Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Blues & boogie

Let's Call The Whole Thing Off: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By George Gershwin

  • G major
  • 4/4
  • 140 BPM
  • 1936
  • Easy
Tuning the piano…
Learn it
Style

Left hand Velvet jazzRight hand Steady chordsChords from the chord symbols in the score

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 Let's Call The Whole Thing Off without reading music. The left hand plays velvet jazz (lh shell voicings (1-7 / 1-3)) and the right hand steady chords.

The main tune of Let's Call The Whole Thing Off in letter notes

The real notes from a score, both hands, bar by bar. R is the right hand, L the left; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
G → Em7
RB3+D4+E4+G4 B3+D4+E4+G4 E4 G3+B3+D4+F#4 G3+B3+D4+F#4 E4
LG2 D3 E2 B2
Bar 2
Am7 → D7
RC4+E4+G4 G4 A4 C4+E4+B4 B4 C4+Eb4
LA2 G3 D2 F#3
Bar 3
G → Em7
RB3+D4+G4 G4 E4 B3+D4+F#4 F#4 E4
LG2 D3 Eb3 E3 F#3 E2
Bar 4
Am7 → D7
RC4+E4+G4 G4 A4 C4+E4+F#4+B4 B4 C4+Eb4+F#4 B4
LA2 G3 D2 F#3

Let's Call The Whole Thing Off accompaniment in letter notes

The G – Em7 – Am7 – D7 – G – Em7 – Am7 – D7 loop with velvet jazz in the left hand and steady chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
G → Em7
RB4+D5+F5+G5 B4+D5+F5+G5 G4+B4+D5+E5 G4+B4+D5+E5
LG2 D3+B3 E3 G3+D4
Bar 2
Am7 → D7
RC4+E4+G4+A4 C4+E4+G4+A4 F#4+A4+C5+D5 F#4+A4+C5+D5
LA2 E3+C4 D3 F#3+C4
Bar 3
G → Em7
RB4+D5+F5+G5 B4+D5+F5+G5 G4+B4+D5+E5 G4+B4+D5+E5
LG2 D3+B3 E3 G3+D4
Bar 4
Am7 → D7
RC4+E4+G4+A4 C4+E4+G4+A4 F5 F#5 A5 B5 A5 F#5 F5 D5
LA2 E3+C4 D3 F#3+C4
Bar 5
G → Em7
RB4+D5+F5+G5 B4+D5+F5+G5 G4+B4+D5+E5 G4+B4+D5+E5
LG2 D3+B3 E3 G3+D4
Bar 6
Am7 → D7
RC4+E4+G4+A4 C4+E4+G4+A4 F#4+A4+C5+D5 F#4+A4+C5+D5
LA2 E3+C4 D3 F#3+C4
Bar 7
G → Em7
RB4+D5+F5+G5 B4+D5+F5+G5 G4+B4+D5+E5 G4+B4+D5+E5
LG2 D3+B3 E3 G3+D4
Bar 8
Am7 → D7
RC4+E4+G4+A4 C4+E4+G4+A4 F#4+A4+C5+D5 F#4+A4+C5+D5
LA2 E3+C4 D3 F#3+C4

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.

Play next

Questions about Let's Call The Whole Thing Off

What are the letter notes for the Let's Call The Whole Thing Off 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 G – Em7 – Am7 – D7 – G – Em7 – Am7 – D7, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Let's Call The Whole Thing Off?

The loop is G – Em7 – Am7 – D7 – G – Em7 – Am7 – D7 (I – vi7 – ii7 – V7 – I – vi7 – ii7 – V7) in G major, and the song ends on C – D – G.

What key is Let's Call The Whole Thing Off in?

G major, at about 140 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Let's Call The Whole Thing Off?

Velvet jazz: lh shell voicings (1-7 / 1-3), an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Let's Call The Whole Thing Off easy to play on piano?

Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 8 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.

Can I hear the real melody of Let's Call The Whole Thing Off?

Yes: "The part you know" plays the main tune of the song from a score, with both hands.

Made from 4 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.