Piano chords · Blues & boogie
How to play Train on piano
- G minor
- 4/4
- 100 BPM
- 2006
- Medium
Learn Train in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Gm – Am – Gm – D
Train sits in G minor: G is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: Gm is G, Bb and D; Am is A, C and E; D is D, F# and A. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
GmiAmiiGmiDV- GmG · Bb · D
- AmA · C · E
- DD · F# · A
- 2
Left hand: Boogie walker
A walking line that climbs and falls through the chord. Musicians call it boogie-woogie line (boogie & shuffle), a medium pattern heard in 807 songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: Late-knock chords
One chord, a long wait, then a quick knock-knock at the end. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
- 4
Both hands at 100 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: Eb – F – Gm
The last chords are bVI – bVII – i, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
EbFGm- EbEb · G · Bb
- FF · A · C
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Questions about Train
What chords are in Train?
The loop is Gm – Am – Gm – D (i – ii – i – V) in G minor, and the song ends on Eb – F – Gm.
What key is Train in?
G minor, at about 100 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in Train?
Boogie walker: boogie-woogie line, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is Train 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.
Made from one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.