Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Rock drive

How to play Smoke On The Water on piano

By Deep Purple

  • G minor
  • 4/4
  • 72 BPM
  • 1972
  • Easy
Play the full song with sheet music
Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Giant stepsRight hand Push chordsChords worked out from the notes of the famous part

Learn Smoke On The Water in 5 steps

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

  1. 1

    Chords: Cm7 – Cm – Eb7 – Dm7 – Cm7 – Gm7 – Bbm7

    Smoke On The Water sits in G minor: G is home, where the song ends. It goes round 7 chords: Cm7 is C, Eb, G and Bb; Cm is C, Eb and G; Eb7 is Eb, G, Bb and Db; Dm7 is D, F, A and C; Gm7 is G, Bb, D and F; Bbm7 is Bb, Db, F and Ab. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.

    Cm7iv7CmivEb7VI7Dm7v7Cm7iv7Gm7i7Bbm7iii7
    • Cm7C · Eb · G · Bb
    • CmC · Eb · G
    • Eb7Eb · G · Bb · Db
    • Dm7D · F · A · C
    • Gm7G · Bb · D · F
    • Bbm7Bb · Db · F · Ab
    39 songs go round the same chords
  2. 2

    Left hand: Giant steps

    A full chord on every beat, low and heavy, like a giant walking. Musicians call it lh chords (left-hand chords), an easy pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.

    Giant stepsLeft-hand chords · RockLeft handEasy
  3. 3

    Right hand: Push chords

    Two quick chords and a push just before beat 3, then space. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.

    Push chordsSyncopated chords · RockRight handEasy
  4. 4

    Both hands at 72 BPM

    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. 5

    Ending: Eb – F – Gm

    The last chords are bVI – bVII – i, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.

    EbFGm
    • EbEb · G · Bb
    • FF · A · C
    • GmG · Bb · D

Play next

The same vi–V–vi–V loop

All of them
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Waiting For A Girl Like YouWritten by Mick Jones & Lou Gramm

The same left hand: Giant steps

About this pattern
What A Wonderful WorldLouis Armstrong
Defying Gravity (from the Broadway Musical Wicked)Stephen Schwartz
For Once In My LifeStevie Wonder
Hello AgainNeil Diamond

Questions about Smoke On The Water

What chords are in Smoke On The Water?

The loop is Cm7 – Cm – Eb7 – Dm7 – Cm7 – Gm7 – Bbm7 (iv7 – iv – VI7 – v7 – iv7 – i7 – iii7) in G minor, and the song ends on Eb – F – Gm.

What key is Smoke On The Water in?

G minor, at about 72 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Smoke On The Water?

Giant steps: lh chords, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Smoke On The Water easy to play on piano?

Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 7 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.

Can I hear the real melody of Smoke On The Water?

Yes: "The part you know" plays the main tune of the song from a score, with both hands.

Made from 3 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.