Tam Lin

Reel, D Minor, by Davey Arthur
TrailJams Tune of the Week for August 12, 2021

This tune was written by Davey Arthur in about 1974, and he gave it the title Tamlin. It has spread widely since then, and it goes by several names including Tam Lin, The Glasgow Reel, and The Howling Wind. If you are not playing it for dancers, it also sounds great at a tempo of about 85 beats per minute — adjust that to your taste.

In the ballads of Tam Lin, to break the spell that the Queen of the Faeries had put on Tam Lin, his lover had to hold him in her arms while he turned into a series of dangerous beasts, including a snake and a lion. After several terrifying changes he turned into a man and the spell was broken.

Recordings

• Video – PeakFiddler: Tam Lin (Glasgow Reel)
• Video – Séamus Egan: Tamlin / Hand Me Down the Tackle / The Pure Drop from the album In Your Ear
• Audio – Noreia: Julia Delaney’s / Tam Lin from the album Moment to Treasure

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. Here is a transcription of one of the many variations of Davey Arthur’s tune.

Suggested Sets

Companion tunes and sequences that work well for this tune.

• Julia Delaney’s Reel (D Dorian) / Tam Lin (D Minor)

References and Resources

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

• More Recordings
  • Video – The legend of Tam Lin and the tune (Jim Loewenherz; Brenda Scearcy; Brian Ó hAirt) – In this Portland, Oregon performance, Jim Loewenherz tells the story of Tam Lin. Then he, Brenda Scearcy and Brian Ó hAirt play the tunes “Tam Lin” and “Julia Delaney.” Produced by Portland Story Theater.
• Books
  • The Portland Collection, Volume 2, by Susan Songer with Clyde Curley – Sheet music for two variations on the tune, and additional information.
• Lessons
  • Lesson – MandoLessons (Baron Collins-Hill: Tam Lin (The Glasgow) Video, audio tracks, and sheet music. Free.
  • Lesson – The Tamlin: Irish Fiddle Lessons by Ian Walsh
  • Lesson – Enda Scahill: The Tamlin Reel – The Marmite of Irish Reels!! — video demonstration of the tune and variations on tenor banjo, with discussion. (Full lesson with more content is available via subscription to Enda Scahill’s Patreon account.)
  • Mikela Rayburn’s (Mikela Valenzuela’s) lessons
    • Video: Tamlyn’s Reel aka Tamlin’s aka the Glasgow – slow, medium, fast speeds
    • Video: Tamlyn – slurring over the downbeat example – slow & fast
    • Video: Tamlin’s Reel – slow/medium/fast
• Other Resources
  • About Davey Arthur
    • Davey Arthur’s “Official” Facebook Page
    • Davey Arthur’s LinkedIn Page