Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Pop heartbeat

The First Cut Is The Deepest: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Sheryl Crow

  • D major
  • 4/4
  • 80 BPM
  • 1967
  • Easy
Tuning the piano…
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Style

Left hand Hop-skip heartbeatRight hand Steady chordsChords from the chord symbols in the score

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 The First Cut Is The Deepest without reading music. The left hand plays hop-skip heartbeat (root bass · 1 · 2 · 3 · 3& · 4&) and the right hand steady chords.

The repeating figure of The First Cut Is The Deepest in letter notes

The real notes from a score, both hands, bar by bar. R is the right hand, L the left; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
D → G
RA3+D4+F#4 A3+D4+F#4 G3+D4+G4 F#4 G4 A4
LD3 D3 G2 F#2 G2 A2
Bar 2
A
RA3+E4+A4 A3+E4+A4 A3+E4+A4 A3+E4+A4
LA2 A2 A2 A2 B2 C#3
Bar 3
D → G
RA3+D4+F#4 A3+D4+F#4 G3+D4+G4 F#4 G4 A4
LD3 D3 G2 F#2 G2 A2
Bar 4
A
RA3+E4+A4 A3+E4+A4 A3+E4+A4 A3+E4+A4
LA2 A2 A2 A2 B2 C#3

The First Cut Is The Deepest accompaniment in letter notes

The D – G – A – D – G – A loop with hop-skip heartbeat in the left hand and steady chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
D → G
RF#4+A4+D5 F#4+A4+D5 B4+D5+G5 B4+D5+G5
LD2 D2 G2 G2 G2
Bar 2
A
RC#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4
LA2 A2 A2 A2 A2
Bar 3
D → G
RF#4+A4+D5 F#4+A4+D5 B4+D5+G5 B4+D5+G5
LD2 D2 G2 G2 G2
Bar 4
A
RC#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4 D4 E4 F#4 G4 A4 B4 C#5
LA2 A2 A2 A2 A2
Bar 5
D → G
RF#4+A4+D5 F#4+A4+D5 B4+D5+G5 B4+D5+G5
LD2 D2 G2 G2 G2
Bar 6
A
RC#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4
LA2 A2 A2 A2 A2
Bar 7
D → G
RF#4+A4+D5 F#4+A4+D5 B4+D5+G5 B4+D5+G5
LD2 D2 G2 G2 G2
Bar 8
A
RC#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4
LA2 A2 A2 A2 A2

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 The First Cut Is The Deepest

What are the letter notes for the The First Cut Is The Deepest 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 – G – A – D – G – A, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in The First Cut Is The Deepest?

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

What key is The First Cut Is The Deepest in?

D major, at about 80 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in The First Cut Is The Deepest?

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

Is The First Cut Is The Deepest easy to play on piano?

Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 6 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.

Can I hear the real melody of The First Cut Is The Deepest?

Yes: "The part you know" plays the repeating figure 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.