Start A Band Piano Chords & Patterns

Learn Start A Band in 5 steps

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

1
Chords: C – Bb – F – C
Start A Band sits in F major: F is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: C is C, E and G; Bb is Bb, D and F; F is F, A and C. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
CVBbIVFICV
- CC · E · G
- BbBb · D · F
- FF · A · C
92 songs go round the same chords
2
Left hand: Dawdling footsteps
Two steps, then a lazy late note after beat 3 that catches up on 4. Musicians call it root bass · 1 · 2 · 3& · 4 (root bass rhythm), an easy pattern heard in 222 songs of the library.
Dawdling footstepsRoot bass rhythm · PopLeft handEasy
3
Right hand: Pumping chords
A chord on every eighth note, driving the song forward. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
Pumping chordsPumping 8ths · RockRight handMedium
4
Both hands at 130 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: C – Bb – F
The last chords are V – IV – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
CBbF

What chords are in Start A Band?

The loop is C – Bb – F – C (V – IV – I – V) in F major, and the song ends on C – Bb – F.

What key is Start A Band in?

F major, at about 130 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Start A Band?

Dawdling footsteps: root bass · 1 · 2 · 3& · 4, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Start A Band 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.