Heck yeah it is 
Discuss the Banjo lesson: Shove the Pig's Foot a Little Further in the Fire
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I don’t know how many of you have started on this tune, but I did a couple days ago and it is kicking my butt into next Tuesday. This single string stuff looks easy but looks, they be deceiving.
I find myself just staring at the tab and my fingers just won’t get to pickin. I thought melodics were bad (oh and thanks for throwing that in too Ben 
), but I think single string is my true nemesis.
I do so love that tune though and I feel somewhat obligated to learn it, so learn it I will, whatever it takes. I’ll report back later on my progress… like next year or something.
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Single-string has a learning curve at first, but once you overcome the basic hurdles you’ll be fine.
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I think it’s wonderful that you have found a new challenge! How cool it is to work on something completely new!
Remember when holding a roll in time was the huge goal, or playing a melodic riff seemed an impossibility? How about those new fingerings that brought about thoughts that maybe you just didn’t have that kind of dexterity? …should we even bring up attaining any speedy tempo here?..
I have confidence you will rise to the challenge…Good luck and happy picking! 
.
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Good luck learning the single-string. This too, was a challenge for me & still getting better at it. Almost all of my playing in the past was so-called Scruggs-style and I really didn’t get introduced to single-string or melodic banjo until I found Banjo Ben. It was at that point, that I discovered that my index finger needed much work. Songs that have helped me enourmously are “Devil’s Dream”, “Cattle in the Cane”, June Apple" which are all kind of mid-tempo songs, but demand ALOT out of the thumb and index finger! Honestly, it’s helped my playing on so many levels.
I also love the Video-Share on the forum. It gives Meli and I something to work on. We’ve been so busy here around Easter…haven’t had time, but hopefully this next week we can start posting more of our lesson progress. What’s that you say @Maggie ? You’re posting a Video next week too? Looking forward to it! 
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OK guys well, whatever… she said fondly… 
Oh and Neil, you’re funny 
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It suddenly occurred to me, that “Shove the Pigsfoot” has nearly the same melody lines as the old Civil War song “Battle Cry of Freedom”. With some slight modification, this song is a “Two for One” Special deal!
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It also sounds a little like the tune from the movie Cold Mountain named “Ruby with the Eyes that Sparkle”. I’m loving the challenge of learning it! Thanks Ben!!
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Wow, you’re right. Now it’s a THREE for one Special ! Beautiful Melody to be sure.
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Shove The Pig’s Foot A Little Further In The Fire, a.k.a.:
Shove The Pig’s Foot (A Little Closer To The Fire)
Shove That Pigs’ Foot
Shove (Push) The Pig’s Foot A Little Farther Into The Fire
Ruby with the Eyes that Sparkle - From the movie Cold Mountain, apparently Hollywood renamed it after they found out it was copyrighted.
I’ve been wondering what the title meant or implied. I had visions of you guys at the camp barbecuing that pig of course and Oh what’s that, get his foot in there a little more…
I just found a reference to a “pig’s foot” being a blacksmith’s implement used to hold a workpiece which is being heated in the forge and a story on Banjo Hangout mentions this as well with lyrics to the first part: “Shove that pig’s foot into the fire, do it now Miss Liza, shove that pig’s foot into the fire, do it now Miss Liza”. I’m not sure of any other context related to these lyrics.
Yet another reference on Clawhammerbanjo.net tells the story of a slave who had stolen a pig haunch from his master and hid it under his bed sheets when his master came a calling for him to play a fiddle tune and when he noticed the foot still exposed from the sheets, made up message on the spot to his wife to cover it up by playing and singing:
“Shove that pig’s foot further in the bed
Further in the bed
Further in the bed
Shove that pig’s foot further in the bed
Katie, Katie, Katie, can’t you hear me now”
There’s various speculation on how it morphed from “in the bed” to “into the fire”.
A Celtic Songs & Anthems article cites an origination explanation found in 1830’s British military medical journals describing how a freshly severed pig’s foot was used by field surgeons to practice the digital block technique of repairing finger and hand battle wounds of officers. Sorry enlisted guys your digits and hands just get amputated I guess. Hungry and bitter soldiers often acquired these pig’s feet before the surgeon could get their hands on them and simply cooked them for much needed nourishment and “shove the pig’s foot a little further into the fire” became their own battle cry of sorts, thumbing their noses at the upper classes supposedly resulting in many botched surgical repairs on officers. Camp musicians (fiddlers I presume) came up with the joyous melody. Lyrics were never mentioned.
Well, there you have it. What, I don’t know, but… there it is.
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Interesting… It sure would be cool to know the origin of some of these old fiddle tunes.
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Fresh pig’s feet for surgery? How in the world did this even become a thing? I sense some shenanigans afoot.
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Shenanagans afoot, ha, good one . Yep, busted. I totally made that last one up, I couldn’t resist, it was fun to write though. Dang, I’m good. Or… no one read it. Thanks for that, I wasn’t sleeping at night.
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Would be a good fiddle tune name
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Hmmm, that actually would be a good any bluegrass tune name. I call dibs on that title.
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When I was studying criminal forensics in grad school we used pig carcasses to stage murder scenes because they decomposes so similarly to humans. In fact, the undergraduate program that was formed after I left was just recognized as #1 in the nation! https://today.agrilife.org/2019/04/03/no-1-ranking-in-us-for-texas-am-forensic-and-investigative-sciences-major/
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That would be awesome!
Why yes, yes I did. Here you go.