Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Bossa beach

Breakin’ at the Cracks: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

Written by Colbie Caillat & Jason Reeves

Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Lazy seesawRight hand Late-knock chordsChords the loop the song repeats most

Play the full song with sheet music

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 Breakin’ at the Cracks without reading music. The left hand plays lazy seesaw (root–fifth 1-5-5) and the right hand late-knock chords.

Breakin’ at the Cracks accompaniment in letter notes

The Fm – Eb – Fm – Eb loop with lazy seesaw in the left hand and late-knock chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
Fm
RAb4+C5+Eb5+F5 Ab4+C5+Eb5+F5 Ab4+C5+Eb5+F5
LF2 C3 C3
Bar 2
Eb
RG4+Bb4+Eb5 G4+Bb4+Eb5 G4+Bb4+Eb5
LEb2 Bb2 Bb2
Bar 3
Fm
RAb4+C5+Eb5+F5 Ab4+C5+Eb5+F5 Ab4+C5+Eb5+F5
LF2 C3 C3
Bar 4
Eb
RG4+Bb4+Eb5 G6 F6 Eb6 D6 C6 Bb5 Ab5 G5
LEb2 Bb2 Bb2
Bar 5
Fm
RAb4+C5+Eb5+F5 Ab4+C5+Eb5+F5 Ab4+C5+Eb5+F5
LF2 C3 C3
Bar 6
Eb
RG4+Bb4+Eb5 G4+Bb4+Eb5 G4+Bb4+Eb5
LEb2 Bb2 Bb2
Bar 7
Fm
RAb4+C5+Eb5+F5 Ab4+C5+Eb5+F5 Ab4+C5+Eb5+F5
LF2 C3 C3
Bar 8
Eb
RG4+Bb4+Eb5 G4+Bb4+Eb5 G4+Bb4+Eb5
LEb2 Bb2 Bb2

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 Breakin’ at the Cracks

What are the letter notes for the Breakin’ at the Cracks 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 Fm – Eb – Fm – Eb, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Breakin’ at the Cracks?

The loop is Fm – Eb – Fm – Eb (ii – I – ii – I) in Eb major, and the song ends on Eb – Fm – Eb.

What key is Breakin’ at the Cracks in?

Eb major, at about 120 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Breakin’ at the Cracks?

Lazy seesaw: root–fifth 1-5-5, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Breakin’ at the Cracks 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.