Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Rock drive

Chasing Cars: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Snow Patrol

  • A major
  • 4/4
  • 100 BPM
  • 2005
  • Medium
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Left hand Engine 8thsRight hand Beacon blinkChords worked out from the notes of the famous part

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 Chasing Cars without reading music. The left hand plays engine 8ths (root bass · 8ths) and the right hand beacon blink.

The main tune of Chasing Cars 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.

Bar 1
D
RE4+A4+C#5 A3+E4+B4 A3+E4+A4
LD2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2
Bar 2
D
RE4+A4+D5 C#5 B4 A4 A3+E4+A4
LD2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2
Bar 3
A
RA3 E4 A3 E4 A3 E4 A3 E4
LA2+E3
Bar 4
A
RA3 E4 A3 E4 A3 E4 A3 E4
Lrest

Chasing Cars accompaniment in letter notes

The D – D – A – A loop with engine 8ths in the left hand and beacon blink in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
D
RD4 A4 D4 A4 D4 A4 D4 A4
LD2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2
Bar 2
D
RD4 A4 D4 A4 D4 A4 D4 A4
LD2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2
Bar 3
A
RA3 E4 A3 E4 A3 E4 A3 E4
LA2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2
Bar 4
A
RA3 E4 A3 E4 A6 E6 C#6 A5 F#5 F5 E5 D#5
LA2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2
Bar 5
D
RD4 A4 D4 A4 D4 A4 D4 A4
LD2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2
Bar 6
D
RD4 A4 D4 A4 D4 A4 D4 A4
LD2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2
Bar 7
A
RA3 E4 A3 E4 A3 E4 A3 E4
LA2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2
Bar 8
A
RA3 E4 A3 E4 A3 E4 A3 E4
LA2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2 A2

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 Chasing Cars

What are the letter notes for the Chasing Cars 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 D – D – A – A, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Chasing Cars?

The loop is D – D – A – A (IV – I – IV – I) in A major, and the song ends on D – E – A.

What key is Chasing Cars in?

A major, at about 100 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Chasing Cars?

Engine 8ths: root bass · 8ths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Chasing Cars 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 Chasing Cars?

Yes: "The part you know" plays the main tune of the song from a score, with both hands.

Made from 5 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.