It came on the radio when I was getting a tattoo. Not only did I remember all the words, but I also never missed a beat! Got a round of applause from the receptionist at the end!
The jester is Bob Dylan, The Sergeants are the Beatles, Jack Flash is Jagger, the girl that sang the blues was Janis ... etcetera... there's a ton of references to the history of rock. It's like a song you'd sing at a wake for rock and roll
I never really cared for the bit about Jagger at Altamont. “As I watched him on the stage, my hands clenched up in fists of rage.” As if Jagger wasn’t there trying to calm people the fuck down the whole time. OK yeah, using drunk ass Hells Angels as security was an extremely boneheaded idea, but it wasn’t done with any kind of malice or “Satanic” intent. It was just a dumb rock group making a bad decision. If he wanted to properly criticize his peers in the rock industry for their apathy, he could’ve taken a page out of Peter Paul and Mary‘s book and done it more like their song “I dig rock ‘n’ roll music.“ The bit about Janis Joplin just smiling and turning away is a much better line. But there’s too much creepy Jesus shit injected into this song overall. He’s also pining for a time of innocence that never was, suggesting that “the music died” along with the innocence of his generation when that plane crashed. It’s actually pretty fucking arrogant when you stop to think about it. Brilliantly crafted lyrics and all, I see very little self-reflection from Mr. McLean in them besides “things were better back then.” Okay, Boomer.
Friends, I was in Vietnam in 1971 with the Airborne Infantry. On the rare occasion we were given a few days-off they let us decompress and left us pretty much alone. This song was screamed from the throats of 120 19 year-olds “ this will be the day I die”. Not great times, too close to the truth. We were all resigned to our fates. Still makes me cry.
@@robertmills2375 thanks for your service. My dad was 1/502 Co D. I think he was there at the same time. Until they were blown up… if u ever get the chance, Mike Machine Gun Kelly (RIP) did some beautiful drawings of them. You can Google them.
A cryptic history of rock and roll embedded in the lyrics. This song was huge when it came out, you couldn't escape it. Lol. His song Starry Starry Night about Vincent Van Gogh is excellent and haunting.
"You couldn't escape it" is absolutely true. Lol. After 6,000,000 listens, it's lost its appeal for me. But, it's a good song with lots of rock 'n' roll history.
All of the lyrics have multiple meanings it's the most amazing piece of songwriting in the history of songwriting literally every time you hear it you can hear something that you didn't hear before.
Yes. But it was the tragic death of Buddy Holly that was the focus of that singular verse. He began the lyrics with him in mind, but that's it. The song itself was about America. Don McLean would not explain much more than that. He even penned a letter to fans back in 1993 explaining that he wouldn't, and why.
@@realPenrodPooch Exactly. The line "I can't remember if I cried when I read about his widowed bride" was a reference to Buddy Holly's wife Maria Elena. They had been married for less than six months when his plane crashed. In those days the media did not wait until family had been notified before going public with news of someone's death; when Maria Elena, newly pregnant, heard that her husband had died in a plane crash, she miscarried. Incidentally, Don McLean dedicated the *American Pie* album to the memory of Buddy Holly. He was more than worthy of the honor, because Buddy Holly is one of the greatest and most important songwriters and recording artists in the entire history of rock'n'roll. John Lennon and Paul McCartney idolized him; Lennon named his band the Beatles because Holly's band had been called the Crickets. The Hollies named themselves after Buddy Holly. Mick Jagger saw Holly play in London when Jagger was still a kid; Keith Richards unabashedly says that he learned how to play guitar by playing along to Holly's and Chuck Berry's records, and the Rolling Stones recorded Holly's "Not Fade Away" as one of their earliest singles. Holly pioneered double-tracking, helped spearhead the movement of recording artists writing their own material, made the Fender Stratocaster the cool guitar that every aspiring guitarist wanted to play, and his and the Crickets' template of two guitarists, a bassist, and a drummer became a standard rock'n'roll template. Like the music of Chuck Berry, Elvis, Little Richard, Bo Diddley, the Everly Brothers, and Jerry Lee Lewis, Holly's music is a thread that runs through modern music right down to this day. And yet when he died in that plane crash in an Iowa cornfield on February 3, 1959 he was still only 22 years old.
I was literally just telling my 6 year old about this plane crash yesterday. Crazy that Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper weren't even supposed be on the damn plane in the first place.
My sister and I had a volatile relationship, but one time, when I was driving her somewhere, this came on the radio and she and I sang every word together... a few minutes of togetherness. She died before the year was out. Singing this song with her is the best memory of my sister ever.
One night in 1994, I was in a tiny, dingy bar in Scotland. A well-lubed singer with a guitar played this song and _everyone_ in sang along....every single word. I was blown away. Welcome to our mental world, young Jedis.
I was in a bar in Munich in the early '90s when "American Pie" started playing on the jukebox. Everybody in the bar stopped talking and sang along. It was magical, and, to an American like me, totally unexpected.
I can totally relate to this. American Pie is one of the few songs out there where I always feel a strong, innate urge to sing along, from start to finish. A masterpiece.
Since nobody in the first 100 or so comments said it, I will: "Helter Skelter in the summer swelter" is a reference to Charles Manson and the Manson Family murders (they wrote Helter Skelter on the wall in blood; their own reference to the Beatles song).
Manson believed the Beatles were sending him messages in the lyrics to their songs; _Helter skelter_ has lyrics that he misunderstood: 'Helter skelter coming down fast, coming down fast'. He wasn't smart enough to know that a Helter skelter is what Americans call a tornado ride. (Source: Vincent Bugliosi's book about the trial.)
The song is FILLED with references to all the various events. Every verse is a reference. It's an amazing reflection on a long period in our pop culture.
Not to mention every person talked about is a reference to a real person... Usually or maybe all a music artist... Im going by memory so help me out if im wrong... But the jester was... Bob Dylan I think... I never looked it up but someone correct me if im wrong...
Ya... I just had to scroll thru the comments a little further... A few people a month ago made the same comments and went further... At least I got it right... Lol
Vincent is brilliant, but this song is sheer genius. I understand personal choice but there are levels to this song that when you read about it and really deep dive into the lyrics and it's meaning it's just pure genius.
This was posted on another channel but it is very appropriate for this song and tells all. The song is an absolute masterpiece, written as a tribute to Buddy Holly, but with many references to other artists and events. The jester is Bob Dylan, and the line "the jester on the sidelines in a cast" refers to the motorcycle accident that halted Dylan's career. The king is Elvis Presley. The quartet are the Beatles, and the Park is Candlestick Park, Where they played their final concert(another day the music died) Jack flash is Mick Jagger, as is Satan (references to the Rolling stones songs, jumping Jack flash, and sympathy for the devil. "No angel born in hell, could break that Satan's spell" refers to a rolling stones concert where some hell's angels bikers stabbed a young concert goer to death. The girl who sang the blues is Janis Joplin. The father, son and the holy ghost have 2 references. The first being Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and the big bopper, who all died in the plane crash. The second reference being to Martin Luther King Jr, JFK, and Bobby Kennedy, who were all assassinated in the 60s. "Helter skelter in the summer swelter" refers to the Charles Manson killings that were inspired by the Beatles song, helter skelter. The sergeants and the marching band refer to the Vietnam war and protesters. "And there we were all in one place" refers to Woodstock. As I said before, the song is an absolute masterpiece
The Father Son and the Holy Ghost are probably not those examples, it was probably regarding folk singers Woody and Arlo Guthrie as the father and son, or very possibly Crosby Stills and Nash. This verse is related to the Sacred Store where the music wouldn't play, which was during a time when the folk music genre was winding down and electrified music was becoming more popular. Many of the folk singers of the moment were leaving the California hangouts and changing things up to more rock and roll musically. The day the music died in general changes throughout the song, there is a day that it dies in every verse. Miss American Pie is Marilyn Monroe, the birds flying off for the fallout shelter and falling from eight miles high are The Byrds, who's members then scattered and began other careers in music (fallout shelter), which also pertains to the atomic era ending.
The Sergeants refer to the Beatles. "A generation lost in space" refers to Woodstock, implied by the preceding line "And there we all were in one place".
I was born in 1974 and know every word lol... My mom said when Lucy in the sky with diamonds came on radio i would bang on my highchair tray and kick my legs with pure joy...
he wrote this song about buddy holly, when he died in a plane crash, along with ritchie valens and the big bopper. buddy was so young and so talented, it was tragic. the song was about the aftermath of that day. if you listen, you can hear references to the beatles, rolling stones,woodstock and altamont.... don's high school years...it was an amazing song. he also wrote a very touching song about vincent van gogh, called 'vincent'.
Yes, and Ritchie Valens was only 17. The Big Bopper, who did Chantilly Lace, was the one with the plane, and he invited Ritchie and Buddy to fly with him. The music that Buddy and Ritchie could have created had they not died on that plane...really makes ya think.
Some references.... The girl who sang the blues-Janis Joplin. Lennon read a book of Marx, the marching band was the Beatles. And while I watched him on the stage is supposedly watching Mick Jagger (talks about Jack Flash sat on a candlestick). 8 miles high, song you recently listened to. For 10 years we've been on our own, that is referencing the time between the "day the music died" and the onset of the Beatles (music really sucked in the early 60's).
My English teacher in 6th grade in 1972 or 73 had the whole class for weeks, talk about every verse and what the lyrics meant...Man I was lucky to have those days.
1972 , seventh grade we had a substitute teacher Sam Sambetaro , he left teaching to join the Peace Corps . He played this song every day for a week in class , we studied the lyrics and their meaning . Thirty years later at a class reunion , the entire class sang this song without lyric sheets and no background music . We didn't miss a word or a beat .
When this song came out, it was played at least 2xs an hour on the radio. Everybody analyzed the lyrics and memorized the words. To this day, as you played this, I sang along word for word. It’s imbedded in my brain
Unfortunately, despite it being a fantastic song, it was so overplayed that I will never get over an instinctive aversion to it. This might be the first time in decades that I've heard the song and almost enjoyed it :-)
This was the Bohemian Rhapsody of from the 70's into the 90's. Like they said, it sounds like a bar song. Whenever it came on the radio, people stopped what they were doing and sang along. Even though Bohemian Rhapsody came out only four years later and was a big hit when it came out, it didn't supplant American Pie as the sing-along song until the '90's (Thanks, Wayne). Because of that, you really don't hear American Pie much anymore. A truly forgotten classic.
Us old folks are sitting here listening thinking - should we tell these kids dissertations have been written about these lyrics? Or let them blunder into the deep water just like we did?
Also "can't remember if I cried when I read about his widowed bride" was a reference to Buddy Holly's wife finding out about the plane crash on the news and how it traumatized her. Because of that ever since next of kin must be informed before the news can broadcast a tragedy if possible. Also if you enjoy a story telling song you should give the "wreck of the Edmund Fitzgereld" By Gordon Lightfoot a run. It's haunting.
@@MyNameIsBucket Storytelling songs were the strong point of the singer/songwriter group. Anything from Dylan's North Country Blues to Bob Seger's Turn the Page, it's a mighty collection of riches.
@@sallyphillips9175 Today media moves so fast it's nearly impossible but technically any media not waiting for next of kin being informed is breaking American law but I doubt they care over ratings
This is a song that ALWAYS brings tears to my eyes. My sister was killed in a car accident. She was 17, I was 16. She is my "bye, bye Miss American Pie". I can listen to this song now. It's her song.
Begins with the plane crash, covers 50's rock, Dylan, The Beatles, the Byrds, Woodstock, Kent State, Man landing on the moon, Stones at Altamont, Janis Joplin, so much, so great.
@@designstudio8013 I'm sorry, but you obviously don't have a CLUE about the History of music and entertainment that is spoken of in this song - IF you truly believe that! It's a shame that you aren't able to fathom anything deeper than face value, as SO MUCH of music is much deeper than face value! There is a richness and a social commentary that you'll never be able to understand. But you actually have to be able to take the time to consider what/who is mentioned in the song. (Or take the time to look up things that have been written about it.) James Dean, Helter Skelter, Sargeant Pepper (the Marching Band), Lost in Space. And SO MUCH MORE! But...your loss!
This song is criminally underrated in my opinion...it still gets a lot of respect but not as much as it deserves, it truly is a songwriting masterpiece. Just how he includes the history of the music back then as well as the pop culture references it includes, all while being somber but yet upbeat and catchy. Don McLean is no joke. He didn't have too many big songs but the dude is an incredible songwriter
One of the best rock songs EVER, no question! The problem is this modern world, it's 'too long' and you have to listen the same way you read a novel, and know history - - - sad.
I wouldn't say that. When it came out, it was constantly on the radio. After a few months, I hated it. Then after a hiatus of10 years or so, I listened to it again and appreciated it. Vincent is still my favourite song of his.
"And the three men I admire most, the father , son , and the holy ghost, they caught the last train for the coast, the day the music died" A catholic reference. The father was the Big Bopper (he was married and had kids) The son would be Richie Valens, he was the youngest at 17 years old (they sent his body to California -the coast- on a train, the other two were sent to texas via train)... and the Holy Ghost would be Buddy Holly, he was an amazing (almost Holy.. or Holly) song writer, he had also been married for over a year but had no children, his wife was pregnant but had a miscarriage after seeing on the news he had died. A law was passed preventing the media to release names of people who have died unless the family was first notified because of the miscarriage. The Big Bopper is credited for making the first music video and coming up with the idea btw. Richie Valens was the first Mexican American Rock Super Star at a time when the US and Mexican Government had all these tensions surrounding amongst other things, food grower strikes and mexican racism on the rise in Hollywood movies. One of the reasons why Hollywood made the Magnificent Seven in Mexico the same year in order to ease tensions and possible riots in Texas/Cali.
I've heard that the three men - - - Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, are JFK, RFK, and MLK, respectively. Just like the song is about more than "that plane crash", it's also reflecting on the 3 tragic assassinations that devastated the US. It's all open to interpretation though.
The Father Neal Cassidy, the Son Kerouac (Kerouac wrote in "Visions of Cody" he thought of Cassidy as a father figure), and the Holy Ghost is Ginsberg.
The song is "flashes" of the 60's, starting with the death of Buddy Holly in a plane crash - the day the music died. After that you get references to Elvis (The King), Dylan (The Jester), JFK & Jackie (The King and Queen)?, The Beatles, The Stones, The Byrds ("Eight Miles High"), Janis Joplin ("A Girl Who Sang the Blues"), others?. Lots of theories about the meanings of the verses. Master song writing in that it has kept people thinking for the better part of 5 decades with its creative, cryptic lyricism.
I also believe that Lenin is actually Lennon and Marx is Groucho, not Karl, as his first autobiography was realeased around that time. I love how purely allegorical the song is.
@@matthintz9468 Over the years there have been countless diagnostics of the lyrics of the song. Some I guess probably very true and others are just guesses or meanings that the person who diagnosed them would like them to be. Why can't the song just "be", it is a great song.
It is my understanding that this song expresses Don's motivations for stepping away from rock 'n roll and returning to the folk end of the music spectrum.
There's no nobody without Buddy Holly. If he hadn't died, he'd be the King of Rock n' Roll today. He wrote and recorded so much music he put out new albums every year for a decade after his death.
"I met a girl that sang the Blues..." He's talking about Janis. The Joker is Bob Dylan, the King is Elvis. You can go through this song for years and hear something new.
Don McLean being a folkie, the king and Queen were more likely Pete Seeger and Joni Mitchell, who were the headliners at the ‘65 Woodstock Folk Festival where Dylan showed up with an electric guitar and got booed off the stage.
@@LeChaunce Newport Folk Fest, not Woodstock. Yeah, Don was a folkie, but this song is about rock and roll, so I would think the King and Queen would be someone else--like Elvis or Little Richard, who both claimed that title (not to mention Jerry Lee). But an interesting idea, will have to give it more thought.
I was in junior high when this song came out, and everyone knew the song by heart. My history teacher at the time loved this song and assigned a class project to go line-by-line thru the song and explain what each line meant. So yeah, this song means a lot to me. Also, Andy and Alex, great reaction and commentary.
Feb 3, 1959, the day the music died, Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. Richardson (the big bopper) died in a plane crash. Waylon Jennings who at that time played guitar for Buddy Holly was supposed to be on the plane but gave up his seat to the Big Bopper because the Bopper was fighting the flu. The widowed bride was Buddy Holly's wife. They had only been married 6 months. She was pregnant but lost the baby after hearing about his death. The girl who played the blues was Janis Joplin. This song covered events of the 60s. Another good Don McClean song is Vincent.
How powerful is this song? When I saw that you had chosen it, a huge smile crossed my face and yet, before the song was even finished, I was in tears. Now THAT, gents, is magical. When this came out in 72, I was too young to know about what he was singing about but I remember singing along to it as a very small boy. This is a true classic and forever timeless. You may want to check out “Vincent”, or what a lot of people call Starry, Starry Night”, a song he wrote about Vincent Van Gogh. Again, incredibly powerful. So powerful, in fact, that I named my child after it, and like magic, my child grew up with very similar emotional challenges as Van Gogh. Another song that makes me crumble. American Pie just might be your VERY best reaction. Thank you!
@@TwelveDeck I know. I think I'm mostly amazed how caught off guard I’m getting. Ten years ago, all my millennial nieces and nephews knew American Pie, in fact a few knew all the words. I guess with each passing decade more and more things are slipping into obscurity.
Born in 64. My parents explained the song. One of the most powerful songs ever written. References to the Beatles and stones and jagger. Simply impeccable song
A tragic ending for 3 of Rock and Rolls biggest stars. Don McLean wrote this song to pay homage to Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper, and Ritchie Valens, whom along with the pilot of the small aircraft all perished in Iowa on February 3rd, 1959. A very sad day for Rock and Roll. Don had been a teenager at the time. Years later he wrote this song to explain the heartache and shock that he and his peers had felt. Good job Andy and Alex. You are right, McLean was quite the storyteller...phenomenal. cheers!🥃🥃❤
Guys, there’s an entire cultural history textbook embedded in this song’s lyrics. Everything from Buddy Holly to Bob Dylan to Vietnam and the deflation of the myth of American righteousness from the 1950’s. One of the best songs ever written.
... which, in turn, is a line that Buddy Holly took from John Wayne -- it was spoken several times by Wayne's character Ethan Edwards in the film *The Searchers*. "That'll Be the Day" is one of those songs in which the songwriters (Holly and Crickets' drummer Jerry Allison) started with the title, and went from there.
I would LOVE to see A&A do Buddy Holly. He was an astonishing songwriter. Paul McCartney is so in love with Buddy Holly, he bought his song catalog. On the only Blind Faith album, they did a cover of Well All Right, which is my favorite Buddy Holly song.
Santana's great Latin rock cover in `78 (a big hit for him) had a little more fire than Blind Faith's treatment of this great song. But I'd have Stevie Winwood's voice any day.
THIS was the song of a generation! At first we just liked the catchy music, but then we delved into the lyrics and discovered what he was singing about. Wow, just wow! Huge memories of my high school sweetheart Susie (wonder how she is now?) and me driving down back country dirt roads in my parents' 73 Dodge Dart with this blasting on the AM radio. Loved your reaction.
Right on point. Those of us old enough to remember it coming out remember what an impact it had. It wasn't a song that came and went. It's a song that came and stayed.
OMG, my first car was a Dodge Dart that my parents gave me in ‘75. Interesting that you are missing “Susie “ while one of Buddy Holly’s most famous songs was “Susie-Q”!
What we are saying is that this song is a phenomenon that cannot be experienced by just listening to the song, because the experience is also composed of the endless speculation about the lyrics and the meaning of the song. And also because the experience was about a time and place in the 70's that cannot be replicated today, but rewards all who dig deep and enjoy the phenomenon to this day.
"let's check out the lyrics quickly" lol they have been analysed for years and are very subjective. This is not songwriting, this is pure poetry sang to beautiful melodies. Please check out "Vincent (starry, starry night) " his tribute to the artist Vincent Van Gogh. Also a great song is "La Bamba" by Ritchie Valens, who died in the same plane crash as Buddy Holly. Ritchie was only 17 and tragically had a promising career taken away
DM does a great version of Roy Orbison's "Crying" too. Orbison's another one they ought to check out, he was phenominal and that voice was something else.
@@davidmonypeny5734 And between Orbison new (and long overdue), Petty, Jeff Lynne (E.L.O.), and I have to assume some familiarity with the Beatles they only have to hit up some Bob Dylan before they've touched on every member of The Traveling Wilbury's. Who as a group are also absolutely high on the list of must-listens. "Heading for the Light", "End of the Line", "Last Night", "Rattled" ...
"This is not songwriting, this is pure poetry sang to beautiful melodies." not to be the pedantic douche that i am.....but pure poetry sang to beautiful melodies is literally the definition of songwriting.....
This song is what you might call now a days an Easter egg hunt chronicling key moments in rock & roll and America from Buddy Holly through the early 70's. Omg the serious discussions that took place breaking down the lyrics of this song. There were radio documentaries devoted to it. Bod Dylan, John Lennon, Rolling Stones tragedy at Altamont, Beatles, Sgt. Peppers, Janis Joplin ("I meant a girl who sang the blues and asked her for some happy news"), political assassination's of the 60's, it's all there. It was/is a brilliant song. A masterpiece. Was not expecting this. Glad you guys got to experience it.
@@Sotto_ it does and beyond, but it's pretty in your face, lacking the beautiful enigmatic prose of Don Mclean. Btw, big fan of Billy Joel here. Might be time for the boys to discover his treasure trove of brilliant classic American rock storytelling.
@@flubblert 100%. Joel does not compare to MacLean's lyric writing style. Don purposefully wrote American Pie as cryptic allusions to events that shaped rock'n'roll history, and that is a lot of the appeal of the song. Billy wrote his song as a drect chronology of the cold war years. Still interesting from a historic perspective, but not as challenging to decipher. Personally I prefer Maclean's style, but Joel's is valid in it's own right. You wonder if Joel got some inspiration from Maclean for his song.
American Pie is one of the songs that when it’s on you get quiet and listen, or sing along, or maybe shed a tear because of wonderful memories it may invoke. Maybe all the above but you never never skip it. Excellent choice boys.
This song was a musical treatise about American music, politics, society, and religion back our the day, wrapped up inside of a beautiful ballad. It always makes me feel nostalgic with a bit of melancholy.
This song has always been perfection, it paints going from a simpler time to then the crash, transitioning to a more complex world; the loss of innocence.
Fun Fact: McLean's home was New Rochelle, which did indeed feature a bar called "The Levee." Allegedly, this bar shut down or "went dry," causing patrons to drive across the river to Rye, New York.
Rye, NY is a few towns away from New Rochelle, NY but there's no real river between them. they're both in Westchester County. I have heard that New Rochelle did have a music store that (like many back then) used to let patrons listen to music in listening booths before selecting something to purchase, but that practice ended, for some reason. lack or staffing? loss prevention? disgust with hippies? shrink-wrap? I dunno.
An interesting fact about Don McLean: the song "Killing Me Softly with His Song" was written about Don McLean after Lori Lieberman saw Don McLean in concert in 1971.
just read this, don't want to confuse about the author, Gimbel and Fox wrote the song after speaking with Lori Lieberman and her experience seeing Don McLean for the first time. Her words describing him gave them the idea....
Don McLean was interviewed numerous times about the meaning of the song; identities of the jester, the king, the girl who sang the blues, etc... After answering such questions numerous times over the years one later interviewer asked what the song meant to him. His reply; "It means I don't have to work anymore." Also at a time when 3 and a 1/2 minutes was the nominal song length for radio airtime at 8 and 1/2 minutes this song played two to three times a day over numerous stations nationwide for over a year, and was so revered, I don't think it was ever edited or cut short. It's kind of a call to worship for rock and rollers.
If you were out cruising, but pulled up to your house...you never got out..you sat and sang the whole thing first!! I was at Fremont Street one time, they played this and ran psychedelic lights on the canopy. Almost every single person, me included, stopped and sang the whole thing. It was awesome!!
"Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" by Gordon Lightfoot is another iconic story-telling song that will give you goosebumps, literally. Happy Holidays Gentleman.
I lived on Lake Erie (Cleveland) and it always brings a tear to my eye. I understand the which of November and the gales the are the harbingers of winter.
The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald is a beatiful but haunting memorial to the men that died. Another memorial song which is good is Ohio by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young remembering the young people gunned down at Kent State University.
The day it died for me was 8th December 1980. I have never got over it and at my advanced age I now know that never will. 4 days after my 19th birthday. I cried for a year. I still do.
Got teary when I saw that you two gents were going to react to this song. This song has so many references (such as the girl who sang the blues was Janis Joplin) and so well written that it should be studied in a classroom. I remember this song being sung when John Lennon was killed. 💔 Singing it brought us all together.
The day music died references, as you said, the death of Buddy Holly, as well as Richie Valens and the Big Bopper (JP Richardson) in a plane crash in 1959 when McLean was a kid. There are also references to Dylan (the Jester) stealing the crown from the king, Elvis, the Byrds eight miles high and falling fast), the Beatles ( Lennon read a book on Marx, Helter Skelter in the summer swelter, the Sergeants) the Stones (who McLean really despised--no angel born in hell could break that Satan spell, etc) and Janis Joplin (I met a girl who sang the blues). You really need to look up the many allusions in song as there are several excellent analyses of what is one of the greatest compositions ever.
If I'm not mistaken, the 'no angel born in hell...' line refers to the 'Stones Altamont concert where the Hell's Angels, who were providing security, killed a fan during the song 'Sympathy For The Devil.'
No angel born in Hell could break that Satan's spell. Reference to the Stones' song Sympathy for the Devil and their use of Hell's Angels as security at a large outdoor concert in Altamont, California where four concertgoers were killed. One was stqbbed to death near the stage by a Hells Angel..
And the man who was killed had a loaded gun. He was waving it in the air about 50 feet in front of where the Rolling Stones were playing. Could have been even weirder.
@@VinE83656 Yep. They Grateful Dead pulled out b/c they saw shit going bad. They knew the Angels and how to work with them. Jagger didn't. The Angels were not professional security. Professional security knows how to watch people and possibly confiscate weapons. They know how to defuse a situation. The Angels were also drinking which didn't help. Professional security doesn't drink on the job. I blame Jagger.
I agree with all of the above. This is a song about the death of the 1960s Hippie Optimism. Welcome to the 1970s (the decade I grew-up in) Disco, polyester, but still some kick-ass Rock and Roll
Oh please, let's not. He was a mediocre and sappy singer who wrote mediocre and sappy songs. "Peace Train"? Right. "Father and Son" is, for me, the epitome of a not-very-gifted songwriter trying to be profound. In my opinion, the material of Cat Stevens deserves a special place in history directly adjacent to the work of Kahlil Gibran.
This song was SO popular when it came out. A friend of mine was driving in his car and this song came on his radio. Having heard it enough he went to another station and it was playing there too. So he went to a third station and, yep, it was playing there, too. Great song isn't it? Good reaction.
This song still holds up well after 50 years. McLean was and is an amazing song writer. He deserves all the acclaim he received for it back then, and now.
This song was playing at every house party in the 70s!! I'm so happy you listened and loved. This one is part of every boomer's teen years. Thanks guys!
This song is just incredible, one of the greatest songs of the century. It mixes a bit of Don Maclean's own history, to the events that unfolded during a 12 year period between the plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Richie Valens & The Big Bopper (the day the music died), and how this accident started an era that brought the end of innocence to him and to large part of the American society of the time (in his view). He starts with some teenage love deception and then it gets serious. He talks about lots of singers and groups such as Elvis (the King), Bob Dylan (the Jester), the Rolling Stones and the Beatles, not always being nice to them, with the backdrop of 60s, Kennedy murder (The courtroom was adjourned), Vietnam war ("singing this will be the day that I die"), Crimes committed in the name of the Beatles (Helter skelter in a summer swelter) and so much more. It mixes his own feeling with the direction of music (apparently going away from his dream 50s rock'n'roll into a direction he didn't like) with the troubles on the American society. The loss of innocence is so well represented by the refrain, based on the 50s commercials from Chevrolet, but this time, he "Drove my Chevy to the levee, but the levee was dry". It is a song worth interpreting every verse (and there is a lot of material if you search the Internet) and once you understand it, what is a great song becomes a work of universal art.
This song was so iconic - it touched the whole nation back in the early 70s - in 2015 Don McLean auctioned his original 16 page manuscript he created to develop this song for $1.2 million.
Hey guys. This song is a history of America in a certain era and also of music specifically. Dive into what some of the meanings are. The Jester refers to Bob Dylan, who was supposed to appear in a big outdoor music festival/concert I think in Central Park???? He had a motorcycle accident and couldn't perform. Thus the part "the jester on the sidelines in a cast. Most of the references to satan and the devil were about Jagger and the Stones. Where he sang I met a girl who sang the blues he is talking about Janis Joplin. The 3 stars who died in that crash were Buddy Holly (who was an innovator in Rock n roll, Richie Valens, and a Big Time DJ named the Big Bopper. I think it was Richie Valens who wasn't originally going to be on that plane, but he was sick and didn't want to ride the bus so he paid another guy a few bucks for his seat. That guy was Country Music Hall of Famer Waylon Jennings. The history and story of the song deserve a deep dive. There are vids explaining some of it, though Don McLean is always very cryptic about things. Check out his songs Vincent and And I love you so. Enjoy.
That plane crashed while traveling to my home town - Moorhead, MN - to play at the Armory. I was too young to know about it until recently. A tragic end to talented musicians in the prime of their lives.
The angels born in hell were the hells angels who worked security for the concert in altemont (probably wrong spelling) The Rolling Stones were on stage and “the flames climbed high into the night” is in reference to the man the hells angels killed who had a gun who was trying to kill Mick Jagger. So many references in this song it’s hard to pick them all out.
The reference to the devil refers to the incidence when the 18-years old black Meredith Hunter was killed by members of the Hells Angels, who were responsible for security at the concert, at the Altamont Free concert on Dec 6th 1969.
Valens didn't pay for the seat. Holly flipped a coin to decide who got the seat Waylon or Valens. Valens won ... or maybe it can be said ... lost. I do know that Waylon said in an interview that coin toss haunted him for years.
Just watched this reaction and after seeing nearly 4000 comments, it shows the impact this song has and continues to have, on people regardless of what generation you associate with. Thanks for this channel guys, as a 50+ year old music lover, it’s nice to see folks go back and experience great songs for the first time. I have to be honest, when I first ran across you both, I thought it was a couple, pretentious guys with a channel but after finishing the video I realized I jumped the gun and actually have learned to appreciate music more by listening more and picking up mixing and production and layering techniques that have been done to songs I’ve heard for decades. Keep up the great work, I look forward to you both doing this for a long time. Music will always be subjective but at the same time if it brings out a feeling or emotion, then the writer/singer/musician did exactly what they were supposed to do! Love the channel.
![BOWKYLION - วิงวอน (ex-change) [Official MV]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/cLdnZWDaO-w/mqdefault.jpg)
Hey guys! We loved this song so much, great way to start off the week!! What’s next for us to hit?! 🙌🏻🔥
If you wanna go 50/early you MUST do Remember/Walkin in the Sand by The Shangri La's, then listen to the Aerosmith version for a cruel joke.
He had one other hit called " Vincent."
If you're going to do singer songwriter stuff..do some Carly Simon🎼🎼🎤 "Your So Vain"
This song takes you on a Journey we used to sing this at Midnight.... At a bar I went to in college 🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲
“Vincent”is wonderful and heartbreaking.
@@peterquinones3522 Great suggestion Peter!
How many people watching know every word and were singing along the entire video?
Me!
Me
Even now I miss words, but this was my best sing-along yet!
It came on the radio when I was getting a tattoo. Not only did I remember all the words, but I also never missed a beat! Got a round of applause from the receptionist at the end!
Not singing, but this song plays in my head quite frequently, one of my favorites.
The jester is Bob Dylan, The Sergeants are the Beatles, Jack Flash is Jagger, the girl that sang the blues was Janis ... etcetera... there's a ton of references to the history of rock. It's like a song you'd sing at a wake for rock and roll
I never really cared for the bit about Jagger at Altamont. “As I watched him on the stage, my hands clenched up in fists of rage.” As if Jagger wasn’t there trying to calm people the fuck down the whole time. OK yeah, using drunk ass Hells Angels as security was an extremely boneheaded idea, but it wasn’t done with any kind of malice or “Satanic” intent. It was just a dumb rock group making a bad decision. If he wanted to properly criticize his peers in the rock industry for their apathy, he could’ve taken a page out of Peter Paul and Mary‘s book and done it more like their song “I dig rock ‘n’ roll music.“ The bit about Janis Joplin just smiling and turning away is a much better line. But there’s too much creepy Jesus shit injected into this song overall. He’s also pining for a time of innocence that never was, suggesting that “the music died” along with the innocence of his generation when that plane crashed. It’s actually pretty fucking arrogant when you stop to think about it. Brilliantly crafted lyrics and all, I see very little self-reflection from Mr. McLean in them besides “things were better back then.” Okay, Boomer.
@@jayburdification The satanic stuff was a play on the Stones His Satanic Majesty's Request album and the song Sympathy for the Devil.
HEY HEY MY MY AUTOTUNED POP RAP SUX & w/ kids like A&A R&R MAY JUST NEVER DIE!
@@jayburdification But the Stones were always perceived as the "bad" boys to the Beatles' "good" boys, long before McClean came along.
@@jayburdification that rage could have been aimed at the hell's angels who pretty much ruined the night for everybody.
When Don McLean is asked what American Pie really means he likes to reply, “It means I never need to work again.”
☮️♥️♾️
No, that was his response to the same question about the Madonna cover of this in the mid/late 1990's
@@olabergvall3154 It was just a wee joke Ola 🤟🏼
@@mikeymckinnon5778 fair enough buddy
@@olabergvall3154 🙌🏻
Friends, I was in Vietnam in 1971 with the Airborne Infantry. On the rare occasion we were given a few days-off they let us decompress and left us pretty much alone. This song was screamed from the throats of 120 19 year-olds “ this will be the day I die”. Not great times, too close to the truth. We were all resigned to our fates.
Still makes me cry.
Thank you for your service ❤️
What company were you with??
@@dammitmandy1166 / proud to say I was a member of Alpha Co. 2/502 101st Airborne Division, Camp Eagle South Vietnam Thanks for asking. Peace
@@robertmills2375 thanks for your service. My dad was 1/502 Co D. I think he was there at the same time. Until they were blown up… if u ever get the chance, Mike Machine Gun Kelly (RIP) did some beautiful drawings of them. You can Google them.
Thank you for your service. May the lord bless you.
A cryptic history of rock and roll embedded in the lyrics. This song was huge when it came out, you couldn't escape it. Lol. His song Starry Starry Night about Vincent Van Gogh is excellent and haunting.
"You couldn't escape it" is absolutely true. Lol. After 6,000,000 listens, it's lost its appeal for me. But, it's a good song with lots of rock 'n' roll history.
Song is known as Vincent in the UK. From the same album as American Pie
@@iancarr8682 probably here in the US too. I think the full title is Vincent (Starry Starry Night).
So is The Grave. A song about a young soldier dying in WWI
It is known as Vincent in the US as well.
“Let’s get into the lyrics really fast” may in this context be the funniest line you’ve ever said.
That was going to be my comment exactly. 🙂👍
Yeah, I chuckled at that, too. Like, you could have an hour spent to delve into the lyrics, and still miss things. It's a very meaning-dense song.
All of the lyrics have multiple meanings it's the most amazing piece of songwriting in the history of songwriting literally every time you hear it you can hear something that you didn't hear before.
We've all been trying to figure out these lyrics since it came out
Then zip through Hotel California ...
The day the music died is about the 1959 airplane crash that killed Richie Valens, The Big Bopper and Buddy Holly. Masterpiece!!!
Hm 1953 look it up
@@joeteeter 1959. You look it up. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddy_Holly
Yes. But it was the tragic death of Buddy Holly that was the focus of that singular verse. He began the lyrics with him in mind, but that's it. The song itself was about America. Don McLean would not explain much more than that. He even penned a letter to fans back in 1993 explaining that he wouldn't, and why.
@@realPenrodPooch Exactly. The line "I can't remember if I cried when I read about his widowed bride" was a reference to Buddy Holly's wife Maria Elena. They had been married for less than six months when his plane crashed. In those days the media did not wait until family had been notified before going public with news of someone's death; when Maria Elena, newly pregnant, heard that her husband had died in a plane crash, she miscarried.
Incidentally, Don McLean dedicated the *American Pie* album to the memory of Buddy Holly. He was more than worthy of the honor, because Buddy Holly is one of the greatest and most important songwriters and recording artists in the entire history of rock'n'roll. John Lennon and Paul McCartney idolized him; Lennon named his band the Beatles because Holly's band had been called the Crickets. The Hollies named themselves after Buddy Holly. Mick Jagger saw Holly play in London when Jagger was still a kid; Keith Richards unabashedly says that he learned how to play guitar by playing along to Holly's and Chuck Berry's records, and the Rolling Stones recorded Holly's "Not Fade Away" as one of their earliest singles. Holly pioneered double-tracking, helped spearhead the movement of recording artists writing their own material, made the Fender Stratocaster the cool guitar that every aspiring guitarist wanted to play, and his and the Crickets' template of two guitarists, a bassist, and a drummer became a standard rock'n'roll template. Like the music of Chuck Berry, Elvis, Little Richard, Bo Diddley, the Everly Brothers, and Jerry Lee Lewis, Holly's music is a thread that runs through modern music right down to this day.
And yet when he died in that plane crash in an Iowa cornfield on February 3, 1959 he was still only 22 years old.
I was literally just telling my 6 year old about this plane crash yesterday. Crazy that Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper weren't even supposed be on the damn plane in the first place.
My sister and I had a volatile relationship, but one time, when I was driving her somewhere, this came on the radio and she and I sang every word together... a few minutes of togetherness. She died before the year was out. Singing this song with her is the best memory of my sister ever.
❤
I'm so sorry for your loss.
I'm so glad that you have that - hugs
One night in 1994, I was in a tiny, dingy bar in Scotland. A well-lubed singer with a guitar played this song and _everyone_ in sang along....every single word. I was blown away. Welcome to our mental world, young Jedis.
It’s like “Bohemian Rhapsody” is now.
I was in a bar in Munich in the early '90s when "American Pie" started playing on the jukebox. Everybody in the bar stopped talking and sang along. It was magical, and, to an American like me, totally unexpected.
I can totally relate to this. American Pie is one of the few songs out there where I always feel a strong, innate urge to sing along, from start to finish. A masterpiece.
When Johnny Cash heard that "American Pie" didn't win Song of the Year, Cash said to Don McLean, "DON YOU GOT ROBBED!"
Who did win that year?
Since nobody in the first 100 or so comments said it, I will: "Helter Skelter in the summer swelter" is a reference to Charles Manson and the Manson Family murders (they wrote Helter Skelter on the wall in blood; their own reference to the Beatles song).
Also, Eight Miles High...
Yes, that is correct. You heard right. Very dark, but not only is it a banging song all round, it is like a history lesson too.
We used to drive by the driveway to The Tate house as teens and freak out
Manson believed the Beatles were sending him messages in the lyrics to their songs; _Helter skelter_ has lyrics that he misunderstood: 'Helter skelter coming down fast, coming down fast'. He wasn't smart enough to know that a Helter skelter is what Americans call a tornado ride. (Source: Vincent Bugliosi's book about the trial.)
@@ladyca8366
That is a reference to a Byrds song.... it is actually about a plane trip to England
The song is FILLED with references to all the various events. Every verse is a reference. It's an amazing reflection on a long period in our pop culture.
Not to mention every person talked about is a reference to a real person... Usually or maybe all a music artist... Im going by memory so help me out if im wrong... But the jester was... Bob Dylan I think... I never looked it up but someone correct me if im wrong...
Ya... I just had to scroll thru the comments a little further... A few people a month ago made the same comments and went further... At least I got it right... Lol
The girl who sang the blues was Janis Joplin.
All in one place, a generation lost in space was Woodstock
As I watched him on the stage, my hands were clenched in fists of rage was Altamont.
@@owenkeenan442 Jack flash was jagger.... the devil was the Hell's Angel's.
Some feel A. Pie was his best song, and most agree. For me, “Vincent” (van Gogh) is his best work and deserves a listen, if not a reaction.
"Castles in the Air" is another good one.
Completely agree.
And have something handy to wipe your eyes with, it gets dusty when you are listening to Vincent.
Vincent is by far my fav
TRUTH!!!
Vincent is brilliant, but this song is sheer genius. I understand personal choice but there are levels to this song that when you read about it and really deep dive into the lyrics and it's meaning it's just pure genius.
I kind of feel like I just witnessed a baptism. Congratulations, Gentlemen.
This was posted on another channel but it is very appropriate for this song and tells all. The song is an absolute masterpiece, written as a tribute to Buddy Holly, but with many references to other artists and events.
The jester is Bob Dylan, and the line "the jester on the sidelines in a cast" refers to the motorcycle accident that halted Dylan's career.
The king is Elvis Presley.
The quartet are the Beatles, and the Park is Candlestick Park, Where they played their final concert(another day the music died)
Jack flash is Mick Jagger, as is Satan (references to the Rolling stones songs, jumping Jack flash, and sympathy for the devil. "No angel born in hell, could break that Satan's spell" refers to a rolling stones concert where some hell's angels bikers stabbed a young concert goer to death.
The girl who sang the blues is Janis Joplin.
The father, son and the holy ghost have 2 references. The first being Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and the big bopper, who all died in the plane crash. The second reference being to Martin Luther King Jr, JFK, and Bobby Kennedy, who were all assassinated in the 60s.
"Helter skelter in the summer swelter" refers to the Charles Manson killings that were inspired by the Beatles song, helter skelter.
The sergeants and the marching band refer to the Vietnam war and protesters.
"And there we were all in one place" refers to Woodstock.
As I said before, the song is an absolute masterpiece
Great breakdown!
Fantastic breakdown, but if I might add one more detail, "a generation lost in space" was about the US-Russian space race.
The Father Son and the Holy Ghost are probably not those examples, it was probably regarding folk singers Woody and Arlo Guthrie as the father and son, or very possibly Crosby Stills and Nash. This verse is related to the Sacred Store where the music wouldn't play, which was during a time when the folk music genre was winding down and electrified music was becoming more popular. Many of the folk singers of the moment were leaving the California hangouts and changing things up to more rock and roll musically. The day the music died in general changes throughout the song, there is a day that it dies in every verse. Miss American Pie is Marilyn Monroe, the birds flying off for the fallout shelter and falling from eight miles high are The Byrds, who's members then scattered and began other careers in music (fallout shelter), which also pertains to the atomic era ending.
The Sergeants refer to the Beatles. "A generation lost in space" refers to Woodstock, implied by the preceding line "And there we all were in one place".
@@donp1964
Everyone who lived through the 1970's can sing every word of this song.
Hell, I’m 18 and I can sing every word.
I'm 29 and have been able to sing every word since I discovered this in my father's collection ❤ he grew up in the 70s ... I'm jealous lol
I was born in 1974 and know every word lol... My mom said when Lucy in the sky with diamonds came on radio i would bang on my highchair tray and kick my legs with pure joy...
I'm 14 and I know all the lyrics. At family events we would all practically yell it 😂 I grew up listen to this song on repeat 🤣
I’m 12
he wrote this song about buddy holly, when he died in a plane crash, along with ritchie valens and the big bopper. buddy was so young and so talented, it was tragic. the song was about the aftermath of that day. if you listen, you can hear references to the beatles, rolling stones,woodstock and altamont.... don's high school years...it was an amazing song. he also wrote a very touching song about vincent van gogh, called 'vincent'.
Yes, and Ritchie Valens was only 17. The Big Bopper, who did Chantilly Lace, was the one with the plane, and he invited Ritchie and Buddy to fly with him. The music that Buddy and Ritchie could have created had they not died on that plane...really makes ya think.
Elvis and Bob Dylan, also. "And while the king was looking down, the jester stole his thorny crown".
Some references.... The girl who sang the blues-Janis Joplin. Lennon read a book of Marx, the marching band was the Beatles. And while I watched him on the stage is supposedly watching Mick Jagger (talks about Jack Flash sat on a candlestick). 8 miles high, song you recently listened to. For 10 years we've been on our own, that is referencing the time between the "day the music died" and the onset of the Beatles (music really sucked in the early 60's).
@@teesiemom Richie Valens was 17, the Big Bopper was 27, and Buddy Holly was only 24.
Wrong its about his father.
My English teacher in 6th grade in 1972 or 73 had the whole class for weeks, talk about every verse and what the lyrics meant...Man I was lucky to have those days.
My English teachers were like that in the 60's and 1970. I loved it ❤️!
Good teacher.
Mine too.
Were we in the same school? My teacher did too.
We did the same thing, only a great teacher would have the insight to teach this. We were very lucky!
1972 , seventh grade we had a substitute teacher Sam Sambetaro , he left teaching to join the Peace Corps . He played this song every day for a week in class , we studied the lyrics and their meaning . Thirty years later at a class reunion , the entire class sang this song without lyric sheets and no background music . We didn't miss a word or a beat .
What a great story! I would bet that teacher wept. And many of the students as well.
Hell, it’s making me tear up just reading it!
Wow! That's some serious power of indoctrination.
This song is a musical history lesson, really.
When this song came out, it was played at least 2xs an hour on the radio. Everybody analyzed the lyrics and memorized the words. To this day, as you played this, I sang along word for word. It’s imbedded in my brain
Unfortunately, despite it being a fantastic song, it was so overplayed that I will never get over an instinctive aversion to it. This might be the first time in decades that I've heard the song and almost enjoyed it :-)
Roe Vega, ditto.
This was the Bohemian Rhapsody of from the 70's into the 90's. Like they said, it sounds like a bar song. Whenever it came on the radio, people stopped what they were doing and sang along. Even though Bohemian Rhapsody came out only four years later and was a big hit when it came out, it didn't supplant American Pie as the sing-along song until the '90's (Thanks, Wayne). Because of that, you really don't hear American Pie much anymore. A truly forgotten classic.
My (then) 4 yr old joined in the chorus from the backseat of my 67 Chevy.
I was surprised as I sang along at how well I remembered the lyrics. Not completely, but better than I would expect.
"Let get into the lyrics real fast..."
40 years later "How'd that work out for you?"
More than forty 1972/74 ????
😂
@@alexandercope more like 50. song was released in 1971
@@SgtSplatter782 yep Oct 24th, 1971 and the "Day the music died" was Feb 3rd, 1959
Us old folks are sitting here listening thinking - should we tell these kids dissertations have been written about these lyrics? Or let them blunder into the deep water just like we did?
Also "can't remember if I cried when I read about his widowed bride" was a reference to Buddy Holly's wife finding out about the plane crash on the news and how it traumatized her. Because of that ever since next of kin must be informed before the news can broadcast a tragedy if possible. Also if you enjoy a story telling song you should give the "wreck of the Edmund Fitzgereld" By Gordon Lightfoot a run. It's haunting.
For storytelling songs, I recommend Richard Thompson's "1952 Vincent Black Lightning".
Yeah I cry every time at the Wreck. 1952 Vincent Black Lightning is another great song, among many in Richard Thompson’s long career
Kobe's family found out on the news.
@@MyNameIsBucket Storytelling songs were the strong point of the singer/songwriter group. Anything from Dylan's North Country Blues to Bob Seger's Turn the Page, it's a mighty collection of riches.
@@sallyphillips9175 Today media moves so fast it's nearly impossible but technically any media not waiting for next of kin being informed is breaking American law but I doubt they care over ratings
This is a song that ALWAYS brings tears to my eyes. My sister was killed in a car accident. She was 17, I was 16. She is my "bye, bye Miss American Pie". I can listen to this song now. It's her song.
I'm sorry for your loss and glad the song can give you comfort.
So sorry for your loss
Begins with the plane crash, covers 50's rock, Dylan, The Beatles, the Byrds, Woodstock, Kent State, Man landing on the moon, Stones at Altamont, Janis Joplin, so much, so great.
Analysis of these lyrics is the definition of. “rabbit hole”. There are websites dedicated to deconstructing the lyrics and their meanings.
My 7th grade English teacher let us spend a semester on it.
Your absolutely right Bro. 😎
@@designstudio8013 I'm sorry, but you obviously don't have a CLUE about the History of music and entertainment that is spoken of in this song - IF you truly believe that! It's a shame that you aren't able to fathom anything deeper than face value, as SO MUCH of music is much deeper than face value! There is a richness and a social commentary that you'll never be able to understand. But you actually have to be able to take the time to consider what/who is mentioned in the song. (Or take the time to look up things that have been written about it.) James Dean, Helter Skelter, Sargeant Pepper (the Marching Band), Lost in Space. And SO MUCH MORE! But...your loss!
@Fred C. Meekins Jr. You're so right. Hours and hours in high school spent on decoding this song.
@@designstudio8013 Don't know who pissed in your corn flakes this morning, but perhaps a switch to decaf might help.
This song is criminally underrated in my opinion...it still gets a lot of respect but not as much as it deserves, it truly is a songwriting masterpiece. Just how he includes the history of the music back then as well as the pop culture references it includes, all while being somber but yet upbeat and catchy. Don McLean is no joke. He didn't have too many big songs but the dude is an incredible songwriter
One of the best rock songs EVER, no question! The problem is this modern world, it's 'too long' and you have to listen the same way you read a novel, and know history - - - sad.
This song was named one of the 5 top songs of the century. You can't get much better than that.
@@cspringer333 Rolling Stone doesn’t have it in in their top 500 if I remember correctly
I wouldn't say that. When it came out, it was constantly on the radio. After a few months, I hated it. Then after a hiatus of10 years or so, I listened to it again and appreciated it. Vincent is still my favourite song of his.
Perhaps, the greatest poem in American history set to the music of rock and roll
absolutely correct so beautiful
Starry, starry night
Paint your palette blue and grey
Look out on a summer's day
With eyes that know the darkness in my soul
Yep, asked for it myself. Such a beautiful song they may cry.
Yes, it's called "Vincent" and I asked for it, too. Gorgeous song.
Fun Fact: That was Tupac's favorite song....
Vincent, brothers A&A
@@2869may I was going to mention that, but I'm not sure if they know who Tupac is! Sigh, getting old stinks.
"And the three men I admire most, the father , son , and the holy ghost, they caught the last train for the coast, the day the music died" A catholic reference. The father was the Big Bopper (he was married and had kids) The son would be Richie Valens, he was the youngest at 17 years old (they sent his body to California -the coast- on a train, the other two were sent to texas via train)... and the Holy Ghost would be Buddy Holly, he was an amazing (almost Holy.. or Holly) song writer, he had also been married for over a year but had no children, his wife was pregnant but had a miscarriage after seeing on the news he had died. A law was passed preventing the media to release names of people who have died unless the family was first notified because of the miscarriage. The Big Bopper is credited for making the first music video and coming up with the idea btw. Richie Valens was the first Mexican American Rock Super Star at a time when the US and Mexican Government had all these tensions surrounding amongst other things, food grower strikes and mexican racism on the rise in Hollywood movies. One of the reasons why Hollywood made the Magnificent Seven in Mexico the same year in order to ease tensions and possible riots in Texas/Cali.
I've heard that the three men - - - Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, are JFK, RFK, and MLK, respectively. Just like the song is about more than "that plane crash", it's also reflecting on the 3 tragic assassinations that devastated the US. It's all open to interpretation though.
@@Skeezer66 that never made any sense.
Another theory I've read is that the 3 are the Crickets, Buddy Holly's band. Lots of cool interpretations for sure.
The Father Neal Cassidy, the Son Kerouac (Kerouac wrote in "Visions of Cody" he thought of Cassidy as a father figure), and the Holy Ghost is Ginsberg.
@@Skeezer66 I remember reading that as well.
The song is "flashes" of the 60's, starting with the death of Buddy Holly in a plane crash - the day the music died. After that you get references to Elvis (The King), Dylan (The Jester), JFK & Jackie (The King and Queen)?, The Beatles, The Stones, The Byrds ("Eight Miles High"), Janis Joplin ("A Girl Who Sang the Blues"), others?. Lots of theories about the meanings of the verses. Master song writing in that it has kept people thinking for the better part of 5 decades with its creative, cryptic lyricism.
I also believe that Lenin is actually Lennon and Marx is Groucho, not Karl, as his first autobiography was realeased around that time. I love how purely allegorical the song is.
@@matthintz9468 Over the years there have been countless diagnostics of the lyrics of the song. Some I guess probably very true and others are just guesses or meanings that the person who diagnosed them would like them to be. Why can't the song just "be", it is a great song.
It is my understanding that this song expresses Don's motivations for stepping away from rock 'n roll and returning to the folk end of the music spectrum.
And “Helter skelter in a summer swelter,” a reference to the Manson murders.
Thanks for picking this apart for us. Wonderful!
A true anthem for those of us who grew up in the 70’s. A tribute to the nostalgia, joys, and angst of the 60’s giving way to the 70’s
Guys. Now. You must dig into Buddy Holly. There is NO Beatles and Rolling Stones without Buddy.
Or don and all those that followed including Elvis Costello
There's no nobody without Buddy Holly. If he hadn't died, he'd be the King of Rock n' Roll today. He wrote and recorded so much music he put out new albums every year for a decade after his death.
@@auckalukaum There’d also be no Buddy without Elvis 😁... and I guess we could go down the line...No Elvis without Chuck Berry, etc....
agree, and Ritchie Valens
Can't forget Chuck Berry, even though he was a bit of a Maniac.
His last album just before he died is really good too.
"I met a girl that sang the Blues..." He's talking about Janis. The Joker is Bob Dylan, the King is Elvis. You can go through this song for years and hear something new.
The Quartet practicing in the park is the Beatles. Jack Flash is the Rolling Stones.
Don McLean being a folkie, the king and Queen were more likely Pete Seeger and Joni Mitchell, who were the headliners at the ‘65 Woodstock Folk Festival where Dylan showed up with an electric guitar and got booed off the stage.
@@LeChaunce Your right, I had forgotten that.
LENNON read a book on Marx
The Sgt's played a marching tune.
- Beatles references
Jack Flash, Angel born in hell
- Stones
@@LeChaunce Newport Folk Fest, not Woodstock. Yeah, Don was a folkie, but this song is about rock and roll, so I would think the King and Queen would be someone else--like Elvis or Little Richard, who both claimed that title (not to mention Jerry Lee). But an interesting idea, will have to give it more thought.
I was in junior high when this song came out, and everyone knew the song by heart. My history teacher at the time loved this song and assigned a class project to go line-by-line thru the song and explain what each line meant. So yeah, this song means a lot to me.
Also, Andy and Alex, great reaction and commentary.
You were a junior in high school, well I was only nine going on 10, you old man, ha ha.
My lit teacher did the same thing.
@@stinkbug4321 He said he was in junior high, not a junior in high school. Older than you, but not by much.
I think all history & English teachers made this song an assignment. LOL
Feb 3, 1959, the day the music died, Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. Richardson (the big bopper) died in a plane crash. Waylon Jennings who at that time played guitar for Buddy Holly was supposed to be on the plane but gave up his seat to the Big Bopper because the Bopper was fighting the flu. The widowed bride was Buddy Holly's wife. They had only been married 6 months. She was pregnant but lost the baby after hearing about his death. The girl who played the blues was Janis Joplin. This song covered events of the 60s. Another good Don McClean song is Vincent.
I'll skip the history lesson, and say that his song about artist Vincent Van Gogh - 'Vincent', is equally brilliant and beautiful! ☮️
wrong song you are thinking of starry starry night
@@dadmateryn8092 Yes sir, the song Starry Starry night is about Vincent Van Gogh
@@dadmateryn8092 Starry starry night is a lyric. Vincent is the title
@@dadmateryn8092 No. Many people refer to it as 'Starry Starry Night' since that's the first and most catchy lyric but it really is titled "Vincent."
It absolutely is. The entire album, in its entirety, is incredible. I also think “Crossroads” was brilliant.
“The 3 men I admired most, the father, son, and Holy Ghost...”
Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, Big Bopper
Also: JFK, RFK, and MLK
The Tragic Trinity.
And the subtly of the religious figures taking the last train for the coast was a reference to a loss of innocence.
@@dustinsutton6166 I always thought it was how he thought the three wouldn't let something like this happen, so he figured they must have left
Not mlk
That’s right.
How powerful is this song? When I saw that you had chosen it, a huge smile crossed my face and yet, before the song was even finished, I was in tears. Now THAT, gents, is magical. When this came out in 72, I was too young to know about what he was singing about but I remember singing along to it as a very small boy. This is a true classic and forever timeless.
You may want to check out “Vincent”, or what a lot of people call Starry, Starry Night”, a song he wrote about Vincent Van Gogh. Again, incredibly powerful. So powerful, in fact, that I named my child after it, and like magic, my child grew up with very similar emotional challenges as Van Gogh. Another song that makes me crumble.
American Pie just might be your VERY best reaction. Thank you!
Released in 1971, hit #1 in 1972. I had to look it up, since I saw him live in '71, and heard that song. Otherwise, I wouldn't have questioned it.
Excellent choice, I said the same thing.
Vincent. His second best song for sure.
"He's providing comfort for everyone who is sharing the same pain" - this about sums it up
RIP your comments section, gents. You're about to get a history lesson.
Thanks for the chuckle.
Word.
hahah I was just thinking this .. everyone draggin out their soap box .. Just enjoy the fact they are enjoying it ..
I don't know, it seems to me A&A have always appreciated learning the history.
@@kevincosta9228 I agree! I just meant they're about to read a lot of it.
I managed a bar in college and this was our “last call” song at 2am. Everyone sang along.
Good insight on your part.
I bars everywhere!
Agreed...go in any bar...put this on...watch what happens
Great call! And incentive that there is time left to start again, everyday of our lives!
I can't believe you never heard this! Vincent is really great off of this album too, although kind of depressing. Still worth a listen.
Another masterpiece.
They're kids. It's an old song. Most of us subscribed to this channel are oldies.
@@TwelveDeck I know. I think I'm mostly amazed how caught off guard I’m getting. Ten years ago, all my millennial nieces and nephews knew American Pie, in fact a few knew all the words. I guess with each passing decade more and more things are slipping into obscurity.
Vincent is one of the most beautiful and saddest songs ever written. Purest poetry, and gorgeous music
Born in 64. My parents explained the song. One of the most powerful songs ever written. References to the Beatles and stones and jagger. Simply impeccable song
Buddy Holly--the real king
Do his song "VINCENT". Super powerful.
Brings tears to my eyes every time I hear it.
One of the most beautiful songs in the English language.
YES! Such a beautiful, sad song.
Vincent is another great song
If you don't cry when you hear Vincent the first time, your soul needs a tune up
A tragic ending for 3 of Rock and Rolls biggest stars. Don McLean wrote this song to pay homage to Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper, and Ritchie Valens, whom along with the pilot of the small aircraft all perished in Iowa on February 3rd, 1959. A very sad day for Rock and Roll. Don had been a teenager at the time. Years later he wrote this song to explain the heartache and shock that he and his peers had felt. Good job Andy and Alex. You are right, McLean was quite the storyteller...phenomenal. cheers!🥃🥃❤
Every word of this is the history of Rock n’ Roll. A masterpiece
Guys, there’s an entire cultural history textbook embedded in this song’s lyrics. Everything from Buddy Holly to Bob Dylan to Vietnam and the deflation of the myth of American righteousness from the 1950’s. One of the best songs ever written.
That line "this'll be the day that I die" on the end of each chorus is basically a quote from a Buddy Holly song, "That'll Be The Day"...
... which, in turn, is a line that Buddy Holly took from John Wayne -- it was spoken several times by Wayne's character Ethan Edwards in the film *The Searchers*. "That'll Be the Day" is one of those songs in which the songwriters (Holly and Crickets' drummer Jerry Allison) started with the title, and went from there.
I would LOVE to see A&A do Buddy Holly. He was an astonishing songwriter. Paul McCartney is so in love with Buddy Holly, he bought his song catalog. On the only Blind Faith album, they did a cover of Well All Right, which is my favorite Buddy Holly song.
@@loosilu I believe the Beatles name was a take on Buddy Holley's band the Crickets.
I can't believe I didnt know that one! Wow. I missed a major reference, and so obvious! Thanks for that.
Santana's great Latin rock cover in `78 (a big hit for him) had a little more fire than Blind Faith's treatment of this great song. But I'd have Stevie Winwood's voice any day.
I still get goosebumps at the end, almost 50 years later.
THIS was the song of a generation! At first we just liked the catchy music, but then we delved into the lyrics and discovered what he was singing about. Wow, just wow! Huge memories of my high school sweetheart Susie (wonder how she is now?) and me driving down back country dirt roads in my parents' 73 Dodge Dart with this blasting on the AM radio. Loved your reaction.
Ah yes...had a 75 Duster...
Right on point. Those of us old enough to remember it coming out remember what an impact it had. It wasn't a song that came and went. It's a song that came and stayed.
@@jazzyboy7784 ours was a Dodge Dart Swinger. Imagine, we considered them "compacts" back then. LOL!
OMG, my first car was a Dodge Dart that my parents gave me in ‘75. Interesting that you are missing “Susie “ while one of Buddy Holly’s most famous songs was “Susie-Q”!
What we are saying is that this song is a phenomenon that cannot be experienced by just listening to the song, because the experience is also composed of the endless speculation about the lyrics and the meaning of the song. And also because the experience was about a time and place in the 70's that cannot be replicated today, but rewards all who dig deep and enjoy the phenomenon to this day.
"let's check out the lyrics quickly" lol they have been analysed for years and are very subjective. This is not songwriting, this is pure poetry sang to beautiful melodies. Please check out "Vincent (starry, starry night) " his tribute to the artist Vincent Van Gogh. Also a great song is "La Bamba" by Ritchie Valens, who died in the same plane crash as Buddy Holly. Ritchie was only 17 and tragically had a promising career taken away
DM does a great version of Roy Orbison's "Crying" too. Orbison's another one they ought to check out, he was phenominal and that voice was something else.
@@davidmonypeny5734 And between Orbison new (and long overdue), Petty, Jeff Lynne (E.L.O.), and I have to assume some familiarity with the Beatles they only have to hit up some Bob Dylan before they've touched on every member of The Traveling Wilbury's. Who as a group are also absolutely high on the list of must-listens. "Heading for the Light", "End of the Line", "Last Night", "Rattled" ...
@@davidmonypeny5734 also McLean's version of Castles in the Air
Yep, lots of fun to argue about over a few beers.
"This is not songwriting, this is pure poetry sang to beautiful melodies."
not to be the pedantic douche that i am.....but pure poetry sang to beautiful melodies is literally the definition of songwriting.....
Reference: "This'll be the day that I die." Buddy Holly's song That'll be the Day.
McLean’s other masterpiece is “Vincent” about Vincent Van Gogh. Check out his painting “Starry Night” before you listen.
This song is what you might call now a days an Easter egg hunt chronicling key moments in rock & roll and America from Buddy Holly through the early 70's. Omg the serious discussions that took place breaking down the lyrics of this song. There were radio documentaries devoted to it. Bod Dylan, John Lennon, Rolling Stones tragedy at Altamont, Beatles, Sgt. Peppers, Janis Joplin ("I meant a girl who sang the blues and asked her for some happy news"), political assassination's of the 60's, it's all there. It was/is a brilliant song. A masterpiece. Was not expecting this. Glad you guys got to experience it.
When you breakdown its lyrics, this song very much captures the zeitgeist of the Baby Boom generation like no other.
@@flubblert on the flip side, We Didn't Start the Fire by Billy Joel chronicles the current events of the cold war beautifully.
@@Sotto_ it does and beyond, but it's pretty in your face, lacking the beautiful enigmatic prose of Don Mclean. Btw, big fan of Billy Joel here. Might be time for the boys to discover his treasure trove of brilliant classic American rock storytelling.
@@flubblert 100%. Joel does not compare to MacLean's lyric writing style. Don purposefully wrote American Pie as cryptic allusions to events that shaped rock'n'roll history, and that is a lot of the appeal of the song. Billy wrote his song as a drect chronology of the cold war years. Still interesting from a historic perspective, but not as challenging to decipher. Personally I prefer Maclean's style, but Joel's is valid in it's own right. You wonder if Joel got some inspiration from Maclean for his song.
Your my favorite reactors. I’m 68, and lived through these times. For 2 very insightful young men, I can’t thank you enough
American Pie is one of the songs that when it’s on you get quiet and listen, or sing along, or maybe shed a tear because of wonderful memories it may invoke. Maybe all the above but you never never skip it. Excellent choice boys.
Amazing music and writing. Just to begin with.
Perfect. Lots of moments in the car over the years, for me, an usually all 3 responses in one sitting.
When this came out everyone made it a point to memorize all the verses. It was iconic. I can still sing 9/10ths of the song over 40yrs later...
There is a small part of my 56 year old brain that is useless for anything else but remembering these lyrics.
The exact same for me lol
You didn't need to make a "point" of memorizing the verses . . . You just DID!!
"Them good old boys drinking whiskey and rye" I think he was talking about you guys. 😁
This song was a musical treatise about American music, politics, society, and religion back our the day, wrapped up inside of a beautiful ballad. It always makes me feel nostalgic with a bit of melancholy.
This song has always been perfection, it paints going from a simpler time to then the crash, transitioning to a more complex world; the loss of innocence.
Sees title: "American Pie" -- sees length: "Only 16 minutes? They're barely going to be able to skim the surface on this one."
Best "last call" song ever.
Yeah, the song is a bit over 8 minutes long. I had the 45 record and it was split in half on side A and B
I’m 73 lived through those times, you guys were spot on. Watching your videos, having flashbacks of my younger days
Fun Fact: McLean's home was New Rochelle, which did indeed feature a bar called "The Levee." Allegedly, this bar shut down or "went dry," causing patrons to drive across the river to Rye, New York.
Thank you for clarifying that! I never understood what he was referring to. We have a bar in Kansas City called the levee
Rye, NY is a few towns away from New Rochelle, NY but there's no real river between them. they're both in Westchester County.
I have heard that New Rochelle did have a music store that (like many back then) used to let patrons listen to music in listening booths before selecting something to purchase, but that practice ended, for some reason. lack or staffing? loss prevention? disgust with hippies? shrink-wrap? I dunno.
The whole song was historical. There are so many references to real people.
Good point. For example, the lyrics “Eight miles high” is a reference to the Byrds song of that name.
@@straycatttt And how about "the jester on the sidelines in a cast". Remember Evel Knieval's failure of one of his stunts?
An interesting fact about Don McLean: the song "Killing Me Softly with His Song" was written about Don McLean after Lori Lieberman saw Don McLean in concert in 1971.
I love the song and didn't know about that fact. Thanks for sharing!
Wow, I love that song by Roberta Flack, never knew it was about Don McLean!
@@777edmatt
It was specifically written about the song “empty chairs”
th-cam.com/video/jtrIc8vq7wU/w-d-xo.html
just read this, don't want to confuse about the author, Gimbel and Fox wrote the song after speaking with Lori Lieberman and her experience seeing Don McLean for the first time. Her words describing him gave them the idea....
Don McLean was interviewed numerous times about the meaning of the song; identities of the jester, the king, the girl who sang the blues, etc... After answering such questions numerous times over the years one later interviewer asked what the song meant to him. His reply; "It means I don't have to work anymore." Also at a time when 3 and a 1/2 minutes was the nominal song length for radio airtime at 8 and 1/2 minutes this song played two to three times a day over numerous stations nationwide for over a year, and was so revered, I don't think it was ever edited or cut short. It's kind of a call to worship for rock and rollers.
If you were out cruising, but pulled up to your house...you never got out..you sat and sang the whole thing first!!
I was at Fremont Street one time, they played this and ran psychedelic lights on the canopy. Almost every single person, me included, stopped and sang the whole thing. It was awesome!!
"Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" by Gordon Lightfoot is another iconic story-telling song that will give you goosebumps, literally.
Happy Holidays Gentleman.
or bring a tear to the eye
Yup.
I lived on Lake Erie (Cleveland) and it always brings a tear to my eye. I understand the which of November and the gales the are the harbingers of winter.
The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald is a beatiful but haunting memorial to the men that died.
Another memorial song which is good is Ohio by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young remembering the young people gunned down at Kent State University.
Oh yes.
One of the most iconic songs ever written. Thanks for your reaction.
The day it died for me was 8th December 1980. I have never got over it and at my advanced age I now know that never will. 4 days after my 19th birthday. I cried for a year. I still do.
Widely regarded as one of the best rock songs of all time.
Got teary when I saw that you two gents were going to react to this song. This song has so many references (such as the girl who sang the blues was Janis Joplin) and so well written that it should be studied in a classroom. I remember this song being sung when John Lennon was killed. 💔 Singing it brought us all together.
Roberta Flack sang about Don McLean in her song "Killing Me Softly." He is one of my all time favorites!
Interesting. I never heard that. A great song.
Never knew thats what Roberta Flacks song was about. Absolutely love Killing me Softly
It's a cover of another singr's song who had a crush on McClean, not Flack.
@@rhwinner Her name is Lori Lieberman.
"Inspired" by his performance of the song "Empty Chairs" at the Troubadour Club in West Hollywood. IMHO, the original is much better.
The day music died references, as you said, the death of Buddy Holly, as well as Richie Valens and the Big Bopper (JP Richardson) in a plane crash in 1959 when McLean was a kid. There are also references to Dylan (the Jester) stealing the crown from the king, Elvis, the Byrds eight miles high and falling fast), the Beatles ( Lennon read a book on Marx, Helter Skelter in the summer swelter, the Sergeants) the Stones (who McLean really despised--no angel born in hell could break that Satan spell, etc) and Janis Joplin (I met a girl who sang the blues). You really need to look up the many allusions in song as there are several excellent analyses of what is one of the greatest compositions ever.
CORRECT! 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Nice quick summary of some phrases
Look it up 1953
If I'm not mistaken, the 'no angel born in hell...' line refers to the 'Stones Altamont concert where the Hell's Angels, who were providing security, killed a fan during the song 'Sympathy For The Devil.'
@@brucebain9194 Yes, regarding the concert and Hell’s Angels. But the stabbing took place while the Stones performed Under My Thumb.
If you take a deep dive into this song, you will learn SO much about both American and music history it will blow your minds.
No angel born in Hell could break that Satan's spell. Reference to the Stones' song Sympathy for the Devil and their use of Hell's Angels as security at a large outdoor concert in Altamont, California where four concertgoers were killed. One was stqbbed to death near the stage by a Hells Angel..
And the man who was killed had a loaded gun. He was waving it in the air about 50 feet in front of where the Rolling Stones were playing. Could have been even weirder.
I think Mary Balin of the Jefferson Airplane was injured as well.
@@VinE83656 Yep. They Grateful Dead pulled out b/c they saw shit going bad. They knew the Angels and how to work with them. Jagger didn't. The Angels were not professional security. Professional security knows how to watch people and possibly confiscate weapons. They know how to defuse a situation. The Angels were also drinking which didn't help. Professional security doesn't drink on the job. I blame Jagger.
I agree with all of the above. This is a song about the death of the 1960s Hippie Optimism. Welcome to the 1970s (the decade I grew-up in) Disco, polyester, but still some kick-ass Rock and Roll
@@VinE83656 He was. He saw a fight in the crowd and jumped down to help and was knocked out by a cue-stick wielding hell's angel.
This opens up the idea of playing Cat Stevens.
I would vote for Foreigner Suite.
Father and Son. Can't wait to see the look on Andy's face when he hears that one
Oh please, let's not.
He was a mediocre and sappy singer who wrote mediocre and sappy songs. "Peace Train"? Right. "Father and Son" is, for me, the epitome of a not-very-gifted songwriter trying to be profound.
In my opinion, the material of Cat Stevens deserves a special place in history directly adjacent to the work of Kahlil Gibran.
yikes, I have issues with him for multiple reasons. He publicly supported the assassination of writer Salman Rushdie.
Or Jim Croce or Harry Chapin. 👍🏻
"Let's get into the lyrics real fast."
lol
We had the greatest music ever as teens in the ‘70’s!
We did. And it was/still is wonderful and amazing and profound and inspiring and brilliant.
Much of it stands the test of time.
YES!!!!!!!!
We really did! 💝
Absolutely!
"Dude this is frickin amazing!"
You ain't just a whistling Dixie!
Love your reaction. Love your channel. Love your song choices.
This song was SO popular when it came out. A friend of mine was driving in his car and this song came on his radio. Having heard it enough he went to another station and it was playing there too. So he went to a third station and, yep, it was playing there, too. Great song isn't it? Good reaction.
“...the lovers cried and the poets dreamed ...” refers to Jim Morrison.
Explain why
This song still holds up well after 50 years. McLean was and is an amazing song writer. He deserves all the acclaim he received for it back then, and now.
This song was playing at every house party in the 70s!! I'm so happy you listened and loved. This one is part of every boomer's teen years. Thanks guys!
This song is just incredible, one of the greatest songs of the century. It mixes a bit of Don Maclean's own history, to the events that unfolded during a 12 year period between the plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Richie Valens & The Big Bopper (the day the music died), and how this accident started an era that brought the end of innocence to him and to large part of the American society of the time (in his view). He starts with some teenage love deception and then it gets serious. He talks about lots of singers and groups such as Elvis (the King), Bob Dylan (the Jester), the Rolling Stones and the Beatles, not always being nice to them, with the backdrop of 60s, Kennedy murder (The courtroom was adjourned), Vietnam war ("singing this will be the day that I die"), Crimes committed in the name of the Beatles (Helter skelter in a summer swelter) and so much more. It mixes his own feeling with the direction of music (apparently going away from his dream 50s rock'n'roll into a direction he didn't like) with the troubles on the American society. The loss of innocence is so well represented by the refrain, based on the 50s commercials from Chevrolet, but this time, he "Drove my Chevy to the levee, but the levee was dry". It is a song worth interpreting every verse (and there is a lot of material if you search the Internet) and once you understand it, what is a great song becomes a work of universal art.
Check out his song "Vincent", about the life of Vincent Van Gogh. One of the most sadly beautiful songs ever written.
Mikey G, I used to play "Vincent" for my English class...Brilliant song...
I love the way the chorus takes on more relevance with every verse that passes.
This song was so iconic - it touched the whole nation back in the early 70s - in 2015 Don McLean auctioned his original 16 page manuscript he created to develop this song for $1.2 million.
Hey guys. This song is a history of America in a certain era and also of music specifically. Dive into what some of the meanings are. The Jester refers to Bob Dylan, who was supposed to appear in a big outdoor music festival/concert I think in Central Park???? He had a motorcycle accident and couldn't perform. Thus the part "the jester on the sidelines in a cast. Most of the references to satan and the devil were about Jagger and the Stones. Where he sang I met a girl who sang the blues he is talking about Janis Joplin. The 3 stars who died in that crash were Buddy Holly (who was an innovator in Rock n roll, Richie Valens, and a Big Time DJ named the Big Bopper. I think it was Richie Valens who wasn't originally going to be on that plane, but he was sick and didn't want to ride the bus so he paid another guy a few bucks for his seat. That guy was Country Music Hall of Famer Waylon Jennings. The history and story of the song deserve a deep dive. There are vids explaining some of it, though Don McLean is always very cryptic about things. Check out his songs Vincent and And I love you so. Enjoy.
I always heard that the girl who sang the blues was Joan Baez but it's all up to interpretation.
That plane crashed while traveling to my home town - Moorhead, MN - to play at the Armory. I was too young to know about it until recently. A tragic end to talented musicians in the prime of their lives.
The angels born in hell were the hells angels who worked security for the concert in altemont (probably wrong spelling) The Rolling Stones were on stage and “the flames climbed high into the night” is in reference to the man the hells angels killed who had a gun who was trying to kill Mick Jagger. So many references in this song it’s hard to pick them all out.
The reference to the devil refers to the incidence when the 18-years old black Meredith Hunter was killed by members of the Hells Angels, who were responsible for security at the concert, at the Altamont Free concert on Dec 6th 1969.
Valens didn't pay for the seat. Holly flipped a coin to decide who got the seat Waylon or Valens. Valens won ... or maybe it can be said ... lost. I do know that Waylon said in an interview that coin toss haunted him for years.
“Auld Land Syne” by Dan Fogelberg is a beautiful story and beautifully performed
"Same Old Lang Syne". Dan Fogelberg is another master wordsmith.
Go-to song when you just need a good cry...and Simon & Garfunkel "Bridge Over Troubled Water"
"Leader of the Band" was also a lyrically brilliant and poignant song by Dan Fogelberg.
Auld Lang Syne is pretty much biographical.
"Part of the Plan' was my favorite Fogelberg song.
Just watched this reaction and after seeing nearly 4000 comments, it shows the impact this song has and continues to have, on people regardless of what generation you associate with. Thanks for this channel guys, as a 50+ year old music lover, it’s nice to see folks go back and experience great songs for the first time. I have to be honest, when I first ran across you both, I thought it was a couple, pretentious guys with a channel but after finishing the video I realized I jumped the gun and actually have learned to appreciate music more by listening more and picking up mixing and production and layering techniques that have been done to songs I’ve heard for decades. Keep up the great work, I look forward to you both doing this for a long time. Music will always be subjective but at the same time if it brings out a feeling or emotion, then the writer/singer/musician did exactly what they were supposed to do! Love the channel.
It's one of those songs, that no matter how long it's been. You always remember the words, when it comes on! 😎✌
"Eight miles high and fallin' fast"....a reference to The Byrds song "Eight Miles High" about the band's return flight to England.
And the fallout shelter is slang for treatment center..
Is it? I didn't know that, I figured it was talking about cold War bunkers but I can see the connection.
I thought it was about the Japanese Air Force attacking Pearl Harbour 🤔
@@uwotm8 More like 10,000 ft than 8 miles.
Back in HS we sang along to this from an 8-track player in a buddy's car. Ah the memories.
The next Don Mclean song should be "Starry Starry Night" bring tissues.
It's actually called "Vincent".
Yes! Vincent is my favorite!!!!!
HUGE sing along song .................. everyone who heard this in 1972 knows the words
Buddy Holly was one of the early pioneers of rock 'n roll. The songs are relatively simple, but still really good. You should do "That'll Be the Day".
A little trivia...The song "Killing Me Softly" is about Don McLean.