O’Keefe’s Slide

A Dorian, Traditional Irish Slide
TrailJams Tune of the Week for December 19, 2021; May 14, 2023

This traditional tune is named for Pádraig O’Keefe (1887-1963), a master fiddler of Ireland’s Sliabh Luachra region. Sliabh Luachra (or Slieve Logher) is the mountainous region in Ireland that straddles the county boundaries of Cork, Kerry, and Limerick.

If you are a bit hazy on Dorian mode, see the article “Dorian, Mixolydian, Oh My: Modes in a Nutshell” for a brief and friendly explanation.

Recordings

• Audio – Comhaltas: O’Keefe’s. From the album Foinn Seisiún Volume 1, published by Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann.
• Audio – Stephen Ducke: O’Keefe’s Slide. Played on tin whistle. From the book Irish Music – 400 Traditional Tunes.

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.

Sets

Examples of sets that include this tune.

• Murphy’s Road Slide Set: The Road to Lisdoonvarna (E Dorian) / O’Keefe’s Slide (A Dorian) / Denis Murphy’s Slide (D)
• Brosna Slide Set: The Brosna Slide / O’Keefe’s Slide / Denis Murphy’s Slide

References and Resources

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

• More Recordings
  • Video – The Chieftains: O’Keefe’s Slide, in E Dorian. From the album The Chieftains 4.
  • Audio – The Jones Boys: Hardiman the Fiddler​/​The Kesh Jig​/​Dennis Murphy’s​/​O’Keefe’s from the album Like the Sun a​-​Glittering. Dennis Murphy’s starts at time 1:48; O’Keefe’s starts at 2:42.
  • Video – Claire Shirey: O’Keefe’s Slide / Dennis Murphy’s Slide Concertina
• Books
  • Book – Foinn Seisiún, Vol 1. Published by Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann.
  • Book & Audio – Irish Music 400 Traditional Tunes, by Stephen Ducke 
  • Book & Audio – Learn to Play Irish Fiddle, by Tom Morley (The tune is in E Dorian in this book.)
  • Book – The Portland Collection, Vol. 1 (The tune is in E Dorian in this book.)
• Lessons
  • Lesson – Claire Shirey: O’Keefe’s (A minor) Slide Concertina Tutorial – video tutorial on concertina
• Additional Resources
  • Webpage – The Session: O’Keeffe’s slide – crowdsourced sheet music, comments and more.
  • Article: Jonathan Lay (TrailJams): Dorian, Mixolydian, Oh My: Modes in a Nutshell
  • Webpage – The Jones Boys: O’Keefe’s Slide notes about the tune, with sheet music.