Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Blues & boogie

How to play Happy Together on piano

By The Turtles

  • E minor
  • 4/4
  • 145 BPM
  • 1966
  • Easy
Play the full song with sheet music
Tuning the piano…
Learn it
Style

Left hand Velvet jazzRight hand Bossa chordsChords from the chord symbols in the score

Learn Happy Together in 5 steps

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

  1. 1

    Chords: D – Dmaj7 – Cmaj7 – C – C7 – B7

    Happy Together sits in E minor: E is home, where the song ends. It goes round 6 chords: D is D, F# and A; Dmaj7 is D, F#, A and C#; Cmaj7 is C, E, G and B; C is C, E and G; C7 is C, E, G and Bb; B7 is B, D#, F# and A. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.

    DVIIDmaj7VIImaj7Cmaj7VImaj7CVIC7VI7B7V7
    • DD · F# · A
    • Dmaj7D · F# · A · C#
    • Cmaj7C · E · G · B
    • CC · E · G
    • C7C · E · G · Bb
    • B7B · D# · F# · A
  2. 2

    Left hand: Velvet jazz

    Two soft notes on each beat: the cozy colour of old jazz ballads. Musicians call it lh shell voicings (1-7 / 1-3) (left-hand chords), an easy pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.

    Velvet jazzLeft-hand chords · Blues and boogie-woogieLeft handEasy
  3. 3

    Right hand: Bossa chords

    Long-short, long-short, leaning ahead: soft Brazilian chords. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.

    Bossa chordsSyncopated chords · Bossa novaRight handEasy
  4. 4

    Both hands at 145 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: C – D – Em

    The last chords are bVI – bVII – i, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.

    CDEm
    • EmE · G · B

Play next

The same left hand: Velvet jazz

About this pattern
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Questions about Happy Together

What chords are in Happy Together?

The loop is D – Dmaj7 – Cmaj7 – C – C7 – B7 (VII – VIImaj7 – VImaj7 – VI – VI7 – V7) in E minor, and the song ends on C – D – Em.

What key is Happy Together in?

E minor, at about 145 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Happy Together?

Velvet jazz: lh shell voicings (1-7 / 1-3), an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Happy Together easy to play on piano?

Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 6 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.

Can I hear the real melody of Happy Together?

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.