Piano chords · Blues & boogie

How to play Mary’s Little Boy Child on piano

Tuning the piano…

Learn it

Learn Mary’s Little Boy Child in 5 steps

The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.

1
Chords: F7 – Bb – Bb7 – Eb
How it goes
Mary’s Little Boy Child sits in Bb major: Bb is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: F7 is F, A, C and Eb; Bb is Bb, D and F; Bb7 is Bb, D, F and Ab; Eb is Eb, G and Bb. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
F7V7BbIBb7I7EbIV
- F7F · A · C · Eb
- BbBb · D · F
- Bb7Bb · D · F · Ab
- EbEb · G · Bb
78 songs go round the same chords
2
Left hand: Boogie walker
How it goes
A walking line that climbs and falls through the chord. Musicians call it boogie-woogie line (boogie & shuffle), a medium pattern heard in 807 songs of the library.
Boogie walkerBoogie & shuffle · Blues and boogie-woogieLeft handMedium
3
Right hand: Pausing chords
How it goes
Three steady chords, then beat 4 left empty to breathe. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
Pausing chordsBlock chords · ClassicalRight handEasy
4
Both hands at 100 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: Bb – F7 – Bb
How it goes
The last chords are I – V7 – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
BbF7Bb

What chords are in Mary’s Little Boy Child?

The loop is F7 – Bb – Bb7 – Eb (V7 – I – I7 – IV) in Bb major, and the song ends on Bb – F7 – Bb.

What key is Mary’s Little Boy Child in?

Bb major, at about 100 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Mary’s Little Boy Child?

Boogie walker: boogie-woogie line, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Mary’s Little Boy Child 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 2 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.