A long long time ago I can still remember
how that music used to make me smile
and I knew if I had my chance
that I could make those people dance
and maybe they’d be happy for a while
but February made me shiver
with every paper I’d deliver

Bad news on the door step
I couldn’t take one more step
I can’t remember if I cried 
when I read about his widowed bride
something touched me deep inside the day
the music died

So bye bye miss American pie
drove my chevy to the levee 
but the levee was dry 
them good old boys
were drinking whiskey and rye singin’
this’ll be the day that I die
this’ll be the day that I die

Did you write the book of love
and do you have faith in God above
if the Bible tells you so?
do you believe in rock and roll
can music save your mortal soul
and can you teach me 
how to dance real slow
well I know that you’re in love with him
cause I saw you dancin’ in the gym

You both kicked off you’re shoes
man I dig those rhythm and blues
I was a lonely teenage broncin’ buck
with a pink carnation and a pickup truck
but I knew I was out of luck the day
the music died - I started singin’

Bye bye miss American pie
drove my chevy to the levee 
but the levee was dry 
them good old boys
were drinking whiskey and rye singin’
this’ll be the day that I die
this’ll be the day that I die

Now for ten years we’ve been on our own
and moss grows fat on a rollin’ stone
but that’s not how it used to be
when the Jester sang for the king and queen
in a coat he borrowed from James Dean 
and a voice that came from you and me
and while the king was looking down
the Jester stole his thorny crown

The courtroom was adjourned
no verdict was returned
and while Lennon read a book on Marx
the quartet practiced in the park
and we sang dirges in the dark the day
the music died - we were singin’

Bye bye miss American pie
drove my chevy to the levee 
but the levee was dry
them good old boys
were drinking whiskey and rye singin’
this’ll be the day that I die 
this’ll be the day that I die

Helter Skelter in a summer swelter
the birds flew off with a fallout shelter
eight miles high and falling fast
it landed foul on the grass
the players tried for a forward pass
with the Jester on the sidelines in a cast
now the half time air was sweet perfume
while sergeants played a marching tune

We all got up to dance
but we never got the chance
cause the players tried to take the field
the marching band refused to yield
do you recall what was revealed the day 
the music died - we started singin’

Bye bye miss American pie
drove my chevy to the levee 
but the levee was dry 
them good old boys
were drinking whiskey and rye singin’
this’ll be the day that I die
this’ll be the day that I die

And there we were all in one place 
a generation lost in space 
with no time left to start again
so come on Jack be nimble Jack be quick 
Jack flash sat on a candlestick
cause fire is the devil’s only friend
and as I watched him on the stage 
my hands were clenched in fist of rage 

No angel born in hell 
could break that Satan’s spell
and as flames climbed high into the night
to light the sacrificial rite
I saw Satan laughing with delight the day
the music died - he was singin’

Bye bye miss American pie
drove my chevy to the levee 
but the levee was dry 
them good old boys
were drinking whiskey and rye singin’
this’ll be the day that I die
this’ll be the day that I die

I met a girl who sang the blues
and I asked her for some happy news
but she just smile and turned away
I went down to the sacred store
where I’d heard the music years before
but the man there said the music wouldn’t play
and in the streets the children screamed
the lovers cried an the poets dreamed

But not a word was spoken
the church bells all were broken
and the three men I admire most
the Father Son and the Holly Ghost
they caught the last train for the coast the day
the music died - and they were singin’

Bye bye miss American pie
drove my chevy to the levee 
but the levee was dry 
them good old boys
were drinking whiskey and rye singin’
this’ll be the day that I die
this’ll be the day that I die they were singin’

Bye bye miss American pie
drove my chevy to the levee 
but the levee was dry
them good old boys
were drinking whiskey and rye singin’
this’ll be the day that I died