Get On The Boat Piano Chords & Patterns

Learn Get On The Boat in 5 steps

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

1
Chords: Cm – G7 – Cm – G7
Get On The Boat sits in C minor: C is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Cm is C, Eb and G; G7 is G, B, D and F. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
CmiG7V7CmiG7V7
- CmC · Eb · G
- G7G · B · D · F
27 songs go round the same chords
2
Left hand: Engine 8ths
The lowest note on every eighth: the engine of rock. Musicians call it root bass · 8ths (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.
Engine 8thsRoot bass rhythm · RockLeft handMedium
3
Right hand: the chords, held
In this song the right hand mostly plays the tune itself. Hold the chords lightly, or play the melody over the left hand.
4
Both hands at 104 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
Ending: Ab – Bb – Cm
The last chords are bVI – bVII – i, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
AbBbCm
- AbAb · C · Eb
- BbBb · D · F

What chords are in Get On The Boat?

The loop is Cm – G7 – Cm – G7 (i – V7 – i – V7) in C minor, and the song ends on Ab – Bb – Cm.

What key is Get On The Boat in?

C minor, at about 104 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Get On The Boat?

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

Is Get On The Boat 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.