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.

For download info & playback options refer to this article

Sean Ray has been playing guitar and banjo for over 20 years. He is a member of the Madison-based band The Brothers Ray and plays in and around the Wisconsin area.