Piano chords · Rock drive
A Cockeyed Optimist: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
Written by Richard Rodgers
- G major
- 2/2
- 120 BPM
- Easy
The accompaniment with every note named, bar by bar: the bar sheet shows each note as a bar on the staff with its letter inside, so you can accompany A Cockeyed Optimist without reading music. The left hand plays giant steps (lh chords) and the right hand hopscotch chords.
A Cockeyed Optimist accompaniment in letter notes
The D7 – G – Dm – G7 loop with giant steps in the left hand and hopscotch chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.
How to read the bar sheet
The player above shows the treble staff (right hand) over the bass staff (left hand). Every note is a bar as long as it sounds, at its place on the staff, with its name inside, and the music scrolls past a line that marks now. The chord names run along the top.
Start with the left hand alone at a slow speed, then the right, then both. When the letters feel easy, try the sheet music.
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Questions about A Cockeyed Optimist
What are the letter notes for the A Cockeyed Optimist piano accompaniment?
Bar by bar, both hands: the bar sheet on this page names every note of the accompaniment (C4 is middle C) and plays along. The loop is D7 – G – Dm – G7, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in A Cockeyed Optimist?
The loop is D7 – G – Dm – G7 (V7 – I – v – I7) in G major, and the song ends on C – D – G.
What key is A Cockeyed Optimist in?
G major, at about 120 beats a minute in 2/2.
What does the left hand play in A Cockeyed Optimist?
Giant steps: lh chords, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is A Cockeyed Optimist easy to play on piano?
Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 4 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.
Made from 3 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.