[Verse 1]
A long, long time ago
I can still remember how that music
used to make me smile
And I knew if I had my chance
That I could make those people dance
and maybe they'd be happy for a while
But February made me shiver, with
every paper I'd deliver
Bad news on the doorstep, I couldn't
take one more step
I can't remember if I cried when I
read about his widowed bride
Something touched me deep inside
The day the music died
[Chorus]
So bye, bye Miss American Pie
Drove my Chevy to the levee but the
levee was dry
And them good old boys were drinkin'
whiskey and rye
Singin' this will be the day that I
die, this will be the day that I die
[Verse 2]
Did you write the book of love
And do you have faith in God above, if
the bible tells you so?
Do you believe in rock and roll
Can music save your mortal soul and
can you teach me how to dance real
slow?
Well I know that you're in love with
him 'cuz I saw you dancin' in the gym
You both kicked off your shoes, man I
dig those rhythm and blues
I was a lonely teenage bronckin' buck
with a pink carnation and a pickup
truck
But I knew I was out of luck the day
the music died, I started singin'
[Chorus]
Bye, bye Miss American Pie
Drove my Chevy to the levee but the
levee was dry
G C G
D
And them good old boys were drinkin'
whiskey and rye
Em* A * Em*
D
Singin' this will be the day that I
die, this will be the day that I die
[Verse 3]
G Am
Now for ten years we've been on our
own
C Am Em
D
and moss grows fat on a rolling stone
but that's not how it used to be
G D Em
When the jester sang for the king and
queen
Am C
Em A D
in a coat he borrowed from James Dean
in a voice that came from you and me
Em* D*
Em* D*
Oh, and while the king was looking
down, the jester stole his thorny
crown
C G A C
D
The courtroom was adjourned, no
verdict was returned
G D Em Am
C
And while Lennin read a book on Marx,
the quartet practiced in the park
G D Em C
D G C G D
And we sang dirges in the dark the day
the music died, we were singin'
[Chorus]
G C G D
Bye, bye Miss American Pie
G C G D
Drove my Chevy to the levee but the
levee was dry
G C G
D
And them good old boys were drinkin'
whiskey and rye
Em* A * Em*
D
Singin' this will be the day that I
die, this will be the day that I die
[Verse 4]
G Am
Helter skelter in a summer swelter
C Am
Em D
the birds flew off with a fallout
shelter, eight miles high and fallin'
fast
G D Em
It landed foul on the grass
Am C Em
A D
the players tried for a forward pass,
with the jester on the sidelines in a
cast
Em* D*
Em* D*
Now the half-time air was sweet
perfume, while sergeants played a
marching tune
C G A C
D
We all got up to dance, but we never
got the chance
G D Em Am
Cm C
'Cuz the players tried to take the
field, the marching band refused to
yield
G D Em C
D G C G D
Do you recall what was revealed the
day the music died, we started
singin'
[Chorus]
G C G D
Bye, bye Miss American Pie
G C G D
Drove my Chevy to the levee but the
levee was dry
G C G
D
And them good old boys were drinkin'
whiskey and rye
Em* A * Em*
D
Singin' this will be the day that I
die, this will be the day that I die
[Verse 5]
G Am
And there we were all in one place
C Am Em
D
a generation lost in space, with no
time left to start again
G D Em Am
C
So come on Jack be nimble, Jack be
quick, Jack Flash sat on a candlestick
Em A 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 A C
D
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
D G C G D
I saw Satan laughing with delight the
day the music died, he was singin'
[Chorus]
G C G D
Bye, bye Miss American Pie
G C G D
Drove my Chevy to the levee but the
levee was dry
G C G
D
And them good old boys were drinkin'
whiskey and rye
Em* A * Em*
D
Singin' this will be the day that I
die, this will be the day that I die
[Verse 6]
G D Em
I met a girl who sang the blues
Am C Em
D
And I asked her for some happy news,
but she just smiled and turned away
G D Em
I went down to the sacred store
Am C
Em C
Where I'd heard the music years
before, but the man there said the
music
D
wouldn't play
Em* Am*
Em* Am*
And in the streets the children
screamed, the lovers cried and the
poets dreamed
C G Am C
D
But not a word was spoken, the church
bells all were broken
G D Em C
D
And the three men I admire most, the
Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost
G D Em
C D G
They caught the last train for the
coast the day the music died,
N.C.
And they were singin'
[Chorus]
G C G D
Bye, bye Miss American Pie
G C G D
Drove my Chevy to the levee but the
levee was dry
G C G
D
And them good old boys were drinkin'
whiskey and rye
Em* A Em*
D
Singin' this will be the day that I
die, this will be the day that I die
G C G D
They were singin' bye, bye Miss
American Pie
G C G D
Drove my Chevy to the levee but the
levee was dry
G C G
D
And them good old boys were drinkin'
whiskey and rye
C D G C G
Singin' this will be the day that I
die
X