"The Maid Behind the Bar" (in Gaelic "An Gearrchaile taobh thiar den Bheár"), also known as "The Barmaid", "The Bartender", "Green Mountain", "The Haymaker Reel", "Long Island Reel", "Indy's Favorite", "Little Judy", "Judy's Reel", "The Maid Behind the Barrel" and "The Maid Behind the Counter" is Irish reel in D Major (most versions) or C Major (Cranitch).
The parts are played AABB (most versions) or AA'BB (Bain).
The tune was popularized through the recording by Sligo fiddle master James Morrison (and piper Tom Ennis) and has become (along with its variants) one of the most ubiquitous tunes in modern Irish sessions. The melody appears earliest in print as "Indy's Favorite" and "Judy's Reel" in Ryan's Mammoth Collection (1883). O'Neill prints the tune also under the title "The Maids of Castlebar" but the title may be a corruption of "Maid Behind the Bar" or vice-versa. Philippe Varlet believes that a recording for Columbia Records by accordion player James Murphy in 1920 is the first time that the use of the title "Maid Behind the Bar" can be documented. He notes that accordion player John "Dutch" Kimmel recorded the tune the same year as "The Bartender" and that flute player John Sheridan recorded it on a wax cylinder as "Maid Behind the Barrel" in 1928. Kimmel also included it in his 1920 cylinder recording for Edison as the last tune in a medley of Irish reels called "Oh gee!" and County Clare fiddler Vincent Griffin recorded the tune in 1977, played in the key of 'C' major.
I got the banjo tab from Ken Perlman at a Midwest Banjo Camp class.
It was printed in Bain's 50 Fiddle Solos (1989), Brody's Fiddler's Fakebook (1983), Cranitch's Irish Fiddle Book (1996), Cranitch's Irish Session Tunes: Red Book (2000), Harker's 300 Tunes from Mike Rafferty (2005), Mallinson's 100 Essential (1995), Martin & Hughes' Ho-ro-gheallaidh (1990), O'Brien's Jerry O'Brien's Accordion Instructor (1949), O'Malley's Luke O'Malley's Collection of Irish Music, vol. 1 (1976) (appears as "The Barmaid"), Perlman's The Fiddle Music of Prince Edward Island (1996), Sullivan's Session Tunes, vol. 2, Tubridy's Irish Traditional Music, vol. 1 (1999).
It was also recorded by Natalie MacMaster on Fit as a Fiddle (1993), whistle player Jim Donoghue on The Coleman Archive, vol. 2: The Home Place (2005), Frank Ferrel on Yankee Dreams: Wicked Good Fiddling from New England (1991), Colm Murphy on The Irish Drum/An Bodhran, Brendan Power on New Irish Harmoica, Frankie Gavin on Frankie Goes to Town (appears as "Maid Behind the Barrel"), Matt Cranitch on Irish Fiddle Music 2: Give It Shtick! and Vincent Griffin on Traditional Fiddle Music from County Clare (1977).