Piano chords · Blues & boogie

How to play Were You There? on piano

Tuning the piano…

Learn it

Learn Were You There? in 5 steps

The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.

1
Chords: F – Bb – F – Gm
How it goes
Were You There? sits in F major: F is home, where the song ends. It goes round 4 chords: F is F, A and C; Bb is Bb, D and F; Gm is G, Bb and D. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
FIBbIVFIGmii
- FF · A · C
- BbBb · D · F
- GmG · Bb · D
75 songs go round the same chords
2
Left hand: Rock’n’roll rocker
How it goes
The left hand rocks between two shapes, straight out of the 1950s. Musicians call it rock’n’roll 5–6 shuffle (boogie & shuffle), a medium pattern heard in 262 songs of the library.
Rock’n’roll rockerBoogie & shuffle · Blues and boogie-woogieLeft handMedium
3
Right hand: Soft chords
How it goes
Soft chords on beats 1, 3 and 4. It moves with the chords, so it fits every bar of the loop.
Soft chordsBlock chords · BalladRight handEasy
4
Both hands at 115 BPM
How it goes
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: Bb – C – F
How it goes
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
BbCF
- CC · E · G

What chords are in Were You There??

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

What key is Were You There? in?

F major, at about 115 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Were You There??

Rock’n’roll rocker: rock’n’roll 5–6 shuffle, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Were You There? 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 3 arrangements of this song: the left and right hands are the patterns these scores repeat most.