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USA Today: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Alan Jackson

Tuning the piano…
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Left hand Push and landRight hand Wait-a-beat chordsChords the loop the song repeats most

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 USA Today without reading music. The left hand plays push and land (root bass · 1 · 2& · 3 · 4) and the right hand wait-a-beat chords.

USA Today accompaniment in letter notes

The E – A – E – A loop with push and land in the left hand and wait-a-beat chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
E
RG#4+B4+E5 G#4+B4+E5 G#4+B4+E5
LE2 E2 E2 E2
Bar 2
A
RC#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4
LA2 A2 A2 A2
Bar 3
E
RG#4+B4+E5 G#4+B4+E5 G#4+B4+E5
LE2 E2 E2 E2
Bar 4
A
RC#4+E4+A4 D#4 E4 F#4 G#4 A4 B4 C#5 D#5
LA2 A2 A2 A2
Bar 5
E
RG#4+B4+E5 G#4+B4+E5 G#4+B4+E5
LE2 E2 E2 E2
Bar 6
A
RC#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4
LA2 A2 A2 A2
Bar 7
E
RG#4+B4+E5 G#4+B4+E5 G#4+B4+E5
LE2 E2 E2 E2
Bar 8
A
RC#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4 C#4+E4+A4
LA2 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 USA Today

What are the letter notes for the USA Today 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 E – A – E – A, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in USA Today?

The loop is E – A – E – A (I – IV – I – IV) in E major, and the song ends on B – A – E.

What key is USA Today in?

E major, at about 116 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in USA Today?

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

Is USA Today easy to play on piano?

Yes. Both hands play easy patterns over 4 chords. Learn the chords first, then add one hand at a time.

Made from one arrangement of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.