Piano chords · Classical salon
Reeling In The Years: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
By Steely Dan
- Bb major
- 4/4
- 118 BPM
- ii–I–IV–I loop
- 1972
- Tricky
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 Reeling In The Years without reading music. The left hand plays little steps (broken chord 1-3-5-3) and the right hand trotting-sleigh chords.
Reeling In The Years accompaniment in letter notes
The Cm – Bb – Eb – Bb loop with little steps in the left hand and trotting-sleigh 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.
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Questions about Reeling In The Years
What are the letter notes for the Reeling In The Years 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 Cm – Bb – Eb – Bb, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Reeling In The Years?
The loop is Cm – Bb – Eb – Bb (ii – I – IV – I) in Bb major, and the song ends on Eb – F – Bb.
What key is Reeling In The Years in?
Bb major, at about 118 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Reeling In The Years?
Little steps: broken chord 1-3-5-3, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Reeling In The Years easy to play on piano?
It is a tricky one: learn the 4 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.
Made from 2 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.