DON MCLEAN ; QUICK FACTS/AMERICAN PIE

Don McLean (born October 2, 1945) is an American singer and songwriter. He is most well- known for the song "American Pie".
It is an 8-and-a-half-minute folk rock "cultural touchstone" about the loss of innocence of the early rock and roll generation in a plane crash in 1959, and developments in American youth culture in the subsequent decade
The song popularized the expression "The Day the Music Died" in reference to the crash
In 2005, his masterpiece ("American Pie") was voted 5th in the "365 songs of the century" list
His other hit singles include "Vincent", "Dreidel", a rendition of Roy Orbison's "Crying", a rendition of the Skyliners' "Since I Don't Have You", and "Wonderful Baby"
McLean's composition "And I Love You So" has been recorded by Elvis Presley, Perry Como, Helen Reddy, Glen Campbell, and others, and in 2000, Madonna had a hit with a rendition of "American Pie".
In 2004, McLean was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In January 2018, BMI certified that "American Pie" and "Vincent" had reached five million and three million airplays respectively.[4]
His second single "Vincent", featuring Vincent Van Gogh's masterpiece "Starry Night", also topped the UK and US charts in 1971.
"Vincent" is a tribute to the 19th-century Dutch painter Vincent Van Gogh. The inspiration came to him one morning while looking at a book about Van Gogh
In 2022, he is scheduled to perform a 35-date tour through Europe, starting in Wales and ending in Austria, for the 50th anniversary of "American Pie"