G D/F# Em Am C
A long, long time ago, I can still remember
Em D
How that music used to make me smile
G D/F# Em
And I knew 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 G6/B Am Em 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 C D G
But something touched me deep inside 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
Them good old boys were drinking whiskey and rye
Em A7
Singing this'll be the day that I die
Em D7
This'll be the day that I die
[Verse 2]
G Am
Did you write the book of love
C Am
And do you have faith in God above
Em D
If the Bible tells you so?
G D/F# Em
Now do you believe in rock and roll?
Am C
Can music save your mortal soul?
Em A7 D
And 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 Am
You both kicked off your shoes
C D
Man, I dig those rhythm and blues
G D/F# Em
I was a lonely teenage broncin' buck
Am C
With a pink carnation and a pickup truck
G D/F# Em
But I knew I was out of luck
C D G
The day the music died
[Chorus]
G C G D
I started singing bye, bye Miss American Pie Drove
G C G D
my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry
G C G D
Them good old boys were drinking whiskey and rye
Em A7
Singing this'll be the day that I die
Em D7
This'll be the day that I die
[Verse 3]
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/F# 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 Am
The courtroom was adjourned
C D
No verdict was returned
G D/F# Em
And while Lennin read a book on Marx
Am C
The quartet practiced in the park
G D/F# Em
And we sang 'Dirges In The Dark'
C D G
The day the music died
[Chorus]
G C G D
We were singing bye, bye Miss American Pie Drove
G C G D
my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry
G C G D
Them good old boys were drinking whiskey and rye
Em A7
Singing this'll be the day that I die
Em D7
This'll be the day that I die
[Verse 4]
G Am
Helter skelter in a summer swelter
C Am
The birds flew off with a fallout shelter
Em D
Eight miles high and falling fast
G D/F# Em
Landed foul on the grass
Am C
The players tried for a forward pass
Em A7 D
With the jester on the sidelines in a cast
Em D
Now the half time air was sweet perfume
Em D
While sergeants played a marching tune
C G Am
We all got up to dance
C D
Oh, but we never got the chance
G D/F# Em
'Cause the players tried to take the field
Am C
The marching band refused to yield
G D/F# Em
Do you recall what was revealed
C D G
The day the music died?
[Chorus]
G C G D
We started singing bye, bye Miss American Pie Drove
G C G D
my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry
G C G D
Them good old boys were drinking whiskey and rye
Em A7
Singing this'll be the day that I die
Em D7
This'll be the day that I die
[Verse 5]
G Am
Oh, and there we were all in one place
C Am
A generation lost in space
Em D
With no time left to start again
G D/F# Em
So come on Jack be nimble, Jack be quick
Am C
Jack Flash sat on a candlestick
Em A7 D
'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 Am
No angel born in hell
C D
Could break that Satan's spell
G D/F# Em
And as the flames climbed high into the night
Am C
To light the sacrificial rite
G D/F# Em
I saw Satan laughing with delight
C D G
The day the music died
[Chorus]
G C G D
He was singing bye, bye Miss American Pie Drove
G C G D
my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry
G C G D
Them good old boys were drinking whiskey and rye
Em A7
Singing this'll be the day that I die
Em D7
This'll be the day that I die
[Verse 6]
G D/F# 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/F# Em
I went down to the sacred store
Am C
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 G6/B Am
But not a word was spoken
C D
The church bells all were broken
G D/F# Em
And the three men I admire most
C D
The Father, Son and the Holy Ghost
G D/F# Em
They caught the last train for the coast
C D G
The day the music died
[Chorus]
G C G D
And they were singing 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 old boys were drinking whiskey and rye
Em A7
Singing this'll be the day that I die
Em D7
This'll be the day that I die
G C G D
They were singing, 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 old boys were drinking whiskey and rye
C D G
Singing this'll be the day that I die
