Super Simple Chords

Piano chords · Blues & boogie

Work In Progress: easy piano accompaniment in letter notes

By Alan Jackson

Tuning the piano…
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Left hand Jazz walkRight hand Run-up 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 Work In Progress without reading music. The left hand plays jazz walk (walking bass) and the right hand run-up chords.

Work In Progress accompaniment in letter notes

The E7 – A7 – E7 – B7 loop with jazz walk in the left hand and run-up chords in the right. Notes struck together are joined with a plus; C4 is middle C.

Bar 1
E7
RG#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5
LE2 F#2 G2 G#2
Bar 2
A7
RC#4+E4+G4+A4 C#4+E4+G4+A4 C#4+E4+G4+A4 C#4+E4+G4+A4 C#4+E4+G4+A4
LA2 B2 C3 C#3
Bar 3
E7
RG#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5
LE2 F#2 G2 G#2
Bar 4
B7
RD#4+F#4+A4+B4 D#4+F#4+A4+B4 D5 D#5 F#5 G#5 F#5 D#5 D5 B4
LB2 C#3 D3 D#3
Bar 5
E7
RG#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5
LE2 F#2 G2 G#2
Bar 6
A7
RC#4+E4+G4+A4 C#4+E4+G4+A4 C#4+E4+G4+A4 C#4+E4+G4+A4 C#4+E4+G4+A4
LA2 B2 C3 C#3
Bar 7
E7
RG#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5 G#4+B4+D5+E5
LE2 F#2 G2 G#2
Bar 8
B7
RD#4+F#4+A4+B4 D#4+F#4+A4+B4 D#4+F#4+A4+B4 D#4+F#4+A4+B4 D#4+F#4+A4+B4
LB2 C#3 D3 D#3

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 Work In Progress

What are the letter notes for the Work In Progress 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 E7 – A7 – E7 – B7, so the letters repeat with the chords.

What chords are in Work In Progress?

The loop is E7 – A7 – E7 – B7 (I7 – IV7 – I7 – V7) in E major, and the song ends on A – B – E.

What key is Work In Progress in?

E major, at about 100 beats a minute in 4/4.

What does the left hand play in Work In Progress?

Jazz walk: walking bass, an easy pattern. It follows the chords, so the same shape works for every bar.

Is Work In Progress 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.