Something To Talk About Piano Chords & Patterns

Learn Something To Talk About in 5 steps

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

1
Chords: A – E – A – E
Something To Talk About sits in A major: A is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: A is A, C# and E; E is E, G# and B. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
AIEVAIEV
- AA · C# · E
- EE · G# · B
144 songs go round the same chords
2
Left hand: Tick-tick-boom pulse
Two quick low notes and a high one, twice: ta-ta-DUM, ta-ta-DUM. Musicians call it root bass · 8ths 1-2, 3-4 (root bass rhythm), a medium pattern heard in 479 songs of the library.
Tick-tick-boom pulseRoot bass rhythm · PopLeft handMedium
3
Right hand: Offbeat skank
Chords only on the “and”: reggae and swing. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
Offbeat skankOffbeat chords · Blues and boogie-woogieRight handEasy
4
Both hands at 110 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
Ending: D – E – A
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
DEA
- DD · F# · A

What chords are in Something To Talk About?

The loop is A – E – A – E (I – V – I – V) in A major, and the song ends on D – E – A.

What key is Something To Talk About in?

A major, at about 110 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Something To Talk About?

Tick-tick-boom pulse: root bass · 8ths 1-2, 3-4, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Something To Talk About 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.