DON MCLEAN - "American Pie (Chords)" Tablature
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American Pie
Don McLean
A [G]long [D]long [Em7]time ago [Am]I can still re[C]member
how that [Em]music used to make me [D]smile
And [G]I knew [D]if I had [Em7]my chance
that [Am]I could make those [C]people dance and
[Em]maybe they'd be [C]happy for a [D]while.[Em]
But February [Am]made me shiver [Em]With every paper [Am]I'd deliver
[C]Bad news [G]on the [Am]doorstep I c[C]ouldn't take one [D]more step
I [G]can't re[D]member if I [Em]cried When I [Am7]read about his [D]widowed bride
But [G]something [D]touched me deep inside
The [C]day the [D7]Music [G]Died [C] [G] So
{start_of_chorus}
[G]bye [C]bye Miss A[G]merican [D]Pie Drove my [G]chevy to the [C]levy But the [G]levy was [D]dry
And them [G]good old [C]boys were drinking [G]whiskey and [D]rye
Singin' [Em]this'll be the day that I [A7]die [Em]this'll be the day that I [D7]die.
{end_of_chorus}
[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.
Do [G]you be[D]lieve in [Em]Rock 'n Roll?
Can [Am7]music save your [C]mortal soul?
And [Em]can you teach me [A7]how to dance [D]real slow?
Well, I [Em]know that you're in [D]love with him 'cause I [Em]saw you dancin' [D]in the gym
You [C]both kicked [G]off your [A7]shoes Man, I [C]dig those rythmny [D7]blues
I was a [G]lonely [D]teenage [Em]broncin' buck With a [Am]pink carnation and a [C]pickup truck.
But [G]I knew [D]I was [Em]out of luck
The [C]day the [D7]music [G]died [C] [G] I started singin'
(Chorus)
[G]Now for ten years we've been [Am]on our own And [C]moss grows fat on a [Am]rollin' stone
[Em] But that's not how it [D]used to be
When the [G]jester [D]sang for the [Em]King and Queen
In a [Am7]coat he borrowed [C]from James Dean
And a [Em]voice that [A7]came from [D]you and me
Oh, and [Em]while the King was [D]looking down The [Em]jester stole his [D]thorny crown
The [C]courtroom [G]was ad[A7]journed No [C]verdict was re[D7]turned
And while [G]Lennon [D]read a [Em]book of Marx The [Am]court kept practice [C]in the park
And [G]we sang [D]dirges [Em]in the dark
The [C]day the [D7]Music [G]Died.[C] [G] We were singing
(Chorus)
[G]Helter-Skelter in a [Am]summer [Am]swelter The [C]Byrds flew off with a [Am]fallout shelter
[Em]Eight Miles High and [D]falling fast It [G]landed [D]foul out [Em]on the grass
The [Am7]players tried [C]for a forward pass
But the [Em]jester's [A7]on the sidelines [D]in a cast
Now the [Em]half-time air was [D]sweet perfume While the [Em]sargeants played a [D]marching tune
[C]We all [G]got up to [A7]dance But we [C]never got [D7]the chance
'cause the [G]players [D]tried to [Em]take the field The [Am]marching band re[C]fused to yield
[G]Do you [D]recall [Em]what was reveiled
the [C]day the [D7]Music [G]Died?[C] [G] We stared singing
(Chorus)
[G]Oh, and there we were all [Am]in one place a [C]generation [Am]Lost in Space
[Em]With no time left to [D]start again So come on, [G]Jack be nimble
[Em]Jack be quick Jack [Am7]Flash sat on a [C]candlestick 'cause
[Em]fire is the [A7]Devil's only [D]friend
Oh, and [Em]as I watched him [D]on the stage My [Em]hands were clenched in [D]fists of rage
[C]No angel [G]born in [A7]hell Could [C]break that Satan's [D7]spell
And as the [G]flames climbed [D]high in[Em]to the night To [Am]light the sacri[C]fical rite
I saw [G]Satan [D]laughing [Em]with delight
The [C]day the [D7]Music [G]Died [C] [G] He was singing
(Chorus)
I [G]met a girl who sang the [Am]blues And I [C]asked her for some [Am]happy news
But [Em]she just smiled and turned [D]away I [G]went down to the sacred [D]store
Where I'd [Em]heard the music [Am7]years before
But the [Em]man there said the [A7]music woudn't [D]play
And in the [Em]streets the children [D]screamed The [Em]lovers cried, and the poets [D]dreamed
[C]But not a [G]word was [A7]spoken The [C]Church bells all were [D7]broken
And [G]three men I [D]admire most The [Em]Father, [Am]Son and the [C]Holy Ghost
They [G]caught the [D]last train [Em]for the coast
The [C]Day the [D7]Music [G]Died.[C] [G] And they were singing
(Chorus)
They were singing
(Chorus)
This musical interpretation has been removed due to a legal threat from Moses & Singer LLP,
representing the National Music Publishers' Association (NMPA) and
The Music Publisher's Association of the United States (MPA).
Unfortunately, these threats are fueled by greed and being masked by a "copyright infringement." They claim tab sites are
"hurting the songwriters," but it's a known fact that the publishing companies garner most of the
revenue. Instead, they would prefer you to purchase the
official DON MCLEAN tablature
which is an option we've always given our users. And due to the highly error-prone nature of tabs on the internet, many choose to go this route.
These companies also do not realize that tablature sites help to promote their artists.
For more information on this onslaught, you can read the
NY Times Article.
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