Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Slow dance ’50s

How to play Cry For Me on piano

Written by Bob Gaudio

Play the full song with sheet music
Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Slow-dance heartbeatRight hand Doo-wop chordsChords the loop the song repeats most

Learn Cry For Me in 5 steps

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

  1. 1

    Chords: Bb7 – Eb – Cm – Fm

    Cry For Me sits in Eb major: Eb is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Bb7 is Bb, D, F and Ab; Eb is Eb, G and Bb; Cm is C, Eb and G; Fm is F, Ab and C. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.

    Bb7V7EbICmviFmii
    • Bb7Bb · D · F · Ab
    • EbEb · G · Bb
    • CmC · Eb · G
    • FmF · Ab · C
    34 songs go round the same chords
  2. 2

    Left hand: Slow-dance heartbeat

    Four slow, deep beats under a swaying fifties ballad. Musicians call it root bass · 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 (12/8) (root bass rhythm), an easy pattern heard in 134 songs of the library.

    Slow-dance heartbeatRoot bass rhythm · 50s doo-wopLeft handEasy
  3. 3

    Right hand: Doo-wop chords

    Three soft chords on every slow beat: the classic 1950s ballad sound. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.

    Doo-wop chordsPumping 8ths · 50s doo-wopRight handMedium
  4. 4

    Both hands at 120 BPM

    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: Eb – Abm – Eb

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

    EbAbmEb
    • AbmAb · Cb · Eb

Play next

The same V7–I–vi–ii loop

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Questions about Cry For Me

What chords are in Cry For Me?

The loop is Bb7 – Eb – Cm – Fm (V7 – I – vi – ii) in Eb major, and the song ends on Eb – Abm – Eb.

What key is Cry For Me in?

Eb major, at about 120 beats a minute in 12/8.

What does the left hand play in Cry For Me?

Slow-dance heartbeat: root bass · 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 (12/8), an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Cry For Me 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 one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.