Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
Allentown: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
By Billy Joel
- G major
- 4/4
- 112 BPM
- IV–vi–V–I loop
- 1981
- Medium
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 Allentown without reading music. The left hand plays walking roots (root bass · quarters) and the right hand pumping chords.
Allentown accompaniment in letter notes
The C – Em – D – G loop with walking roots in the left hand and pumping 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 Allentown
What are the letter notes for the Allentown 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 C – Em – D – G, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Allentown?
The loop is C – Em – D – G (IV – vi – V – I) in G major, and the song ends on C – D – G.
What key is Allentown in?
G major, at about 112 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Allentown?
Walking roots: root bass · quarters, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Allentown 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.