Piano chords · Dreamy ballad

How to play No One Ever Loved on piano

By Lykke Li and Bjorn Yttling

Tuning the piano…

Learn it

Learn No One Ever Loved in 5 steps

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

1
Chords: C – Em – G – Am
How it goes
No One Ever Loved sits in C major: C is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: C is C, E and G; Em is E, G and B; G is G, B and D; Am is A, C and E. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
CIEmiiiGVAmvi
- CC · E · G
- EmE · G · B
- GG · B · D
- AmA · C · E
2
Left hand: Three-step climb
How it goes
Root, fifth, octave, then let it ring. Musicians call it broken chord 1-5-8 (broken chord), an easy pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.
Three-step climbBroken chord · BalladLeft handEasy
3
Right hand: Hurrying chords
How it goes
Calm chords in the first half, then twice as fast to the end. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
Hurrying chordsSyncopated chords · PopRight handMedium
4
Both hands at 94 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: F – G – C
How it goes
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
FGC
- FF · A · C

What chords are in No One Ever Loved?

The loop is C – Em – G – Am (I – iii – V – vi) in C major, and the song ends on F – G – C.

What key is No One Ever Loved in?

C major, at about 94 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in No One Ever Loved?

Three-step climb: broken chord 1-5-8, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is No One Ever Loved 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.

Can I hear the real melody of No One Ever Loved?

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

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