My Girl is the way!
The riff we all know from My Girl is the pure major pentatonic scale. This is the safest and easiest way to start improvising. Make stuff up with safe notes!
You will learn the fingering, which string for your thumb, and what it sounds like. But you already know what it sounds like – it’s My Girl. Watch this snippet from our 2019 appearance on the ABC’s The Recording Studio.
Music and Resources
Here is what we’ll use at the workshop.
- The music sheet for My Girl An audio example of it (Ukestra on The Recording Studio)
- The Circle of fifths (it’s almost voodoo, but we’ll do our best to explain it)
- C and D scale (this is what you’ll ACTUALLY be doing)
- Ukulele major scales and chords
- Chromatic notes on the ukulele (that means ALL notes on the neck)
Diatonic Repertoire for Practising Improvisation
Four Strong Winds Four Strong Winds – audio (solo in C major)
Jolene (key of C)
Five Foot Two This is NOT a diatonic song – an example of what we are NOT doing!
Montego Bay (this version is in F)
On Melancholy Hill On Melancholy Hill – audio (solo in D major)