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What Goes On: piano accompaniment sheet music

Written by Robert Hirst & James Moginie

Tuning the piano…
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Left hand Gear-shift pulseRight hand Offbeat skankChords the loop the song repeats most

Play the full song with sheet music

What Goes On written out as piano music: the IV – I – IV – I loop in C major for both hands, with chord names and finger numbers. Press play and follow the cursor. The left hand plays gear-shift pulse (root bass · 1 · 1& · 2 · 2& · 3& · 4 · 4&) and the right hand offbeat skank.

What Goes On chord chart

The loop once round, bar by bar, in C major. The roman numeral says the chord's place in the key, so the same chart works in any key.

BarChordNumeralNotes
1FIVF A C
2CIC E G
3FIVF A C
4CIC E G

What the sheet music shows

The grand staff: the right hand on the treble staff, the left hand on the bass staff, with the chord names above and a finger number on each note (1 is the thumb). It is the accompaniment: gear-shift pulse (root bass · 1 · 1& · 2 · 2& · 3& · 4 · 4&) in the left hand and offbeat skank in the right, over the F – C – F – C chords.

Press play and a cursor follows the music. Above it, Colours paints each note in its key’s colour and Note names writes its letter on its head.

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Questions about What Goes On

Does the sheet music for What Goes On have finger numbers?

Yes: every note of both hands has its finger number, 1 being the thumb. To read the notes alone, turn Fingers off above the music.

What chords are in What Goes On?

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

What key is What Goes On in?

C major, at about 134 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in What Goes On?

Gear-shift pulse: root bass · 1 · 1& · 2 · 2& · 3& · 4 · 4&, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is What Goes On 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.