Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Blues & boogie

Dark Necessities: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

Artist unknown

  • C minor
  • 4/4
  • 92 BPM
  • Medium
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Style

Left hand Rock’n’roll rockerThe 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 Dark Necessities without reading music. The left hand plays rock’n’roll rocker (rock’n’roll 5–6 shuffle), and the right hand sings the tune.

Dark Necessities accompaniment in letter notes

The Ab – Fm – Cm – Bb loop with rock’n’roll rocker in the left hand. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
Ab
RAb4+C5+Eb5
LAb2+Eb3 Ab2+F3 Ab2+Eb3 Ab2+F3
Bar 2
Fm
RF4+Ab4+C5
LF2+C3 F2+D3 F2+C3 F2+D3
Bar 3
Cm
RC4+Eb4+G4
LC3+G3 C3+A3 C3+G3 C3+A3
Bar 4
Bb
RBb3+D4+F4 Db5 D5 F5 G5 F5 D5 Db5 Bb4
LBb2+F3 Bb2+G3 Bb2+F3 Bb2+G3
Bar 5
Ab
RAb4+C5+Eb5
LAb2+Eb3 Ab2+F3 Ab2+Eb3 Ab2+F3
Bar 6
Fm
RF4+Ab4+C5
LF2+C3 F2+D3 F2+C3 F2+D3
Bar 7
Cm
RC4+Eb4+G4
LC3+G3 C3+A3 C3+G3 C3+A3
Bar 8
Bb
RBb3+D4+F4
LBb2+F3 Bb2+G3 Bb2+F3 Bb2+G3

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 Dark Necessities

What are the letter notes for the Dark Necessities 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 Ab – Fm – Cm – Bb, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Dark Necessities?

The loop is Ab – Fm – Cm – Bb (bVI – iv – i – bVII) in C minor, and the song ends on Ab – Bb – Cm.

What key is Dark Necessities in?

C minor, at about 92 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Dark Necessities?

Rock’n’roll rocker: rock’n’roll 5–6 shuffle, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Dark Necessities 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.