Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
Proud Mary: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
Written by John Fogerty
- D major
- 4/4
- 120 BPM
- 1968
- Medium
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 Proud Mary without reading music. The left hand plays jogging footsteps (root bass · 1 · 2 · 2& · 3 · 3& · 4) and the right hand groovy chords.
The intro of Proud Mary in letter notes
The real notes from a score, both hands, bar by bar. R is the right hand, L the left; C4 is middle C.
Proud Mary accompaniment in letter notes
The C – A – C – A – C – A – G – G – D – F – D loop with jogging footsteps in the left hand and groovy chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.
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.
Play next
More by John Fogerty
The same left hand: Jogging footsteps
Questions about Proud Mary
What are the letter notes for the Proud Mary 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 C – A – C – A – C – A – G – G – D – F – D, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Proud Mary?
The loop is C – A – C – A – C – A – G – G – D – F – D (bVII – V – bVII – V – bVII – V – IV – I – bIII – I – bVII) in D major, and the song ends on G – A – D.
What key is Proud Mary in?
D major, at about 120 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Proud Mary?
Jogging footsteps: root bass · 1 · 2 · 2& · 3 · 3& · 4, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Proud Mary easy to play on piano?
It is a medium one: learn the 11 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.
Can I hear the real melody of Proud Mary?
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.