Chief O’Neill’s Favorite

Hornpipe, D Major, Traditional Irish
Also known as Chief O’Neill’s Favourite

Recordings

• Video – Chris Smith: Chief O Neill’s Favorite/Kitty’s Wedding – from the album Coyotebanjo, Irish Traditional Music from America, Chris Smith with Roger Landes and Randal Bays. Played on tenor banjo and fiddle with bouzouki backing.
• Video – Enda Scahill: Chief O’Neill’s Favourite Hornpipe on Irish Tenor Banjo
• Video – Tunes From Doolin (Charles Monod): Chief O’Neill’s Favourite (Hornpipe) – played on concertina

Dots (Music Notation)

As always for traditional tunes, the musical notation and chords do not indicate the “right” way to play the tune, but are a useful reference. The version here is simplified, with ornamentation removed — to play it well, be sure to add triplets and other ornamentation.

Sets

Examples of sets that include this tune.

• Chief O’Neill’s Favourite​ / ​Kitty’s Wedding
• The Rights of Man / Chief O’Neill’s Favourite

References and Resources

For those who want to dig deeper, here are some other resources.

• More Recordings
  • Audio – Fiddlehead: Chief O’Neill’s​/​Kitty’s Wedding – from the album The Pure Drop.
  • Audio – Castlerock (Slowplayers): Chief O’Neil’s Favorite – played at a slow tempo on flute and fiddle. From the album Session Tunes volume 1 by Castlerock. Angeline LeLeux (fiddle) and William Bajzek (flute), who produced the album under the name “Slowplayers” later renamed their duo “Castlerock.” (Mt. Vernon, Washington, USA)
  • Video – The Dubliners: Chief O’Neill’s / Cork Hornpipe – played on tenor banjo by Barney McKenna. From the album The Dubliners.
  • Video – The Irish Mandolin (Aidan Crossey): Chief O’Neill’s Favourite – recorded for The Mandolin Cafe’s Song-A-Week Social Group, 4 October 2021
  • Audio – Stephen Ducke: Chief O’Neill’s Favourite (Hornpipe) – played on tin whistle. From the book Irish Music – 400 Traditional Tunes
  • Video – Michael Eskin: “Chief O’Neill’s Favourite” Hornpipe on B/C Box – video of melody played on button accordion; sheet music displayed at the end of the video
• Books
  • Book – Stephen Ducke: Irish Music 400 Traditional Tunes
  • Book – Shannon Heaton: Oil for the Chain, Traditional and Original Irish Music – with audio tracks of the tunes played on flute; no chords.
• Lessons
  • Lesson – Enda Scahill: Chief O’Neill’s Favourite – The Ultimate Irish Banjo Hornpipe? – introduction to the tune and to the lesson. (Full lesson requires subscription to Enda Scahill’s Patreon account.)
  • Lessons – Online Academy of Irish Music – lessons on fiddle and flute. Requires subscription to OAIM.
• Additional Resources
  • Webpage – Tunes from Doolin: Chief O’Neill’s Favourite – sheet music, ABC notation, video and more
  • Webpage – The Session: Chief O’Neill’s Favourite Hornpipe – crowdsourced sheet music, comments and more.
  • Webpage – The Irish Traditional Music Tune Index: Chief O’Neill’s Favorite – curated & archival information about the tune