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This is a revision to previously posted videos. I was fortunate enough to go to the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake IA and speak firsthand with many who were the...
- 9 min
- 5.2M
- lonestarsound
Jul 31, 2022 · Are you a fan of the song American Pie? Did you know that there’s a new documentary featuring writer and performer Don McLean that gives viewers an inside lo...
- 8 min
- 36.4K
- Facts Verse
- Intro
- Chorus
- Verse 1
- Verse 2
- Verse 3
- Verse 4
- Breakdown
“A long, long time ago, I can still remember, How that music used to make me smile, And I knew if I had my chance, That I could make those people dance, And maybe they’d be happy for a while.” Right from the beginning, McLean refers to his childhood, thinking about the times when he would listen to the likes of Buddy Holly. He also lays out his car...
“So bye-bye, Miss American Pie, Drove my Chevy to the levee, but the levee was dry.” Apple pie is synonymous with Americana, so saying goodbye to “Miss American Pie” is symbolic of a generation passing the torch. As for the levee being dry, that line can be a bit confusing if you don’t know McLean’s backstory. He was a regular at a bar called The L...
“Did you write the book of love, And do you have faith in God above, If the Bible tells you so?” The first line in this verse is one of the most commonly misinterpreted, with many believing that there’s a deeper meaning. Instead, McLean is referencing a couple of songs from his favorite era of music. The Monotones came out with “The Book Of Love” w...
“Now, for ten years we’ve been on our own, And moss grows fat on a rollin’ stone.” With the release of this song in 1971, McLean likely began writing in 1969. That would mark a decade since the Buddy Holly plane crash, hence the line about people being on their own for ten years. From here, things get very complicated lyrically as there can be a lo...
“Helter skelter in a summer swelter, The birds flew off with a fallout shelter.“ Continuing The Beatles references, McLean mentions “Helter Skelter,” which refers to one of their songs, as well as Charles Manson. Next, McLean gives up a couple of nods to the band The Byrds but mentions that their music changed for the worse in the 1960s with mariju...
“Oh, and there we were, all in one place, A generation lost in space.” The culmination of this era of music was at the 1969 Woodstock Festival, which is where we start in the penultimate verse. McLean actually saw this festival as a bit of a time waster when it could’ve been used for something more useful. Around that time, The Rolling Stones becam...
“I met a girl who sang the blues, And I asked her for some happy news, But she just smiled and turned away.” Finally, McLean starts to reflect toward the end of “American Pie.” It was believed that the girl ‘who sang the blues’ was Janis Joplin, who could help keep the Buddy Holly era of music alive. Sadly, she passed away from a heroin overdosein ...
- 9 min
Oct 16, 2011 · American Pie (1971) is an allegorical song by Don McLean that starts on the death of Buddy Holly in an airplane crash in February, 3rd 1959, the day the musi...
- 9 min
- 4.1M
- Pere R
Jul 3, 2019 · See our analysis on the meaning of “American Pie” 50 years after it hit #1 Videos by American Songwriter Ah, the 1950s. The golden age of hot rods, soda fountains, suburban homes and rock ...
Jul 20, 2022 · Jul 20, 2022. Don McLean is letting everyone in on the meaning behind the lyrics of his hit song, American Pie . McLean wrote the iconic song—that has managed to transcend generations — back ...
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Mar 3, 2024 · Ever since its release in 1971, the enigmatic lyrics of the over 8-minute-long song have sparked endless discussion about the meaning behind the anthem. Don McLean’s deliberate silence around the symbolism and references in the lyrics of “American Pie” has only added to the mystique of the song.
