Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Pop heartbeat

Bird Song: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Grateful Dead

  • D major
  • 2/2
  • 120 BPM
  • 1971
  • Easy
Tuning the piano…
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Left hand Drowsy heartbeatThe right hand sings the tuneChords the loop the song repeats most

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 Bird Song without reading music. The left hand plays drowsy heartbeat (root bass · 1 · 3 · 4&), and the right hand sings the tune.

Bird Song accompaniment in letter notes

The D7 – C – D7 – C loop with drowsy heartbeat in the left hand. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
D7
RD4+F#4+A4
LD2 D3 D2
Bar 2
C
RC4+E4+G4
LC3 C4 C3
Bar 3
D7
RD4+F#4+A4
LD2 D3 D2
Bar 4
C
RC4+E4+G4 Db4 D4 E4 F#4 G4 A4 B4 Db5
LC3 C4 C3
Bar 5
D7
RD4+F#4+A4
LD2 D3 D2
Bar 6
C
RC4+E4+G4
LC3 C4 C3
Bar 7
D7
RD4+F#4+A4
LD2 D3 D2
Bar 8
C
RC4+E4+G4
LC3 C4 C3

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 Bird Song

What are the letter notes for the Bird Song 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 – C – D7 – C, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Bird Song?

The loop is D7 – C – D7 – C (I7 – bVII – I7 – bVII) in D major, and the song ends on G – A – D.

What key is Bird Song in?

D major, at about 120 beats a minute in 2/2.

What does the left hand play in Bird Song?

Drowsy heartbeat: root bass · 1 · 3 · 4&, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Bird Song 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 one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.