Piano chords · Dreamy ballad
The Longest Time: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes
By Billy Joel
- Eb major
- 2/2
- 160 BPM
- 1983
- Easy
Play the full song with sheet music
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 Longest Time without reading music. The left hand plays three-step climb (broken chord 1-5-8) and the right hand hopscotch bells.
The main tune of The Longest Time 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.
The Longest Time accompaniment in letter notes
The Eb – Gm – Cm7 – Bb – Ab – Eb loop with three-step climb in the left hand and hopscotch bells 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 The Longest Time
What are the letter notes for the The Longest Time 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 Eb – Gm – Cm7 – Bb – Ab – Eb, so the letters repeat with the chords.
What chords are in The Longest Time?
The loop is Eb – Gm – Cm7 – Bb – Ab – Eb (I – iii – vi7 – V – IV – I) in Eb major, and the song ends on Ab – Bb – Eb.
What key is The Longest Time in?
Eb major, at about 160 beats a minute in 2/2.
What does the left hand play in The Longest Time?
Three-step climb: broken chord 1-5-8, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is The Longest Time 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 Longest Time?
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.