Overview and A Section

Putting First Things First

Red Haired boy is a jam standard and beautiful fiddle tune. We’ll dive into the A section and B section and go over key points. Then, we’ll check out a few licks, analyzing the technique required and seeing how they fit into the song. The “A” section starts off with a few “pickup notes”. These are notes that come before the first downbeat of the song. They help to lead into the melody, and sometimes are used to “kick-off” a tune.

Measure 2 starts the song, pay close attention to the pick direction and timing here. Loop and listen to this measure several times before trying to play. Keeping fingers down when playing a note in front of that finger or on a neighboring string can often increase efficiency. Watch the fingers on my fretting hand in the video for a demonstration. After playing the first fret note on the B string I leave that finger down when playing the third fret, I leave both fingers down when playing the open E. This can be a challenge, but give it a try and practice it. However, don’t frustrate yourself, it’s ok to lift fingers to get the job done.

Up next, we'll look at a couple ways to create variations in the A section by using the lick switcher.