American Pie - Don McLean - Virtual Songbook

Verse 1

G     G/F# Em

A long, long time ago,

Am               C

I can still re - member how that music...

Em                   D7      D7sus4 D7 D7sus2 D7

  ...Used to make me smile,

    G      G/F#     Em

And I knew if I had my chance,

     Am                 C

That I could make those people dance,

    Em                  C

And, maybe ...they'd be happy...

                D7   D7sus4  D7  D7sus2  D7

...For a while

Pre-Chorus

Em               Am

    But February made me shiver,

Em                   Am

    With every paper I'd deliver,

C        G      Am

Bad news on the doorstep,

  C                            D

I couldn't take one more step,

  G          G/F#        Em

I can't re - member if I cried...

       Am             D

When I read about his widowed bride,

    G         G/F#       Em

But something touched me deep inside,

    C          D7       G    C/G   G    N.C.

The day ...the music ...died...

Chorus

G    C            G       D

So bye, bye Miss A - merican Pie,

         G            C

Drove my Chevy to the levee,

        G         D

But the levee was dry,

         G        C                  G           D

And them good ol' boys were drinking whiskey and rye

          Em                        A7

Singing, "This'll be the day that I die,

Em                        D7

This'll be the day that I die!"

D7sus2 D7  D7sus4 D7 D7sus2 D7

Verse 2

G                    Am

   Did you write the Book of Love,

       C        C/B      Am

And do you have faith in God above,

Em              D7        D7sus2  D7 D7sus4 D D7sus2

...If the Bible tells you so?

D7      G        G/F#     Em

Now, do you be - lieve in rock and roll?

Em/B  Am              C

Can   music save your mortal soul,

Em

And   ...can you teach me...

A7              D7       D7sus2 D7  D7sus4 D D7sus2

...How to dance real slow---------?

Pre-Chorus

D7      Em                  D7

Well, I know that you're in love with him,

          Em                 D7

'Cause I  ...saw you dancing in the gym,

    C           C/B      A

You both kicked off your shoes,

A7          C                    D7      D7sus4

  ...Man, I dig those rhythm and blue----oos,

  D7    G      G/F#    Em

I was a lonely teenage broncing buck,

Em/B   Am                   C

With a pink carnation and a pickup truck,

    G      G/F#  Em

But I knew I was out of luck,

Em/D C       D7    G    C/G  G           D     Dsus4

The  day the music died,       I started sing- ing...

Repetition: Chorus

G    C            G       D

So bye, bye Miss A - merican Pie,

         G            C

Drove my Chevy to the levee,

        G         D

But the levee was dry,

         G        C                  G           D

And them good ol' boys were drinking whiskey and rye

          Em                        A7

Singing, "This'll be the day that I die,

Em                        D7

This'll be the day that I die!"

D7sus2 D7  D7sus4 D7 D7sus2 D7

Verse 3

D7       G                    Am

Now, for ten years we've been on our own,

    C          C/B       Am

And moss grows fat on a   ...rolling stone,

    Em                   D7        D7sus4 D7 D7sus2

But ...that's not how it used to be,

D7       G      G/F#         Em

When the jester sang for the king and queen,

Em/B Am                 C

In   a coat he borrowed from James Dean,

     Em         A7

In a voice that came from you...

    D7   D7sus2 D7    D7sus4 D7 D7sus2

And me-------------!

Pre-Chorus

D7   Em                     D7

Oh, and   ...while the king was looking down,

    Em                D7

The jester stole his   ...thorny crown,

    C         C/B      A        A7

The courtroom was ad - journed,

   C                D7      D7sus4

No verdict was re - turned,

    D7    G      G/F#   Em

And while Lennon read a book on Marx,

Em/B Am                C

The  quartet practiced in the park,

C/B G       G/F#    Em         Em/B

And we sang dirges   ...in the dark,

    C       D7    G    C/G  G         D7

The day the music died,       we were singing...

Chorus

G    C            G       D

So bye, bye Miss A - merican Pie,

         G            C              G         D

Drove my Chevy to the levee, but the levee was dry,

         G        C                  G           D

And them good ol' boys were drinking whiskey and rye

          Em                        A7

Singing, "This'll be the day that I die,

Em                        D7

This'll be the day that I die!"

D7sus2 D7  D7sus4 D7 D7sus2 D7

Verse 4

G              Am

Helter-skelter in a summer swelter,

    C          C/B        Am

The birds flew off with a fallout shelter,

Em

  ...Eight miles high,

    D7           D7sus2 D7   D7sus4 D7 D7sus2  D7

And falling fast----------,

G            G/F#  Em

   It landed foul  on the grass,

    Am                  C

The players tried for a forward pass,

C/B      Em               A

With the jester ...on the sidelines... 

A7       D7  D7sus2 D7   D7sus4 D7 D7sus2

...In a cast---------!

Pre -Chorus

D        Em                D7

Now, the half-time air was  ...sweet perfume,

       Em                        D7

While  ...the sergeants played a marching tune,

C          C/B   A

We all got up to dance,

A7          C                D7      D7sus4

Oh, but we  ...never got the chance,

 D7        G       G/F#     Em

'Cause the players tried to take the field,

Em/D Am                 C

The  marching band re - fused to yield,

G              G/F#      Em

   Do you re - call what was revealed...

Em/D C       D7    G    C/G  G             D7

The  day the music died,        we started singing...

Repetition: Chorus

G    C            G       D

So bye, bye Miss A - merican Pie,

         G            C

Drove my Chevy to the levee,

        G         D

But the levee was dry,

         G        C                  G           D

And them good ol' boys were drinking whiskey and rye

          Em                        A7

Singing, "This'll be the day that I die,

Em                        D7

This'll be the day that I die!"

D7sus2 D7  D7sus4 D7 D7sus2 D7

Verse 5

D7      G                     Am

Oh, and ...there we were, all in one place,

   C         C/B    Am

A  ...gene - ration lost in space,

     Em              D7

With no time left to start again,

D7sus2 D7 D7sus4 D7  D7sus2

D7       G           G/F#       Em

So, come on, Jack be nimble, ...Jack be quick,

Am                  C

Jack Flash sat on a candlestick,

 C/B    Em                 A

'Cause   ...fire ...is The Devil's...

   A7   D7      D7sus2 D7   D7sus4 D7 D7sus2

...Only friend-----------,

D7       Em                  D7

Oh, and  ...as I watched him on the stage,

   Em                     D7

My hands were clenched in fists of rage,

C        C/B     A      A7

No angel born in hell...

      C                  D7

Could break that Satan's spell,

D7sus4 D7     G              G/F#      Em

And    as the flames climbed high in - to the night,

   Am                C

To light the sacri - ficial rite,

  C/B   G         G/F#     Em

I saw    ...Satan laughing with delight,

Em/D C       D7    G    C/G G         D7

The  day the music died,       he was singing...

Repetition: Chorus

G    C            G       D

So bye, bye Miss A - merican Pie,

         G            C

Drove my Chevy to the levee,

        G         D

But the levee was dry,

         G        C                  G           D

And them good ol' boys were drinking whiskey and rye

          Em                        A7

Singing, "This'll be the day that I die,

Em                        D7

This'll be the day that I die!"

D7sus2 D7  D7sus4 D7 D7sus2 D7

Verse 6

G           G/F#     Em

    I met a girl who sang the blues,

      Am                  C

And I asked her for some  ...happy news,

Em

   ...But she just smiled,

    D7           D7sus2 D7 D7sus4 D7  D7sus2 D7

And turned away,

G      G/F#        Em

I went down to the sacred store,

Em/B      Am              C

Where I'd heard the music years before,

C/B      Em                  C

But, the man there, said the music...

            D7   D7sus2 D7    D7sus4 D7 D7sus2 D7

...Wouldn't play-----------,

Em                        Am                Asus4 Am

   And in the streets the children screamed,

Em                          Am              Asus2 Am

   The lovers cried and the poets dreamed,

C            C/B      Am      G/B

   But not a word was spoken,

    C                     D7       D7sus2  D7

The church bells all were broken,

        G         G/F#     Em

And the three men I   ad - mire most,

G/B      C           C/B     D7

     The Father, Son and the Holy Ghost,

     G          G/F#       Em             Em/D

They caught the last train for the coast,

    C          D7       G    N.C.

The day ...the music ...died and they were singing...

Chorus

G    C            G       D

Bye, bye Miss A - merican Pie,

         G            C              G         D

Drove my Chevy to the levee, but the levee was dry,

     G        C                  G           D

Them good old boys were drinking whiskey and rye,

          Em                        A7    A7sus2 A7

Singing, "This'll be the day that I die,

Em                        D7   D7sus2 D7 D7sus4 D7

This'll be the day that I die!"

          D7sus2 D7

They were sing - ing...

Coda

G    C            G       D

Bye, bye Miss A - merican Pie,

Dsus4    G            C             G         D Dsus4

Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry,

     G        C                  G           D

Them good old boys were drinking whiskey and rye

          C              D7         G    C/G G

Singing, "This'll be the day that I die-------!"