Piano chords · Rock drive
How to play Funkytown on piano
Written by Steven Greenberg
- C major
- 4/4
- 120 BPM
- 1980
- Medium
Play the full song with sheet music
Learn Funkytown in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: C – G – Am – F
How it goes
Funkytown sits in C major: C is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: C is C, E and G; G is G, B and D; Am is A, C and E; F is F, A and C. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
CIGVAmviFIV- CC · E · G
- GG · B · D
- AmA · C · E
- FF · A · C
- 2
Left hand: Heartbeat octaves
How it goes
Low, high, low, high: a bouncing heartbeat. Musicians call it rocking octaves (rocking octaves), an easy pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Pumping chords
How it goes
A chord on every eighth note, driving the song forward. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 120 BPM
How it goes
Put the two hands together over the loop. Start at half speed with the player's speed control, and bring it up once every change is easy.
- 5
Ending: F – G – C
How it goes
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
FGC
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Questions about Funkytown
What chords are in Funkytown?
The loop is C – G – Am – F (I – V – vi – IV) in C major, and the song ends on F – G – C.
What key is Funkytown in?
C major, at about 120 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Funkytown?
Heartbeat octaves: rocking octaves, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Funkytown easy to play on piano?
It is a medium one: learn the 4 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.
Made from 2 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.