Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
How to play Paranoid Android on piano
By Radiohead
- Bb major
- 4/4
- 81 BPM
- 1997
- Medium
Learn Paranoid Android in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Gm – Gm – Cm – F7
Paranoid Android sits in Bb major: Bb is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Gm is G, Bb and D; Cm is C, Eb and G; F7 is F, A, C and Eb. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
GmviGmviCmiiF7V7- GmG · Bb · D
- CmC · Eb · G
- F7F · A · C · Eb
- 2
Left hand: Excited heartbeat
Lots of quick notes with a tiny skip before beat 3: full of energy. Musicians call it root bass · 1 · 1& · 2 · 2a · 3 · 3& · 4 (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in 81 songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Skipping-stone chords
One chord, then two bounces on the “ands”, like a stone on water. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 81 BPM
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: Eb – F – Bb
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
EbFBb- EbEb · G · Bb
- FF · A · C
- BbBb · D · F
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Questions about Paranoid Android
What chords are in Paranoid Android?
The loop is Gm – Gm – Cm – F7 (vi – ii – V7 – vi) in Bb major, and the song ends on Eb – F – Bb.
What key is Paranoid Android in?
Bb major, at about 81 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Paranoid Android?
Excited heartbeat: root bass · 1 · 1& · 2 · 2a · 3 · 3& · 4, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Paranoid Android 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 Paranoid Android?
Yes: "The part you know" plays the intro 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.