Roy Orbison

The Great Pretender – Roy Orbison: piano chords

The Great Pretender by Roy Orbison uses 7 chords in F major; difficulty on the piano: medium.

F major Difficulty: medium

Chords in the song

Chord sheet

Intro 1

F C7 F Bbm F C

Verse 1

F Bb F Bb F Bb C F Bb F C F C

Verse 2

F Bb F Bb F F7 Bb C F Bb F C F F7

Bridge 1

Bb F F7 Bb F C

Verse 3

F Bb F Bb F F7 Bb C F Bb F C A F C F

Bridge 2

Bb F F7 Bb F C

Verse 4

F Bb F Bb F Bb C F Bb F C A F C F Bb F

Chords on the piano

F

F — bass noteFA — chord toneAC — chord toneC
FAC
Practice F

C7

C — bass noteCE — chord toneEG — chord toneGB♭ — chord toneB♭
CEGA♯
Practice C7

A#m

B♭ — bass noteB♭D♭ — chord toneD♭F — chord toneF
A♯C♯F
Practice A#m

C

C — bass noteCE — chord toneEG — chord toneG
CEG
Practice C

A#

B♭ — bass noteB♭D — chord toneDF — chord toneF
A♯DF
Practice A#

F7

F — bass noteFA — chord toneAC — chord toneCE♭ — chord toneE♭
FACD♯
Practice F7

A

A — bass noteAC♯ — chord toneC♯E — chord toneE
AC♯E
Practice A

Questions

Which chords does The Great Pretender by Roy Orbison use?

Different chords: 7. They are all in the list under “Chords in the song”.

What key is The Great Pretender by Roy Orbison in?

The chords fit F major. This is estimated from the chords, so the recording may be in another key.

How hard is The Great Pretender to play on the piano?

Difficulty: medium. The rating counts the different chords (7), 7th and extended chords, and chords with another bass note.

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