American Pie

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"American Pie"
Image:S118805.jpg
Single by Don McLean from the album American Pie
B-side	Empty Chairs (first release) American Pie part 2 (second release)
Released	October 1971 (first release) November 1971 (second release)
Format	vinyl record
Recorded	May 26, 1971
Genre	Folk-rock
Length	8:30 (LP), 4:11 (Single Part 1), 4:31 (Single Part 2)
Label	United Artists
Writer	Don McLean
Producer	Ed Freeman
Don McLean singles chronology
"American Pie" (1971) "Vincent" (1972)

American Pie is a rock song by singer-songwriter Don McLean about his life from the mid 1950s until he wrote the song in the late 1960s.

Recorded and released on the American Pie album in 1971, the single was a number-one U.S. hit for four weeks in 1972. The song is an abstract story of his life that starts with the deaths of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J. P. Richardson Jr. (The Big Bopper) in a plane crash in 1959, and ends in 1970. The importance of "American Pie" to America's musical and cultural heritage was recognized by the Songs of the Century education project which listed the song performed by Don McLean as the number five song of the twentieth century.

The song's lyrics are the subject of much curiosity. Although McLean dedicated the American Pie album to Buddy Holly, none of the singers in the plane crash are identified by name in the song itself. When asked what "American Pie" meant, McLean replied, "It means I never have to work again."^[1] Later, he more seriously stated "You will find many 'interpretations' of my lyrics but none of them by me... sorry to leave you all on your own like this but long ago I realized that songwriters should make their statements and move on, maintaining a dignified silence."^[2]

Contents 1 Components 1.1 Autobiographical theme 1.2 The Day the Music Died 2 "Killing Me Softly" inspiration 3 Covers 3.1 Straight covers 3.2 Parodies and revisions 4 References 5 External links 5.1 Official site 5.2 Interpretations

[edit] Components

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[edit] Autobiographical theme

Don McLean's website describes the songwriter's purpose:

"['American Pie' is] autobiographical and presents an abstract story of Don McLean's life from the mid 1950s until when when he wrote the song in the late 1960s. It is almost entirely symbolic of the evolution of popular music over these years and represents a change from the lightness of the 1950s to the darkness of the late 1960s."^[3]

Years after the original recordings, McLean said in 2000:

“

The song starts off with my memories of the death of Buddy Holly. But it moves on to describe America as I was seeing it and how I was fantasizing it might become, so it's part reality and part fantasy, but in the song I’m always a witness or, in some verses, the subject.

”

He later went on to say, "The song was written as my attempt at an epic song about America, and I used the imagery of music and politics to do that."^[3]

Don McLean started with the death of Marilyn Monroe (Miss American Pie) see www.marilynmonroefoundation.com and the article by Ayn Rand on the death of Marilyn Monroe in August 1962. He then describes the changes that took place in America leading up to and through the Vietnam War etc.

[edit] The Day the Music Died

Main article: The Day the Music Died

The Day the Music Died is the name McLean gave to February 3, 1959, the day an aircraft carrying musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper crashed, killing all three. But, as he explained on his web site, the date has a profound meaning to McLean because it marked a major change in his life:

In Don's life the transition from light (the innocence of childhood) to the darker realities of adulthood started with the death of Buddy Holly and culminated with the assassination of President Kennedy in 1963, Which was the start of a more difficult time for America.^[3]

[edit] "Killing Me Softly" inspiration

Singer Lori Lieberman attended a McLean concert and in describing the experience to songwriters Norman Gimbel and Charles Fox, she said he'd "killed her softly." Gimbel and Fox wrote Killing Me Softly about Lieberman's experience. The song then became a huge hit for Roberta Flack (and many years later for the Fugees).

This created a unique Grammy coincidence: in 1973 Flack won Record of the Year, beating out American Pie; in 1974, she won the same award for a song about McLean. Flack and McLean have performed Killing Me Softly together in concert at least once.

[edit] Covers

[edit] Straight covers

A few cover versions have been made over the years. The first English language cover version was by The Brady Bunch in 1972, but a Spanish translation sung by voice actor Francisco Colmenero surfaced around Mexico in 1971. (Eduardo Fonseca recorded a cover version of the translation in 2000.) Ska punk band, Catch 22, made a ska version which became a staple of their live show, released in several versions. Alternative rock band, Killdozer, recorded a thrashing, ironic version of the song in 1989. Several disco versions have appeared over the years, and American pop singer Madonna released a cover of the song in 2000.

As heard on Live, Mott the Hoople opened mid-70s concerts with singer Ian Hunter performing the first verse on solo piano up to the phrase the day the music died. Hunter would then add "or did it?", and the full band would seque into the next number.^[4]

Tori Amos performed the song often as a piano solo in her live concerts, and country singer Garth Brooks, also sang this song during concerts in the early to mid 1990s. During Brooks "Live in Central Park" concert, he performed this song as a duet with McLean himself at the end of the concert. The audience, of over 100,000 people, was also invited to sing the chorus near the end of the song.

[edit] Parodies and revisions

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Finnish rock musician Hector (Heikki Harma) made a Finnish cover of the song "American Pie" in 1971, under the name Suomi-Neito (Maid Finland). While the original song covered the American issues, Hector's version was likewise "translated" to deal with the Finnish post WWII history and the loss of innocence in Finnish culture.

"American Diet" ("I'm too heavy for my Chevy; I belong in a sty..."), played on radio stations in Baltimore, MD during the late 70's and early 80's.^{[citation needed]} "The day the routers died" was written and performed by Gary Feldman at the conclusion of the RIPE 55 meeting.^[5]

Since their tour together, McLean and comedy writer Andy Breckman have feuded openly.^[6] Breckman tells this story on his 1990 comedy-folk album Don't Get Killed (which does not include a cover of "American Pie"):

“

Don McLean and I shared the same manager, so I used to open for him, until one night when I came out on stage and sang American Pie. Now, I don't know if any of you will ever have the opportunity in your life to open for Don McLean, but it's a mistake. It turns out it's a song that he wants to do.

”

On That '70s Show, where the character Michael Kelso uses the music of "American Pie" to create a song dedicated to Jackie Burkhart, and later claims that the "American Pie guy" stole the music from him.^{[citation needed]}

In 1999, "Weird Al" Yankovic finally did a Star Wars inspired lyrical adaptation of "American Pie". Entitled "The Saga Begins", the song recounts the whole plot of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace through the eyes of Obi-Wan Kenobi. While McLean gave permission for the parody, he did not make a cameo appearance in its video, despite popular rumour. McLean stated he was very pleased with the parody. He even admits to almost singing Yankovic's lyrics at live shows, due to the fact that his children played the song so often.

The final episode of series 11 of Bremner, Bird and Fortune features a dream sequence sung supposedly by Tony Blair with lyrics referring to New Labour:^{[citation needed]}

Bye, bye pro-American guy
Things are heavy with Lord Levy
And my luck's running dry
Those history boys will be the ones who decide
Whether this will be the day the dream dies

[edit] References

[edit] External links

[edit] Official site

• The Official Website of Don McLean and American Pie provides the songwriter's own biography, lyrics and clues to the song's meaning.

[edit] Interpretations

• Adams, Cecil (1993-05-15). What is Don McLean's song "American Pie" all about?. The Straight Dope. Chicago Reader, Inc.. Archived from the original on 1999-10-09. Retrieved on 2007-09-20. An interpretation of the lyrics based on a supposed interview of McLean by DJ Casey Kasem. McLean later confirmed the Buddy Holly reference in a letter to Adams but denied ever speaking to Kasem.
• Dearborn, Bob (2002-08-10). Bob Dearborn's Original Analysis of Don McLean's 1971 Classic "American Pie". This article correlates McLean's biography with the historic events in the song. McLean pointed to a Chicago, Illinois radio disc jockey Bob Dearborn as the partial basis for most mainstream interpretations of "American Pie."
• Fann, Jim. Understanding American Pie. Historically-oriented interpretation of "American Pie". The interpretation was specifically noted on in an archived version of McLean's website page on "American Pie". The material, dated November 2002, includes a recording of Dinah Shore singing "See The USA In Your Chevrolet", and a photograph of Mick Jagger in costume at the Altamont Free Concert with a Hells Angel member in the background.
  • Full "See the USA in Your Chevrolet" lyrics for Dinah Shore on the "The Dinah Shore Chevy Show" (1956 - 1961).
• Kulawiec, Rich (2001-08-26). FAQ: The Annotated "American Pie". Archived from the original on 2005-03-06. Retrieved on 2007-09-19. FAQ maintained by Rich Kulawiec, started in 1992 and essentially completed in 1997.
  • "American Pie — A Rock Epic" A multi-media presentation of Rich Kulawiec's The Annotated "American Pie".
• Levitt, Saul. The Ultimate American Pie Website. Site specifically noted on in an archived version of McLean's website page on "American Pie". The material appears to have been completed in 2003.
• O'Brien, P. (1999-03-03). Understanding the lyrics of American Pie. The Octopus's Garden. Archived from the original on 2002-10-12. Retrieved on 2007-09-19.

Preceded by "Brand New Key" by Melanie	Billboard Hot 100 number one single January 15, 1972	Succeeded by "Let's Stay Together" by Al Green
	Australian Kent Music Report number one single March 6, 1972 - April 2, 1972	Succeeded by "Without You" by Nilsson

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