This has me remembering visiting Glasgow in 1969 and playing bodhran in the Old Scotia Bar and thinking this was a damn good fiddle player I was playing with. Aly Bain.
I don't have any Scottish DNA that I am aware of, it's mostly Irish, but it still speaks to me. I've always thought of the Scottish and Irish as cousins with a background of persecution from a common neighbor. I like the scene in the movie Braveheart where the Irish mercenaries rushed towards the Scottish clansmen, then pulled up short, and refused to fight them, which irritated the English. Of course all is forgiven now--sort of.
The delicate fade-in, fade-out and slur of about 6 notes/steps in the space of 2 seconds by a true master is apparent at the 1:50-1:52 mark, the 2:08-2:10 mark and again at 3:05-3:07.......true soul.....haunting.....longing....sorrow......finality.....
So much of the rural south was settled by Scots-Irish immigrants that it's no wonder where our Bluegrass and Americana roots music came from.........it's right here in front of you.
J'aime particulièrement cette musique qui a le mérite d'être "genuine "et d'être remarquablement interprétée ! Bravo à tous ! Je m'abonne ( of course ! )
@radstainforth You're absolutely right. Many of the Irish (and probably Scottish, as well) that came to this country settled in the Appalachian areas. They made their own instruments and music was an important part or their lives. Their music became known as "bluegrass" music..
@57adjrean The only thing i know of reading the history of the appalachians is lots of irish & scottish settled there & married into the cherokee clans. some had more than one wife, married sisters ect. The scots liked the cherokee because they were like them & enjoyed their freedom & didn't want anyone telling them what all they could do. This is where we get our accents from. The original settlers to the appalachians !
@radstainforth duh...our "hillbillies" are mostly Irish and Scottish decent...that's why they are our dumbest and least educated people in the USA... of course our Bluegrass is also descended from the Irish
@mjw9363 Not to worry. So called Hillbillies have been and are still denied a lot that flatlanders take for granted. I am damn proud of my Scots/Irish roots!
You can certainly see how this type of Scottish music helped form the roots of American Bluegrass. If you'd simply step up the pace, improvise the lead with a breakdown, you'd have it. It's not a far stretch at all. I love THIS!
@WoodenYouKnowIt It's actually an Irish tune played by a man from Shetland, which was at one time part of Norway almost as long as it has been part of Scotland. I don't mean to put you down, I agree that it's very similar to some traditional American music except for the fact that it's much slower.
@Dunbardoddy I know exactly what you're saying. so many kinds of music are the result of a blending of some very RICH cultures too. But, being a guitar player here in Tennessee, I can tell you that every bluegrass musician that I know absolutely loves this style of music right here as well. When I sit in a jam session with some of these folks, most of the music is, like you said, faster paced, but if someone starts to play this style, everyone will jump right in and make some beautiful music.
sometimes, reading the comments puts me in mind of the arguments amongst the various martial arts practitioners ; a musical instrument does poor service as a weapon. but i will admit, i have had good results with me banjo.
Just gorgeous music! It's hard to compare Fiddlers. There are so many incredible fiddlers in so many different styles. No one can do justice to all the styles - Old Time, Bluegrass, Irish, Scottish, Cajun, Western Swing, Mariachi music, Country - to name a few. Just when you think you've heard the very best - another one comes along - often a student of one of the icons.
@ivanrorick go to vid to mp2 . com and copy the address from the top of the youtube page and paste it into the space for it on that site and it will allow you to download the audio from the video,it very easy and free
@MrApples6 Another drawing card for me is that Bain is a family name, usually middle and surname. So, Aly and I are probably related from the Catherine Bain side of the family.
@jasayl0792 Half of my heritage is Scots/Irish- this speaks to me as well. Give a gal a break, or perhaps you've never made a typo, (that gives the rest of us something to aspire to). Sheesh. Please concentrate on the musicianship- that's what's important.
@brendantmcguire Pity your intolerance of another human being. This comment was made 9 months ago and probably late at night so sue me. I am Scottish and there's no need to beg anyone's pardon Brendan T. McGuire. It's a beautiful piece and exquisitely performed. Do you agree?
where i can find the music sheet of this wonderful song? i play the flute in an italian folk music group and i really enjoy this song! i'd like to suggest to my friends to play it! we have a bass, an harmonium, a violin, 2 guitard, 2 wonderful voices, an oboe and a flute. and drums, obviously ;) thanks for help! also a web link will be great!
Yeah thanks man, I figured it out. Like you said you can tell from his finger movements. For the longest time I tried to play this in DDAD and it didn't sound right. What sounds like Dead Man's droning is actually a harmony part played by the other fiddler.
And yes this is the beat Retreat. I tend to think of it not as a single tune but as a "family" of tunes that fall under the broad category of "Bonaparte's Retreat". William Stepp's is great too, but this is the best.
Our hats off to this powerful and stunningly beautiful composition rendered properly by masterful artists.We applaud heartily and thank them gratefully.
This is not the same tune as the one Stepp recorded and which Copland adapted into 'Hoedown'. The Stepp tune is a brisk-tempo square dance, but this is more of a slow march, and the melody is completely different. Lovely tune, but it bears no relation to the Stepp 'Bonaparte's Retreat'.
@lexo30 : Good catch, lexo--any idea how this tune came to be known as "Bonaparte's Retreat"? Just more evidence that being too certain about the origins of most folk music is an exercise in delusion
@grundoon51 Hi - nobody knows how most folk tunes got their names. I know dozens and dozens of traditional Irish tunes, for example, and it's in the nature of traditional tunes that their origins are lost. I have no idea why a favourite reel of mine is called "When Sick Is It Tea You Want", for example, or why another is called "The South West Wind", or why another is called "The Colliers'". They just are.
@lexo30 And trying to backtrack tunes once they showed up here is even more hopeless--I'm from the South, which was mostly settled by Englishmen and Scots, but there were some Ulster Scots in the mix; and the music long ago lost any particular national "character"--I probably know some of your reels, but not under the same name--The origins of the music to a song as well known as "Amazing Grace" are equally lost to history
@grundoon51 But then again, does it really matter where a tune comes from? I am not myself a traditional musician - I have no contact with the living tradition, so it would be hardly possible for me to be one, but I don't miss being one because many traditional musicians (usually, the great majority of OK musicians as opposed to the few great ones) are quite uptight about only playing traditional music and aren't interested in other musics. I couldn't do without rock, jazz & avant-garde music.
@lexo30 Well, it does and it doesn't--If one has serious historical interests, or some strong attachment to a cultural tradition, then what's in and out of the tradition is of more than casual interest--In the absense of any real evidence, though, it's very easy to fool oneself about what's "really" Irish/Scottish, etc. Purists must spend a lot of time being frustrated
@grundoon51 I have serious historical interests, which is precisely why I have no very strong attachments to any particular cultural tradition, am suspicious of attempts to work out what's '"really" Irish/Scottish, etc.', and indeed am not very attached to traditions generally. The most basic acquaintance with historical scholarship points up the nature of tradition as a constant reinvention by the present for present needs. Tradition is a story the present tells itself.
@lexo30 Serious historical interests do tend to preclude strong attachments to any particular tradition, which tend to edit history to their liking. It is possible to do serious historical research on Irish folk music or folklore, but one would probably wind up with a lot of holes, much ambiguous evidence, and nothing at all to support various claims about who had the bagpipes first and the like.
@grundoon51 There has of course been loads of research on Irish folk music and folklore, but one of the problems is that there is just a huge amount of source material to work on. A lot of people over the centuries have put a lot of work into preserving it, so there's almost an embarrassment of riches. I think a lot of the most interesting historical research at the moment is taking its cue from genetics - tracing mitochondrial DNA in an attempt to find out who really invaded and roughly when.
@lexo30 This kind of research is far afield from my own, but I'd be interested in finding out something about how you actually do this kind of work--Anybody you could recommend who'd be accessible to the non-specialist?
Anyone see Transatlantic Sessions on the Beeb last night? Who was the lovely blond girl with the very sweet voice? And what was that reel that they played at the end (and then faded out!)?
This song is known as "The Grooms' Tune" in my area. It was the last song played by my Gr. Grandfather before being shot in Chattalooche N.C., during the Civil War. I've always heard the story, but never heard the song--Until now..totally beautiful guys. I cried. God bless you.
I guess you know that Henry's Groom's fiddle, the same one he played his last Bonaparte's Retreat on, is on display at Dollywood. It was apparently given to Ms Parton's Gr Grandfather by one of your fore bearers
It is or was an American tune from the time of the Napoleonic Wars and is understandably melancholy as America was also at war with England at the time.
@zoo46zoo He is one of the greatest Fiddlers in the world - certainly the greatest in the British Isles; what a lot of people don't see is that it isn't just his raw talent as a fiddler that makes him special - it's his ability to adapt to any kind of music. I've seen him play anything from Norwegian to African styles, something which many fiddlers with more technical skill could never do.
@17Hongo Awk now he's a good fiddler all the same but theres no chance he's the best in the british isles!?!?! Jeasus your man cathal hayden would wipe the floor with him amongst others. I like Aly Blain but there are a good handfull of irish fiddlers that would take him hats down!
@G0disman I guess that you're irish - each country will defend it's musicians passionately, but as a scot, Aly will always be the best I have seen. (by the way, the term is "hands down", not "hats down"
@17Hongo Just for the record, I'm an American with zero Scottish ancestry and Aly's the best fiddler I've ever heard from any country, Scotland or otherwise. And I've heard hundreds. He blows away any American I've heard, and I'm saying this as an American. So it may be more a matter of you having good taste than it is of sharing a Scottish heritage with Aly. (Though I was under the impression that those from Shetland were considered a distinct Celtic people, and not Scottish per se?)
Aly Bain is an absolute legend. Another Scottish fiddle player to look into is Alasdair Fraser. I believe he has a few youtube videos posted and several albums available. I can personally vouch for "The Road North" (album). I don't believe he has the following that Aly has, but it's worth checking out.
If you like this version then search out the DVD "Another Musical Interlude" by Aly Bain and Phil Cunningham . 'Bonaparte's Retreat' on that will blow your mind!. As will the other 14 tracks.
I can almost hear bagpipes. I wouldn't doubt it's Scottish traditional. I'm sure they had a wary eye on the French Empire back in the day. And kick-ass rendition by the way.
A fair number of Scots did settle in the Southern upcountry--Lots of Highlanders in NC; Ulster Scots in Ky/Tenn--could easily have brought a fiddle tune, even tho they never fought Bonaparte
If every Australian orchestra who played it changed it a little bit and these changes got passed around through several hundred orchestras, it wouldn't be Beethoven's either after a century or so--Beethoven actually wrote a score; who knows what the original of this tune sounded like?
your point falls down at this juncture due to the fact the tune is being played by a Scotsman in the lead, therefore not an American tune by your argument.
Who knows what version of it he learned and from whom? He may be a Scotsman, but he hangs out/plays with Jay Unger and other Americans--He's almost certainly tweaked it himself, but that just makes it his version, not necessarily a Scottish one
I'm not sure after all these years, it makes any sense at all to talk about a tune like this in nationalistic terms--Granted it probably originated in Scotland, but it's likely been played by so many fiddlers in both Scotland and Appalachia in so many different ways that one can't tell the difference between your average Scottish fiddler and your average American..
This is very similar to the version more typical in the Appalachians played by great old fiddlers like Henry Reed. In parts of North Carolina and Tenn. it is referred to as "Groom's tune" due to the execution of George Grooms by Teague's raiders during the Civil War. (just like in cold mountain) Grooms was asked to play one last tune before he was killed, so he chose his favorite...(interestingly he happens to be Dolly Parton's ggg grandfather.
I just was checking out Tommy Jarrell playing this tune in old time Appalachian style. Viva la difference! Aly Bain is another fine master who just lets the music happen and doesn't try to grandstand when he's playing.
That really captures the sound and mood of the bagpipe tune. I've read that the strains of the tune were first heard played by pipers after the battle at Waterloo. Aly Bain is a great fiddler.
Very good.. I love this old fiddle tune. My great grandfather was said to have brought this fiddle tune up from New Oleans in the late 1800,s to Kentucky. It a favorite tune. You really have the feel of this tune. Thanks
Beautiful!
Finnr100 19 hours ago
Now what is the difference between this and Waiting for the Federals?
Ms2blackcats 1 week ago
@Ms2blackcats
The tune
nationalartandcraft 1 week ago
@nationalartandcraft You're right. I did hear a faster version and the two were very similar! Yank mistake!
Ms2blackcats 1 week ago
This has me remembering visiting Glasgow in 1969 and playing bodhran in the Old Scotia Bar and thinking this was a damn good fiddle player I was playing with. Aly Bain.
niallmac44 1 month ago
Violin playing at its most beautiful
gavinkilty108 2 months ago
I don't have any Scottish DNA that I am aware of, it's mostly Irish, but it still speaks to me. I've always thought of the Scottish and Irish as cousins with a background of persecution from a common neighbor. I like the scene in the movie Braveheart where the Irish mercenaries rushed towards the Scottish clansmen, then pulled up short, and refused to fight them, which irritated the English. Of course all is forgiven now--sort of.
guyfihi 2 months ago
Ummm, with all due respect whodat, the video features Aly Bain who is the violinist, not the dobro player
Beautiful version, by the way. Thank you for uploading.
Dartsblaster2011 3 months ago
My favorite version of this song.
12marigold 3 months ago
It's like you can see the battle line marching out of the thin morning fog.
FoxfirePoet 4 months ago
This is really beautiful. Schön.
PeterMedwed 4 months ago
It's beautiful.
this0033 4 months ago
Can someoneplease tell me exactly what this tune is all about ?
ourpeoplesvoice 5 months ago
@ourpeoplesvoice when napolean bonaparte retreated
ItsPerseus 3 months ago
Little too much fiddle and not enough dobro.
XLIVwhodat 6 months ago
My sister played with ally bain and Phil cunninghum yesterday in Huntley.
They were doing duets togther. and yes i have video proof it. So if you don't belive me message me.
MrScotland262 6 months ago
The delicate fade-in, fade-out and slur of about 6 notes/steps in the space of 2 seconds by a true master is apparent at the 1:50-1:52 mark, the 2:08-2:10 mark and again at 3:05-3:07.......true soul.....haunting.....longing....sorrow......finality.....
aprilwino 8 months ago 2
So much of the rural south was settled by Scots-Irish immigrants that it's no wonder where our Bluegrass and Americana roots music came from.........it's right here in front of you.
aprilwino 8 months ago 4
J'aime particulièrement cette musique qui a le mérite d'être "genuine "et d'être remarquablement interprétée ! Bravo à tous ! Je m'abonne ( of course ! )
giordanengo1 9 months ago
If you listen to Shetland fiddle music you will hear how close it is to US bluegrass ...
radstainforth 10 months ago 8
@radstainforth That's because North American trad music came out of Scottish immigrants who made their own styles!
The Irish did their normal thing of staying pretty much the same, they seem to like that...
fearghasmor 4 months ago
@radstainforth You're absolutely right. Many of the Irish (and probably Scottish, as well) that came to this country settled in the Appalachian areas. They made their own instruments and music was an important part or their lives. Their music became known as "bluegrass" music..
57adjrean 3 months ago
@57adjrean The only thing i know of reading the history of the appalachians is lots of irish & scottish settled there & married into the cherokee clans. some had more than one wife, married sisters ect. The scots liked the cherokee because they were like them & enjoyed their freedom & didn't want anyone telling them what all they could do. This is where we get our accents from. The original settlers to the appalachians !
rainharper62 3 weeks ago
@radstainforth duh...our "hillbillies" are mostly Irish and Scottish decent...that's why they are our dumbest and least educated people in the USA... of course our Bluegrass is also descended from the Irish
mjw9363 2 weeks ago
@mjw9363 watch it I'm a hillbilly!!!!!
Ms2blackcats 1 week ago
@mjw9363 Not to worry. So called Hillbillies have been and are still denied a lot that flatlanders take for granted. I am damn proud of my Scots/Irish roots!
Finnr100 19 hours ago
You can certainly see how this type of Scottish music helped form the roots of American Bluegrass. If you'd simply step up the pace, improvise the lead with a breakdown, you'd have it. It's not a far stretch at all. I love THIS!
WoodenYouKnowIt 11 months ago
@WoodenYouKnowIt It's actually an Irish tune played by a man from Shetland, which was at one time part of Norway almost as long as it has been part of Scotland. I don't mean to put you down, I agree that it's very similar to some traditional American music except for the fact that it's much slower.
Dunbardoddy 11 months ago
@Dunbardoddy I know exactly what you're saying. so many kinds of music are the result of a blending of some very RICH cultures too. But, being a guitar player here in Tennessee, I can tell you that every bluegrass musician that I know absolutely loves this style of music right here as well. When I sit in a jam session with some of these folks, most of the music is, like you said, faster paced, but if someone starts to play this style, everyone will jump right in and make some beautiful music.
WoodenYouKnowIt 10 months ago
a' great
printedpaper 11 months ago
Wow!
Fantastic.
Thanks Tom.. another gem
alyfan99 11 months ago 2
It may be hard to compare fiddlers but I have NEVER heard anyone play the Dobro like Jerry Douglas!
rdvqc 11 months ago
what talented people A+++++++++++++
obmat52 11 months ago
He plays so beautifully and seems so humble about his playing.
12marigold 1 year ago
What can I say other than what "organichik" said, except it's Scottish, not Scottich!
purveyor24 1 year ago
sometimes, reading the comments puts me in mind of the arguments amongst the various martial arts practitioners ; a musical instrument does poor service as a weapon. but i will admit, i have had good results with me banjo.
sleethmitchell 1 year ago
@sleethmitchell Well said mr!! (as a banjo ninja myself!!)
JAIJAI0 1 year ago
Just gorgeous music! It's hard to compare Fiddlers. There are so many incredible fiddlers in so many different styles. No one can do justice to all the styles - Old Time, Bluegrass, Irish, Scottish, Cajun, Western Swing, Mariachi music, Country - to name a few. Just when you think you've heard the very best - another one comes along - often a student of one of the icons.
strungup101 1 year ago 2
On iTunes you can find this song on Transatlantic Sessions Series 1 Volume 2 under Aly Bain and Jay Ungar for some reason.
shottinguneye 1 year ago
@shottinguneye I looked up all the Transatlantic Sessions on iTunes including Series 1 Volume 2 and it's not listed in any of them.
ivanrorick 1 year ago
@ivanrorick go to vid to mp2 . com and copy the address from the top of the youtube page and paste it into the space for it on that site and it will allow you to download the audio from the video,it very easy and free
MrRonin45enator 1 year ago
I'm with organichick on this one. Such tone.
MrApples6 1 year ago
@MrApples6 Another drawing card for me is that Bain is a family name, usually middle and surname. So, Aly and I are probably related from the Catherine Bain side of the family.
organichik 1 year ago
This speaks to my Scottich DNA
organichik 1 year ago 13
@organichik funny that your Scottish DNA couldn't have figured out how to spell your heritage's namesake correctly...
jasayl0792 11 months ago
@jasayl0792 Half of my heritage is Scots/Irish- this speaks to me as well. Give a gal a break, or perhaps you've never made a typo, (that gives the rest of us something to aspire to). Sheesh. Please concentrate on the musicianship- that's what's important.
MrAwmartin 11 months ago
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@organichik funny that your Scottish DNA couldn't have figured out how to spell your heritage's namesake correctly..
jasayl0792 11 months ago
@organichik Aye
111day1 10 months ago
@organichik Pity your Scottish DNA doesn't speak to your English spelling.
brendantmcguire 5 months ago
@brendantmcguire Pity your intolerance of another human being. This comment was made 9 months ago and probably late at night so sue me. I am Scottish and there's no need to beg anyone's pardon Brendan T. McGuire. It's a beautiful piece and exquisitely performed. Do you agree?
organichik 5 months ago
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sadarekaanjali 1 year ago
Lækker musik
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JuligJamf 1 year ago
Can anyone tell me what Doucet is doing? It sounds like he is playing a similar melody but lower - I can't quite make it out.
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ayashadilrukshi 1 year ago
where i can find the music sheet of this wonderful song? i play the flute in an italian folk music group and i really enjoy this song! i'd like to suggest to my friends to play it! we have a bass, an harmonium, a violin, 2 guitard, 2 wonderful voices, an oboe and a flute. and drums, obviously ;) thanks for help! also a web link will be great!
piccoloBu 1 year ago
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sfgdxgfsdgdfg 1 year ago
What tuning is Aly playing in? Dead Man's Tuning (DDAD)? Sounds like it.
ivanrorick 1 year ago
@ivanrorick Watch his fingers- he's playing in standard tuning- the sheet music I have is exactly the same as this.
There are so many 'Retreats' that I get them mixed up, but I like this one best. Sad, and mournful, but noble. Just as an army in retreat would be.
boom1944 1 year ago
@boom1944
Yeah thanks man, I figured it out. Like you said you can tell from his finger movements. For the longest time I tried to play this in DDAD and it didn't sound right. What sounds like Dead Man's droning is actually a harmony part played by the other fiddler.
And yes this is the beat Retreat. I tend to think of it not as a single tune but as a "family" of tunes that fall under the broad category of "Bonaparte's Retreat". William Stepp's is great too, but this is the best.
ivanrorick 1 year ago
Never heard it played this slow. Nice rendition but I prefer it much faster. These guys are great players though.
SigP229R 1 year ago
Our hats off to this powerful and stunningly beautiful composition rendered properly by masterful artists.We applaud heartily and thank them gratefully.
killerkryss 1 year ago
The DNA comment was funny or used to see if Washington's song is one and the same. These are some cool cats. Vin
cybermoviestar 1 year ago
Beautiful!
RealMadMartigan 1 year ago
Great version, love the chords.
widd2 1 year ago
Beautiful song.
nathanialcool 1 year ago
That is good MUSIC !
RCH0974 1 year ago
This is just a glimpse of how we'll get to play in Heaven.
jagvocate 1 year ago
Where did I put those clogging shoes?
MrApHowell 2 years ago
Awesome!
melodyl52 2 years ago
So So Beautiful!
charlie1pipes 2 years ago
It,s Jack Lawrence on the still guitar? Thanks.
janetiz1 2 years ago
Fantastic!
upoint2 2 years ago
Speechless.
Utoober67 2 years ago
Amazing music!!
daviemcf 2 years ago
Great track!
Tonefid115 2 years ago
W. H. Stepp, same song yet much different and much better. Also Stepp version is quoted extensively by Copland in the "Hoedown" in his work "Rodeo".
notserp89m 2 years ago
This is not the same tune as the one Stepp recorded and which Copland adapted into 'Hoedown'. The Stepp tune is a brisk-tempo square dance, but this is more of a slow march, and the melody is completely different. Lovely tune, but it bears no relation to the Stepp 'Bonaparte's Retreat'.
lexo30 2 years ago
@lexo30 : Good catch, lexo--any idea how this tune came to be known as "Bonaparte's Retreat"? Just more evidence that being too certain about the origins of most folk music is an exercise in delusion
grundoon51 1 year ago
@grundoon51 Hi - nobody knows how most folk tunes got their names. I know dozens and dozens of traditional Irish tunes, for example, and it's in the nature of traditional tunes that their origins are lost. I have no idea why a favourite reel of mine is called "When Sick Is It Tea You Want", for example, or why another is called "The South West Wind", or why another is called "The Colliers'". They just are.
lexo30 1 year ago
@lexo30 And trying to backtrack tunes once they showed up here is even more hopeless--I'm from the South, which was mostly settled by Englishmen and Scots, but there were some Ulster Scots in the mix; and the music long ago lost any particular national "character"--I probably know some of your reels, but not under the same name--The origins of the music to a song as well known as "Amazing Grace" are equally lost to history
grundoon51 1 year ago
@grundoon51 But then again, does it really matter where a tune comes from? I am not myself a traditional musician - I have no contact with the living tradition, so it would be hardly possible for me to be one, but I don't miss being one because many traditional musicians (usually, the great majority of OK musicians as opposed to the few great ones) are quite uptight about only playing traditional music and aren't interested in other musics. I couldn't do without rock, jazz & avant-garde music.
lexo30 1 year ago
@lexo30 Well, it does and it doesn't--If one has serious historical interests, or some strong attachment to a cultural tradition, then what's in and out of the tradition is of more than casual interest--In the absense of any real evidence, though, it's very easy to fool oneself about what's "really" Irish/Scottish, etc. Purists must spend a lot of time being frustrated
grundoon51 1 year ago
@grundoon51 I have serious historical interests, which is precisely why I have no very strong attachments to any particular cultural tradition, am suspicious of attempts to work out what's '"really" Irish/Scottish, etc.', and indeed am not very attached to traditions generally. The most basic acquaintance with historical scholarship points up the nature of tradition as a constant reinvention by the present for present needs. Tradition is a story the present tells itself.
lexo30 1 year ago
@lexo30 Serious historical interests do tend to preclude strong attachments to any particular tradition, which tend to edit history to their liking. It is possible to do serious historical research on Irish folk music or folklore, but one would probably wind up with a lot of holes, much ambiguous evidence, and nothing at all to support various claims about who had the bagpipes first and the like.
grundoon51 1 year ago
@grundoon51 There has of course been loads of research on Irish folk music and folklore, but one of the problems is that there is just a huge amount of source material to work on. A lot of people over the centuries have put a lot of work into preserving it, so there's almost an embarrassment of riches. I think a lot of the most interesting historical research at the moment is taking its cue from genetics - tracing mitochondrial DNA in an attempt to find out who really invaded and roughly when.
lexo30 1 year ago
@lexo30 This kind of research is far afield from my own, but I'd be interested in finding out something about how you actually do this kind of work--Anybody you could recommend who'd be accessible to the non-specialist?
grundoon51 1 year ago
@grundoon51 I'm not a historian, just somebody who's interested in this stuff. I can't answer your question.
lexo30 1 year ago
This song always lifts the heart. What blending of music by so many.
Maewynia 2 years ago
Anyone see Transatlantic Sessions on the Beeb last night? Who was the lovely blond girl with the very sweet voice? And what was that reel that they played at the end (and then faded out!)?
kathryndavey44 2 years ago
@kathryndavey44
that was probably Cara Dillon.
check out her a paul brady - streets of derry. and cara's lark in the clear air.
rgriff29 2 years ago
effin brill !!!
Nhurm 2 years ago
Shetland's best Export.
seafret 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
I love white culture. Save the white race.
Avngingandbright 2 years ago
where can I find this version? I looked on iTunes but they didn't have it.. it's so beautiful
SuperSeaCucumber 2 years ago
This version is on the CD, The Ruby (Aly Bain & Phil Cunningham) - Whirlie Records.
Tygentis 2 years ago
Thank you! :)
SuperSeaCucumber 2 years ago
Lovely tune to watch and listen to.
Thanks for posting it tomscotland.
mrsmops2 2 years ago
This song is known as "The Grooms' Tune" in my area. It was the last song played by my Gr. Grandfather before being shot in Chattalooche N.C., during the Civil War. I've always heard the story, but never heard the song--Until now..totally beautiful guys. I cried. God bless you.
treeandjack 2 years ago
If your Great Grandfather played this during the Civil war, it probably sounded more like William H. Stepp's rendition which you can listen to here:
/watch?v=1yeQucos9-M
oakpianist 2 years ago
My G. Grandmother was his wife Eliza! What's your name?
absugg 2 years ago
Comment removed
absugg 2 years ago
I guess you know that Henry's Groom's fiddle, the same one he played his last Bonaparte's Retreat on, is on display at Dollywood. It was apparently given to Ms Parton's Gr Grandfather by one of your fore bearers
contravert 2 years ago
I've heard this called "Groom's Tune", at folk festivals. Thanks for the info about the fiddle--I'll have to share that with my family.
Abscedere 2 years ago
:-)
kinsmanofkings 2 years ago
i love playing along on my low D whistle or my irish flute... melody really gets stuck in your head whahaha awesome..
thanks for posting.
take care
Jaydon
JaydonTWhistler 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Makes me want to set a towel head free for some oil. Scotland, your politicians have brought shame to your land.
railgeek404 2 years ago
Ab fab....
mmariem59 2 years ago
ali bain - legend
billmacaulay 2 years ago 9
A room full of talent = amazing music!
583550ls 2 years ago 3
Cheers Tomt....I've been looking for this. D.
DamianNixon 2 years ago
It is or was an American tune from the time of the Napoleonic Wars and is understandably melancholy as America was also at war with England at the time.
radstainforth 2 years ago
First Class!
pastore0506 2 years ago 2
This is beautiful. Is it possible to get this as a recording. It's haunting...
naomid2u 2 years ago 2
Yes, i have this version, i believe it's something like transatlantic Bonnaparts Retreat, you can get this version on iTunes
lbrown21494 2 years ago
lovely, beautifull, and great scenery,this is music at its best well done aly and all the musicains.
arthur1062 2 years ago
Aly Bain. ALY BAIN!!
robinhood48 2 years ago 3
Just beautiful...didn't want it to end!!
pitysing66 2 years ago 3
No wonder O'Connor honors this man.
BuddyKatt 2 years ago 2
I dont care about the why and the wherefores, this is just fantastic folk music and i love it. Sit back and enjoy.Aly Bain is a ledgend
zoo46zoo 2 years ago 10
@zoo46zoo He is one of the greatest Fiddlers in the world - certainly the greatest in the British Isles; what a lot of people don't see is that it isn't just his raw talent as a fiddler that makes him special - it's his ability to adapt to any kind of music. I've seen him play anything from Norwegian to African styles, something which many fiddlers with more technical skill could never do.
17Hongo 1 year ago
@17Hongo Awk now he's a good fiddler all the same but theres no chance he's the best in the british isles!?!?! Jeasus your man cathal hayden would wipe the floor with him amongst others. I like Aly Blain but there are a good handfull of irish fiddlers that would take him hats down!
G0disman 1 year ago
@G0disman I guess that you're irish - each country will defend it's musicians passionately, but as a scot, Aly will always be the best I have seen. (by the way, the term is "hands down", not "hats down"
17Hongo 1 year ago
@17Hongo Just for the record, I'm an American with zero Scottish ancestry and Aly's the best fiddler I've ever heard from any country, Scotland or otherwise. And I've heard hundreds. He blows away any American I've heard, and I'm saying this as an American. So it may be more a matter of you having good taste than it is of sharing a Scottish heritage with Aly. (Though I was under the impression that those from Shetland were considered a distinct Celtic people, and not Scottish per se?)
ivanrorick 1 year ago
@ivanrorick
Aly Bain is an absolute legend. Another Scottish fiddle player to look into is Alasdair Fraser. I believe he has a few youtube videos posted and several albums available. I can personally vouch for "The Road North" (album). I don't believe he has the following that Aly has, but it's worth checking out.
JMD0429 1 year ago
@JMD0429 haah i meant vid to mp3 not mp2
MrRonin45enator 1 year ago
If you like this version then search out the DVD "Another Musical Interlude" by Aly Bain and Phil Cunningham . 'Bonaparte's Retreat' on that will blow your mind!. As will the other 14 tracks.
GEORGEROV 2 years ago
glen campbell had this out years ago played with bagpipes
rustyspoke 2 years ago
Hey listen! It is real American music.
GoldRushDutch 3 years ago
I was sure this was a scottish tune called bonaparts retreat?
seonidh 2 years ago 2
I can almost hear bagpipes. I wouldn't doubt it's Scottish traditional. I'm sure they had a wary eye on the French Empire back in the day. And kick-ass rendition by the way.
vader6972 2 years ago
Yes my friend i have to agree.
seonidh 2 years ago
Im pretty sure the Americans never fought Napoleon Bonaparte's French Armies.
rerol 2 years ago
A fair number of Scots did settle in the Southern upcountry--Lots of Highlanders in NC; Ulster Scots in Ky/Tenn--could easily have brought a fiddle tune, even tho they never fought Bonaparte
grundoon51 2 years ago
thats my point its not an american piece of music.
rerol 2 years ago
Maybe didn't start out as one, but who knows what happened to it as it got passed around from one fiddler to the next
grundoon51 2 years ago
that doesnt matter, if Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 is played by an Australian ochestra it doesnt make it an Australian piece of music.
rerol 2 years ago
If every Australian orchestra who played it changed it a little bit and these changes got passed around through several hundred orchestras, it wouldn't be Beethoven's either after a century or so--Beethoven actually wrote a score; who knows what the original of this tune sounded like?
grundoon51 2 years ago
your point falls down at this juncture due to the fact the tune is being played by a Scotsman in the lead, therefore not an American tune by your argument.
rerol 2 years ago
Who knows what version of it he learned and from whom? He may be a Scotsman, but he hangs out/plays with Jay Unger and other Americans--He's almost certainly tweaked it himself, but that just makes it his version, not necessarily a Scottish one
grundoon51 2 years ago
if that is the case then it is not an american tune, just the musicians version.
rerol 2 years ago
I'm not sure after all these years, it makes any sense at all to talk about a tune like this in nationalistic terms--Granted it probably originated in Scotland, but it's likely been played by so many fiddlers in both Scotland and Appalachia in so many different ways that one can't tell the difference between your average Scottish fiddler and your average American..
grundoon51 2 years ago
This is so nice to sing along with (or hum with)
FlamingRuby 3 years ago
This is very similar to the version more typical in the Appalachians played by great old fiddlers like Henry Reed. In parts of North Carolina and Tenn. it is referred to as "Groom's tune" due to the execution of George Grooms by Teague's raiders during the Civil War. (just like in cold mountain) Grooms was asked to play one last tune before he was killed, so he chose his favorite...(interestingly he happens to be Dolly Parton's ggg grandfather.
The Fiddle is traditionally tuned DDAD.
OOfiddlestickerOO 3 years ago 2
I just was checking out Tommy Jarrell playing this tune in old time Appalachian style. Viva la difference! Aly Bain is another fine master who just lets the music happen and doesn't try to grandstand when he's playing.
mickyhikes 3 years ago 3
Loved seeing ALL of you playing together. You all radiate the spirit of this beautiful music. TONS of stars to you ALL!
cheers
buniluvr 3 years ago
Absolutely beautiful rendition...These melodies are the source of Amrerican Folk & Southern Soul music.
aprilwino 3 years ago 12
the note Aly plays at 2:12 is haunting. thank you for sharing this.
Beshimi 3 years ago
Who is playing piano ???
Is that Matt Rollings ?
dudestube 3 years ago
No it's Doald Shaw oh Capercaillie fame. I've updated the details.
tomtscotland 3 years ago
Go! tell Aunt Rhodie The Old grey goose is dead.
catbird007 3 years ago
Cracking tune Thompson on bass, who could ask for more !
TheArdRigh 3 years ago
I know, this sounds crazy, it doesn't need vocals at all, but, if Marty Robbins was to walk in, there would be a bond.
AgainstTheWind001 3 years ago 3
Glen Campbell had a 1974 vocal hit with this song from the Houston album.
1BarefootCowboy 3 years ago
Very Nice! Just a Very Enjoyable video!
LonePrairieCowboy 3 years ago
This is the same tune that the irish would play.
chef094 3 years ago
A nice retreat to the Highlands!
cunny16v 3 years ago
How do these guys not break into tears to be in that room together, and play something so sweet.
hamrzlawnlake 3 years ago 12
They play and we break into tears!
robinhood48 3 years ago
this is an awsome song :)
canfan57 3 years ago 2
im looking for glen Campbells version of the song bonaparte's retreat can anyone send it to me tyvvm:0 cheers
infowarrior007 3 years ago
I am too!Could someone please post it?
Bronteboy67 3 years ago
That really captures the sound and mood of the bagpipe tune. I've read that the strains of the tune were first heard played by pipers after the battle at Waterloo. Aly Bain is a great fiddler.
hucktunes 3 years ago 2
hauntingly beautiful.
thank you for sharing this.
Azathoth43 3 years ago 4
Very good.. I love this old fiddle tune. My great grandfather was said to have brought this fiddle tune up from New Oleans in the late 1800,s to Kentucky. It a favorite tune. You really have the feel of this tune. Thanks
dyer47lam73 3 years ago 3
AWESOME
SCRAMBLER390 3 years ago
Such effortless fiddle playing. The ability to play with such rhythm, power, and grace in the slower airs is the mark of a master.
DrummerBoyJason 3 years ago 4
loved this video! excellent!
TheBachands 3 years ago