [available]
As reel #5 in [MM] Martin Mulvihill. First Collection of Traditional Irish Music.
As tune #70 in [DM 1] Dave Mallinson. 100 Essential Irish Session Tunes. [available]
In [M] Phil Rubenzer. Midwestern Irish Session Tunes. 3rd Edition.
On page 27 of [M2] Phil Rubenzer. Midwestern Irish Session Tunes. Millennium Edition.
As reel #72 in [Cobb] Dan Cobb. Cobb's Music of Ireland. [available]
As tune #149 in [FT] Randy Miller. The Fiddler's Throne. [available]
As reel #162 in [JKg 3] Josephine Keegan. A Drop in the Ocean. Traditional Irish Tunes Collected by Josephine Keegan. [available]
As tune #77 in [Raff] Lesl Harker. 300 Tunes from Mike Rafferty. [available]

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): 1977