Piano chords · Old-time stride
Runaway: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
Written by Del Shannon & Max Crook
- Bb minor
- 4/4
- 156 BPM
- I–vi–I–vi loop
- 1961
- 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 Runaway without reading music. The left hand plays boom-chick (boom-chick) and the right hand hand-clap chords.
Runaway accompaniment in letter notes
The Bb – Gm – Bb – Gm loop with boom-chick in the left hand and hand-clap 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 Runaway
What are the letter notes for the Runaway 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 Bb – Gm – Bb – Gm, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Runaway?
The loop is Bb – Gm – Bb – Gm (I – vi – I – vi) in Bb minor, and the song ends on Bb – Eb – Bb.
What key is Runaway in?
Bb minor, at about 156 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Runaway?
Boom-chick: boom-chick, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Runaway 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 2 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.