Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
How to play All You Had To Do Was Stay on piano
Artist unknown
- F major
- 4/4
- 96 BPM
- IV–I–V–vi loop
- Medium
Learn All You Had To Do Was Stay in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Bb – F – C – Dm
All You Had To Do Was Stay sits in F major: F is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Bb is Bb, D and F; F is F, A and C; C is C, E and G; Dm is D, F and A. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
BbIVFICVDmvi- BbBb · D · F
- FF · A · C
- CC · E · G
- DmD · F · A
- 2
Left hand: Pop heartbeat
Long, short, long: the heartbeat under a thousand pop songs. Musicians call it root bass · charleston push (1 · 2& · 3) (root bass rhythm), an easy pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Dewdrop twinkle
Two low, close notes twinkling up and back like morning dew. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 96 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: Bb – C – F
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
BbCF
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Questions about All You Had To Do Was Stay
What chords are in All You Had To Do Was Stay?
The loop is Bb – F – C – Dm (IV – I – V – vi) in F major, and the song ends on Bb – C – F.
What key is All You Had To Do Was Stay in?
F major, at about 96 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in All You Had To Do Was Stay?
Pop heartbeat: root bass · charleston push (1 · 2& · 3), an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is All You Had To Do Was Stay 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.