Piano chords · Lullaby boat
How to play All These Things on piano
Written by Allen Toussaint
- Eb major
- 6/8
- 86 BPM
- 1962
- Medium
Learn All These Things in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Db7 – Eb – Cm – Fm
All These Things sits in Eb major: Eb is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Db7 is Db, F, Ab and Cb; Eb is Eb, G and Bb; Cm is C, Eb and G; Fm is F, Ab and C. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
Db7bVII7EbICmviFmii- Db7Db · F · Ab · Cb
- EbEb · G · Bb
- CmC · Eb · G
- FmF · Ab · C
- 2
Left hand: Swelling 6/8
Rises to the top and falls back in one rocking six-note wave. Musicians call it open arpeggio 1-5-8-10-8-5 (6/8) (open arpeggio), a medium pattern heard in 73 songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Cradle chords
A chord, a rock to beat two, a soft pickup back: like a cradle. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 86 BPM
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: Ab – Bb – Eb
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
AbBbEb- AbAb · C · Eb
- BbBb · D · F
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Questions about All These Things
What chords are in All These Things?
The loop is Db7 – Eb – Cm – Fm (bVII7 – I – vi – ii) in Eb major, and the song ends on Ab – Bb – Eb.
What key is All These Things in?
Eb major, at about 86 beats a minute in 6/8.
What does the left hand play in All These Things?
Swelling 6/8: open arpeggio 1-5-8-10-8-5 (6/8), a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is All These Things 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 one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.