Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Blues & boogie

How to play Old Toy Trains on piano

By Roger Miller

Tuning the piano…
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Left hand Boogie walkerThe right hand sings the tuneChords the loop the song repeats most

Play the full song with sheet music

Learn Old Toy Trains in 5 steps

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

  1. 1

    Chords: F – Gm – F – Gm

    How it goes

    Old Toy Trains sits in F major: F is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: F is F, A and C; Gm is G, Bb and D. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.

    FIGmiiFIGmii
    • FF · A · C
    • GmG · Bb · D
    164 songs go round the same chords
  2. 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.

  3. 3

    Right hand: the chords, held

    How it goes

    In this song the right hand mostly plays the tune itself. Hold the chords lightly, or play the melody over the left hand.

  4. 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. 5

    Ending: F – Gm – F

    How it goes

    The last chords are I – ii – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.

    FGmF

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Questions about Old Toy Trains

What chords are in Old Toy Trains?

The loop is F – Gm – F – Gm (I – ii – I – ii) in F major, and the song ends on F – Gm – F.

What key is Old Toy Trains in?

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

What does the left hand play in Old Toy Trains?

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

Is Old Toy Trains 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 one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.