Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Pop heartbeat

Johnny Cash: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

Written by John Rich, Vicky McGehee & others

  • Eb major
  • 4/4
  • 108 BPM
  • 2005
  • Medium
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Style

Left hand Late-hop footstepsRight hand Pumping chordsChords the loop the song repeats most

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 Johnny Cash without reading music. The left hand plays late-hop footsteps (root bass · 1 · 2 · 3 · 3& · 4) and the right hand pumping chords.

Johnny Cash accompaniment in letter notes

The Db – Ab – Eb – Db loop with late-hop footsteps in the left hand and pumping chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
Db
RAb4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5
LDb3 Db4 Db3 Db3 Db4
Bar 2
Ab
REb5+Ab5+C6 Eb5+Ab5+C6 Eb5+Ab5+C6 Eb5+Ab5+C6 Eb5+Ab5+C6 Eb5+Ab5+C6 Eb5+Ab5+C6 Eb5+Ab5+C6
LAb2 Ab3 Ab2 Ab2 Ab3
Bar 3
Eb
RBb4+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Eb5+G5
LEb2 Eb3 Eb2 Eb2 Eb3
Bar 4
Db
RAb4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Eb4 F4 G4 Ab4 Bb4 C5 Ebb5 Eb5
LDb3 Db4 Db3 Db3 Db4
Bar 5
Db
RAb4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5
LDb3 Db4 Db3 Db3 Db4
Bar 6
Ab
REb5+Ab5+C6 Eb5+Ab5+C6 Eb5+Ab5+C6 Eb5+Ab5+C6 Eb5+Ab5+C6 Eb5+Ab5+C6 Eb5+Ab5+C6 Eb5+Ab5+C6
LAb2 Ab3 Ab2 Ab2 Ab3
Bar 7
Eb
RBb4+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Eb5+G5
LEb2 Eb3 Eb2 Eb2 Eb3
Bar 8
Db
RAb4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5 Ab4+Db5+F5
LDb3 Db4 Db3 Db3 Db4

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 Johnny Cash

What are the letter notes for the Johnny Cash 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 Db – Ab – Eb – Db, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Johnny Cash?

The loop is Db – Ab – Eb – Db (bVII – IV – I5 – bVII) in Eb major, and the song ends on Ab – Bb – Eb.

What key is Johnny Cash in?

Eb major, at about 108 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Johnny Cash?

Late-hop footsteps: root bass · 1 · 2 · 3 · 3& · 4, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Johnny Cash 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.