American Pie - The analysis and interpretation of Don McLean’s song lyrics
A long, long time ago…
- “American Pie” reached #1 in 1972, shortly after it was released. Buddy Holly, unfortunately, died in 1959 while other aspects of the song hint even further back.
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.
- Sociologists credit teenagers with the popularity of Rock and Roll, as a part of the Baby boomer generation, they found themselves in a very influential position. Their shear number were the force behind most of our country’s recent major transitions. McLean was a teenager in 1959 and he begins by simply commenting that the music had an appealing quality to him as well as the millions of other teens. McLean also had an intense desire to entertain as a musician. His dream, to play in a band at high school dances, was the dream of many young boys who wanted to make people dance to Rock and Roll.
But February made me shiver,
- Buddy Holly died on February 3, 1959, in a plane crash in Iowa during a snowstorm. Its rumored that the name of the plane was: American Pie.
With every paper I’d deliver,
- Don McLean’s only job besides being a full-time singer/song writer was being a paperboy.
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
- Holly’s recent bride was pregnant when the crash took place; she had a miscarriage shortly afterward.
But something touched me deep inside, The day the music died.
- The same plane crash that killed Buddy Holly also tragically took the lives of Richie Valens (”La Bamba”) and The Big Bopper (”Chantilly Lace.”) Since all three were so prominent at the time, February 3, 1959, became known as “The Day The Music Died.”
So…
(Refrain) Bye bye Miss American Pie,
- **Don McLean dated a Miss America candidate during a pageant and broke up with her on February 3, 1959. (Unconfirmed interpretation)
So its probably…
- Just a reference to the plane, “American Pie” that crashed.
I drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry, Them good ol’ boys were drinkin’ whiskey and rye Singing “This’ll be the day that I die, This’ll be the day that I die.”
- Driving the Chevy to the levee almost certainly refers to the three college students whose murder was the subject of the film ‘Mississippi Burning.’ The students were attempting to register as black voters, and after being killed by bigoted thugs their bodies were buried in a levee. Them good ol’ boys being: Holly, Valens, and the Big Bopper, They were singing about their death on February 3. One of Holly’s hits was “That’ll be the Day”; the chorus contains the line “That’ll be the day that I die.”
(Verse 2) Did you write the book of love,
- “The Book of Love” by the Monotones; hit in 1958.”Oh I wonder, wonder who… who, who wrote the book of love?”
And do you have faith in God above, If the Bible tells you so?
- **In 1955, Don Cornell did a song entitled “The Bible Tells Me So.” It was difficult to tell if it was what McLean was referencing. Anyone know for sure?There is also an old Sunday School song that goes:”Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so” McLean was somewhat religious.
Now do you believe in rock ‘n roll?
- The Lovin’ Spoonful had a hit in 1965 with John Sebastian’s “Do you Believe in Magic?”. The song has the lines: “Do you believe in magic” and “It’s like trying to tell a stranger ’bout rock and roll.”
Can music save your mortal soul? And can you teach me how to dance real slow?
- Music was believed to “save the soul” and slow dancing was an important part of early rock and roll dance events. Dancing declined in importance through the 60’s as things like psychedelia and the 10-minute guitar solo gained prominence.McLean was asking many questions about the early rock ‘n roll in an attempt to keep it alive or find out if it was already dead.
Well I know that you’re in love with him ‘Cause I saw you dancing in the gym
- Back then, dancing was an expression of love,and carried a connotation of commitment. Dance partners were not so readily exchanged as they would be later.
You both kicked off your shoes
- A reference to the beloved “sock hop.” (Street shoes tear up wooden basketball floors, so dancers had to take off their shoes.)
Man, I dig those rhythm ‘n’ blues
- Before the popularity of rock and roll, music, like much elsewhere in the U. S., was highly segregated. The popular music of black performers for largely black audiences was called, first “race music,” later softened to rhythm and blues. In the early 50s, as they were exposed to it through radio personalities such as Allan Freed, white teenagers began listening, too. Starting around 1954, a number of songs from the rhythm and blues charts began appearing on the overall popular charts as well, but usually in cover versions by established white artists, (e.g.”Shake Rattle and Roll,” Joe Turner, covered by Bill Haley; “Sh-Boom, “the Chords, covered by the Crew-Cuts; “Sincerely,” the Moonglows, covered by the McGuire Sisters; Tweedle Dee, LaVerne Baker, covered by Georgia Gibbs). By 1955, some of the rhythm and blues artists, like Fats Domino and Little Richard were able to get records on the overall pop charts.In 1956 Sun records added elements of country and western to produce the kind of rock and roll tradition that produced Buddy Holly.
I was a lonely teenage broncin’ buck With a pink carnation and a pickup truck
- “A White Sport Coat (And a Pink Carnation), “was a hit for Marty Robbins in 1957. The pickup truck has endured as a symbol of sexual independence and potency, especially in a Texas context.(Also, Jimmy Buffet does a song about “a white sport coat and a pink crustacean.”:-) )
But I knew that I was out of luck The day the music died I started singing…
Refrain
(Verse 3) Now for ten years we’ve been on our own
- McLean was writing this song in the late 60’s,about ten years after the crash.
And moss grows fat on a rolling stone
- It’s unclear who the “rolling stone” is supposed to be. It could be Dylan, since “Like a Rolling Stone” (1965) was his first major hit; and since he was busy writing songs ex-tolling the virtues of simple love, family and contentment while staying at home (he didn’t tour from ‘66 to ‘74) and raking in the royalties. This was quite a change from the earlier, angrier Dylan.The “rolling stone” could also be Elvis Presley, although I don’t think he started to pork out by the late sixties. he-he!
It could refer to rock and rollers, and the changes that had taken place in the business in the 60’s, especially the huge amounts of cash some of them were beginning to make, and the relative stagnation that entered the music at the same time.
Or, it could refer to the Rolling Stones themselves, many musicians were angry at the Stones for “selling out.” I discovered that John Foxx of Ultravox was sufficiently miffed to write a song titled “Life At Rainbow’s End (For All The Tax Exiles On Main Street).” The Stone sat one point became citizens of some other country merely to save taxes.
But that’s not how it used to be When the jester sang for the King and Queen
- The jester is Bob Dylan, as will become clear later. There are several interpretations of king and queen: some think that Elvis Presley is the king, which seems rather obvious. The queen is said to be either Connie Francis or Little Richard. See the next note.An alternate interpretation is that this refers to the Kennedys — the King and Queen of “Camelot” — who were present at a Washington DC civil rights rally featuring Martin Luther King. (There’s a recording of Dylan performing at this rally. The Jester.)
The third interpretation is that the jester could be Lee Harvey Oswald who sang (shouted) before he was shot for the murder of the King (JFK).
In a coat he borrowed from James Dean
- In the movie “Rebel Without a Cause,” James Dean has a red windbreaker that holds symbolic meaning throughout the film (see note at end). In one particularly intense scene, Dean lends his coat to a guy who is shot and killed; Dean’s father arrives, sees the coat on the dead man, thinks it’s Dean, and loses it. On the cover of “The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan,” Dylan is wearing just such a red windbreaker, posed in a street scene similar to movie starring James Dean.Bob Dylan played a command performance for the Queen of England. He was *not* properly attired, so perhaps this is a reference to his apparel.
And a voice that came from you and me
- Bob Dylan’s roots are in American folk music,with people like Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie. Folk music is by definition the music of the masses, hence the “…came from you and me.”
Oh, and while the King was looking down The jester stole his thorny crown
- Likely a reference to Elvis’ decline and Dylan’s ascendancy (i.e. Presley is looking down from a height as Dylan takes his place). Consider that Elvis was is the army at the time of Dylan’s ascendancy and a common Army marching song sings, “Ain’t no use in looking down, ain’t no discharge on the ground”. The thorny crown might be a reference to the price of fame. Dylan has said that he wanted to be as famous as Elvis, one of his early idols.
or…
- Lee Harvey Oswald being the jester who ended the reign of JFK and “stole his crown.”
or…
- A third interpretation is the quote made by John Lennon and taken out of context indicating that John felt The Beatles were more popular then Jesus. John and The Beatles took the crown from Christ.
The courtroom was adjourned, No verdict was returned.
- This could be the trial of the Chicago Seven.
but its more likely to be…
- The fact that no verdict was returned for the assassination of JFK because the assassin was killed so the court was adjourned.
And while Lennon read a book on Marx,
Or it could be be…
And while Lenin read a book on Marx,
- Someone has to introduce Vladamir Lenin, the father of Marxist communism, to the idealogy of Karl Marx.
I love the play on words here…
- Literally, John Lennon reading about Karl Marx; figuratively, the introduction of radical politics into the music of The Beatles. (Of course, he could be referring to Groucho Marx, but that doesn’t seem quite consistent with McLean’s overall tone. On the other hand, some of the wordplay in Lennon’s lyrics and books is reminiscent of Groucho.)The “Marx-Lennon” word play has also been used by others, most notably the Firesign Theatre on the cover of their album “How Can You Be In Two Places At Once When You’re Not Anywhere At All?” The Beatles “Here, There and Everywhere,” for example. Also, a famous French witticism was “Je suis Marxiste, tendance Groucho. ” (I’m a Marxist of the Groucho variety).
The quartet practiced in the park
- There are two schools of thought about this; the obvious one is The Beatles playing in Shea Stadium, but note that the previous line has John Lennon *doing something else at the same time*. This tends to support the theory that this is a reference to the Weavers, who were blacklisted during the McCarthy era. McLean had become friends with Lee Hays of the Weavers in the early 60’s while performing in coffeehouses and clubs in upstate New York and New York City. He was also well acquainted with Pete Seeger; McLean, Seeger, and others took a trip on the Hudson river singing anti-pollution songs at one point. Seeger’s LP “God Bless the Grass” contains many of these songs.
And we sang dirges in the dark
- A “dirge” is a funeral or mourning song, so perhaps this is meant literally…or, perhaps, this is a reference to some of the new “art rock” groups that played long pieces not meant for dancing. In the dark of the death of Holly.
The day the music died. We were singing…
Refrain
(Verse 4) Helter Skelter in a summer swelter
- “Helter Skelter” is a Beatles song that appears on the “White” album. Charles Manson, claiming to have been “inspired”by the song (through which he thought God and/or the devil were taking to him) led his followers in the Tate-LaBianca murders.Is “summer swelter” a reference to the “Summer of Love” or perhaps to the “long hot summer” of Watts?
The birds flew off with the fallout shelter Eight miles high and falling fast
- Without a doubt this refers to the Byrds who helped launch David Crosby to super stardom. The Byrd’s song “Eight Miles High” was found on their late 1966 release “Fifth Dimension.” They recorded this song when some of the groups members were considering leaving (some of the groups members actually left the group because they refused to flyin an airplane). A fallout shelter was sometimes referred to as the fifth dimension because of the 1950’s fascination with sci-fi and the futuristic appearance of a fallout shelter. This was one of the first records widely banned because of supposedly drug-oriented lyrics.
But…
- Another idea considers The Beatles‘ “Helter Skelter.” A line from the song reads, ‘I’m coming down fast but I’m miles above you.’ The similarity is pretty obvious.
It landed foul on the grass
- One of the Byrds was busted for possession of marijuana.
The players tried for a forward pass
- Obviously a football metaphor, but about what? It could be the Rolling Stones, i.e., they were waiting for an opening that really didn’t happen until The Beatles broke up.With regard to the next idea, the players maybe other musicians who received the opportunity to shine when Dylan was injured.
With the jester on the sidelines in a cast
- On July 29, 1966, Dylan crashed his Triumph 55 motorcycle while riding near his home in Woodstock, New York. He spent nine months in seclusion while recuperating from the accident. This gave a chance for many other artists to become noticed (see the next interpretation).
Now the half-time air was sweet perfume
- Drugs, man.Well, now, wait a minute; that’s probably too obvious (wouldn’t want to make it easy). It’s possible that this line and the next few refer to the 1968 Democratic National Convention. The “sweet perfume” is probably tear gas.
It could be the fact the since Dylan was temporarily out of the picture, the future looked bright for many artists. The Stones, for example, may have been given a brief chance.
While sergeants played a marching tune
- Following from the second thought above, the sergeants would be the Chicago Police and the Illinois National Guard, who marched protesters out of the park where the Convention was being held and into jail.Alternatively, this could refer to The Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.” Or, perhaps McLean refers to The Beatles’ music as “marching” because it’s not music for dancing.
Or, finally, the “marching tune” could be the draft.
**(What did the Stones release in ‘66??)
We all got up to dance Oh, but we never got the chance
- The Beatles’ 1966 Candlestick Park concert only lasted 35 minutes. But at this point The Beatles were not “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” (1967)Or, following on from the previous comment, perhaps she was considering the hippies who were protesting the Convention. They were known for playing their own folk music.
‘Cause the players tried to take the field, The marching band refused to yield.
- Some folks think this refers to either the 1968 Democratic Convention or Kent State. If the players are the protesters at Kent State, and the marching band the Ohio National Guard…This could be a reference to the dominance of The Beatles on the rock and roll scene. For instance, the Beach Boys released “Pet Sounds” in 1966 — an album that featured some of the same sort of studio and electronic experimentation as “Sgt. Pepper” (1967). The album sold poorly because of The Beatles.
The other Beatles reference here refers to the Monkees. The Monkees were merely actors (or players), they were not a true band but a fabrication attempting to replicate The Beatles. The players tried to take the place of the Fab Four but the band wouldn’t step down.
Or finally, this might be a comment that follows up on the earlier reference to the draft: the government/military industrial-complex establishment refused to accede to the demands of the peace movement.
Do you recall what was revealed, The day the music died?
- **Check for any controversies released on Feb3, 1959.
We started singing Refrain
(Verse 5) And there we were all in one place
- Woodstock.
A generation lost in space
- Some people think this is a reference to the US space program, which it might be (the first moon landing took place in ‘69); but that seems a bit too literal. Perhaps this is a reference to hippies, who were sometimes known as the “lost generation,” partially because of their particularly acute alienation from their parents, and partially because of their presumed preoccupation with drugs (which was referred to as being “spaced-out.”)Being on drugs was sometimes termed — being lost in space because of the TV show, “Lost in Space,” whose title was used as a synonym for someone who was rather high… I keep hoping that McLean had better taste.
With no time left to start again
- The “lost generation” spent too much time being stoned, and had wasted their lives. Or, perhaps, their preferences for psychedelia had pushed rock and roll so far from Holly’s music that it couldn’t be retrieved.
So come on Jack be nimble Jack be quick
- Probably a reference to Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones; “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” was released in May 1968.
Jack Flash sat on a candlestick
- **The Stones’ Candlestick park concert? (unconfirmed)Jack Flash is also a cockney slang term for pharmaceutical heroin. If you know how to use heroin, you understand the reference.
‘Cause fire is the devil’s only friend
- It’s possible that this is a reference to the Grateful Dead’s “Friend of the Devil.”An alternate interpretation of the last four lines is that they may refer to Jack Kennedy and his quick decisions during the Cuban Missile Crisis; the candlesticks/fire refer to ICBMs and nuclear war.
And as I watched him on the stage, my hands were clenched in fists of rage; No angel born in hell, could break that Satan’s spell
- While playing a concert at the Altamont Speedway in 1968, the Stones appointed members of the Hell’s Angels to work security (on the advice of the Grateful Dead). In the darkness near the front of the stage, a young man named Meredith Hunter was beaten and stabbed to death — by the Angels. Public outcry that the song “Sympathy for the Devil” (because of “satan’s spell”) had somehow incited the violence and caused the Stones to drop the song from their show for the next six years. This incident is chronicled in the documentary film “Gimme Shelter.”It’s also possible that McLean views the Stones as being negatively inspired (he had an extensive religious background)because of “Sympathy for the Devil,” “Their Satanic Majesties’ Request”and so on. This is a bit puzzling, since the early Stones recorded a lot of “roots” rock and roll, including Buddy Holly’s “Not Fade Away.”
And as the flames climbed high into the night, To light the sacrificial rite
- The most likely interpretation is that McLean is still talking about Altamont, and in particular Mick Jagger’s prancing and posing and “climbing high” while it was happening. Or the bonfires around the area could provide the flames. The sacrifice is Meredith Hunter.(It could be a reference to Jimi Hendrix burning his Stratocaster at the Monterey Pop Festival, but that was in 1967 and this verse is no doubt set in 1968.)
I saw Satan laughing with delight
- If the above is correct, then Satan would be Jagger.
The day the music died He was singing…
Refrain
(Verse 6) I met a girl who sang the blues
- Ms. Janis Joplin, the lady of the blues.
And I asked her for some happy news But she just smiled and turned away
- Janis died of an accidental (accidental my ass!)heroin overdose on October 4, 1970.
Or…
- The girl might be Roberta Flack. Its rumored that she wrote, “Killing Me Softly (with his song),” in response to this lyric in his song.
I went down to the sacred store Where I’d heard the music years before
- There are two interpretations of this: The “sacred store” was Bill Graham’s Fillmore West, one of the great rock and roll venues of all time. Alternatively, this refers to record stores, and their long time (then discontinued) practice of allowing customers to preview records in the store. (What year did the Fillmore West close?)It could also refer to record stores as “sacred” because this is where one goes to get “saved.” (See above lyric “Can music save your mortal soul?”)
But the man there said the music wouldn’t play
- Perhaps he means that nobody is interested in hearing Buddy Holly et. al.’s music? Or, as above, the discontinuation of the in-store listening booths.
And in the streets the children screamed
- “Flower children” being beaten by police and National Guard troops; in particular, perhaps, the People’s Park riots in Berkeley in 1969 and 1970.It is possible that this refers to the Vietnamese children. Life magazine was famous for publishing horrifying photos of children in Vietnam during the Vietnamese War.
The lovers cried and the poets dreamed
- The trend toward psychedelic music in the 60’s?Or again the hippies who were both great lovers and poets who would then be crying because of the difficulties of their struggle and dreaming of peace.
But not a word was spoken The church bells all were broken
- It could be that the broken bells are the dead musicians: neither can produce any more music.
And the three men I admire most The Father, Son, and Holy Ghost
- Holly, The Big Bopper, and Valens — or — **Hank Williams, Presley, and Holly (check this) –or — JFK, Martin Luther King, and Bobby Kennedy — or — or simply the Catholic aspects of the deity. McLean had attended several Catholic schools.
They caught the last train for the coast
- Could be a reference to wacky California religions, or it could just be a way of saying that they’ve left (or died — western culture has used “went west” as a synonym for dying). Or, perhaps this is a reference to the famous “God is Dead” headline in the New York Times. Some have suggested that this is an oblique reference to a line in Procol Harum’s “Whiter Shade of Pale,” but I’m not sure I’d buy that; firstly, all of McLean’s musical references are to much older roots: rock and roll songs; and secondly, I think it’s more likely that this line shows up in both songs simply because it’s a common cultural metaphor.
The day the music died
- This tends to support the conjecture that the”three men” were Holly/Bopper/Valens, since this says that they left us on the day the music died.
And they were singing…
Refrain (2x)
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105 Comments on “American Pie - The analysis and interpretation of Don McLean’s song lyrics”
I agree with JH. As indicated on 18 May, I used to think that much of the song consisted of “any old rubbish for a rhyme”. The Rare Exception’s excellent explanation of the lyrics helped alter that viewpoint, but there could still be an element of “any word as long as it rhymes” in Don’s song. This tradition lives on in many songs, especially the Des’ree song, Life, with risible lyrics such as:
I don’t want to see a ghost,
It’s the sight that I fear most
I’d rather have a piece of toast.
I wonder about driving the Chevy to the levee. In the early ’50s, Chevrolet had a very popular jingle sung by Dinah Shore extolling people to “See the USA in your Chevrolet.” The jingle has a line, “On a highway or a road along a levee, performance is sweeter. Nothing can beat ‘er. Life is completer in a Chevy.” There, I suspect, the main purpose of the levee is for the rhyme. Could that line have been in McLean’s head when he wrote the song?
From an interview on a video “The Music Of Don Mclean” recorded c1980 when asked about people asking about the specific references in American Pie he states:-
“One of the nice things about it is to keep them asking what it’s all about.
The reason I never discuss it is because then they wouldn’t ask what it is all about, .and I want them to think what it is all about, .because the more they think about it the more they will figure things out for themselves.
Namely that our music has a history, it is all connected.
That politicians and musicians basically give the audience what they want and so the malaise that we see on the political front is basically equivalent to the artistic void which we can hear everywhere, and it works the opposite way too and things that are crackling you’ll find that there’s an artist, or artists who are summing it up very effectively.
There are many ideas that go along with thinking about the song that I think it is good for people to do, If I were to say that this is that and that is this then they would say “Oh that’s what it is, it’s a cartoon”” ”
Amit’s comments are illogical: American Pie reached No 1 in 1972, so the song could not be referring to John Lennon’s death in 1980, or to the Dukes of Hazzard “which was a huge hit in 1980″. And for the record, Buddy Holly etc died in 1959, not 1957.
Think before you ink!
@Amit Kshirsagar - Proves you can make the song into what you want and McLean into a profit; the song was released years before Mark Chapman did his worse.
A similar website debating “The Aintree Iron” as in the song “Lily The Pink”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/notesandqueries/query/0,5753,-1840,00.html
has a comment by the songs creator Mike McGear or at least someone purporting to be him (he has a brother you may have heard of) in which he states
“ As it’s now coming up to 30 years since I created this mischievous little monster, I’d like to thank U all very much for your continuing curiosity, and look forward to the next 30 years of miles-off guesswork”.
Mike McCartney, (ex-McGear, ex-Scaffold), Liverpool
Marvellous makes us all a bit creative
I always felt that the song “American Pie” could have a double-entendre , that is not just 1957, when we lost the Buddy Holly, The “Big Bopper”, and “Richie Valenz”, but it could also refer to the year the music world lost Ex-Beatle John Lennon. Since next year 2010 marks the 30th Anniversary of John Lennon’s Assasination, I feel that this is makes it all the more pertinent.
Further, if looked at from the context of 1980, them good-old boys were drinkin’ whiskey and rye could refer to “The Dukes Of Hazzard”, which was a huge hit in 1980, especially with episodes like “Find Loretta Lynn”, and “The Carnival of Thrills”
wow, i have loved hearing what every thinks of this song… maybe you all know this but i was just at Don McLean’s official web site & he has a new book out. i wonder if he gives more insight into the lyrics there. oh, & there is some mention of the meaning of the lyrics on the site tho nothing that would end our speculation!
I can’t believe that nobody knows where the term “American Pie” came from. It wasn’t the nickname of the plane or a girl. McLean just MADE IT UP to match the rest of the chorus. He said so in an interview I saw some years ago.
FROM A 66-YEAR-OLD AT THE FOOT OF AFRICA: Thanks for a brilliant analysis. Although I’ve always loved the tune and the way it was sung, I thought the lyrics were “any old rubbish for a rhyme”, to coin a phrase. (Much like they lyrics of Cat Stevens, who also sang beautifully.)
But your analysis and some of the discussion has helped change my opinion. Incidentally, Don McClean’s official website says: “For 30 years the lyrics of American Pie have been subject to intense scrutiny as people search for the song’s real meaning. Analysis continues today on the Internet and in newspapers and magazines worldwide. All interpretations start on the premise that Don McLean never talks about the song and has never provided insight into the meaning of the lyrics. In fact, Don McLean has spent 30 years doing little else but talk about American Pie! In his 2000 ‘Starry Starry Night’ DVD, Don says: “I’m very proud of the song. It is biographical in nature and I don’t think anyone has ever picked up on that. 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 I’m always in the song as a witness or as even the subject sometimes in some of the verses.
You know how when you dream something you can see something change into something else and it’s illogical when you examine it in the morning but when you’re dreaming it it seems perfectly logical.
So it’s perfectly okay for me to talk about being in the gym and seeing this girl dancing with someone else and suddenly have this become this other thing that this verse becomes and moving on just like that. That’s why I’ve never analyzed the lyrics to the song. They’re beyond analysis. They’re poetry.”
Don has recently re-enforced this theme: “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. Also, I was really influenced by the Sgt. Pepper album, and the American Pie album was my attempt to do that, but the song totally overshadowed the album.”Most mainstream analyses of American Pie are at least partly based on Bob Dearborn’s interpretation of the song that he produced for his radio show in 1971. His theory was broadcast on radio across large parts of the USA and is still available on the Web today at: http://user.pa.net/~ejjeff/pie.html” END OF QUOTE!
Don McLean’s “American Pie” has to the the #1 song of all time. He is nothing less than a poet. This is a great analysis of the song, great comments, too. His lyrics are are a great puzzle and packed with meaning. An even better song when each line has a meaning for you. FANTASTIC!
Hi! I’m 16 and I’m from Spain. I was, and still am, in love with this song, but obviously I couldn’t understand it perfectly. You’ve done an amazing job, thank you so much! Don McLean has shown himself to be very intelligent. I can’t stop listening to this song
Interesting. Thanks for sharing this. I have hated this song for more than thirty years. I never listened to the entire song until recently. I remember these twins (guys) in high school. You know, they were the ones that could answer any question and ace everything. They were singing this song on stage at a school rally. It ended with a shower of tomatos. Last I heard, they are doing time for drug manufacturing. This song is played often on Las Vegas radio.
“American Pie” was NOT the name of the 1947 Beechcraft Bonanza N3794N which claimed the lives of the 3 singers and pilot Roger Peterson. In the few interviews that plane owner Jerry Dwyer has given to reporters (due largely because of many threats on his life he’s received since that day), he has emphatically stated that the V-tail Bonanza had no name whatsoever.
But the man there said the music wouldn’t play. Turntables of the day didn’t have 45rpm or 45 adapters and literally wouldn’t play 45 singles.
Moss (GREEN) = Money
Rollin’ Stone = Mick Jagger
10 years we be on our own= author alone since Holly’s death
@Chief Louie - Or it could be refering to Buddy Holly’s grave stone, when they say “Now for 10 years we’ve been on are own” Buddy Holly died ten years ago, “And moss grose fat on a roll’n stone” refering to Buddy Holly’s grave stone, moss grows fat, moss and algea grows on dead things Buddy’s been dead. “…on a roll’n stone” Buddy was the first rock ‘n’ roler, so they say “Moss grose fat on a roll’n stone”
- And moss grows fat on a rolling stone
- he replaced the word “rock” with “stone” for the word to rhyme with “we’ve been on our own”. rock = stone. its still “rock and roll”. since the death of the 3 big guys no one was able to match these talents nor could there be any replacements, the “rock has not moved”, it gathered moss, for ten years the moss grew fat on the “rolling stone” refers to the type of music “rock and roll” being in a state where Holly et al left it.
I just have to say that this was awsome. I have to write a DBQ paper on how the music of the 60’s and 70’s influenced the culture of the time and this song interpretation really helped. The song was one of the documents and i was having a hard time figuring out what it meant. This was a great help!!!
I think that when they say American Pie they are talking about a pie graft of all the american musicans. Elvis Presley, Buddy, Bob Dyland ect. and when they say it was a genaration lost in space, part of the “pie” was gone and new forian artist show up like the Beatles, then the American pie is gone and a new generation was born.
America: Home of the Hand-Out and the EASILY OFFENDED. Figures the person having a fit is from California, that’s where this liberal mentality started. So this is what he meant by his song: Bye Bye to the way it was when men were men and we were politically incorrect and no one sweated the small stuff……..
awesome… just awesome…
I’m a french girl so probably don’t know enough about the american history and folk music to be able to maek any analysis o this song…But I’m fascinating by that song and couldn’t stop listaning to it, wonderind whatit could mean…
So thant you for giving us you opinion about this (and all these information aboutamerican music and singers)
I think that the last train for the coast refers to Holly, Valens, and Bopper taking the plane (train) to and it was their last trip
The reference to the Father, Son and Holy Ghost is twofold. First, yes, the New York Times asked if God was dead, because on the East coast religion had become passe. But on the West coast, where the trinity catches a train, there was a developing rock scene around the Jesus Movement. It originated with Chuck Smith in Costa Mesa and “Maranatha Music” which merged born again rock musicians with the Jesus movement. Barry McGuire would join this and lend a voice.
I would just like to say congratulations on making such a brilliant effort to interpret the lyrics. I am a 14 year old bloke from Australia and i am fascinated by the lyrics of this song. The way Don McLean came wrote his way into the history of music like this is incredible. I have no theories to state about the song but i just wanted to let you know what a wonderful job you have done. Also well done to everybody who left a comment, i have read them all and they are all good ideas. Thank you for all your efforts in aking this page.
Barnsey
How can Janis Joplin be on the train when she’s the “girl who sang the blues” and “turned away” (died)?
Plus she doesn’t eactlu fit in as “Father, Son, and Holy Ghost”. Seems like he’s talking about the music scene (that which speaks to his soul).
As far as that space program theory… wow (all I can say)
wtfays~
@Paul in Binghamton -
“They caught the last train for the coast” - almost certainly refers to the 1970 FESTIVAL EXPRESS - Janis Joplin, Grateful Dead, The Band and other famous acts performed in major cities across Canada - the film shows it as a drunken, drugged extravaganza as the performers rode a train across Canada - really could be viewed as the last hurrah of the Woodstock Era.
This is very interesting. But the ‘jack be nimble’ verse is pretty clearly about the space program.
Sputnik was launched by the USSR and was a huge propaganda victory. The US felt ‘behind’ and congress and schools went crazy trying to push science and math on kids (see the ‘new math’). So the generation of the post war was suddenly confronted with the idea that the USSR might be pulling ahead of our democratic, free country.
The Jack is JFK, and his whole campaign theme of a ‘missile gap’ with the Soviet Union. It also probably relates, at least emotionally to the nukes we put in Turkey, and the nukes that the USSR put in Cuba. Missiles bear an obvious resemblance to candlesticks, and JFK had decided to go into the space military race whole hogg.
The flames climbing into the night is about a nuclear war, and the obvious references to Satan and the Devil, being about the horrors of war, in some very poetic metaphors that Mr McLean uses.
The next verse is about the postapocalyptic aftermath. The music wouldn’t play. It is a disaster. The day the music died is not only the day that musicians died, but the day that the human spirit, the joy and happiness that is felt in art and dance and civilization, is wiped out by a nuclear holocaust. In case you didn’t grow up in the cold war, every day people did, literally, spend every day of their life with the thought of nuclear annihilation in the back of their minds. It was every bit as ‘popular’ a topic of thought then as Global Warming is now, except that there had been several incidents that made it far, far more real, including Hirsohima, Nagasaki, the USSR crackdowns in various countries, the Korean and Vietnamese wars, the Cuban missile crisis, and several other lesser known incidents of malfunctioning equipment, political breakdowns of diplomacy, grandstanding, etc, that could easily have lead to a nuclear war.
There were literally people with high places of power in the government, such as General McCarthur on the US side, and others on the Soviet side, that actually believed it would be proper and right to launch massive nuclear strikes at enemy cities and would have done so if not for cooler heads in both governments.
IMHO, the song might be about many things, but this aspect of it, emotionally, is almost undeniable to me. The symbols involved and the feelings about tragic, massive loss, fire, war, and sacrificial lights in the sky, it seems that if this were a dream, one would instantly apprehend the signs of conflict and violence here. Thank you
I just wanted to comment on the levee and “in Rye.” I am not certain on this and could be wrong but the levee was a nick-name of Beechmont Tavern in New Rochelle. McLean graduated from Iona Prep and Iona College in New Rochelle which are down the street, and this allusion doesn’t seem preposterous. As from “in Rye,” Rye is a neighboring town, as mentioned.
Um…no. Because Satan’s purpose is REVENGE. He never wanted to rule the world, he was jealous of the attention god gave humankind so he wanted to get back at god for rejecting him and his claim of being above us. Besides, the song is about the changes in music and loss of innocence in the late fifties. @Kirk -
@Chris d - I never meant to get into this;
But APOLAGIES evidently Eddie Cocharan recorded but did not write Three Stars; John D Loudermilk wrote it.
However Eddie was scheduled to join the 19S9 Winter Dance Party tour with his friend Buddy Holly, but was prevented from doing so by comitments to the film ‘Go Johnnyt Go’.
See hotshotdigita website I will keep my lack of knowledge to myself in future
Cd
No… I have no idea if there is hidden meanings in that.
@Chris d -
tb
I assume you are talking about “Three Stars”, of course it has meaning, but as far as I can tell nothing was hidden, I believe it was written within days of the plane crash. Eddie himself being killed in a car crash the following year Regards Cd
IDK, call me crazy but I’m gonna guess that almost everything in this song has a meaning.
Especially the title. (see above)
@Chris d -
@tb - Check out Eddie Cochran’s “Three Stars” same subject, no hidden meanings. Cd
You’re kidding right? Does anybody else believe that there’s like 100 hidden references but the title ‘doesn’t mean anything’?
LOL
@Zannah -
“…and we sang dirges in the dark” brings back old but still very sharp memories of the passionate fascination of the possibility that Paul was in fact dead. Most speculations seemed to rise from supposedly dark hints and subtle clues in the cover art of their albums. There was a wild rumor going around that the details could be found by playing the albums backward at varying speeds in the appropriate places. As I recall, there was a lot of heated discussion as to where these places might be.
To think that Mclean was somewhat religous , I thinck is an understatement. You dont go to seminary school usually if your somewhat religous or maybe your parents make you go. To go to such a school and question what they teach would be normal to me, what your conslusions to what they teach would be up to the individual. Knowing from my limited studies of the bible and that the book of John in the gospels is sometimes reffered to as the book of love, and do you believe if the bible tells you so, and that Jesus came for salvation of man and the writer asks can music(Jesus, my interpretation) save your mortal soul, do you believe in rock and roll. I both saw you dancing in the gym ( the temple was used for a place of teaching god,s word and when they taught they would take off their shoes , Jesus certainly taught there. And for me this certainly helps the argument that this place was called a gymnasium. Only a person who studied the bible , maybe a seminary student ? would know this.
@tb - @tb -
I can go along with Don’s maybe heartbreak at February 1959.
I listened to the Maria Elena Holly (or should that be HOLLEYas per Buddy’s Grave stone) Don McClean interview on BBC radio 2 (replay via the internet) and was touched again by her miscarriage that must have been another big heartbreak for her. Chris d
umm,actually the offical reports said the plane only had a serial number,not a name.Miss American Pie was rumored to be a Miss America contestant he dated at one point.If that isnt true,then maybe it meant nothing.Not everything has to mean something,you know
@Steve -
you got it
While there are so many facets of this song that could be interpreted so many ways (and some probably have double meanings) I think what has been TOTALLY overlooked is the central story.
Yes there are political and world events symbolized I’m sure. The musical references are plentiful as well. But who is “Miss American Pie”? And WHAT IS THE AUTHOR’S relationship to her.
I believe Miss American Pie is the girl he saw “in the gym”. The girl he loved in High School. This is the central theme in the song.
I see a young man whose heart was broken. A heart attached to a girl and his music. He “knew he was out of luck” with her when the music (Buddy Holly) died because it was the music that was keeping his dreams of being with her alive. It empowered him and gave him a “soundtrack” to his life. When the music died, so did his dream. Maybe it was chronologically similar in occurrence that she “was in love with him (the other guy)” and Buddy Holly’s death. Put those two things together and surely it’s not hard to see a broken heart. And a broken heart can feel like death.
This is represented in the song the Good ol boys sing down by the dried up levee. “This’ll be the day that I die” means that the author is dying, not the good ol boys. They’re just hanging out drinkin like “good ol boys” always do. He is the one showing up at the levee– a symbol for 50’s social existence and fun and the place I’m sure he dreamt of being with her, only to find it dried up and gone.
For me, if I were the author, the song would be more personal than anything. Works of art like this are rare and usually come from powerful personal emotion. Symbolism aside, I think this song is about a lost love– one that was totally dependent on two things: his music and a girl.
It always was satans desire to rule the earth and mankind. The dilema was his desire was he wanted to eliminate God. From Adam and Eve in the Garden as a serpent ,to the Garden of Gethsemane with Christ. (Along long time ago I can remember how that music made me smile and I knew if I had a chance I could make the people dance for a while.) The music is symbolic of Christ in this song.However satan could not rule without the submission to God and the sacrifice of crucifixtion on the cross. Something he was not and is not willing to do. Its interesting to note that the crucifixtion happened during the winter months. But that is not what I think February shiver meant, it is just a play of the timing of the moment. The real meaning is that the idea of crucifixtion, self sacrifice laying down his life for humanity, the brutality of the cross is what satan would not do. (But February made me shiver with every paper I,d deliver, bad news on the door step, I couldn’t take one more step.) I,m sure the news of the death of Christ was delivered by letter for the times news only traveled this way. Ironically it was good news because it culminated in the rising from the dead and the salvation of many. But if you don’t believe that, it would be bad news and it would be just that, a death of nothing more than a good man. The bible often refered to the church as the bride of Christ and Jesus spoke of himself in parables as a bride groom coming for his church and they should always be ready. Therefore it makes sense the writer would say, ( I cant remember if I cried when I read about his widowed bride, but something touched me deep inside the day the music died.)
Interesting thoughts, although the fact that there are a number of interpretations to many of the lines leads me to think that like most songs, and art in general the writer / artist’s thoughts are only part of the story; the interpretation of the listener or viewer is just as important, certainly to the individual.
Great song about a Great artist Cd
I think thaat Don Mcclean who studied in seminary for a period of time and ultimately dropped out was in fact singing his interpretation of the bible. Its no wonder he has never given the “hidden ” meaning of it because it would be considered by many to be “Blasephemous”. I dont necessarily think that, but it would definitely not be conducive to making large sums of money which Don has admitted it has done when asked what the song means. Many peop;le share the view that the bible is just a story and the validity of a savior coming to save man dying on the cross and rising from the dead is just that a story that could not have happened. If this interpretation of the song is correct the chorus would mean this……….. Bye Bye mis american Pie. ( Good by to the thought of the idea of a savior.) Drove my chevy to the levy but the levy was dry. (Ive examined the scripture and and looked at the account of christ. Golgotha the hill(Levy) where christ was crucified has shown me he is dead. Thelevy is dry. No rising from the dead just dead. The good old boys drinking whiskey and rye singing this will be the day that I die. Is a reference to the soldiers at the foot of the cross who were gambling and drinking and when christ died the earth trembled and the curtain of the temple was torn in two, they declared that “surely this man was the son of God and we shall all die. Its in the bible in the gospels
The coat reference is also to Buddy Holly having Waylan Jennings wallet in his front breast pocket when they crashed, they had originally attempted to claim that Jennings (how lost the coin toss to valens) had been on the plane because he was suppose to be. what had happened is that Jennings gave over his wallet to Holly to pick up a general deliver package Jennings was expecting.
Drove my Chevy to the levee…..Anyone who grew up in a small town back then knows about ‘driving down to the levee.’ The levee was always some obscure place on the edge of town that kids (and hobos) could go to hang out (smoke cigarettes, make out, drink). Adults never went there (it was dirty) and there was always a dirt road that you could ride your bike or, later, drive your car on. The fact that the “levee was dry” suggests that Don was “touched … [so] deep inside” that he contemplated suicide. Since levee’s only dried up in summertime, and this was February, a “dry levee” could not have been biographical. And, metaphorically, the only reason to be disappointed by a “dry” levee is if you intend to drive your car into it and drown yourself! The “good ol’ boys” gettin’ drunk is just a reference to the hobos and winos that would also frequent the levee because it was a place to hang out without getting bothered. Of course, you wouldn’t find any good ol’ boys out at a levee in New York in February; but here they symbolize the impassioned Muses marking the passing of Buddy, the Bopper, and la Bamba with a chorus of “This’ll be the day……..”
The 50 year anniversary of the plane crash sent me on an internet quest for more interpretation of the lyrics. I was about seven when this song came out and loved it from the first time I heard it. Over the years the lyrics have revealed some of their little secrets to me, and now just about every word has meaning. What I’m taking away from it now is McLean’s total disdain of the Rolling Stones, culminating with the Altamont concert.
The concept that “God is dead and is replaced by popular culture” is spot on, whoever came up with that first deserves applause, or at least a tip of my hat.
The moss that grows fat on a rolling stone is MONEY. I also sense a little disgust with the British invasion, first calling Lennon a Marxist (in a song titled “American Pie”) and stating that the marching band was refusing to yield. And yes, I believe it was “Lennon” not “Lenin” who was reading the book on Marx, because Lenin died in 1924–McLean says “while Lennon read a book on Marx, the quartet practiced in the park”. Everything mentioned in this song happened AFTER 1959, so why would a guy who had been dead for 35 years be relevant?
Just some more stuff to ponder, as we all will for another 37 years or so. That’s the sign of great prose, the fact that people continue to analyze it for years and years. I don’t believe that there has been anything written since “American Pie” that comes close in comparison.
The analysis of the rock’n'roll refereces is strong, and the references to the Cuban Missle Crisis and JFK assassination are good. However, this secondary analysis is not carried forward into the later verses, which invoke an Apocalyptic vision of nuclear war (the references to Marxism, generation lost in space, flames climb high into the night, satan laughing with delight, etc.) and the effects of EMP (which would destroy all electronics - hence kill the music).
What makes this song so special is that every line throughout works simultaneously in both the rock and apocalyptic frames of reference rather than just some verses.
I believe the line(s) “The players tried to take the field…The marching band refused to yield”…
refer to the first time Dylan played electric at Newport. The crowd threw bottles and rocks at Dylan, tried to storm the stage; His backing musicians were “The Band”
I believe that the song is a HISTORY of Rock ‘n Roll. And the day the Music Died was Altamont. i.e. the end of the summer of love. The carefree life of rock ‘n roll changed at Altamont.
I’m almost 50 and remember how hugely popular this song was. Heard it again on an oldies station (sigh) this morning and wondered about the lyrics. Thanks for the insight. And yeah, everybody needs to chill out! God bless aewsome poet/songwriters!!!
Unless someone intends suicide, death from a drug overdose is accidental as explained by Phil.
The original poster shows lack of objectivity in his interpretation of the songs lyrics and his attempts to disregard drug use as an explanation for some of the lyrics is laughable. Drugs andmusic have been happy bedfellows since man walked the earth.
@Bobbie Getz - Settle down skippy before you stroke out.
@Brian Wolle - Dude that was Lame!
I think the generation lost in space referred to the disciples that were left after christ was crucified. They obviously would have felt confused and disoriented when Christ was crucified , when they thought he was going to be made a King. A generation lost in space with no time left to start again, all in one place. So the devil taunts him, cmon Jack (Jesus) be nimble Jack be quick Jack flash sat on a candle stick cause fire is the devils only friend. Crosses were used for crucifixtion by romans and sometimes even lit on fire. Nero lit up to 100 christians at one time history books will show to light up a garden party once, a candle stick if you will. And as I watched him on the stage,(cross) my hands were clenched in fits of rage(satan) No angel born in hell could break that satans spell (the spell of death, which is what ultimately Christ was going to break when he rose from the dead) And as the flames climbed high into the night I saw satan laughing with delight the day the music (christ) died.
Maybe some correct interpretations but the social and political biases of the author are strong and harm the credibility of some interpretations. Attempts to interpret poems such as this must be free of such biases.
Janis did die of an ACCIDENTAL overdose. Her normal dealer was out and the person she bought from sold her heroin which was much purer than she was used to. 4 other people died from the same batch.
Intersting but I think don was singing about the bible and that he does not believe the gospel. Hen is using the song to sing it in a hidden message
@Bobbie Getz -
wooooaaaah….someone needs to chill
I think the generation lost in space is about the space program. No time left to start again refers to the fact that the US space programme was behind the russian one and so extreme risks were taken to beat the russians. The candlestick was apollo 1 and the verse refers to the launch pad fire which killed three US astronauts our sacrifice by means of fire the devils friend
just a random thought
“and as I watched him on the stage, my hands were clenched in fisted rage.. no angel born in hell, could break that satan’s spell”.. WHERE do you see a “NAME” in that verse? any name? I should also note.. as a NATIVE CALIFORNIAN.. that I take OFFENSE.. to your interpetation.. “Could be a reference to wacky California religions”.. What do you think? That because we live in California that we do not believe in God?.. that there are not Catholics, Prodistants (? spelling) Baptists, Jehova Witnesses (?spelling again) as well as the hundreds of other religions that thrive all over the country and the world? Do you live in California? Do you KNOW anyone that does? or are you one of those who ASSUME (ass you made of me) that YOU are so SMART that YOU KNOW everything about everybody?.. so, what about Washington, Alaska, Hawaii, D.C., Ohio, etc., are they also “wacky”.. or are they.. “normal” according to YOUR STANDARDS?.. This will be my last post.. as the more I read, the angrier.. and the more outspoken I become.. I realize that we live in a free country and everyone has a right to their opinion.. but I am also entitled to MY OPINION, unless you KNOW.. REALLY KNOW, what you are talking about.. then you should not spout off.. As a Californian.. “A WACKY CALIFORNIAN”.. who doesn’t believe in religion or has “A WACKY CALIFORNIAN RELIGION”.. according to YOU.. ACCORDING TO YOU.. I can tell you.. that we out here on the West Coast.. in California.. are just as “NORMAL” as everyone else.. (and yes.. I have spent 13 years in PA, as well as time in CO, MN, TX, FL as well as other states.. ).. and what I have found.. is that people in California, are much friendlier, and more likely to help others than they are in other states.. and once again… I DO HAVE PERSONAL EXPERIENCE.. to back up my statement. Yes, we have traffic, yes, we have movie stars who are arrogant and ass’.. but they are the minority.. most people here.. are kind, caring, and helpful. so before you pass judgement on either a person, song, state, or otherwise.. maybe, JUST MAYBE, you might want to research, or live there, or find out…. gather information, and perhaps find out what you are talking about before you give a BIASED OPINION.. I do apologize if I appear angry.. or insulted.. however, how would each of you feel if someone insulted you and your state or your song or your book or.. without talking to YOU, or asking you?, and I am sure there are those who will say that I do not have the right to answer the accusations, or I should be “politically correct” and “just accept” what the other person says.. to those I ask “If the person who insults me has the right to speak, why do I not have the right to respond?”.. IF someone told you that THEY KNEW WHAT YOU WERE THINKING.. WHY YOU WROTE A SONG, OR POEM OR BOOK.. or CLAIMED that they could ANALYZE YOUR SONG, YOUR POEM, YOUR BOOK. OR READ YOUR MIND. how would you feel?.. I am not saying that the opinions listed here are right or wrong.. and I am not saying that this person or these persons do not have the right to express their opinion, they do.. but I find it difficult to believe that “they” know “ALL” of the song writers, “ALL” of the singers, and that “THEY KNOW” what the song writers and singers were thinking when they wrote the songs or sang the songs.. I think it owuld be interesting to find out how they would “ANALYZE” presidential speaches.. and how they would “INTERPET” any statement from someone who they did not “personally” know.. and even then I would question their interpetation.. Again, I do apologize.. as I am one who would not ASSUME that I HAD the RIGHT to explain SOMEONE ELSES ACTIONS.. I am responsible for MY OWN ACTIONS.. MY OWN STATEMENTS, and I would not be ARROGANT enough to tell anyone that I KNEW the mind of another person. Granted, there may be some guesses, or assumptions to the “interpetations” of some of the songs… however, unless the writer of the interpetations knew or knows or recieved the information directly from the song writers.. that is all that it is.. guesses.. and assumptions.. take it or leave it.. one way or the other, each and everyone of you, and the writer of this website are entitled to opinions.. as am I.. In closing.. I wish all of you well, a happy, prosperous new year.. I do apologize if I have offended. (to be politically correct w/regard to offense).. However, I do disagree with many of the analysis’ of the lyrics.. regards..
Darn.. I have to write this all over again??? Okay, lets see if I can make it short and sweet instead of 3 pages long. “Who do you think you are to interpet others thoughts?”.. I guess that says it all. I have been to the “Hotel California”.. it was what you call an insane assylum.. and believe me, you can tell, as trying to drill into the walls to install equipment is almost impossible. The interpetation here, to me is totally off base, however, you are entitled to your opinion, and I am entitled to mine. Personally.. I have read several of the interpetations of songs, and have decided that (at least in my mind) that ANYONE who thinks that they “ARE THE PERSON WHO WROTE THE LYRICS” and can explain “WHY AND WHAT THE LYRICS MEAN” is a total moron.. IF YOU WROTE the lyrics, then you can and do have the right to tell others what you were thinking when you wrote them, IF YOU DID NOT WRITE THEM, then the fact that you are so ARROGANT, that you think you can read the writers mind… is unfathonable.. the only person who can ACCURATELY INTERPET the lyrics of ANY SONG is the ONE WHO WROTE THE SONG.. Hotel California, based on materialism?.. interesting.. you have your Interpetation, and I have Mine.. which is much different than yours.. as indicated.. I HAVE been to “Hotel California”.. the one that the song was written about.. and it is far from materilistic.. it was more or less a prison.. once you checked in.. “you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave”.. kinda says it all.. but then.. If I were to say that I KNEW what the song writer was thinking, would make me a moron.. the point.. Enjoy the music, enjoy the songs.. and if you did not write it.. don’t try to explain it.. the only thing you do by trying to explain it, is ruin the enjoyment of the song.. which is very very sad I DO NOT KNOW whether or not your interpetation of American Pie is accurate or not, nor do I really care.. but once again, since you did not WRITE the song.. **shrugs**.. who are you to tell me what it means?.. I know it, I can sing it, and will continue to do so, and enjoy it.. regardless of what anyone thinks..
“‘Cause the players tried to take the field, The marching band refused to yield.”
i find it so oddly amazing that now u could easily refer this to “The Play” in the Stanford v. Cal game in ‘82, years after “Miss American Pie” was released…”THE BAND IS OUT ON THE FIELD!!!”
i find it very interesting…i don’t know if u ever thought of this yourself, but it’s kinda perplexing…it’s awesome
@Steve -
“The day the music died” is well known as the day Buddy Holly, et al died. So the “music dying” is not “love lost” Steve, it is clearly a reference to “The day the music died” since that is exactly what he says and he also confirms that the song was inspired by the death of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper. Just wanted to clear that up.
American Pie was initially inspired by the death of Buddy Holly. “‘American Pie’ is autobiographical and presents an abstract story of Don McLean’s life from the mid 1950s until when he wrote the song in the late 1960s. It is almost entirely symbolized by 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”
“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. Also, I was really influenced by the Sgt. Pepper album, and the American Pie album was my attempt to do that, but the song totally overshadowed the album.” - Don McClean
By the way the plane was NOT named American Pie.
This song has very deep meaning and in my opinion is the best song ever written. So Steve, to try to reduce it to a mere love song is ignorant in my opinion.
Thanks for leaving the parody on. No, it is not a reinterpretation of his lyric, but think it says something equally important. There WAS a big switch you would have noticed had you been there. After the three “j”s died, and altamont and Manson, things went country. And Dylan did it before anyone else.
Some of these interpretations are too literal. This song is bitter. Bitterness runs completely thru it. But i like the reference of American Pie being the name of the plane -whether true or false. References to the space race and JFK are out of line to my thinking. This is about music. Period. All the references will never be gotten unless… HAS ANYONE THOUGHT TO ASK DON HIMSELF? He might come clean -Don Mc, that is! Sorry… something unsaid and ironic: how much do these lyrics owe their existance to Dylan? But to me, that is a very key point. The song is bitter, but which of these bands does he like, and which of them does he not? Or, which does he BLAME????
(bitterness)
Would like to hear respnses on this one point: that song is exceedingly bitter. thanks.
@Bob Boyce - I am curious about your information regarding the Levee and Rye. Listening to the song from this point of view does seem to make sense. What do you know about the Levee and the other bar in Rye, NY?
Interesting!
I should say Don McLean is a genius.. He got us all thinking..
The songs is a puzzle..
Well, this is a good interpretation though..
But I wonder, what’s on Mclean’s mind when he wrote the song.
The good old boys were not drinking whiskey and rye. They were drinking whiskey in Rye. I could be wrong, but I believe the Levee was a bar in Harrison N.Y. That bar closed, so the good old boys went to the neighboring town of Rye N.Y. to do their drinking.
half time, players tried to take the field, forward pass, jester on sideline in a cast…
I cannot ascertain the veracity of this interpretation. However, i believe one interpretation I have heard was that Elvis & Priscilla Presley, were at a RoseBowl football game. Dylan was the halftime entertainment (jester). They played Beatles’ music on the speakers. Riot broke out because of Dylan’s lyrics at halftime of RoseBowl, and when the players tried to come back onto field, they couldn’t because of the rioting taking place on the field.
The rest of your interpretations sound pretty familiar.
CZ: I think I think McLean is bemoaning the fact that for many people, God is dead and has been replaced by popular culture; however, that eventually leaves many people feeling empty.
I think that the “God is dead and is replaced by popular culture” theme pretty much sums up the song.
Chris Zollner’s quote, i agree with CZ on this as well.
The beauty of the lyrics are all these interpretations are right, …because McClean himself refuses to define the song. Very interesting on Waylon Jennings commnets etc.
Thank you doing this.
Good interpretation - generally jibes with what I’ve heard - though I’ve always suspected the Father, Son and Holy Ghost to be - Father - Martin Luther King, Jr (as a preacher), Son - JFK (known as the son of Joseph Kennedy), Holy Ghost - Malcolm X.
Then again you can make an argument that MLK could be the trinity himself (a Father, a Son and a Holy Ghost). That’s the magic of the song - so many possible interprestations.
I think it’s funny — all these interpertations of the popular metaphors used in the song. The song is simply about a girl he loved (his “American Pie”), that fell in love with someone else. If only he could have been more successful as a musician (”if I had my chance”) he could have won her over, but the death of Buddy Holly changed the landscape of music and dashed his young hopes. The “music dying” is “love lost” to anyone who has ever tried to be poetic. The levee is likely where guys took girls to “make out” in their pickup trucks when he was a teenager. After giving up, he cried in his beer at the local bar with everyone else who was love sick. He tried to love again years later after gaining success, but “the church bells all were broken” (note: his writing of this song corresponds with his failed 3 yr marriage to Carol that ended in 1972). All the stuff in between is just how he rationalized his emotions by blaming his loss on something else.
almost always when james dean mentioned, he too an accident, they mention mm two idols, her though was unlike big bopper, richie etc and james dean not an accident but murder and jagger jumping jack flash and let me introduce myself….see ayn rand article on marilyn monroe…..
I think Miss American Pie was Marilyn Monroe…..the day the music died, she too was supposidely an accident…..they took the last train for the coast….the day the music died.
Well…the last comment, the “parody,” has brought the intelligence of this website down dramatically. Lyrically, the structure doesn’t follow the original in obvious ways (read it along with the song and you’ll see). And otherwise, it’s just innappropriate to post a drug-fueled insult on a website devoted to analysis & interpretation of the original. I’ve been reading every comment that’s been posted here since I first posted in July.
I ask that Paul remove the “parody” and also my comment in an effort to restore the balance.
@Brian Wolle -
I wrote a parody!
American Sour Grapes
INTRO
G D Em
Long, long time ago
C G Em D
I can still remember how that music used to get me high
G D Em
And I knew if we gave it half a shot
C Em C
It’d be as great as smoking pot and
D
possibly change this screwed up World
Em Am
But nineteen seventy made me quake
Em Am
With every toke I would take
C D
It just wasn’t the same anymore
G D G Em
I can’t quite recall the fear
C Em
Of that saddened wretched stupid year
G D Em C
All I know is I started drinking beer
Am D7 G
The day psychedelia died
CHORUS
G C G D
Bye. Bye. LSD land
G C G D
What changed our freaky weirdos into a country band
G C G D
Why’d the music changed from what we used to hear
Em A7
Went from unicorn to steer
Em D7
When the drug of choice turn to beer
VERSE 1
G Am
Did you see the Byrds in flight
C Am
As you rode that tie-dyed kite
Em D
Taking you out of the night
G D Em
And the Airplane from San Francisco said
Am C
They were gonna feed our head
Em A7 D
By such I was willing to be led
Em D
Doors were opened to other ways
Em D
Jimi introduced us to Purple Haze
C G A7
The White Room held the clue
C D7
Our feeling of Moody Blues
C D Em
I was caught in Traffic but I was near
Am C
The color explosion of Blue Cheer
G D Em C (D7)
With no thoughts of drinking beer
C D7 G
Before psychedelia died
CHORUS
G C G D
Bye. Bye. LSD land
G C G D
What changed our freaky weirdos into a country band
G C G D
Why’d the music changed from what we used to hear
Em A7
Went from unicorn to steer
Em D7
When the drug of choice turn to beer
VERSE 2
G Am
Woodstock happened, it was great
C Am
Then Altamont oh, was it fate
Em D
Manson turned our love to hate
G D Em
I know I felt my throat choke up
Am C
When I heard the Beatles broke up
Em A7 D
Maybe Paul was really dead
Em D
The three jays, Jimi, Janis and Jim
Em D
Their three deaths made it very grim
C G A7
Then there was Don McLean
C D7
That’s when it started to get mean
C D Em
I used to think with the tide
Am C
They’d all come over to our side
GDEmCD7
Then I got that pick-up ride
CD7G
the day psychedelia died
CHORUS
G C G D
Bye. Bye. LSD land
G C G D
What changed our freaky weirdos into a country band
G C G D
Why’d the music changed from what we used to hear
Em A7
Went from unicorn to steer
Em D7
When the drug of choice turn to beer
VERSE 3
G Am
There was Bob who skipped the acid
C Am
Laying up in Woodstock placid
Em D
Till the festival chased him away
G D Em
’twas Dylan started the whole trip
Am C
But gave our generation the slip
Em A7 D
His Self Portrait was the tip
Em D
First he told us what to do
Em D
Then he let on he was through
C G A7
We thought he was gonna save us
C D7
All the hope that he gave us
C D Em
Warned us about Desolation Row
Am C
But who among us was to know
G D Em C
He left us there and had to go
C D7 G
The day psychedelia died
CHORUS
G C G D
Bye. Bye. LSD land
G C G D
What changed our freaky weirdos into a country band
G C G D
Why’d the music changed from what we used to hear
Em A7
Went from unicorn to steer
Em D7
When the drug of choice turn to beer
ote a parody!
Roberta Flack sang, but did not write ‘Killing Me Softly.’ (Music by Charles Fox lyrics by Norman Gimbel). The reference to ‘Lost in Space’ says nothing about McLean’s taste. Back in its time the show was HUGE, it’s a reference that resonates with anyone who was alive in the 60s. Identifying the Kennedy’s and Martin Luther Kind with the Father, Son and Holy Ghost makes good sense (as does the identification with the 3 victims of Feb3), but it should be in the order: MLK (a minister); JFK (after Joe Jr was killed in WWII, he became the first son of the Kennedy clan); and Bobby.
@Chris - really? thats prtty cool and would totally make sense in the cntext of the song
@Paul -
Don McLean went to the same (Catholic) college I did in New Rochelle NY. There was a common gathering place bar/restaurant called “The Levee” that he is rumored to have frequented!
Pretty obvious, by the lyric!
This is a great song I love the history in it. Though I don’t agree with all of what he is saying it is wonderful
Great question Don, I’ll work on a format that prints better
Best advice until then is to copy/paste it into a Word document and print from there
I’m glad you enjoyed the article! My fascinated started at about 15 so your sons should love it. Let me know how it fares.
Is there an easy way to print this info? I would like to go over this with my sons (age 13 and 15) and a n easy way to,print without pages of ads and stuff would be great. A sort of printer friendly tab.
Thanks
Don
Hi Mr/Ms O’Brien,
I realize I’m many years late to the party, but I still wanted to thank you for the insightful comments on Don McLean’s song. I’ve always thought that was the best song ever written, but I only understood a fraction of it (as it turns out). Much thanks!
I checked this out in a news database, so here’s the response to you:
(What year did the Fillmore West close?)
“The Fillmore West, formerly the Carousel Ballroom on Market Street and Van Ness, opened the day after the Fillmore Auditorium closed in 1968 “
Just thought I’d share some thoughts.
“I went down to the sacred store”
it could be interpreted as “I went down to this record store” - just an idea
“And the three men I admire most The Father, Son, and Holy Ghost”
my interpretation would be in the order of The Big Bopper, being the oldest of the three, Ritchie Valens, as the youngest, and Buddy Holly, as maybe a “Holly ghost”.
I hope you find these as interesting as I found your page. Thankyou for your insights.
Hi, Great article on the words and their meaning to Don McLean’s immortal song, “American Pie”. Probably the best I’ve seen. I thought about your comments on checking controversies for Feb 3, 1959, and I’ve come up with a few - see what you think? I think any of these relate well to the lyrics “Do you recall what was revealed” as these all were revealed after the crash, are relevant and to varying extents they are certainly controversial!
1) Decision of Holly to toss a coin between Richie Valens and Tommy Allsup, unfortunately cost Valens his life! Could be contentious because of the toss or that the “better” star died and the other didn’t!
2) The friendly banter between Buddy Holly (”Well, I hope your old bus freezes up”) and Waylon Jennings reply (”Well, I hope your plane crashes”) could be contentious with fans of both and I’m sure some folks were angry over this innocent but ultimately deadly remark. Did Jennings career be affected by this (blacklisted, blackballed - did people refuse to play or travel with him! i also wonder if people also disliked Jennings, as apart from his remark, he also gave up his seat to the Big Bopper who had a fever and couldn’t fit in the buses seats (is being too big a problem)? Also irony over being big and sick costing the Big Bopper his life and Jennings being lucky after this and his ill considered remark!
3) However, It seems to me that the most controversial thing was the plane crash itself:
a) The plane was not called “American Pie” and was not Holly’s, as was commonly thought - it has the Reg # N3794N and was only chartered by Holly from Dwyer Flying Services. This in itself is a controversial point!
b) However, the biggest controversy seems to be (1) whether the pilot was too inexperienced for the weather and simply augered in (2) or was he supposedly shot for some reason (accidentally?) as Holly’s gun was in the wreckage (horseplay?) and was found near the pilot who was still in the wreckage whilst the 3 passengers had been thrown out! (3) Apparently in 2007 Richardson’s son had his body exhumed to show that he had survived and tried to go for help but the autopsy proved his body was too smashed up and that he had died immediately! Another controversy although way after the song but still interesting!
Anyhow, I hope these comments can be useful to you and help you fill in this part of your great explanation of the song.
I would sure be interested to hear from you if any of these items are usable for your site and would appreciate a reply.
Thanks for looking and once again, GREAT WORK on the lyrics!
you quoted: And do you have faith in God above, If the Bible tells you so?
Then you said:
In 1955, Don Cornell did a song entitled “The Bible Tells Me So.” It was difficult to tell if it was what McLean was referencing. Anyone know for sure?
My response:
I think McLean is bemoaning the fact that for many people, God is dead and has been replaced by popular culture; however, that eventually leaves many people feeling empty.
I think that the “God is dead and is replaced by popular culture” theme pretty much sums up the song.
Here’s a possible connection (from Wikipedia):
“Although the crash received a good deal of local coverage, it was displaced in the national news by an accident that occurred the same day in New York City, when American Airlines Flight 320 crashed during an instrument landing approach at LaGuardia Airport, killing 65.”
Point of Reference…..”American Pie” was not the name of the airplane that Holly died on. The airplane had an American Flag decal on the tail….however it was round (pie shaped) …hence American Pie
Thanks
A quick note.
The preceding lines about Jack Flash certainly are about the Stones.
But these lines:
And as I watched him on the stage
My hands were clenched in fists of rage
No angel born in hell
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 singing…
…seem almost certainly to be about Jim Morrison and Jimi Hendrix. Mclean emphasizes when he sings, “to LIGHT the sacrificial rite”. A reference to two things “Light my Fire” and Morrison’s fascination with Dionysian theater and ancient sacred rituals, and with blending that element into rock performances. As you probably know, he was not a satanist of any sort, yet was often accused of being satanic, as was the “dark” rock and roll style that followed from The Doors
(Goth, Punk and dark heavy metal all owe their inception to Morrison), thus the irony that would make Satan laugh as Morrison and Hendrix burn on the funeral pyre.
The flames climbing high into the night may refer to both the LA riots and the “death pyres” of Jim and Jimi. The lines may also refer to, as you’ve said already, Hendrix lighting his guitar on fire.
“And as I watched him on the stage…no angel born in hell”, seems to clearly point to Morrison. Jim was famous for saying, “What hell could be more horrible than now and real?”. McLean may have been referring to this world being hell and Morrison (who was young and beautiful, and cultivated the fallen angel look by patterning his hair and expressions after statues of Alexander and Dionysus) as a fallen angel born into this world. Satan’s spell refers to the curse of rock gods dying. Hendrix, Joplin and Morrison all died within a short time of each other. After their deaths, Jim commented that he would be “number 3″, the third “J” to die, as though it were a curse.
Just my two cents. No song documenting the deaths of great rock stars, especially one that blatantly refers to Janis Joplin, would be complete without Hendrix and Morrison.
Omar
Miss American Pie was Marilyn Monroe,
Marilyn Monroe died in 1962, see ayn rand’s article in the los angeles times, something terrible happened the day she died…..filled people with dread…..
see ayn rand marilyn monroe or marilynmonroefoundation.com for the article don mclean was affected by this too……and then buddy, and the bopper, and richie…..
the day innocence lost…….see the play here i am mother the real story of marilyn monroe i think don knew marilyn and her daughter as they were always at carnegie hall studios where i think he too studied…….bye, bye miss american pie, drove my chevy to the levy but the levy was dry sad, then viet nam war and never again the innocence of the 50’s —the day the music died……
Thanks
@Barry McCollom - Sorry Barry, just a typo; fixed
And while Lenin rean a book on Marx,
*** What does ‘rean’ mean? ***
Hi, for some reason i think this song has references towards the war in Vietnam…
The birds flew off with the fallout shelter Eight miles high and falling fast.
- i believe that “the birds” refers to bombs being dropped from the air
(eight miles high and falling fast) It landed foul on the grass.
- the bombs hitting the ground (lots of grass in vietnam)
The players tried for a forward pass.
-i think the artist is refering to american soldiers as players, charging against the vietnamese
With the jester on the sidelines in a cast
-i’m still unsure of this one Now the half-time air was sweet perfume
-sweet perfume, probably referring the resting of soldiers during the war, enjoying their break
While sergeants played a marching tune.
-american commanders ordering their men to fight on (marching tune)
We all got up to dance Oh, but we never got the chance.
-after the order is commanded, some soldiers had no chance of surviving, possibly by the bombings
‘Cause the players tried to take the field, The marching band refused to yield.
-american soldiers trying to take the vietnamese(marching band) on, but the viets were winning
those are my thoughts about that, i don’t know any history of the artist, but those are my impressions of what he is talking about. does he have any war experience? being drafted maybe (levy)? if so let me know.
I came across your interpretation of McLean’s American Pie and I think it is great. Brings back fond memories of when the tune came out and every DJ had one interpretation or another .
I think you definitely have it “figured out” - nice work. One think I might suggest is that the “Players” trying to take the field was the Beach Boys - particularly with Pet Sounds. The Marching Band refused to yield of course being Sergeant Pepper blowing it and everything else out of the water (poor old Brian Wilson was almost driven to suicide I read somewhere).
Take care and thanks again for your great work!
I think you’re right about a great deal here. I would include, however, that “moss grows fat on a rolling stone” is a reference to the proverb “a rolling stone gathers no moss” (with, of course, all the cultural entangles already mentioned–the Stones, Dylan). A rolling stone has no roots–McLean is saying that we are aimless without our leaders, and yet, contrary to the proverb, still gathering rooted worries.
Hi
Just looking at your interpretations of the lyric of American Pie.
“Rolling stones don’t gather no moss” is a direct reversal of the lyric “Well you know, a rolling stone, don’t gather no moss.” which can be found in the Buddy Holly song “Early in the Morning” .
Hope that helps.
Chris
I read your comments on American Pie. Very interesting. I did notice a couple of mistakes. First, the Rolling Stones show in Altamont took place in 1969 not in 68. Plus, the Stones didn’t play Candlestick Park until 1981. Thought you might want to know.
just wanted to say great job