Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
How to play It’s My Life on piano
Written by Jon Bon Jovi, Martin Sandberg & others
- C minor
- 4/4
- 120 BPM
- i–bVI–i–bVI loop
- 2000
- Medium
Play the full song with sheet music
Learn It’s My Life in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Cm – Ab – Cm – Ab
How it goes
It’s My Life sits in C minor: C is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Cm is C, Eb and G; Ab is Ab, C and Eb. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
CmiAbVICmiAbVI- CmC · Eb · G
- AbAb · C · Eb
- 2
Left hand: Groovy roots
How it goes
Notes jump around the “ands”, giving the bass a funky bounce. Musicians call it root bass · syncopated 8ths (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in 363 songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Lub-dub chords
How it goes
Two quick chords, a pause, two quick chords: just like a heartbeat. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 120 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: Ab – Bb – Cm
How it goes
The last chords are bVI – bVII – i, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
AbBbCm- BbBb · D · F
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Questions about It’s My Life
What chords are in It’s My Life?
The loop is Cm – Ab – Cm – Ab (i – bVI – i – bVI) in C minor, and the song ends on Ab – Bb – Cm.
What key is It’s My Life in?
C minor, at about 120 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in It’s My Life?
Groovy roots: root bass · syncopated 8ths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is It’s My Life 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.