Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Pop heartbeat

How to play Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water') on piano

By Margarita Lecuona

  • E minor
  • 2/2
  • 140 BPM
  • 1939
  • Medium
Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Double-skip footstepsRight hand Pop stabsChords the loop the song repeats most

Play the full song with sheet music

Learn Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water') in 5 steps

The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.

  1. 1

    Chords: D7 – G – D7 – G

    How it goes

    Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water') sits in E minor: E is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: D7 is D, F#, A and C; G is G, B and D. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.

    D7VII7GIIID7VII7GIII
    • D7D · F# · A · C
    • GG · B · D
  2. 2

    Left hand: Double-skip footsteps

    How it goes

    Steady steps with two quick skips, one mid-bar and one at the end. Musicians call it root bass · 1 · 2 · 2& · 3 · 4 · 4& (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in 397 songs of the library.

    Double-skip footstepsRoot bass rhythm · PopLeft handMedium
  3. 3

    Right hand: Pop stabs

    How it goes

    Chord stabs in the 3-3-2 pop rhythm. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.

    Pop stabsSyncopated chords · PopRight handEasy
  4. 4

    Both hands at 140 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. 5

    Ending: E – A7 – E

    How it goes

    The last chords are I – IV7 – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.

    EA7E
    • EE · G# · B
    • A7A · C# · E · G

Play next

The same left hand: Double-skip footsteps

About this pattern
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Questions about Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water')

What chords are in Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water')?

The loop is D7 – G – D7 – G (bVII7 – bIII – bVII7 – bIII) in E minor, and the song ends on E – A7 – E.

What key is Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water') in?

E minor, at about 140 beats a minute in 2/2.

What does the left hand play in Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water')?

Double-skip footsteps: root bass · 1 · 2 · 2& · 3 · 4 · 4&, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Babalu (from 'the Shape Of Water') 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.