Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Blues & boogie

Murder In The City: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

Written by Scott Avett & Timothy Avett

Tuning the piano…
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Left hand Seesaw bassRight hand Double-clap chordsChords the loop the song repeats most

Play the full song with sheet music

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 Murder In The City without reading music. The left hand plays seesaw bass (root–fifth 1-5-1-5) and the right hand double-clap chords.

Murder In The City accompaniment in letter notes

The Bb – Eb – Cm – Bb loop with seesaw bass in the left hand and double-clap chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
Bb
RF4+Ab4+Bb4+D5 F4+Ab4+Bb4+D5 F4+Ab4+Bb4+D5 F4+Ab4+Bb4+D5
LBb2 F3 Bb2 F3
Bar 2
Eb
RBb4+Db5+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Db5+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Db5+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Db5+Eb5+G5
LEb2 Bb2 Eb2 Bb2
Bar 3
Cm
RG4+Bb4+C5+Eb5 G4+Bb4+C5+Eb5 G4+Bb4+C5+Eb5 G4+Bb4+C5+Eb5
LC3 G3 C3 G3
Bar 4
Bb
RF4+Ab4+Bb4+D5 F4+Ab4+Bb4+D5 Db5 D5 F5 G5 F5 D5 Db5 Bb4
LBb2 F3 Bb2 F3
Bar 5
Bb
RF4+Ab4+Bb4+D5 F4+Ab4+Bb4+D5 F4+Ab4+Bb4+D5 F4+Ab4+Bb4+D5
LBb2 F3 Bb2 F3
Bar 6
Eb
RBb4+Db5+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Db5+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Db5+Eb5+G5 Bb4+Db5+Eb5+G5
LEb2 Bb2 Eb2 Bb2
Bar 7
Cm
RG4+Bb4+C5+Eb5 G4+Bb4+C5+Eb5 G4+Bb4+C5+Eb5 G4+Bb4+C5+Eb5
LC3 G3 C3 G3
Bar 8
Bb
RF4+Ab4+Bb4+D5 F4+Ab4+Bb4+D5 F4+Ab4+Bb4+D5 F4+Ab4+Bb4+D5
LBb2 F3 Bb2 F3

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 Murder In The City

What are the letter notes for the Murder In The City 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 Bb – Eb – Cm – Bb, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Murder In The City?

The loop is Bb – Eb – Cm – Bb (V – I – vi – V) in Eb major, and the song ends on Ab – Bb – Eb.

What key is Murder In The City in?

Eb major, at about 110 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Murder In The City?

Seesaw bass: root–fifth 1-5-1-5, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Murder In The City easy to play on piano?

Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 4 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.

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