Lets learn “Your Song” by Elton John - How to read an easy lead sheet
Hooray! Lets learn the intro to “Your Song” by Elton John. When I started making this video, it was the most requested song in the valentine poll. Make sure to download the chart!!!*
THERE ARE THREE PARTS TO THIS LESSON:
- Your Song - Easy PDF Chart Download
- Performance VIDEO - (over the shoulder demonstration)
- Chart Walk through VIDEO - Talking you through reading the chart with the letters written in.
Give me your feedback and I’ll incorporate it into the lesson for the rest of the song!
#1 YOUR SONG - PDF for the introduction
#2 YOUR SONG - PERFORMANCE VIDEO
I recommend watching the performance example and then skipping ahead through the commentary to the slow performances and copying it step by step.
Table of contents:
:10 - Performance example of the 4 measure introduction
:21 - SLOW walkthrough
3:27 - SLOW performance, chord by chord. I’m saying each chord.
4:05 - Holding down all the notes in the chord at once
Its just the first four measures, but this is the epitome of elton john’s style:
Rolling arpeggios and chords in inversions.
#3 LEAD SHEET - HOW TO READ THE MUSIC - VIDEO
Practice Goal:
Learn all of your major and minor triads, AND their inversions. Then practice rolling them.
Please post a comment and let me know what you think!!!
Great lesson as always. really easy to see the blue colored keys.
thanx m8
// Tim from Sweden
Hi Chris,
I always appreciate whatever people do for me especially when it is free and so time consuming. I do not quite like myself for always feeling sorry for others and therefore always try to console, encourage and tell the truth in a very tactful way.
Therefore, whatever my comments may be, please remember the above.
Your instructions are very clear as always, unlike some. I enjoyed all your video lessons especially Summertime and also others.
There is something lacking I do not know how to express as I am not a good pianist myself. Maybe, I must remember that this is FAST PIANO lesson then, I cannot compare it with Duane Shinn’s lessons.
If it is a fast piano lesson, then I would give a 9 and a half.
Appreciate your time and kindness in sharing, nevertheless.
Wangmyan, Singaporean in Perth
Sorry, I forgot to thank you for completing the lesson with a leadsheet which is very useful. The blue coloured keys are very helpful too. We can see your fingers clearly too. Others have it in such a way, we sometimes cannot see which key he is playing. Of course, I prefer songs of the 50s 60s. I know it is very time consuming to do this lesson.
Really nice job. You’ve got something for everyone. Music readers can get right to it. Chord spellings are provided. And even if you don’t read music at all it can be deciphered. Videos are excellent.
Hi Crhis,
Your lessons are really great. The instructions are music 101 to me as I know more music theory and less about how to apply them to playing piano. Mostly because I don’t practice consistently. Your lessons, however, have something for everyone from beginner to advanced.
I’m just not is a music reader so I tend to skip over the charts and go to the meat and potatoes stuff. I use fake sheets or play by ear if the song isn’t too complicated or fast. What makes your lessons so uniquely instructive is that you are showing things that most people don’t teach in a basic music lesson. This lesson on Elton John’s intro is a perfect example.
Keep ‘em flying.
Don
Hey Chris,
Just so good. Really clear and easy to follow. The PDF is a giant help
but the blue keys really take the cake!
Seriously, thank you so much.
TB
Hello,
I don’t know what is wrong, but
your voice and your fingers don’t coordinate in this video.
Also, the voice ends and the fingers keep going at the end of the video
for about 10 seconds.
I even tried the you tube version from you tube and the same thing happens.
hi chris!!
go elton!!! great start. i can’t wait for you to come out with the lessons for the rest of this. count me in!
don lucas
Hi Chris - Happy 2009!!! Thank you for the well constructed piano instruction!!! This is an excellent, excellent, excellent lesson
All the best to you!!!
Your student
Walter Chownyk
Hey Chris this is ashley thx again for this song i wanted to learn it but i couldnt really find out any good clear tutorials yer awesome…..
===Ashley===
Thank you, for sharing this with us. You sure are really well equipped. I love the blue light up keys. I’ve started learning the Keyboard/Piano March 2008 and even so I am not a great player yet, I’ve learned a lot. You are sure part of me learning so well. I can not say thank you often enough.
This was a great lesson on how to do the Intro on “Your Song” by Elton John.
Now, it would be just wonderful, if, you could do a tutorial on a fabulous 1960 Country Classic by Flyod Cramer called “Last Date”. The entire piece is with the slip note. I have watched some people playing it on You Tube but they do NOT have your teaching ability.
You are a great teacher and thank you for your help.
Liz
Hi Chris!
I´m really improving my skills! thanks to your great work!
Loved michael jackson and elton john songs and the way you teach them! just awesome!
I thank you for the lessons. I love to learn new styles and this will help me understand how to improvise. I would like you to do a tutorial on improvising the structure of theory in improvising. I know there is a method or pattern I can’t figure it out right now.
Thank you I do appreciate your teaching style it works great for me.
Uau!!!!
Congratulations!!! Your lacture is great!!!
I like so much learn piano like this!!!
Thank you!!!!
hi criss thanks a lot for your cooperation each day im playing better looking your videos, sorry id like if you loading a tutorial of black by pearl jam really like this song only if you can.
i apreciate your time a people like you making a better world with music
.
bye and i see you
hi chris,
i do not have much time lately…so i have been waiting to see this video for days.
and finally i can say :nice! like always.
thank you !
i still can’t belive there is copyright which prevents teaching songs…so horrible…i mean,i don-t know,not to show all the sheet music ,that-s maybe alright…but just teaching it?
so fucked up!sorry for the bad word…
but i belive songs are there to sing and to be played,
doesn’t matter whom ever invented them…
(well i guess elton hopefully wouldnt really mind,cause that should be why he invented the song in the first place,or am i wrong?making everybody want to sing along?)
i don’t get it,you are allowed to cover a song but not to teach it for free?
something defently wrong about these strange copyright laws…
Chris thank you so much for these lessons. I am 52 and for some reason I am trying to learn to play the piano ( my wife says second childhood ) These lessons are unbelievable and they have really helped me out tremendously. It makes it so much easier to learn with the blue keys. I am looking forward to learning the rest of your song or at least as much as you can. Thanks again!!!!! Dave
Chris,
Love your lessons. I love the fact that you teach piano by teaching a song. Love the Elton John intro. Are there songs that are no longer copyrighted that you can teach? Perhaps some songs from the sixty’s that have outlived their copyright.
I’ll keep on watching and practicing.
chris can you help me on theis song called i sae her standing there.
onther song i need help on is called hey jude. both of the songs are from beatles.
thanks
Wow!
Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! (;
I’m just so proud because I never thought I’d play the piano again,
But you teach very well.
And I think it’s very generous of you to post theses videos for free!
You are a true hero!!
You just made my day.
Kudos to you!!
o Thank you so much for the piano lesson… this is to good to be true for someone to be giving this information for free.. thanks.. :-).
Hi, just learnt the intro for Elton Johns Your Song! Your method of teaching is so easy to follow and understand! Do you have the rest of the song on your website to watch and learn??
Thanks
Hi Chris,
Thanks for your Great Lessons.
I enjoy very much practising and getting new skills.
Still, for this lesson, I have 1 request.
Can you add finger signs in “Your Song” PDF? at least for the right hand?
Thanks Again!!!
Hey, first off thanks. Elton is one of my favorites and he is very hard to play. Your u tube lesson for this said if we wanted to learn how to play the rest, we would find it here but it is nowhere to be found. Also can you do anything with Levon??? I know the intro, so just the song.
Thanks again.
Hi Dave,
Thanks for checking out the site!
I got stuck when I was working on this. I put together some great lesson materials but haven’t posted them yet because I haven’t heard back from the record label or publishing company about getting the copyright permission to publish it. The rest of the elton john “your song” is on hold until then!
Levon is a great song as well, its on my list to learn.
Thanks!
Chris Marx
Hi Chris,
The way you teach the lessons is easy to understand! Hope you can post the rest of the song soon.
Thanks a lot
hi chris, when will the other part of elton john your song be out? thanks mate xx
i’ve never played the piano before, but i’ve somehow managed to get this elton john intro playing pretty good after just a few hours of watching and playing!!
please, please, please post some more of this song!
great stuff, thanks
Can you post the rest of the song too?
I love this site!
Hey Chris, I was hoping for the next part of this ASAP
Maybe if you tell the copyrighters you will put something where the viewers have to click that they agree not to distribute the footage, and if they disagree then they can’t watch it. I mean, im no expert 
Cheers,
Aidan
Hi Chris,
Do you have the full version of Elton John’s song, “Your song”?
Thanks,
Ricky