Peter Francis Barron was born in September of 1918 in St Joseph’s, Placentia Bay, the son of John Barron and Bridget Murphy. His brothers Jack, Lar, and Fergus, as well as sisters Margaret and Maude, played accordion, and his father played the harmonica. Accomplished on both accordion and fiddle, Pete was always in demand to play locally for weddings and dances. He later moved to Freshwater P.B. and was employed as a fisherman, then a steward on the CN boats. He passed away in 2012.

Collector’s Note: I didn’t record Peter myself. Eric West gave me a tape recording that he had made. However, I did meet with Pete on several occasions, once when he performed in a local show in Placentia during the summer of 1999. Most of his tunes are “standards,” but I did get several unique tunes that I hadn’t heard elsewhere, which I have presented here. Other tunes Peter played: Paddy in London, Teetotalers Reel, Growling Old Man, Little Beggarman, St. Anne’s Reel, Girl I Left Behind, Green Grow the Rushes, Miss McLeod’s Reel, Rakes of Kildare, Irish Washerwoman, Father O’Flynn, Flowers of Edinburgh.