Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
How to play It’s A Laugh on piano
Written by Daryl Hall
- A major
- 4/4
- 120 BPM
- 1978
- Medium
Learn It’s A Laugh in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: C – Gm – F#m – G
It’s A Laugh sits in A major: A is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: C is C, E and G; Gm is G, Bb and D; F#m is F#, A and C#; G is G, B and D. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
CbIIIGmbviiF#mviGbVII- CC · E · G
- GmG · Bb · D
- F#mF# · A · C#
- GG · B · D
- 2
Left hand: Double-skip footsteps
Steady steps with two quick skips, one mid-bar and one at the end. Musicians call it root bass · 1 · 2 · 2& · 3 · 4 · 4& (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in 397 songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Heartbeat chords
Long, short, long: chords on the pop heartbeat, then a rest. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 120 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: D – E – A
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
DEA- DD · F# · A
- EE · G# · B
- AA · C# · E
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Questions about It’s A Laugh
What chords are in It’s A Laugh?
The loop is C – Gm – F#m – G (bIII – bvii – vi – bVII) in A major, and the song ends on D – E – A.
What key is It’s A Laugh in?
A major, at about 120 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in It’s A Laugh?
Double-skip footsteps: root bass · 1 · 2 · 2& · 3 · 4 · 4&, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is It’s A Laugh 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 one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.