Piano chords · Dreamy ballad
What’d I Say?: piano accompaniment sheet music
By Ray Charles
- E major
- 4/4
- 160 BPM
- 1959
- Easy
Play the full song with sheet music
What’d I Say? written out as piano music: the I7 – V7 – IV7 – I7 loop in E major for both hands, with chord names and finger numbers. Press play and follow the cursor. The left hand plays three-step climb (broken chord 1-5-8) and the right hand gospel-clap chords.
What’d I Say? chord chart
The loop once round, bar by bar, in E major. The roman numeral says the chord's place in the key, so the same chart works in any key.
| Bar | Chord | Numeral | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | E7 | I7 | E G# B D |
| 3 | B7 | V7 | B D# F# A |
| 4 | A7 | IV7 | A C# 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: three-step climb (broken chord 1-5-8) in the left hand and gospel-clap chords in the right, over the E7 – E7 – B7 – A7 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.
To see the real melody written out, play “The part you know”: the sheet music changes to it.
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Questions about What’d I Say?
Does the sheet music for What’d I Say? 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’d I Say??
The loop is E7 – E7 – B7 – A7 (I7 – V7 – IV7 – I7) in E major, and the song ends on A – B – E.
What key is What’d I Say? in?
E major, at about 160 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in What’d I Say??
Three-step climb: broken chord 1-5-8, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is What’d I Say? 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.
Can I hear the real melody of What’d I Say??
Yes: "The part you know" plays the intro 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.