American Pie Chords & Tabs
by Don McLean
[Version Description]
Strumming Patterns:
Main Pattern:
BPM: 138
Denominator: 8
Triplet: No
Measures: [1, 101, 1, 101, 1, 101, 1, 101]
Chorus:
BPM: 138
Denominator: 8
Triplet: No
Measures: [1, 202, 1, 101, 1, 202, 1, 101]
* = strum once
The C minor chord which is played in verse 4 may be a mistake but it is on the recording.
[Verse 1]
G D/F# Em
A long, long time ago
Am C Em D Dsus4
I can still remember how that music used to make me smile
G D/F# Em
And I knew if I had my chance
Am C Em C D Dsus4
That I could make those people dance and maybe they'd be happy for a while
Em Am Em Am
But February made me shiver, with every paper I'd deliver
C G/B Am C D
Bad news on the doorstep, I couldn't take one more step
G D/F# Em C D
I can't remember if I cried when I read about his widowed bride
G D/F# Em
Something touched me deep inside
C D G
The day the music died
[Chorus]
G C G D
So 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* A7* Em* D7 D7sus2 D7 D7sus4 D7 D7sus2 D7
Singin' this will be the day that I die, this will be the day that I die
[Verse 2]
G Am
Did you write the book of love
C Am Em D
And do you have faith in God above, if the bible tells you so?
G D/F# Em
Do you believe in rock and roll
Am7 C Em A7 D
Can music save your mortal soul and can you teach me how to dance real slow?
Em* D* Em* D*
Well I know that you're in love with him 'cuz I saw you dancin' in the gym
C G/B Am C D7
You both kicked off your shoes, man I dig those rhythm and blues
G D/F# Em Am C
I was a lonely teenage bronckin' buck with a pink carnation and a pickup truck
G D/F# Em C D7 G C G D
But I knew I was out of luck the day the music died, I 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 A7 Em D7
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 Dsus4
and moss grows fat on a rolling stone but that's not how it used to be
G D/F# Em
When the jester sang for the king and queen
Am7 C Em A7 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/B A7 C D7
The courtroom was adjourned, no verdict was returned
G D/F# Em Am C
And while Lennin read a book on Marx, the quartet practiced in the park
G D/F# Em C D7 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 A7 Em D7
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/F# Em
It landed foul on the grass
Am7 C Em A7 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/B A7 C D7
We all got up to dance, but we never got the chance
G D/F# Em Am Cm C
'Cuz the players tried to take the field, the marching band refused to yield
G D/F# Em C D7 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 A7 Em D7
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 Dsus4
a generation lost in space, with no time left to start again
G D/F# Em Am7 C
So come on Jack be nimble, Jack be quick, Jack Flash sat on a candlestick
Em A7 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/B A7 C D7
No angel born in Hell could break that Satan's spell
G D/F# Em Am C
And as the flames climbed high into the night to light the sacrificial rite
G D/F# Em C D7 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 A7 Em D7
Singin' this will be the day that I die, this will be the day that I die
[Verse 6]
G D/F# 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/F# 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/B Am C D
But not a word was spoken, the church bells all were broken
G D/F# Em C D
And the three men I admire most, the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost
G D/F# 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* A7 Em* D7 D7sus2 D7 D7sus4 D7 D7sus2 D7
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 D7 G C
Singin' this will be the day that I die
