American Pie - Don McLean

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Tabbed By J Brown
Full Song 100% Correct


Chords:
           
G       3 2 0 

  
0 0 3
D/F#    2 0 0 2 3 2
Em      0 2 2 0 0 0
Am      0 0 2 2 1 0
C       0 3 2 0 1 0
D       0 0 0 2 3 2
Dsus    0 0 0 2 3 3
D(9)    0 0 0 2 3 0
A7      0 0 2 0 2 0
C/B     0 2 0 0 1 0
Am7     0 0 2 0 1 0

Verse 1/Intro

        
A long, long t

 
ime ago... 
            
I can still re


member 
            
How that music

              
 used to make 

                     
me smile. 
             
   And I knew 

    
if I had my ch

ance 
            
That I could m

           
ake those peop

le dance
            
And, maybe, th

            
ey’d be happy 

             
for a while. 
            
But february m

 
ade me shiver 
            
With every pap

      
er I’d deliver

. 
          
Bad news on th

     
e doorstep; 
             
I couldn’t tak

           
e one more ste

p. 
         
I can’t rememb

     
er if I cried 
             
When I read ab

             
out his widowe

d bride, 
             
But something 

          
touched me dee

 
p inside 
             
The day the mu

     
sic died. 


Chorus

            
So bye-bye, mi

             
ss american pi

  
e. 
             
Drove my chevy

          
 to the levee,

 
             
But the levee 

    
was dry. 
             
And them good 

             
old boys were 

             
drinkin’ whisk

       
ey and rye 
            
Singin’, "this

              
’ll be the day

                
 that I die. 
            
"this’ll be th

              
e day that I d

                 
ie." 


Verse 2

             
        Did yo

              
u write the bo

 
ok of love, 
             
And do you hav

           
e faith in God

   
 above, 
            
        If the

             
 Bible tells y

                
ou so? 
         
Do you believe

      
 in rock ’n ro

ll, 
           
Can music save

   
 your mortal s

oul, 
            
And can you te

            
ach me how to 

              
dance real slo


w? 
            
Well, I know t

              
hat you’re in 

       
love with him 
            
`cause I saw y

              
ou dancin’ in 

    
the gym. 
          
You both kicke

              
d off your sho

 
es. 
             
Man, I dig tho

              
se rhythm and 

  
blues. 
             
I was a lonely

          
 teenage bronc


in’ buck 
             
With a pink ca

              
rnation and a 


pickup truck, 
            
But I knew I w

/  
as out of luck

 
            
The day the mu

            
sic died. 


Chorus
           
I started sing

in’, 
            
bye-bye, miss 

          
american pie. 
             
Drove my chevy

          
 to the levee,

 
             
But the levee 

    
was dry. 
             
And them good 

             
old boys were 

             
drinkin’ whisk

       
ey and rye 
              
And Singin’, "

            
this’ll be the

              
 day that I di

        
e. 
            
"this’ll be th

              
e day that I d

                 
ie." 


Verse 3
             
Now for ten ye

              
ars we’ve been

 
 on our own 
             
And moss grows

           
 fat on a roll


in’ stone,
            
But that’s not

        
 how it used t

o be. 
             
When the jeste

          
r sang for the

       
 king and quee

n, 
           
In a coat he b

              
orrowed from j

 
ames dean 
            
And a voice th

            
at came from y

                
ou and me, 


Verse 4
            
Oh, and while 

              
the king was l

    
ooking down, 
            
The jester sto

       
le his thorny 

crown. 
          
The courtroom 

      
was adjourned;

 
             
No verdict was

 
 returned. 
             
And while Lenn

         
on read a book


 on Marx, 
           
The quartet ke

pt practice in

 the park, 
             
And we sang di

     
rges in the da

rk 
            
The day the mu

               
sic died. 


Chorus

             
        We wer

    
e singing, 
            
bye-bye, miss 

          
american pie. 
             
Drove my chevy

          
 to the levee,

 
             
But the levee 

    
was dry. 
             
And them good 

             
old boys were 

             
drinkin’ whisk

       
ey and rye 
              
And Singin’, "

            
this’ll be the

              
 day that I di

        
e. 
            
"this’ll be th

              
e day that I d

                 
ie." 



Verse 5

             
Helter skelter

      
 in a summer s

welter. 
             
The birds flew

           
 off with a fa

  
llout shelter,

 
            
Eight miles hi

       
gh and falling

 fast. 
          
It landed foul

#           
 on the grass.
           
The players tr

              
ied for a forw

     
ard pass, 
            
With the jeste

             
r on the sidel

            
ines in a cast

         
. 


Verse 6

            
Now the half-t

              
ime air was sw

    
eet perfume 
            
While the serg

              
eants played a

   
 marching tune

. 
          
We all got up 

   
to dance, 
             
Oh, but we nev

           
er got the cha

nce! 
             
As the players

         
 tried to take


 the field; 
             
The marching b

    
and refused to

 yield.
         
Do you recall 

         
what was revea

led 
            
The day the mu

               
sic died? 


Chorus
           
We started sin

ging, 
            
bye-bye, miss 

          
american pie. 
             
Drove my chevy

          
 to the levee,

 
             
But the levee 

    
was dry. 
             
Them good old 

             
boys were drin

             
kin’ whiskey a

   
nd rye 
              
And Singin’, "

            
this’ll be the

              
 day that I di

        
e. 
            
"this’ll be th

              
e day that I d

                 
ie." 


Verse 7
             
Oh, and there 

          
we were all in

 one place, 
          
A generation l


ost in space 
            
With no time l

    
eft to start a

gain. 
              
So come on: ja

          
ck be nimble, 

#     
jack be quick!

 
           
Jack flash sat

              
 on a candlest

 
ick 
            
Cause fire is 

            
the devil’s on

                      
ly friend. 


Verse 8
            
Oh, and as I w

           
atched him on 

the stage 
            
My hands were 

            
clenched in fi

sts of rage. 
          
No angel born 

     
in hell 
             
Could break th

           
at satan’s spe

ll. 
             
And as the fla

              
mes climbed hi

       
gh into the ni

ght 
             
To Fight the s

    
acrificial lit

e, 
         
I saw satan la

  
ughing with de

light 
            
The day the mu

       
sic died 


Chorus
           
He was singing

, 
            
bye-bye, miss 

          
american pie. 
             
Drove my chevy

          
 to the levee,

 
             
But the levee 

    
was dry. 
             
Them good old 

             
boys were drin

             
kin’ whiskey a

   
nd rye 
              
And Singin’, "

            
this’ll be the

              
 day that I di

        
e. 
            
"this’ll be th

              
e day that I d

                
ie." 


Verse 9
         
I met a girl w

     
ho sang the bl

ues 
           
And I asked he

              
r for some hap

     
py news,
            
But she just s

              
miled and turn

                        
ed away. 
         
I went down to

       
 the sacred st

ore 
           
Where I’d hear

           
d the music ye

ars before, 
           
But the man th

              
ere said the m

             
usic wouldn’t 

                 
play. 


Verse 10
            
And in the str

          
eets: the chil

dren screamed,

 
            
The lovers cri

            
ed, and the po

ets dreamed. 
          
But not a word

 
 was spoken; 
             
The church bel

            
ls all were br

oken. 
             
And the three 

        
men I admire m

ost: 
             
The father, so

           
n, and the hol

y ghost, 
             
They caught th

          
e last train f

 
or the coast 
            
The day the mu

sic died. 


Chorus
    
And they were singing, 
            
bye-bye, miss 

          
american pie. 
             
Drove my chevy

          
 to the levee,

 
             
But the levee 

    
was dry. 
             
And Them good 

             
old boys were 

             
drinkin’ whisk

       
ey and rye 
            
Singin’, "this

              
’ll be the day

                
 that I die. 
            
"this’ll be th

              
e day that I d

                
ie." 


Chorus/Outro
           
they were sing

ing, 
            
bye-bye, miss 

          
american pie. 
             
Drove my chevy

          
 to the levee,

 
             
But the levee 

    
was dry. 
             
Them good old 

             
boys were drin

             
kin’ whiskey a

   
nd rye 
             
Singin’, "this

             
’ll be the day

          
 that I die. 
             
"this’ll be th

             
e day that I d

           
ie." 

   

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