Piano chords · Dreamy ballad
How to play I Cover The Waterfront on piano
- G major
- 4/4
- 100 BPM
- I–v–I–v loop
- 1933
- Medium
Learn I Cover The Waterfront in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: G – Dm – G – Dm
I Cover The Waterfront sits in G major: G is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: G is G, B and D; Dm is D, F and A. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
GIDmvGIDmv- GG · B · D
- DmD · F · A
- 2
Left hand: Bobbing boat
High, higher, then a dive to the bottom and back: a bobbing boat. Musicians call it open arpeggio 8-12-1-8 (open arpeggio), a medium pattern heard in 141 songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Push chords
Two quick chords and a push just before beat 3, then space. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 100 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: C – D – G
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
CDG- CC · E · G
- DD · F# · A
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Questions about I Cover The Waterfront
What chords are in I Cover The Waterfront?
The loop is G – Dm – G – Dm (I – v – I – v) in G major, and the song ends on C – D – G.
What key is I Cover The Waterfront in?
G major, at about 100 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in I Cover The Waterfront?
Bobbing boat: open arpeggio 8-12-1-8, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is I Cover The Waterfront 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.