G D Em7
a long, long time ago,
Am C Em D
I can still remember how that music used to make me smile
G D Em7
And I know if I had my chance,
Am C
That I could make those people dance
Em C D
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 Am C D
Bad news on the doorstep, I couldn't take one more step
G D Em Am7 D
I can't remember if I cried when I read about his widowed bride
G D Em
Something touched me deep inside
C D7 G C 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 levy but the levy was dry
G C G D
And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
Em A7
Singin' this will be the day that I die,
Em D7
this will be the day that I die
Verse
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 Em
Do you believe in rock and roll
Am7 C
Can music save your mortal soul and can
Em A7 D
you teach me how to dance real slow?
Em D
Well I know that you're in love with him
Em D
'cuz I saw you dancin' in the gym
C G A7
You both kicked off your shoes,
C D7
man I dig those rhythm and blues
G D Em
I was a lonely teenage broncin' buck with a
Am C
pink carnation and a pickup truck
G D Em C
But I knew I was out of luck the day
D7 G C G
the music died, I started singin'
Chorus
G C G D
So bye, bye Miss American Pie
G C G D
Drove my Chevy to the levy but the levy was dry
G C G D
And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
Em A7
Singin' this will be the day that I die,
Em D7
this will be the day that I die
Verse
G Am
Now for ten years we've been on our own,
C Am
and moss grows fat on a rolling stone
Em D
but that's not how it used to be
G D Em
When the jester sang for the king and queen
Am7 C
in a coat he borrowed from James Dean in
Em A7 D
a voice that came from you and me
Em D
And while the king was looking down,
Em D
the jester stole his thorny crown
C G A7 C D7
The courtroom was adjourned, no verdict was returned
G D Em
And while Lenin read a book on Marx,
Am C
the quartet practiced in the park
G D Em
And we sang dirges in the dark the
C D7 G C G
day the music died, we were singin'
Chorus
G C G D
So bye, bye Miss American Pie
G C G D
Drove my Chevy to the levy but the levy was dry
G C G D
And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
Em A7
Singin' this will be the day that I die,
Em D7
this will be the day that I die
Verse
G Am
Helter skelter in a summer swelter
C Am
the birds flew off with a fallout shelter,
Em D
eight miles high and fallin' fast
G D Em
It landed foul on the grass
Am7 C
the players tried for a forward pass,
Em A7 D
with the jester on the sidelines in a cast
Em D
Now at halftime there was sweet perfume,
Em D
while sergeants played a marching tune
C G A7 C D7
We all got up to dance, but we never got the chance
G D Em
'Cuz the players tried to take the field,
Am C
the marching band refused to yield
G D Em
Do you recall what was the feel the
C D7 G C G
day the music died, we started singin'
Chorus
G C G D
So bye, bye Miss American Pie
G C G D
Drove my Chevy to the levy but the levy was dry
G C G D
And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
Em A7
Singin' this will be the day that I die,
Em D7
this will be the day that I die
Verse
G Am
And there we were all in one place,
C Am Em D
a generation lost in space, with no time left to start again
G D Em
So come on Jack be nimble, Jack be quick,
Am7 C
Jack Flash sat on a candle
Em A7 D
stick, 'cuz fire is the devil's only friend
Em D
And as I watched him on the stage,
Em D
my hands were clenched in fists of rage
C G A7 C D7
No angel born in Hell could bread that Satan's spell
G D Em
And as the flames climbed high into the night to
Am C
light the sacrificial rite
G D Em C
I saw Satan laughing with delight the day the
D7 G C G
music died, he was singin'
Chorus
G C G D
So bye, bye Miss American Pie
G C G D
Drove my Chevy to the levy but the levy was dry
G C G D
And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
Em A7
Singin' this will be the day that I die,
Em D7
this will be the day that I die
LAST Verse
G D Em
I met a girl who sang the blues
Am C
And I asked her for some happy news,
Em D
but she just smiled and turned away
G D Em
I went down to the sacred store
Am C
Where I'd heard the music years before,
Em C
but the man there said the music
D
wouldn't play
Em Am
But in the streets the children screamed,
Em Am
the lovers cried and the poets dreamed
C G Am C D
But not a word was spoken, the church bells all were broken
G D Em
And the three men I admire most,
Am7 C D7
the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost
G D Em
They caught the last train for the coast the
Am7 D7 G
day the music died,
D7
And they were singin'
FINAL Chorus
G C G D
So bye, bye Miss American Pie
G C G D
Drove my Chevy to the levy but the levy was dry
G C G D
And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
C D7 G C G
Singin' this will be the day that I die.