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Oh, the days of the Kerry dances / Oh, the lilt of the piper’s tune’. This was how the lyrics began the original song version that was sung by Irish tenors during most of the 20th century, especially on Saint Patrick’s Day. About 20 years ago, when I was playing in John D. McGurk’s bar in Saint Louis, I began to tire of several requests for the song and in order to satisfy myself, I rearranged its melody and turned it into a set dance.
B,D | G2 A BAG | c2 e d2 B | g2 B BAG | A2 E FED | G2 A BAG | cde d2 B | g2 B BAG | A2 G G2 D || G2 A BAG | cde d2 B | g2 B BAG | A2 E FED | G2 A BAG | cde d2 B | g2 B BAG | (3ABA G G3 || d2 e dde | dde d2 e | (3ded e fed | edB ^c2 A | dde dde | d2 e (3ded e | d2 e faf | e2 d def | g2 e cde | f2 d Bcd | e2 E c2 B | A3 AFD | G2 A BAG | cde d2 B | g2 B BAG | A2 E FED | G2 A BAG | cde d2 B | g2 B BAG | A2 G G3 |