A long, long time ago,

I can still remember

how that music used to make me smile

And I know 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 levy but the levy 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





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 broncin' buck

with a pink carnation and a pickup truck

But I knew that I was out of luck

the day the music died



I started singin'



*Chorus*



Now for ten years we've been on our own,

and moss grows fat on a rolling 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

in a voice that came from you and me



And while the king was looking down,

the jester stole his thorny crown

The courtroom was adjourned,

no verdict was returned



And while Lennon 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'



*Chorus*



Helter skelter in a 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 at halftime there was sweet perfume,

while sergeants played a marching tune

We all got up to dance,

but we never got the chance



'Cuz the players tried to take the field,

the marching band refused to yield

Do you recall what was the feel

the day the music died



we started singin'



*Chorus*



And there we were all in one place,

a generation lost in space,

with no time left to start again

So come on Jack be nimble, Jack be quick,

Jack Flash sat on a candle stick,

'cuz fire is the devil's only friend





And as I watched him on the stage,

my hands were clenched in fists of rage

No angel born in Hell

could break that Satan's spell



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 singin'



*Chorus*



I met a girl who sang the blues

And I asked her for some happy news,

but she just smiled and turned away

I went down to the sacred store

Where I'd heard the music years before,

but the man there said the music wouldn't play



But in the streets the children screamed,

the lovers cried and the poets dreamed

But not a word was spoken,

the church bells were all broken



And the three men I admire most,

the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost

They caught the last train for the coast

the day the music died



And they were singin'



So bye, bye Miss American Pie

Drove my Chevy to the levy but the levy was dry

And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye

Singin' this will be the day that I die