Other arrangements of If I Only Had The Words
Pick a learning view.
If I (A)on ly had the words
(A)to tell you,
if you (Bm7)on ly had the time to (Bm7)un der stand.
Though I (A)know it would n’t (A)change
your (D)feel ings,
and I (Bm7)know you’ll car ry on the best you can.
If I (A)on ly had the urge
(A)to tell you,
if you (Bm7)on ly knew how hard it is to say.
When the (A)sim ple lines have (A)all
been (D)tak en
and the (Bm7)ra di o re peats them ev ’ry day,
if I (C)nev er find the (C)song
(C)to sing you,
if you al ways had find it hard to com un pre hend,
well, you (C)know ly there would n’t be
much (Fmaj7)mean ing,
if I (F)all to that you can ask tired of an y man.
(C)gain.
(E7)Life
goes (E7)on and on,
and to night
will (G)soon be gone.
But if we (Fmaj7)try
we (Em7)can be (Dm7)sure.
(G)If I
(C)La,
(F7)la, la, la.
(D7)La, la, la.
If I (C)on ly had the (C)words
(C)to tell you,
if you (Dm7)on ly had the time to un der stand.
Oh, (G)but I (C)on ly have these (C)arms
to (Fmaj7)hold you,
and it’s (Dm7)all that you can ask of an y man.
If I Only Had The Words — Easy Piano Notes for Beginners
18 people have learned this song
Learn "If I Only Had The Words" on piano with easy notes — perfect for absolute beginners. Large color-coded note names show exactly which keys to press. No music reading required. Key of A, 72 BPM.
This arrangement will stretch your chord vocabulary in a big way — with 26 different chords, your left hand needs to navigate some colorful transitions, especially moving between major, minor, and seventh shapes like Fmaj7 to Fm, or Dm7 to G9.
At 72 BPM you have breathing room, but don't let the slow tempo fool you into coasting; use it to land each voicing cleanly before the next one arrives.
I'd suggest learning the chord progression hands-separate first, drilling any passage where you shift between unrelated keys — the moves around Bb and F will feel foreign in a song rooted in A, so loop those bars until the shapes sit in your fingers.
Watch your sustain pedal closely through the seventh chords; lifting too late will blur those rich harmonics into mud.
The biggest stumbling point is usually the sheer number of chord changes, so mark the three or four trickiest swaps and slow-repeat them daily.
This is the piece that'll make jazzy extended chords — ninths, suspended voicings, major sevenths — feel like a natural part of your playing instead of something intimidating.
Try other practice modes:
About “If I Only Had The Words”
- Can I play "If I Only Had The Words" without reading sheet music?
- Yes — Easy Notes mode prints the letter name (C, D, E…) directly on each note in big color-coded labels, so you can match colors to your keyboard without any traditional notation. The whole arrangement of "If I Only Had The Words" is playable in minutes, even for first-time players.
- What key is "If I Only Had The Words" by Billy Joel played in?
- If I Only Had The Words is arranged in the key of A on Super Simple Piano. You can transpose to any other key live in the player.
- What's the tempo (BPM) of "If I Only Had The Words"?
- The arrangement plays at 72 BPM. Use the speed control (10-200%) to practice slower or play faster.
- Is "If I Only Had The Words" easy to play on piano?
- This is a medium-difficulty arrangement. Most players can learn it within a few practice sessions using the speed control.
- Can I download sheet music for "If I Only Had The Words"?
- Yes — registered users can download PDF sheet music, plus MIDI and MusicXML files for use in other notation software.
- Who composed "If I Only Had The Words"?
- "If I Only Had The Words" was originally performed by Billy Joel. The Super Simple Piano arrangement is simplified for beginner-to-intermediate players.
- What chords are used in "If I Only Had The Words"?
- This arrangement uses 26 chords: A, Am, Am7, Bb, Bb9, Bm7, C, C7, +18 more.
- What other songs by Billy Joel can I play here?
- Try "SCENES FROM AN ITALIAN RESTAURANT", "EVERYBODY HAS A DREAM", "CAPTAIN JACK". All are in our player with color-coded notes; pick the one matching your level.
- Can a complete beginner play "If I Only Had The Words"?
- Absolutely! The Beginner mode shows large color-coded notes with letter names (C, D, E...). Just match the colors to your keyboard — no music reading needed. "If I Only Had The Words" is simplified for beginners.
- Do I need to read music to play "If I Only Had The Words"?
- No! Our Beginner mode replaces traditional notation with color-coded letter names. Each note shows exactly which key to press. You can start playing "If I Only Had The Words" in minutes, even if you've never touched a piano before.