song : american pie ( live ) .
artist : don mclean
album : american pie ( 1971 ) .
tempo : allegro .
time : 4/4
tabbed : rikigo
url’s :
tuning : standard .
chords :
eadgbe
G = = = 320003
D/F# = = = 200232
Em7 = = = 020000
Am = = = x02210
C = = = 332010
Em = = = 022000
D = = = xx0232
Dsus4 = = = xx0233
Dsus2 = = = xx0230
G/B = = = x20003
Am7 = = = x02010
D7 = = = xx0212
A7 = = = x02020
intro ( sung with piano only ) :
nc G D/F# Em7
A long , long time ago ,
Am C Em D Dsus4 D Dsus2 D
i can still remember how that music used to make me smile .
G D/F# Em7
and i knew if i had my chance ,
Am C
that i could make those people dance ,
Em C D Dsus4 D Dsus2 D
and maybe they’d be happy for a while .
Em Am Em Am
but february made me shiver , with every paper i’d deliver .
C G/B Am C D
bad news on the doorstep , i couldn’t take one more step .
G D/F# Em Am7 D
i can’t remember if i cried when i read about his widowed bride ,
G D Em
something touched me deep inside .
C D7 G C
the day the music died .
“sing it for us , loud and clear”
chorus 1 :
G C G D
so bye , bye miss american pie ,
G C G D
drove my chevy to the levy but the levy was dry .
G C G D/F#
and them good old boys were drinkin’ whiskey and rye ,
Em A7
singin’ “this will be the day that i die ,
Em D7
this will be the day that i die . ”
verse 1 :
G Am
did you write the book of love ,
C Am
and do you have faith in god above ,
Em D
if the bible tells you so?
G D/F# Em
now do you believe in rock and roll?
Am7 C
can music save your mortal soul?
Em A7 D D7
and can you teach me how to dance real slow?
Em D
well i know that you’re in love with him ,
Em D
’cause i saw you dancin’ in the gym .
C G A7 C D7
you both kicked off your shoes , man i dig those rhythm and blues .
G D/F# Em Am C
i was a lonely teenage broncin’ buck with a pink carnation and a pickup truck .
G D/F# Em C D7 G C G D7
but i knew i was out of luck the day the music died , i started singing’ . . .
chorus 2 :
G C G D
so bye , bye miss american pie .
G C G D
drove my chevy to the levy but the levy was dry .
G C G D
and them good old boys were drinkin’ whiskey and rye .
Em A7
singin’ “this will be the day that i die ,
Em D7
this will be the day that i die . ”
verse 2 :
G Am
now for ten years we’ve been on our own ,
C Am
and moss grows fat on a rolling stone ,
Em D
but that’s not how it used to be .
G D Em
when the jester sang for the king and queen .
Am7 C Em A7 D
in a coat he borrowed from james dean , in a voice that came from you and me .
Em D Em D
and while the king was looking down , the jester stole his thorny crown .
C G A7 C D7
the courtroom was adjourned , no verdict was returned .
G D Em Am C
and while lenin read a book on marx , the quartet practiced in the park .
G D Em C D7 G C G D7
and we sang dirges in the dark , the day the music died , we were singing’ . . .
chorus 3 :
G C G D
so bye , bye miss american pie ,
G C G D
drove my chevy to the levy but the levy was dry .
G C G D
and them good old boys were drinkin’ whiskey and rye .
Em A7
singin’ “this will be the day that i die ,
Em D7
this will be the day that i die . ”
verse 3 :
G Am
helter skelter in a summer swelter ,
C Am
the birds flew off with a fallout shelter ,
Em D
eight miles high and fallin’ fast .
G D Em
it landed foul on the grass ,
Am7 C Em A7 D
the players tried for a forward pass , with the jester on the sidelines in a cast
Em D Em D
now at halftime there was sweet perfume , while sergeants played a marching tune
C G A7 C D7
we all got up to dance , but we never got the chance ,
G D Em Am C
’cause the players tried to take the field , the marching band refused to yield .
G D Em C D7 G C G D7
do you recall what was the feel the day the music died , we started singing’ . . .
chorus 4 :
G C G D
so bye , bye miss american pie ,
G C G D
drove my chevy to the levy but the levy was dry .
G C G D
and them good old boys were drinkin’ whiskey and rye .
Em A7
singin’ “this will be the day that i die ,
Em D7
this will be the day that i die . ”
verse 4 :
G Am
and there we were all in one place ,
C Am
a generation lost in space ,
Em D
with no time left to start again .
G D Em Am7 C
so come on jack be nimble , jack be quick , jack flash sat on a candlestick ,
Em A7 D
’cause fire is the devil’s only friend .
Em D Em D
and as i watched him on the stage , my hands were clenched in fists of rage ,
C G A7 C D7
no angel born in hell could break that satan’s spell .
G D Em Am C
and as the flames climbed high into the night to light the sacrificial rite ,
G D Em C D7 G C G D7
i saw satan laughing with delight the day the music died , he was singing’ . . .
chorus 5 :
G C G D
so bye , bye miss american pie ,
G C G D
drove my chevy to the levy but the levy was dry .
G C G D
and them good old boys were drinkin’ whiskey and rye ,
Em A7
singin’ “this will be the day that i die ,
Em D7
this will be the day that i die . ”
outro ( sung with piano only ) :
G D/F# Em
i met a girl who sang the blues ,
Am C
and i asked her for some happy news ,
Em D Dsus4 D Dsus2 D
but she just smiled and turned away .
G D/F# Em
i went down to the sacred store ,
G Am C Em C D
where i’d heard the music years before , but the man there said the music wouldn’t play .
Em Am Em Am
and in the streets the children screamed , the lovers cried and the poets dreamed .
C G/B Am C D
but not a word was spoken , the church bells all were broken .
G D/F# Em G C D7
and the three men i admire most , the father , son , and the holy ghost ,
G D/F# Em C Am7 D7 G
they caught the last train for the coast the day the music died .
D7
and they were singing’ . . .
“sing it for me now”
coda :
G C G D
bye , bye , bye miss american pie ,
G C G D
drove my chevy to the levy but the levy was dry . “everybody”
G C G D
and them good old boys were drinkin’ whiskey and rye
Em A7
singin’ “this will be the day that i die ,
Em D7
this will be the day that i die . ”
D7
and they were singing’ . . .
G C G D
bye , bye , bye miss american pie ,
G C G D
drove my chevy to the levy but the levy was dry . “everybody”
G C G D
and them good old boys were drinkin’ whiskey and rye
C D7 G C G
singin’ “this will be the day that i die . ”
( end )
notes :
1 . this version was borne out frustration to get this to match the live performance .
2 . in 2001 “american pie” was voted no . 5 in a poll of the 365 songs of the
century compiled by the recording industry association of america and the national
endowment for the arts .
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