March 27, 2026: Danny Boy (Irish Traditional) is posted in the Book 2.
Hey! One of my classes here in Albuquerque is starting a Celtic music unit this week and it's going to be so fun and so I'm updating the whole section in Book 2, so check in from time to time to see how the project is going. And yes, I just pulled all the dead links off that page for now. Send me an email if you need any of those tunes. I think all the links on Book 1 are working now.
Danny Boy is the best song from Ireland according to me. If you have any Irish blood in you, it'll make you cry and you don't know why. It's based on the tune Londonderry Air from the 19th century and Frederic Edward Weatherly, an English dude with one of the funnier photos on Wikipedia, wrote the lyrics most of us know in the early 20th century.
The problem with Danny Boy is the song requires an expert singer to hit the low note and the high note. It honestly barely even fits on the ukulele, but I did it. There are two really weird chords you'll do battle with. The first shows up in Measure 9. It's really a fancified Bb chord (or F in baritone), so if you're singing, just play the normal chord, but I went ahead and gave you a chord chart for the TuffUke version and figured out the ridiculous music theory behind it. Just know it sounds cool. The second chord that'll drive you nuts is under the note that drives everybody nuts who sings this song in Measure 13. The high note is so high you'll need to memorize this shape and place it very carefully so as not to alarm the dogs in the neighborhood.
Remember we're getting together on Sunday nights at 7 pm Mountain time on YouTube and you should join us. Info is here.
