An upsurge in playing the tin whistle came in the 1980s when The Pogues burst onto the scene. The
Pogues played what could be described as ''Celtic Rock'' or Irish folk music with a kick. Spider Stacey is The Pogues whistle
player who only plays standard penny whistles as opposed to incorporation low whistles into their songs. When Fairytale Of
New York was released it seemed the tin whistle was in vogue once again. The next big hit for the Pogues where the simple
whistle dominated the intro and instrumental in the middle was Streams Of Whiskey with the tune been very close to The Rising
Of The Moon which is an old Irish rebel song by The Clancy Brothers.
Up next to keep the humble whistle alive were Flogging Molly who were formed in America by Dave King
who comes from Dublin. Flogging Molly kept the old songs alive while writing new stuff for a younger following. But well before
The Pogues or Flogging Molly were even heard of The Chieftains and The Dubliners where using the tin whistle to spice up the
folk songs from Ireland and are still going strong and touring today.
But getting the most use from this simple instrument was always the traditional Irish musicians who
preform in every town in Ireland every night of the week and most don't even get payed but play for the sheer love of the
music and to keep it alive for future generations. These are the real champions of the simple tin whistle. This site or any
other site that provides sheet music tabs will only give you a guide to get started. It's up to yourself when it comes to
learning, you'll get out what you put in.
If you're looking for an easy song to begin with and trying to learn how to read tabs for the whistle
try Michael Row Your Boat Ashore . you can play it on any whistle in any key you want as the notes are straight forward.
