John Stenson's #2: A Song History

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Despite its place in American jam books, "John Stenson's #2" is an Irish reel. According to the Traditional Tune Archive, the fiddler Kevin Burke first came across it, together with a companion tune, in the playing of John Stenson, an accordionist from County Sligo, and because the tunes had no known title they were named after him.[1] Burke recorded it on his 1978 album If the Cap Fits, made in Dublin with Donal Lunny producing, where "John Stenson's No. 2" follows "The Star of Munster" and its companion "John Stenson's No. 1."[2] Burke's track, dated to about 1978, is the earliest recording listed by the Irish tune index irishtune.info, which gives the key as A Mixolydian.[3] The Tune Archive treats it as an A-major reel and lists other names for it, among them "The Glass of Beer" and "McFadden's Reel."[1]

Color photochrom of a waterfall dropping through wooded rocks at Glencar, County Sligo, Ireland

Detroit Publishing Co., “Glencar Fall, County Sligo, Ireland,” photochrom print, about 1890–1900. Library of Congress. No known restrictions. John Stenson, for whom the reel is named, was a County Sligo musician.

The melody may be older than its modern name. In a music manuscript compiled around 1883 by Stephen Grier, a piper and fiddler from south County Leitrim, there is a reel called "Charley's Frolick."[4] The Tune Archive finds its opening part a near match for the opening of "John Stenson's No. 2"; the second parts differ more but are still broadly alike.[5] A more ornate setting was printed as "Bright May Moon" in the fifth volume (1999) of the Irish dance-music series Ceol Rince na hÉireann.[1]

In North America the reel turns up in contra dance and jam repertoire. It was printed in The Portland Collection (1997), a book of contra dance tunes, and the band Wild Asparagus recorded it on The Call of the Wild (1993).[1][6] It also found a home among dulcimer players: the mountain dulcimer player Aaron O'Rourke recorded it with his trio, and a guitar arrangement in Flatpicking Guitar Magazine presented it as an old-time tune, with the arranger admitting he did not know how it got its name.[7][8] It appears in Stephen Seifert's mountain dulcimer collection Join the Jam II.[9]

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Sources

  1. The Traditional Tune Archive: "Annotation:John Stenson's No. 2".
  2. Kevin Burke: "If the Cap Fits" (CD).
  3. irishtune.info (Alan Ng): "John Stenson's No. 2 — reel in the Irish tradition".
  4. The Traditional Tune Archive: "John Stenson's No. 2".
  5. The Traditional Tune Archive: "Annotation:Charley's Frolick".
  6. The Portland Collection: "Tunes (Vol. 1)".
  7. AllMusic: "The Aaron O'Rourke Trio".
  8. Flatpicking Guitar Magazine: "January '09 John Stenson's #2".
  9. Stephen Seifert: "Join the Jam II".