Piano chords · Rock drive
How to play Hit Me With Your Best Shot on piano
Written by Eddie Schwartz
- E major
- 4/4
- 140 BPM
- I–IV–vi–V loop
- 1978
- Medium
Play the full song with sheet music
Learn Hit Me With Your Best Shot in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: E – A – C#m – B
How it goes
Hit Me With Your Best Shot sits in E major: E is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: E is E, G# and B; A is A, C# and E; C#m is C#, E and G#; B is B, D# and F#. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
EIAIVC#mviBV- EE · G# · B
- AA · C# · E
- C#mC# · E · G#
- BB · D# · F#
- 2
Left hand: Power fifths
How it goes
Root and fifth together: big and bold. Musicians call it lh power fifths (left-hand chords), a medium pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Bossa chords
How it goes
Long-short, long-short, leaning ahead: soft Brazilian chords. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 140 BPM
How it goes
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: A – B – E
How it goes
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
ABE
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Questions about Hit Me With Your Best Shot
What chords are in Hit Me With Your Best Shot?
The loop is E – A – C#m – B (I – IV – vi – V) in E major, and the song ends on A – B – E.
What key is Hit Me With Your Best Shot in?
E major, at about 140 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Hit Me With Your Best Shot?
Power fifths: lh power fifths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Hit Me With Your Best Shot 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.