7 Chords used in the song: G, D, Em, Am, C, A7, D7
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Transpose chords:
G D Em Am C
A long, long time ago, I can still remember how
Em D
that music used to make me smile.
G D Em Am C
And I knew if I had my chance 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 C D
I can't remember if I cried when I read about his widowed bride,
G D Em C D G
But something touched me deep inside, the day, the music, died.
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 ole' boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye, singin'
Em A7 Em D
This'll be the day that I die, This'll be the day that I die.
G Am C Am
Did you write the book of love and do you have faith in God
above,
Em D D7
If the Bible tells you so?
G D Em
Now do you believe in rock and roll,
Am C
can music save your mortal soul and
Em A7 D
Can you teach me how to dance real slow?
Em D
Well, I know that you're in love with him,
Em D
cause I saw you dancing in the gym.
C G A7 C D7
You both kicked off your shoes, man I dig those rhythm and blues.
G D Em
I was a lonely teenage broncin' buck
Am C
with a pink carnation and a pickup truck,
G D Em C D7 G C
but I knew I was out of luck the day,the music died.
G D
I started singing...
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
Them good ole' boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye, singin'
Em A7 Em D D7
This'll be the day that I die, This'll be the day that I die.
G Am
Now for ten years we've been on our own,
C Am
and moss grows fat on a rollin' stone,
Em D D7
but that's not how it used to be.
G D Em
When the jester sang for the King and Queen,
Am C
in a coat he borrowed from James Dean,
Em A7 D
and a voice that came from you and me.
Em D
Oh 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 Am C
And while Lenin read a book on Marx, the quartet practised in the park,
G D Em C D7 G C
and we sang dirges in the dark the day, the music, died.
G D
We were singin'...
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
Them good ole' boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye, singin'
Em A7 Em D D7
This'll be the day that I die, This'll be the day that I die.
G Am
Helter-skelter in the summer swelter,
C Am
the birds flew off with a fallout shelter,
Em D D7
eight miles high and fallin' fast.
G D Em Am C
It landed foul on the grass, the players tried for a forward pass,
Em A7 D
with the jester on the sidelines in a cast.
Em D
Now that halftime air was sweet perfume,
Em D
while the sergeants played a marching tune,
C G A7 C D7
we all got up to dance, oh but we never got the chance,
G D Em
`cause the players tried to take the field,
Am C
the marching band refused to yield,
G D Em C D7 G C
do you recall what was revealed, the day, the music, died.
G D
We started singin'...
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
Them good ole' boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye, singin'
Em A7 Em D D7
This'll be the day that I die, This'll be the day that I die.
G Am
Oh, 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,
Am C Em A7 D
Jack Flash sat on a candlestick ‘cause fire is the devil’s only friend.
Em D
Oh, 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 break that Satan’s spell.
G D Em
And as the flames climbed high into the night
Am C G D Em
To light the sacrificial rite, I saw Satan laughing with delight,
C D7 G C
The day the music died.
G D
He was singing
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
Them good ole' boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye, singin'
Em A7 Em D
This'll be the day that I die, This'll be the day that I die.
G D Em Am C
I met a girl who sang the blues and I asked her for some happy news,
Em D
but she just smiled and turned away.
G D Em Am C
I went down to the sacred store where I’d heard the music years before,
Em C D
but the man there said the music wouldn't play.
Em Am
And in the streets the children screamed,
Em Am
the lovers cried and the poets dreamed,
C G Am C Am
but not a word was spoken, the church bells all were broken.
G D Em G Am D
And the three men I admire most, the Father, Son and the Holy Ghost
G D Em C D G
they caught the last train for the coast the day, the music, died.
D
And they were singin'....
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
Them good ole' boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye, singin'
C D G
This'll be the day that I die.
C D G C
This'll be the day that I die.
G D
They were singin'....
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
Them good ole' boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye, singin'
C D G
This'll be the day that I die.
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Tab comments (7)
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ming04
(cabanatuan)
may use A chord rather than A7 if you feel uncomfortable with the sound A7 after an Em chord
05 Dec 2017
Top Tabs & Chords by Don Mclean, don't miss these songs!
About this song: American Pie
"American Pie" is a folk rock song by singer-songwriter Don McLean. Recorded and released on the American Pie album in 1971, the single was a number-one U.S. hit for four weeks in 1972. A re-release in 1991 did not chart in the U.S., but reached number 12 in the UK. The song is an abstract story surrounding "The Day the Music Died" -- the 1959 plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper (Giles Perry Richardson, Jr.).