The Red Haired Boy
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The Red Haired Boy is a popular Irish reel that is a staple of Bluegrass jams. As with many fiddle tunes it goes by different names such as The Red Headed Irishman and The Jolly Beggar; the latter of which is based on the title and lyrics of an 18th Century Scottish ballad with a similar melody.
The tune is in the key of A (Mixolydian) and although I play it out of the G position capoed at the 2nd fret some guitar players prefer to play it in A without a capo.
December 16th, 2007 at 4:03 pm
Really enjoyed your sample of Red Haired boy. Encouraged me to learn it. I know this as “Little Beggar Man” and (long ago) used to do a fingerstyle rendition but I really like your flatpicking version. I’d also like to hear more Irish fiddle tunes adapted for guitar. Have any ?