"American Pie" chronicles the history and decline of rock and roll music from the death of Buddy Holly to the end of the 1960s.
The song begins as a tribute to 1950s rock and roller Holly, a young man who greatly influenced artists like Bob Dylan, the Beatles, and almost every important rock and roller to follow him. Among those was a young Don McLean.
McLean was only thirteen years old, the age of a newspaper delivery boy, when Holly was killed in an airplane crash in Iowa on February 3, 1959 ("But February made me shiver with every paper I'd deliver"). Killed with Holly in the crash were "La Bamba" singer Ritchie Valens and J.P. Richardson, the "Chantilly Lace" singer known as the Big Bopper.
Holly married Maria Elia Santiago, a Puerto Rican recording company receptionist, in August 1958 and kept their marriage secret largely due to their race difference. Their six-month marriage became public only after his death ("I can't remember if I cried when I read about his widowed bride").
In the years following Holly's death, teen idols like Frankie Avalon, Fabian, and Bobby Rydell hit the scene. The youth of America, especially teenage girls, became enthralled by them ("I know that you're in love with him"). He writes about love, as shown by the line referring to the Monotone's "The Book of Love."
But McLean is not like other teenage kids -- they are sock-hopping while he likes rhythm and blues; they are dancing in the gym while he, a "teenage broncin' buck," is driving around alone and out of luck (Marty Robbins' "White Sports Coat (And a Pink Carnation)"). McLean wants to be part of the music scene, but this generic music is not the kind that touches him deep inside.
"AMERICAN PIE" Part One
"American Pie" chronicles the history and decline of rock and roll music from the death of Buddy Holly to the end of the 1960s.
The song begins as a tribute to 1950s rock and roller Holly, a young man who greatly influenced artists like Bob Dylan, the Beatles, and almost every important rock and roller to follow him. Among those was a young Don McLean.
McLean was only thirteen years old, the age of a newspaper delivery boy, when Holly was killed in an airplane crash in Iowa on February 3, 1959 ("But February made me shiver with every paper I'd deliver"). Killed with Holly in the crash were "La Bamba" singer Ritchie Valens and J.P. Richardson, the "Chantilly Lace" singer known as the Big Bopper.
Holly married Maria Elia Santiago, a Puerto Rican recording company receptionist, in August 1958 and kept their marriage secret largely due to their race difference. Their six-month marriage became public only after his death ("I can't remember if I cried when I read about his widowed bride").
In the years following Holly's death, teen idols like Frankie Avalon, Fabian, and Bobby Rydell hit the scene. The youth of America, especially teenage girls, became enthralled by them ("I know that you're in love with him"). He writes about love, as shown by the line referring to the Monotone's "The Book of Love."
But McLean is not like other teenage kids -- they are sock-hopping while he likes rhythm and blues; they are dancing in the gym while he, a "teenage broncin' buck," is driving around alone and out of luck (Marty Robbins' "White Sports Coat (And a Pink Carnation)"). McLean wants to be part of the music scene, but this generic music is not the kind that touches him deep inside.
(To be continued...)