Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
Half A Mile Away: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
By Billy Joel
- Bb major
- 4/4
- 120 BPM
- 1978
- Easy
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 Half A Mile Away without reading music. The left hand plays pop heartbeat (root bass · charleston push (1 · 2& · 3)) and the right hand freeze-tag chords.
Half A Mile Away accompaniment in letter notes
The F – Gm – Dm – Eb loop with pop heartbeat in the left hand and freeze-tag chords 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 Half A Mile Away
What are the letter notes for the Half A Mile Away 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 – Gm – Dm – Eb, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Half A Mile Away?
The loop is F – Gm – Dm – Eb (V – vi – iii – IV) in Bb major, and the song ends on Eb – F – Bb.
What key is Half A Mile Away in?
Bb major, at about 120 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Half A Mile Away?
Pop heartbeat: root bass · charleston push (1 · 2& · 3), an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Half A Mile Away easy to play on piano?
Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 4 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.
Made from one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.