Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
Cat’s In The Cradle: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
By Harry Chapin
- F major
- 2/2
- 160 BPM
- 1974
- 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 Cat’s In The Cradle without reading music. The left hand plays lazy footsteps (root bass · 1 · 3 · 4) and the right hand ticking clock.
The intro of Cat’s In The Cradle in letter notes
The real notes from a score, both hands, bar by bar. R is the right hand, L the left; C4 is middle C.
Cat’s In The Cradle accompaniment in letter notes
The F – Bb – Fsus4 – Cm loop with lazy footsteps in the left hand and ticking clock 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 Cat’s In The Cradle
What are the letter notes for the Cat’s In The Cradle 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 F – Bb – Fsus4 – Cm, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Cat’s In The Cradle?
The loop is F – Bb – Fsus4 – Cm (I – IV – Isus4 – v) in F major, and the song ends on Bb – C – F.
What key is Cat’s In The Cradle in?
F major, at about 160 beats a minute in 2/2.
What does the left hand play in Cat’s In The Cradle?
Lazy footsteps: root bass · 1 · 3 · 4, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Cat’s In The Cradle 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.
Can I hear the real melody of Cat’s In The Cradle?
Yes: "The part you know" plays the intro of the song from a score, with both hands.
Made from 3 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.