"Biddy Mulligan" is a folk tune composed by Seamas Kavanagh in the 1930s. It honors the lively personality of a street vendor from the Coombe area in Dublin. The song paints a picture of a woman who makes a living selling things like fruit, nuts, and used clothing, and it emphasizes her strength and sense of pride in her working-class roots. It also stands as a cultural companion to the better-known Dublin ballad, "Molly Malone."
Just found this little boob while searching Amazon. The reviews are really bad. Does anybody know more about it? The index looks ok, but the misspelling on the cover???
If you maybe have it it would be nice if you'd comment and tell about it.
The UCC TradSoc Lunchtime Concerts take place regularly and offer great concerts. Here is a concert with Alan Finn & Fionn O' Hanlon (Fiddle and Bouzouki)
Here's Simon Crehan and Fionn O'Hanlon at Crowleys Music Centre
By chance I came across this CD on bandcamp a few months ago but forgot to mention it here on the blog. Fine bouzouki playing here. I especially like the polkas and slides.
I asked chatgpt to write a short text about the musicians, here's what came out (hope the information is correct ;)
Alan Finn, Joanne Quirke, Paul Clesham & Fionn O’Hanlon
This quartet brings together four of Ireland’s finest young traditional musicians, each with deep roots in the music of their home counties.
Alan Finn(Buttevant, Co. Cork) is a renowned button accordion player and founder of the Shandrum Céilí Band, celebrated for multiple All-Ireland titles and his lively, driving style.Joanne Quirke(Co. Cork) is a versatile multi-instrumentalist on whistle, flute, fiddle, piano, and harp, and a graduate of University College Cork who was awarded the prestigious Seán Ó Riada Prize. From Hollymount, Co. Mayo,Paul Cleshamis an All-Ireland champion on concertina and a highly skilled accompanist, equally at home on fiddle, accordion, melodeon, and piano, with a strong academic background in ethnomusicology. Completing the group isFionn O’Hanlon(Boherbue, Co. Cork), a bouzouki player whose roots in the Sliabh Luachra tradition bring rhythmic energy and harmonic depth to the ensemble.
Together, their 2025 album’Twas Many a Wild Nightcaptures the joy, drive, and spirit of Irish traditional music today.
Here's a video of them playing at Custy's in Ennis.
Eimear Arkinsis an award-winning fiddle player, singer, and dancer from County Clare, now based in St. Louis, Missouri. A multiple All-Ireland champion, she is equally celebrated for her rich traditional fiddle style and her expressive singing, fromsean-nósto contemporary folk.
Eimear has toured internationally with ensembles such asCherish The Ladies,Téada, andThe Paul Brock Band, and has represented Ireland at cultural showcases worldwide. Her debut albumWhat’s Next?(2018) was praised for its fresh take on Irish tradition, and her follow-upHere & There(2024) reflects both her Clare roots and her life in the U.S. Whether on stage or in the classroom, Eimear is known for bringing warmth, virtuosity, and authenticity to Irish music.
(Text made by Chat.gpt) ;-)
The first track of her album Here & There is a set which starts with the jig Scully Casey's. On thesession this tune is written as a slide. As I could not find an abc-file written as a jig I used this for my tab. There is a video of Flute Player Hatao on youtube which contains staff notation for the tune as a jig.
The bouzouki player on the album is Alan Murray who seems to become one of my favourite bouzouki players at the moment.
This is the album version:
Here's the tab. Might not be absolute perfect, but gives an insight into Alan's style of playing.
You can download the whole tab here. Now I made a tab in 6/8 which is easier to read, you can find it here.
Here's a video of the release concert for the album:
Another gem from Daoiri Farrell. A version of The Bonnie Irish Maid or Blackwaterside. The lyrics here don't match Daoiri's always. Here's a link to the lyrics he uses but the chords are a bit different and in G.
Live Version, Capo 5
Studio Version, Capo 3
{t:Blackwater Side - Bonny Irish Maid}
{st:Daoiri Farrell}
{c:Capo 5}
As [D]I went out one [G]morning [A]fair, so [A7]early [A]as I [D]strayed
It being all in the month of [G]May the [D]birds sang [A]in the [G]shade[A]
The [D]sun shone down right merri[G]ly and the [D]water did [A]swiftly [G]glide [A]
Where the [D]primroses [D/F#]and [G]daisies [A]grow, down [A]by Black[A7]water[D]side
I [D]had not gone but [G]half a mile when [D]there by [A]chance I [D]spied
Two lovers talk as they did [G]walk down [D]by Black[A]water[G]side
And [D]as he held her in his [G]arms, these [D]words to [A]her did [G]say
"When [D]I am in A[G]merica I'll be [D]true to my [A]Irish [D]Maid"
"T’is [D]when you are in A[G]merica those [D]Yankee [A]girls you'll [D]find
And you'll have sweethearts of your [G]own more [D]pleasing [A]to your [G]mind
Do [D]not forget the promi[G]ses and the [D]vows you [A]made to [G]me
Oh, [D]stay at home love, [G]do not roam from your [D]bonny [A]Irish [D]maid"
"T’is [D]when I'm in A[G]merica, those [D]Yankee [A]girls I'll [D]see
And they must be very hand[G]some, to re[D]mind me [A]love of [G]thee
For [D]there's not a bird in yonder [G]bush or [D]flower in [A]yonder [G]glade
That [D]does remind me [G]love of thee, my [D]bonny [A]Irish [D]maid"
"It's [D]many's the foolish [G]youth" she said, "has [D]gone to some [A]foreign [D]shore
Leaving behind his own true love be[G]hind, for [D]ne’er to [A]see no [G]more
It's in [D]crossing of the Atlantic [G]foam, some[D]times their [A]graves are [G]made
Oh, [D]stay at home love, [G]do not roam from your [D]bonny [A]Irish [D]maid"
These [D]two young hearts to[G]gehter so [D]fondly [A]did em[D]brace
Like honey drops upon the [G]dew, the [D]tears ran [A]down her [G]face
"There’s [D] not a day while you're a[G]way I'll [D]visit [A]still these [G]glades
Un[D]til you do re[G]turn again to your [D]bonny [A]Irish [D]maid."
I made some tabs for the intro and verses in Tabledit, which is an app I really can recommend.
Many years ago Graham McDonald released a book how to build bouzoukis. He is a luthier and builds bouzoukis for about 40 years now. So he knows what he does. You can buy his book on Amazon or as Ebook from McDonald Strings.
The first chapter can be downloaded as a .pdfhereand Andy Irvine's Forward can be downloadedhere.
The full size plans can be downloaded separatelyhere.
Now he released an online course on this topic. On YouTube you can watch the introductional video which I enclose here. So if you ever wanted to build your own bouzouki this one's for you.
Matt Heaton posted a series of bouzouki videos on YouTube some time ago. I can highly recommend these to any bouzouki player. There are videos on different keys, rhythms and chord overviews. One type of tune that is often overlooked is the polka. In this video,
Matt shows his approach to accompanying polkas. Since the bouzouki tends to vibrate due to its double strings, it is not advisable to play too loudly. Here, he shows a way to play more delicately and emphasise the rhythm. The emphasis here is more on the second beat. This results in a slightly bouncing rhythm.
You'll find some original tunes, trad. songs, writings and other useful things. Especially the section called "Reference Library" contains interesting documents.
Interestingly, most people visit the chord page here on the blog. Perhaps this great video by Matt Heaton gets a little lost in the shuffle. In this video, he shows chord shapes in the key of G major. Many chords are close together, making them easy to play. I posted the information on the video about four years ago. Perhaps you'd like to watch it again.
Matt has published several videos on chords and tunes on youtube. Just look for "Backer Corner Bouzouki" and you'll find lots of good instructional videos he made.
Matt and Shannon's session was great fun again. They played some well-known tunes as well as some lesser-known ones. Matt played his bouzouki on three sets. Today I tried to pick out his arrangement for the jig ‘The Black Rogue’. In the first run-through, he mainly uses an open A chord (x707) in the A section. He also accompanies with beautiful bass lines.
Since Covid, Matt and Shannon Heaton have been holding regular VirtualGuided Sessions (VGS) on YouTube. Unfortunately, they now only brighten up our day with their beautiful tunes once a month. Matt accompanies Shannon on the guitar and bouzouki. His playing is sensitive and precise.
In the past years I posted several Tabs I made of accompaniments from videos by Matt and Shannon Heaton. Here's a list of the tabs I made so far:
Several people have asked me how they can support my work and my blog. Well, now it's very easy: you can buy me a pint or a coffee. Just click on the beer on the right and you will be redirected to the ‘Buy me a coffee’ website. There you can enter the amount you wish to donate.
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It seems that many people are interested in converting a guitar into a bouzouki. This does not appear to be particularly difficult. To get around the problem of string suspension with the pins, you can, for example, attach a new tailpiece. Of course, two additional holes have to be drilled in the head of the guitar. You can either simply drill two holes at the top of the headstock. Or you can go to the trouble of filling in the six existing holes and drilling eight new ones, which certainly looks much better.
Then the bridge insert and saddle need to be converted to 8 strings. Particular care should be taken when working on the saddle.
In any case, it should be noted that the fingerboard is very wide compared to a bouzouki, which will certainly not appeal to everyone. Personally, I would find it too wide. I am also not a fan of the sound of the gizouki, or whatever you want to call it. But that is all a matter of taste.
Here's a website where a guy called Keith Hempsey shows his conversion of two guitars.
