"American Pie" (A Long Long Time Ago) Madonna 2000
Original Recording Don Maclean 1972

A long, long time ago
I can still remember
How that music used to make me smile
And I knew that if I had my chance
I could make those people dance
And maybe they'd be happy for a while

Did you write the book of love?
And do you have faith in God above?
If the Bible tells you so
Now do you believe in rock and roll?
And can music save your mortal soul?
And can it teach me how to dance real slow?
Well, I know that you're in love with him
'Cause I saw you dancin' in the gym
You both kicked off your shoes (both kicked off your shoes)
Man, I dig those rhythm and blues
I was a lonely teenage bronkin' buck
With a pink carnation and a pick-up truck
But I knew that I was out of luck
The day the music died
I started singing
Bye bye, Miss American Pie
Drove my Chevy to the levy
But the levy was dry
And good old boys were drinking whiskey and rye
Singing this will be the day that I die
This will be the day that I die

I met a girl who sang the blues
And I asked her for some happy news
But she just smiled and turned away
Well, I went down to the sacred store
Where I heard the music years before
But the man there said the music wouldn't play
Well now, in the streets the children screamed (the children screamed)
The lovers cried and the poets dreamed (the poets dreamed)
But not a word was spoken (not a word was spoken)
The church bells all were broken
And the three men I admire the most
The father, son, and the holy ghost
They caught the last train for the coast
The day the music died

We started singing
Bye bye, Miss American Pie
Drove my Chevy to the levy
But the levy was dry
And good old boys were drinking whiskey and rye
Singing this will be the day that I die
This will be the day that I die
Bye bye, Miss American Pie
Drove my Chevy to the levy
But the levy was dry
And good old boys were drinking whiskey and rye
Singing this will be the day that I die
This will be the day that I die

We started singing
We started singing
We started singing
We started singing

Original Full Lyrics & comments

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
But February made me shiver
(when Buddy Holly died in 1959)

With every paper I'd deliver
Bad news on the doorstep
I couldn't take one more step
I can't remember if I cried
When I read about his widowed bride
But something touched me deep inside
The day the music died
So, bye, bye, Miss American Pie
Drove my Chevy to The Levee, but The Levee was dry
And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey in Rye
Singin', "This'll be the day that I die
(A big hit for Buddy Holly in 1957)
This'll be the day that I die"

Did you write the Book of Love?
And do you have faith in God above
If the Bible tells you so?
Do you believe in rock 'n' roll?
Can music save your mortal soul?
And can you teach me how to dance real slow?
Well, I know that you're in love with him
'Cause I saw you dancing in the gym
You both kicked off your shoes
Then I dig those rhythm and blues
I was a lonely teenage broncin' buck
With a pink carnation and a pickup truck
But I knew I was out of luck
The day the music died
I started singin'...

Now for ten years we've been on our own
And moss grows fat on a rollin' stone
(Bob Dylan hit in 1965)

But that's not how it used to be
When the jester sang for the king and queen
In a coat he borrowed from James Dean
And a voice that came from you and me
Oh, and while the king was looking down
(Elvis Presley)
The jester stole his thorny crown
(Bob Dylan)
The courtroom was adjourned
No verdict was returned
And while Lennon read a book on Marx
The quartet practiced in the park
(The Beatles)
And we sang dirges in the dark
The day the music died
We were singin'...

Helter Skelter in the summer swelter
(Beatles hit in 1968)
The birds flew off with a fallout shelter
Eight miles high and fallin' fast
(Byrds hit in 1966)

It landed foul on the grass
The players tried for a forward pass
With the jester on the sidelines in a cast
(Bob Dylan motorbike accident 1966)

Now, the half-time air was sweet perfume
While the sergeants played a marching tune
(Sergeant Pepper LP Beatles 1967)
We all got up to dance
Oh, but we never got the chance
'Cause the players tried to take the field
The marching band refused to yield
Do you recall what was revealed
The day the music died?
We started singin'..

Oh, and there we were, all in one place
(Woodstock 1969)
A generation lost in space
With no time left to start again
So come on, Jack be nimble, Jack be quick
Jack Flash sat on a candlestick

("Jumping Jack Flash" number one hit by Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones 1968 following the LP "Their Satanic Majesties Request" 1967)

'Cause fire is the devil's only friend

("Fire" I am the god of hell-Fire by Crazy World of Arthur Brown another number one hit in 1968)

Oh, and as I watched him on the stage
My hands were clenched in fists of rage
No angel born in Hell

(At Altamont concert December 1969 Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones "employed" Hells Angels for security, in "Gimme Shelter" movie viewers see the stabbing of a gun-toting concert-goer to death just after Mick sang "Sympathy for the Devil - Let me introduce myself")

Could break that Satan's spell
And as the flames climbed high into the night
To light the sacrificial rite
I saw Satan laughing with delight
The day the music died
He was singin' ...

I met a girl who sang the blues (Janis Joplin)
And I asked her for some happy news
But she just smiled and turned away
(Janis died of a drug overdose October 1970)

I went down to the sacred store
Where I'd heard the music years before
But the man there said the music wouldn't play
And in the streets, the children screamed
The lovers cried and the poets dreamed
But not a word was spoken
The church bells all were broken
And the three men I admire most
The Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost
They caught the last train for the coast

(Grand Funk Railroad's "Arena Rock" style after Altamont see sellout crowds 1971)

The day the music died
And they were singin'...