Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Rock drive

Lover Man: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Charlie Parker

  • F major
  • 4/4
  • 90 BPM
  • 1941
  • Medium
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Left hand Power fifthsThe right hand sings the tuneChords worked out from the notes of the famous part

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 Lover Man without reading music. The left hand plays power fifths (lh power fifths), and the right hand sings the tune.

The main tune of Lover Man 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
Dm → G7
RA3 D4 C4+E4 D4 B3+E4+G4 D4 E4
LD2+A2+F3 G2+F3
Bar 2
Dm → Gm7
RF4 D4 C4+G4 B3+E4+G4 C#4 D4 Eb4
LD3+A3 G2+F3
Bar 3
C7 → Gm7
RD4+E4 G4 A4 G4 D4+F4+Bb4+C5 G4 A4
LC3+G3+Bb3 G2
Bar 4
C7
RD4+Bb4 G4 Eb4+C5 E4+A4+C5 Ab4 G4
LC3+G3+Bb3 C3+Bb3

Lover Man accompaniment in letter notes

The Dm – G7 – Dm – Gm7 – C7 – Gm7 – C7 loop with power fifths in the left hand. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
Dm → G7
RD4+F4+A4 G4+B4+D5
LD3+A3 D3+A3 G2+D3 G2+D3
Bar 2
Dm → Gm7
RD4+F4+A4 G4+Bb4+D5
LD3+A3 D3+A3 G2+D3 G2+D3
Bar 3
C7 → Gm7
RC4+E4+G4 G4+Bb4+D5
LC4+G4 C4+G4 G2+D3 G2+D3
Bar 4
C7
RC4+E4+G4 G6 E6 C6 Bb5 A5 Ab5 G5 F#5
LC4+G4 C4+G4 C3+G3 C3+G3
Bar 5
Dm → G7
RD4+F4+A4 G4+B4+D5
LD3+A3 D3+A3 G2+D3 G2+D3
Bar 6
Dm → Gm7
RD4+F4+A4 G4+Bb4+D5
LD3+A3 D3+A3 G2+D3 G2+D3
Bar 7
C7 → Gm7
RC4+E4+G4 G4+Bb4+D5
LC4+G4 C4+G4 G2+D3 G2+D3
Bar 8
C7
RC4+E4+G4
LC4+G4 C4+G4 C3+G3 C3+G3

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 Lover Man

What are the letter notes for the Lover Man 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 Dm – G7 – Dm – Gm7 – C7 – Gm7 – C7, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Lover Man?

The loop is Dm – G7 – Dm – Gm7 – C7 – Gm7 – C7 (vi – II7 – vi – ii7 – V7 – ii7 – V7) in F major, and the song ends on Bb – C – F.

What key is Lover Man in?

F major, at about 90 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Lover Man?

Power fifths: lh power fifths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Lover Man easy to play on piano?

It is a medium one: learn the 7 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.

Can I hear the real melody of Lover Man?

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

Made from 2 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.