Ready Piano Chords & Patterns

Learn Ready in 5 steps

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

1
Chords: D – C – G – D
How it goes
Ready sits in G major: G is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: D is D, F# and A; C is C, E and G; G is G, B and D. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
DVCIVGIDV
- DD · F# · A
- CC · E · G
- GG · B · D
92 songs go round the same chords
2
Left hand: Tick-tick-boom pulse
How it goes
Two quick low notes and a high one, twice: ta-ta-DUM, ta-ta-DUM. Musicians call it root bass · 8ths 1-2, 3-4 (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in 479 songs of the library.
Tick-tick-boom pulseRoot bass rhythm · PopLeft handMedium
3
Right hand: Zigzag chords
How it goes
Steady at first, then a quick zigzag of chords around beat 3. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
Zigzag chordsSyncopated chords · PopRight handMedium
4
Both hands at 88 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: C – D – G
How it goes
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
CDG

What chords are in Ready?

The loop is D – C – G – D (V – IV – I – V) in G major, and the song ends on C – D – G.

What key is Ready in?

G major, at about 88 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Ready?

Tick-tick-boom pulse: root bass · 8ths 1-2, 3-4, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Ready 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.