Autumn months are often times of change. The angles look different, and the colors of it change, too. Winds may come from a different direction, and there is a bit of a colder edge when they do. Leaves change color, too.
There's a lot going on in October and in other autumn months in nature, and often in day to day life, as well. Election campaigns, family gatherings, getting ready for holidays. Celebrating and coping with change of all sorts can be a hallmark of autumn days.
Musicians notice this, as well.
Sweet October, as you might imagine, looks to the brighter side of things, appreciating the basic joys and the deeper ones that come with this time of year. It was written by Aoife Scott and Andy Meany, who are from Ireland. Aoife has received awards and recognitions for her work. She has released two albums at this writing. Her first one, Carry the Day, included the song Wild Atlantic Way, which went to number one in Ireland and was named song of the year at the Irish Folk awards. Andy is in demand as a guitarist and guitar teacher. He and Aoife often perform and write together. They took their longtime personal and professional partnership to another level when they celebrated their wedding recently.
Matt and Shannon Heaton are based in Massachusetts in the US. They've spent several winter in near Ennis in Clare, in Ireland, though. That is where they learned the three tunes in what they have named the P Joe's Reels set: P Joe Hayes #2, Cottage in the Grove, and Mother and Child. That's Shannon on flute and Matt on guitar in the set, which they've recorded on their album Whirring Wings. In the tune book they have published to go along, you will find good stories of how they came to learn the tunes.
The Castle of Dromore is a song that comes from Ireland, too. Maybe about the castle in County Kerry, maybe about one of the others called that in other places on the island. It is a lullaby of sorts, with a mother hearing the October winds outside and sharing warmth within with her child. The Irish American group Cherish the Ladies chose to record the song on their album On Christmas Night. Heidi Talbot sings lead, with Joanie Madden on flute and Mary Coogan on guitar. Since leaving Cherish the Ladies, Heidi has moved to Scotland and forged an award-winning solo career, including recognition as composer of the year at a recent Scots Trad Music Awards. Her most recent album at this writing, in which she focuses on myths, legends, and stories of women of Ireland, is called Grace Undone.
Autumn comes to Appalachia in the Smoky Mountains of the United States often with blazing colors, and with cold winds, too. Dolly Parton, who grew up in east Tennessee, knew those Appalachian autumns well. She brought them into one of her best loved songs.
There were rags of many colors
But every piece was small
And I didn't have a coat
And it was way down in the fall...
Remembering Dolly, and her legacy of creativity, inspiration, and the story of that Coat of Many Colors.
May the work of these musicians brighten your autumn days...
Thank you for staying with us through this journey. Below, you'll find a link that will take you to an article which has a bit more backstory on the series. It also has links to a number of the stories, including ones called Listening for Community, Music for Winter's Changes, and The Geography of Hope.
Kerry Dexter is Music Editor at Wandering Educators.
You may find more of Kerry's work in National Geographic Traveler, Strings, Perceptive Travel, Journey to Scotland, Irish Fireside, and other places, as well as at her own site, Music Road. You can also read her work at Along the Music Road on Substack.