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Piano chords · Rock drive

The Man That Got Away: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Harold Arlen

  • F major
  • 4/4
  • 80 BPM
  • 1954
  • Medium
Tuning the piano…
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Left hand Power fifthsRight hand Soft chordsChords worked out from the notes of the famous part

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 Man That Got Away without reading music. The left hand plays power fifths (lh power fifths) and the right hand soft chords.

The main tune of The Man That Got Away 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
F7 → F
RF3+A3+C4+D4 Eb4 E4 C4 C4
LF2+D3 Eb3 E3 C3 C3
Bar 2
F7 → F
RF3+A3+C4+D4 D4 Eb4 Eb4 E4 C4 C4
LF2+D3 D3 Eb3 Eb3 E3 C3 C3
Bar 3
Gm → C
RF3+Bb3+D4 Eb4 Bb3+E4 C4 C4
LG2+D3 Eb3 C2+G2+E3
Bar 4
Bb → C
RAb3+C4+D4 D4 Eb4 Eb4 Bb3+E4 C4 C4
LBb1+F2 C2+G2+E3

The Man That Got Away accompaniment in letter notes

The F7 – F – F7 – F – Gm – C – Bb – C loop with power fifths in the left hand and soft chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
F7 → F
RC5+F5+A5 C5+F5+A5 C5+F5+A5
LF2+C3 F2+C3 F3
Bar 2
F7 → F
RC5+F5+A5 C5+F5+A5 C5+F5+A5
LF2+C3 F2+C3 F3
Bar 3
Gm → C
RD5+G5+Bb5 G4+C5+E5 G4+C5+E5
LG2+D3 G2+D3 C4
Bar 4
Bb → C
RF4+Bb4+D5 C7 G6 E6 C6 G5 F#5 F5 E5
LBb2+F3 Bb2+F3 C4
Bar 5
F7 → F
RC5+F5+A5 C5+F5+A5 C5+F5+A5
LF2+C3 F2+C3 F3
Bar 6
F7 → F
RC5+F5+A5 C5+F5+A5 C5+F5+A5
LF2+C3 F2+C3 F3
Bar 7
Gm → C
RD5+G5+Bb5 G4+C5+E5 G4+C5+E5
LG2+D3 G2+D3 C4
Bar 8
Bb → C
RF4+Bb4+D5 G4+C5+E5 G4+C5+E5
LBb2+F3 Bb2+F3 C4

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 Man That Got Away

What are the letter notes for the The Man That Got Away 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 F7 – F – F7 – F – Gm – C – Bb – C, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in The Man That Got Away?

The loop is F7 – F – F7 – F – Gm – C – Bb – C (I7 – I – I7 – I – ii – V – IV – V) in F major, and the song ends on Bb – C – F.

What key is The Man That Got Away in?

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

What does the left hand play in The Man That Got Away?

Power fifths: lh power fifths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is The Man That Got Away easy to play on piano?

It is a medium one: learn the 8 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.

Can I hear the real melody of The Man That Got Away?

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.