Piano chords · Rock drive
Shirtsleeves: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
Written by Ed Sheeran
- D major
- 4/4
- 110 BPM
- I–V–vi–IV loop
- 2014
- Medium
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 Shirtsleeves without reading music. The left hand plays engine 8ths (root bass · 8ths) and the right hand pop stabs.
Shirtsleeves accompaniment in letter notes
The D – A – Bm – G loop with engine 8ths in the left hand and pop stabs 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 Shirtsleeves
What are the letter notes for the Shirtsleeves 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 D – A – Bm – G, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in Shirtsleeves?
The loop is D – A – Bm – G (I – V – vi – IV) in D major, and the song ends on G – A – D.
What key is Shirtsleeves in?
D major, at about 110 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Shirtsleeves?
Engine 8ths: root bass · 8ths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Shirtsleeves 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.
Made from 2 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.