Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
How to play Jailhouse Rock on piano
Written by Jerry Leiber & Mike Stoller
- Eb major
- 4/4
- 144 BPM
- 1957
- Medium
Play the full song with sheet music
Learn Jailhouse Rock in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Eb7 – D7 – Eb7 – D7
How it goes
Jailhouse Rock sits in Eb major: Eb is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Eb7 is Eb, G, Bb and Db; D7 is D, F#, A and C. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
Eb7I7D7VII7Eb7I7D7VII7- Eb7Eb · G · Bb · Db
- D7D · F# · A · C
- 2
Left hand: Pop heartbeat
How it goes
Long, short, long: the heartbeat under a thousand pop songs. Musicians call it root bass · charleston push (1 · 2& · 3) (root bass rhythm), an easy pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Ticking clock
How it goes
One high note repeated on every quick beat: tick, tick, tick. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 144 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 – Eb
How it goes
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
AbBbEb- AbAb · C · Eb
- BbBb · D · F
- EbEb · G · Bb
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Questions about Jailhouse Rock
What chords are in Jailhouse Rock?
The loop is Eb7 – D7 – Eb7 – D7 (I7 – VII7 – I7 – VII7) in Eb major, and the song ends on Ab – Bb – Eb.
What key is Jailhouse Rock in?
Eb major, at about 144 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Jailhouse Rock?
Pop heartbeat: root bass · charleston push (1 · 2& · 3), an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Jailhouse Rock 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.