Piano chords · Rock drive
How to play When We Were Young on piano
By Adele
- Eb major
- 4/4
- 72 BPM
- 2015
- Medium
Play the full song with sheet music
Learn When We Were Young in 5 steps
The chords first, then one hand at a time. Each step plays in the player above.
- 1
Chords: Cm – Gm – Ab – Gm – Fm – Fm7 – Eb
How it goes
When We Were Young sits in Eb major: Eb is home, where the song ends. It goes round 7 chords: Cm is C, Eb and G; Gm is G, Bb and D; Ab is Ab, C and Eb; Fm is F, Ab and C; Fm7 is F, Ab, C and Eb; Eb is Eb, G and Bb. Play each one as a block with your right hand until the changes feel easy.
CmviGmiiiAbIVGmiiiFmiiFm7ii7EbI- CmC · Eb · G
- GmG · Bb · D
- AbAb · C · Eb
- FmF · Ab · C
- Fm7F · Ab · C · Eb
- EbEb · G · Bb
- 2
Left hand: Power fifths
How it goes
Root and fifth together: big and bold. Musicians call it lh power fifths (left-hand chords), a medium pattern heard in thousands of songs of the library.
- 3
Right hand: the chords, held
How it goes
In this song the right hand mostly plays the tune itself. Hold the chords lightly, or play the melody over the left hand.
- 4
Both hands at 72 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: Ab – Bb – Eb
How it goes
The last chords are IV – V – I, then one chord rolled from the bottom up, left to ring.
AbBbEb- BbBb · D · F
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Questions about When We Were Young
What chords are in When We Were Young?
The loop is Cm – Gm – Ab – Gm – Fm – Fm7 – Eb (vi – iii – IV – iii – ii – ii7 – I) in Eb major, and the song ends on Ab – Bb – Eb.
What key is When We Were Young in?
Eb major, at about 72 beats a minute in 4/4.
What does the left hand play in When We Were Young?
Power fifths: lh power fifths, a medium pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.
Is When We Were Young easy to play on piano?
It is a medium one: learn the 7 chords as blocks first, then add the left hand, then the right, slowly.
Can I hear the real melody of When We Were Young?
Yes: "The part you know" plays the opening 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.