Piano chords · Blues & boogie
How to play Hey Bulldog on piano
By The Beatles
- B major
- 4/4
- 98 BPM
- 1968
- Medium
Learn Hey Bulldog in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: B7 – F#m – B7 – F#m
Hey Bulldog sits in B major: B is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: B7 is B, D#, F# and A; F#m is F#, A and C#. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
B7I7F#mvB7I7F#mv- B7B · D# · F# · A
- F#mF# · A · C#
- 2
Left hand: Boogie walker
A walking line that climbs and falls through the chord. Musicians call it boogie-woogie line (boogie & shuffle), a medium pattern heard in 807 songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Ticking clock
One high note repeated on every quick beat: tick, tick, tick. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 98 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: E – F# – B
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
EF#B- EE · G# · B
- F#F# · A# · C#
- BB · D# · F#
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Questions about Hey Bulldog
What chords are in Hey Bulldog?
The loop is B7 – F#m – B7 – F#m (I7 – v – I7 – v) in B major, and the song ends on E – F# – B.
What key is Hey Bulldog in?
B major, at about 98 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Hey Bulldog?
Boogie walker: boogie-woogie line, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Hey Bulldog 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 2 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.