Almost Equinox by Larry Unger:
Larry Unger, guitar and banjo player from Massachusetts, has left his musical mark on the Portland contra dance scene for years. The Megaband took on Almost Equinox 3 seasons ago–it works very well for the “licks and tricks” of this group. Larry says: “I wrote it for a Pinewoods fund raising auction and that Bill Ossa had the highest bid and named it.” He included it in his tune book The Reckless Reel. In addition to listening to A Beneficial Tradition, you can hear the Megaband play this tune (at the end of the video clip) on YouTube.
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Crook Brothers:
Crook Brothers comes from the playing of the Mando Mafia on their recording, Get Away. The liner notes say that the tune is from the Crook Brothers of Tennessee. They recorded it in the key of D, and the Megaband played it in that key in 2008, but it worked better for us in the key of G in 2009, so that’s where it is on A Beneficial Tradition.
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Deer Walk (James Bryan setting):
James Bryan of Alabama taught this setting of Deer Walk at the Festival of American Fiddle Tunes, July 2008. It varies significantly from the setting of this same tune that is printed in The Portland Collection (1).
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Erik’s Reel by Susan Songer:
I wrote this tune for Megaband 2008 after playing through maybe 30 tunes in the key of E and not finding one that I thought would work for the set I had in mind. I named it for Megaband co-organizer and caller Erik Weberg because it contains so many of his favorite music features (and also because he made some useful suggestions in the shaping of the tune).
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Farewell to the Taliban by Keith Murphy:
The version printed if you click on the title is the way Keith wrote the tune (and the way he has published it on his own web site. He writes: “because of the basic repetitive quality of the tune, it is particularly open to melodic variations on the part of the player.” Keith’s band, Nightingale, taught this tune in their band lab at Fiddle Tunes 2007 and put their own slant on it there. The Megaband added its own slight variations and chords, which you can see by clicking here.
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Folklife Reel:
I found the Folklife Reel in Gordy Euler’s new tune book, After Midnite, and added it into the Portland Megaband repertoire for the March, 2006 dance. When the Megaband plays one of his tunes, Gordy, who shares conducting duties with me in that band, always has a hard time deciding whether he would rather play or conduct his own tunes. He chose to conduct this one, so I got to play it. Check out Gordy’s book for more of his tunes. And if you would like to hear 75 musicians play the tune, then come to the Portland Megaband dance on March 10, 2007. We will likely play it again next year.
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Reel du Goglu:
I first heard Reel du Goglu from Clyde Curley when we were at his place in Bellingham working on Volume 2. Clyde had just rediscovered the tune and was teaching it to everyone he knew. We both loved the tune, but it was too late for inclusion in our new book. The setting here is from Joseph Allard, and you can hear him playing it on the Virtual Gramophone website. The Portland Megaband played this tune at the March, 2006 dance. Clyde and Eric Schlorff will be including it on their CD, L’Orage: Music of Quebec and Ireland on Harmonica, Fiddle and Guitar. According to the Virtual Gramophone, the English title for this tune is Goblin’s Reel–a far cry from my French dictionary, which translates “goglu” as “bobolink.”
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Kentucky One-Step:
This true vine (I think) old time tune comes from an MP3 download on the Web. The site says: “Jerry Rogers and Sons Home Recordings”. This is a rare compilation of recordings over the past few years by Master Old-Time Fiddler Jerry Rogers and his sons Andrew and Bobby. This CD is about as authentic as it gets when it comes to the heart of Southern Folk Music. Raw, Ruff & Ready!”
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Kitchen Girl:
Here’s the old time standard tune, Kitchen Girl, the way Megaband lead fiddler Betsy Branch taught it to the rest of us.
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Marie Sauce ton Pain (Rodney Miller setting):
I’m partial to this setting of Marie Sauce ton Pain, which Rodney Miller taught at the American Festival Fiddle Tunes in 2001. A different setting appears in The Portland Collection, Volume 2. That version comes from a recording by La Bottine Souriante, Je Voudrais Changer d’Chapeau, which may be the first place that many of us heard it.
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Merryn’s Reel by Ronnie Cooper:
This uplifting Shetland tune composed by Ronnie Cooper was recorded by Fiddler’s Bid on Da Farder ben da Wekamer, and that’s where we came across it.
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Never Been Better by Hank Laramee:
Never Been Better was written by the late Portland musician Hank Laramee. Hank was deeply involved with our dance community as a musician, caller, and dancer. In fact, he helped organize one of the first contra dances in Oregon in the early 80’s, and put together a tune book, The Oregon Country Dance Manual, which served as a music source for Oregon musicians for quite awhile afterwards. Hank played in the band Hands4 and was a faithful member of the Portland Megaband. He passed away unexpectedly in the spring of 2006. We miss him a lot but feel fortunate to be left with his fine tunes. Upon hearing this tune, Flavia Moshofsky said to Hank, “You must have been in a really great mood when you wrote that.” Hank replied: “Flavia, I am always in a really great mood.” See Train to Narbonne below for information about where to purchase Hank’s tune book with this and many other fine tunes.
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The Pinch of Snuff:
Randy Miller fiddled this tune at a dance in Portland in 2007. It was the first time I had ever danced to it, and in doing so, I realized it would lend itself very well to being played by the Megaband with the built-in drama of moving the melody up the strings as the tune progresses. Once through the tune is twice through the contra dance. Randy printed this tune in his book The Fiddler’s Throne, but our arrangement is a little different from what is found there.
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Starr Label Reel:
Rodney Miller taught this standard New England tune the way we play it here (more or less) at the Festival of American Fiddle Tunes in 1996.
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Taggart’s Reel #3:
Randy Miller taught Taggart’s Reel #3 when he was on staff at Fiddle Tunes in 2005. It worked so well for the big sound of his band lab that I thought it would translate well to the Megaband. Upon hearing our rendition, Randy wrote me that it might, just might, tempt the very stern appearing John Taggart to smile.
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Teetotaler’s Reel:
I wonder how many thousands of dancers feet have stepped to this classic Irish reel over the centuries.
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The Train to Narbonne by Hank Laramee:
This tune was a favorite among Portland Megaband members a few years back. Hank’s wife, Fran Tewksbury says: “I think The Train to Narbonne was written for a train trip in 1993, from Toulouse to Marseille. Hank ‘s ancestry was French & he loved being in France. On our first visit we were backpacking and trainriding. The stations and trips between were often as much fun as the towns themselves. On the train to Narbonne we read about Marseille, ate baguettes and were immersed in French conversations around us & the Mediterranean landscape. A good tune from a sweet memory.” You can purchase Hank’s tune book The Village Dance at the website of his former bandmate Carl Thor. Go to www.talismanmusic.com.
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Wagon Wheel:
This tune comes straight from Pete Sutherland’s recording Streak o’ Lean. He credits Bob Butler as his source.
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