Piano chords · Blues & boogie
How Sweet It Is: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
By James Taylor
- G major
- 4/4
- 96 BPM
- Easy
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 How Sweet It Is without reading music. The left hand plays velvet jazz (lh shell voicings (1-7 / 1-3)) and the right hand steady chords.
The main tune of How Sweet It Is in letter notes
The real notes from a score, both hands, bar by bar. R is the right hand, L the left; C4 is middle C.
How Sweet It Is accompaniment in letter notes
The C – D7 – Em7 – G7 – Em7 – C – Am7 loop with velvet jazz in the left hand and steady 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 How Sweet It Is
What are the letter notes for the How Sweet It Is 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 – D7 – Em7 – G7 – Em7 – C – Am7, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in How Sweet It Is?
The loop is C – D7 – Em7 – G7 – Em7 – C – Am7 (IV – V7 – vi7 – I7 – vi7 – IV – ii7) in G major, and the song ends on G – C – G.
What key is How Sweet It Is in?
G major, at about 96 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in How Sweet It Is?
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 How Sweet It Is easy to play on piano?
Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 7 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.
Can I hear the real melody of How Sweet It Is?
Yes: "The part you know" plays the main tune of the song from a score, with both hands.
Made from 2 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.