American Pie (Re-Recorded) — Don Mclean
Chords and lyrics for American Pie (Re-Recorded) by Don Mclean (key of G).
Verse 1
* = strum once
The C minor chord which is played in verse 4 may be a mistake but it is on
the recording.
Verse 1
A [G]long, [D/F#]long [Em]time ago
[Am]I can still [C]remember how that [Em]music used to make me [D][Dsus4][D]smile[D][Dsus2]
And [G]I knew [D/F#]if I [Em]had my chance
That [Am]I could make those [C]people dance and [Em]maybe they'd be [C]happy for a [D]while
[Dsus4] [D] [Dsus2] [D]
[Em] But February [Am]made me shiver,[Em] with every paper [Am]I'd deliver
[C]Bad news [G/B]on the [Am]doorstep, I [C]couldn't take one more step[D]
I [G]can't [D/F#]remember if I [Em]cried when I [C]read about his [D]widowed bride
[G]Something [D/F#]touched me [Em]deep inside
The [C]day the [D]music [G]died
Chorus
So [G]bye, [C]bye Miss [G]American [D]Pie
Drove my [G]Chevy to the [C]levee but the [G]levee was [D]dry
And them [G]good old [C]boys were drinkin' [G]whiskey and [D]rye
Em* A7* Em* D7
Singin' this will be the day that I die, this will be the day that I die
[D7sus2] [D7] [D7sus4] [D7] [D7sus2] [D7]
Verse 2
[G]Did you write the [Am]book of love
And do [C]you have faith in [Am]God above, [Em]if the bible [D]tells you so?
[G]Do you [D/F#]believe in [Em]rock and roll
Can [Am7]music save your[C] mortal soul [Em]and can you teach me [A7]how to dance [D]real
slow?
Em* D* Em* D*
Well I know that you're in love with him 'cuz I saw you dancin' in the gym
You [C]both kicked [G/B]off your [Am]shoes, man I [C]dig those rhythm and [D7]blues
I was a [G]lonely [D/F#]teenage [Em]bronckin' buck with a [Am]pink carnation and a [C]pickup
truck
But [G]I knew[D/F#] I was [Em]out of luck the [C]day the [D7]music [G][C]died, [G]I started [D]singin'
Chorus
[G]Bye, [C]bye Miss [G]American [D]Pie
Drove my [G]Chevy to the [C]levee but the [G]levee was [D]dry
And them [G]good old [C]boys were drinkin' [G]whiskey and [D]rye
Em* A7* Em* D7
Singin' this will be the day that I die, this will be the day that I die
Verse 3
Now for [G]ten years we've been [Am]on our own
and [C]moss grows fat on a [Am]rolling stone [Em]but that's not how it [D]used to be
[Dsus4] [D] [Dsus2] [D]
When the [G]jester [D/F#]sang for the [Em]king and queen
in a [Am7]coat he borrowed [C]from James Dean in a [Em]voice that came [A7]from you and[D] me
Em* D* Em* D*
Oh, and while the king was looking down, the jester stole his thorny crown
The [C]courtroom [G/B]was [A7]adjourned, [C]no verdict was [D7]returned
And while [G]Lennin [D/F#]read a [Em]book on Marx, the[Am] quartet [C]practiced in the park
And [G]we sang [D/F#]dirges [Em]in the dark the [C]day the [D7]music [G][C]died, [G] we were [D]singin'
Chorus
[G]Bye, [C]bye Miss [G]American [D]Pie
Drove my [G]Chevy to the [C]levee but the [G]levee was [D]dry
And them [G]good old [C]boys were drinkin' [G]whiskey and [D]rye
Em* A7* Em* D7
Singin' this will be the day that I die, this will be the day that I die
Verse 4
[G]Helter skelter in a [Am]summer swelter
[C]the birds flew off with[Am] a fallout shelter,[Em] eight miles high and [D]fallin'
fast
It [G]landed [D/F#]foul [Em]on the grass
the [Am7]players tried for a [C]forward pass, [Em]with the jester on the [A7]sidelines in a
[D]cast
Em* D* Em* D*
Now the half-time air was sweet perfume, while sergeants played a marching
tune
[C]We all got [G/B]up to [A7]dance, but [C]we never got the [D7]chance
'Cuz the [G]players [D/F#]tried to [Em]take the field, [Am]the marching band [Cm]refused to
[C]yield
[G]Do you [D/F#]recall what [Em]was revealed the [C]day the [D7]music [G][C]died, [G] we started
[D]singin'
Chorus
[G]Bye, [C]bye Miss [G]American [D]Pie
Drove my [G]Chevy to the [C]levee but the [G]levee was [D]dry
And them [G]good old [C]boys were drinkin' [G]whiskey and [D]rye
Em* A7* Em* D7
Singin' this will be the day that I die, this will be the day that I die
Verse 5
And [G]there we were all [Am]in one place
a [C]generation [Am]lost in space, with [Em]no time left to [D]start [Dsus4]again[Dsus2][D]
[D]
So come on [G]Jack be [D/F#]nimble, [Em]Jack be quick, [Am7]Jack Flash sat on a [C]candlestick
'cause[Em] fire is the [A7]devil's only [D]friend
Em* D* Em* D*
And as I watched him on the stage, my hands were clenched in fists of rage
No [C]angel [G/B]born in [A7]Hell could [C]break that Satan's [D7]spell
And as the [G]flames [D/F#]climbed high [Em]into the night to [Am]light the [C]sacrificial rite
I saw [G]Satan [D/F#]laughing [Em]with delight the [C]day the [D7]music [G][C]died, [G] he was [D]singin'
Chorus
[G]Bye, [C]bye Miss [G]American [D]Pie
Drove my [G]Chevy to the [C]levee but the [G]levee was [D]dry
And them [G]good old [C]boys were drinkin' [G]whiskey and [D]rye
Em* A7* Em* D7
Singin' this will be the day that I die, this will be the day that I die
Verse 6
[G]I met a [D/F#]girl who [Em]sang the blues
And I [Am]asked her for some [C]happy news, but [Em]she just smiled and [D]turned away
[G]I went [D/F#]down to the [Em]sacred store
Where [Am]I'd heard the [C]music years before, but the [Em]man there said the [C]music
wouldn't [D]play
Em* Am* Em* Am*
And in the streets the children screamed, the lovers cried and the poets
dreamed
But [C]not a [G/B]word was [Am]spoken, the [C]church bells all were [D]broken
And the [G]three men [D/F#]I [Em]admire most, the [C]Father, Son, and the [D]Holy Ghost
[G]They caught the [D/F#]last train [Em]for the coast the [C]day the [D]music [G]died,
N.C.
And they were singin'
Chorus
[G]Bye, [C]bye Miss [G]American [D]Pie
Drove my [G]Chevy to the [C]levee but the [G]levee was [D]dry
And them [G]good old [C]boys were drinkin' [G]whiskey and [D]rye
Em* A7 Em* D7
Singin' this will be the day that I die, this will be the day that I die
[D7sus2] [D7] [D7sus4] [D7] [D7sus2] [D7]
They were singin' [G]bye, [C]bye Miss [G]American [D]Pie
Drove my [G]Chevy to the [C]levee but the [G]levee was [D]dry
And them [G]good old [C]boys were drinkin' [G]whiskey and [D]rye
Singin' [C]this will be the [D7]day that I [G][C]die[G]
X