Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Blues & boogie

Hard Work: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Ella Henderson

Tuning the piano…
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Left hand Seesaw bassThe 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 Hard Work without reading music. The left hand plays seesaw bass (root–fifth 1-5-1-5), and the right hand sings the tune.

Hard Work accompaniment in letter notes

The C – Am – F – G loop with seesaw bass in the left hand. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
C
RC4+E4+G4
LC3 G3 C3 G3
Bar 2
Am
RA3+C4+E4
LA2 E3 A2 E3
Bar 3
F
RF4+A4+C5
LF2 C3 F2 C3
Bar 4
G
RG4+B4+D5 Bb4 B4 D5 E5 D5 B4 Bb4 G4
LG2 D3 G2 D3
Bar 5
C
RC4+E4+G4
LC3 G3 C3 G3
Bar 6
Am
RA3+C4+E4
LA2 E3 A2 E3
Bar 7
F
RF4+A4+C5
LF2 C3 F2 C3
Bar 8
G
RG4+B4+D5
LG2 D3 G2 D3

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 Hard Work

What are the letter notes for the Hard Work 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 C – Am – F – G, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Hard Work?

The loop is C – Am – F – G (I – vi – IV – V) in C major, and the song ends on F – G – C.

What key is Hard Work in?

C major, at about 70 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Hard Work?

Seesaw bass: root–fifth 1-5-1-5, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Hard Work 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.