American Pie

(D)A long, A long (Bmin7)time ago,
(Emin)I can still re(G)member how that (Bmin)music used to (A)make me smile.
(D)And I knew if I (Bmin7) had my chance
That (Emin)I could make those (G)people dance,
And (Bmin)maybe they'd be (G)happy for a (A)while.
But (Bmin)February (Emin)made me shiver
(Bmin)with ev'ry paper (Emin)I'd deliver.
(G)Bad news on the (Emin)doorstep,
I (G)couldn't take (A)one more step.
I (D)can't remember (Bmin)if I cried
When I (Emin7)read about his (A)widowed bride.
(D)Something touched me (Bmin)deep inside
The (G)day the (A7)music (D)died. (G D)

So (D)bye (G)bye, Miss (D)American (A)Pie.
Drove my (D)chevy to the (G)levee but the (D)levee was (A)dry.
Them (D)good ole (G)boys were drinkin' (D)whiskey and (A)rye
Singin' (Bmin)this'll be the day that I (E7)die,
Bmin)This'll be the day that I (A7)die.

(D)Did you write the (Emin)book of love,
And do (G)you have faith in (Emin)God above?
(Bmin) If the Bible (A)tells you so.
Now, do (D)you believe in (A)rock and roll?
Can (Bmin)music save your (Emin7)mortal soul and (G)
Can you teach me (Bmin)how to dance real (E7)slow(A)?
Well, I (Bmin)know that you're in (A)love with him
'Cause I (Bmin)saw you dancin' (A)in the gym,
You (G)both kicked (D)off your (E7)shoes.
Man I (G)dig those rhythm and (A7)blues.
I was a (D)lonely teenage (Bmin)broncin' buck
With a (Emin)pink carnation and a (G)pickup truck.
But I (D)knew (A) I was (Bmin)out of luck
The (G)day the (A7)music (D)died.

Now for ten years we've been on our own,
And moss grows fat on a rollin' stone.
But that's not how it used to be
When the jester sang for the king and queen,
In a coat he borrowed from James Dean,
And a voice that came from you and me.
Oh, and while the kind was looking down,
The jester stole his thorny crown.
The courtroom was adjourned,
No verdict was returned.
And while Lenin read a book on Marx
The quartet practiced in the park,
and we sang dirges in the dark
The day the music died.

We were singin', (D)bye (G)bye, Miss (D)American (A)Pie.
Drove my (D)chevy to the (G)levee but the (D)levee was (A)dry.
Them (D)good ole (G)boys were drinkin' (D)whiskey and (A)rye
Singin' (Bmin)this'll be the day that I (E7)die,
Bmin)This'll be the day that I (A7)die.

Helter-shelter in the summer swelter
The birds flew off with a fallout shelter.
Eight miles high and fallin' fast,
It landed foul on the grass.
The players tried for a forward pass,
With the jester on the sidelines in a cast.
Now the half-time air was sweet perfume,
While the sergeants played a marching tune
'Cause the players tried to take the field,
The marching band refused to yield.
Do you recall what was revealed
The day the music died?

And there we were all in one place, a generation lost in space
With no time left to start again.
So come on, Jack the nimble, Jack be quick,
Jack Flash sat on a candlestick,
'Cause fire is the devil's only friend.
And as I watched him on the stage
My hands were clenched in fists of rage,
And as the flames climbed high into the night
To light the sacrificial rite
I saw Satan laughing with delight,
The day the music died.

He was singing, (D)bye (G)bye, Miss (D)American (A)Pie.
Drove my (D)chevy to the (G)levee but the (D)levee was (A)dry.
Them (D)good ole (G)boys were drinkin' (D)whiskey and (A)rye
Singin' (Bmin)this'll be the day that I (E7)die,
Bmin)This'll be the day that I (A7)die.

I met a girl who sang the blues D Bmin
And I asked her for some happy news, Emin G
but she just smiled and turned away. Bmin A
I went down to the sacred store D Bmin
Where I heard the music years before, Emin G
But the man there said the music wouldn't play. Bmin G A
And in the streets the children screamed, Bmin Emin
The lovers cried and the poets dreamed. Bmin Emin
But not a word was spoken, G Emin
the church bells all were broken. G A
And the three men I admire most, D Bmin
The Father, Son and the holy Ghost, G A7
They caught the last train for the coast, D Bmin
The day the music died. G A7 D

And they were singin' bye-bye, Miss American Pie.
Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry.
Them good ole boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
Singin' this'll be the day that I die.