Piano chords · Pop heartbeat
Refugee: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
Written by Tom Petty & Mike Campbell
- A major
- 4/4
- 116 BPM
- vi–I–V–vi loop
- 1979
- Easy
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 Refugee without reading music. The left hand plays pop heartbeat (root bass · charleston push (1 · 2& · 3)) and the right hand wait-a-beat chords.
Refugee accompaniment in letter notes
The F#m – A – E – F#m loop with pop heartbeat in the left hand and wait-a-beat 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 Refugee
What are the letter notes for the Refugee 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 F#m – A – E – F#m, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Refugee?
The loop is F#m – A – E – F#m (vi – I – V – vi) in A major, and the song ends on D – E – A.
What key is Refugee in?
A major, at about 116 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Refugee?
Pop heartbeat: root bass · charleston push (1 · 2& · 3), an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Refugee easy to play on piano?
Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 4 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.
Made from one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.