(Don McLean)
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A long, long time ago
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I can still remember how
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That music used to make me smile
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And I knew if I had my chance
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That I could make those people dance
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And maybe they'd be happy for a while
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But February made me shiver
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With every paper I'd deliver
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Bad news on the doorstep
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I couldn't take one more step
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I can't remember if I cried
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When I read about his widowed bride
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But something touched me deep inside
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The day the music died(*)
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So, bye, bye Miss American Pie
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Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry
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Them good ole boys were drinking whiskey and rye
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Singin' this'll be the day that I die
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This'll be the day that I die
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Did you write the book of love
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And do you have faith in God above
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If the Bible tells you so
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Now do you believe in rock and roll
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Can music save your mortal soul
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And can you teach me how to dance real slow
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Well, I know that you're in love with him
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'Cause I saw you dancin' in the gym
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You both kicked off your shoes
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Man, I dig those rhythm and blues
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I was a lonely teenage broncin' buck
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With a pink carnation and a pickup truck
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But I knew I was out of luck
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The day the music died
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I started singin'
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Bye, bye Miss American Pie
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Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry
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Them good ole boys were drinking whiskey and rye
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Singin' this'll be the day that I die
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This'll be the day that I die
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Now, for ten years we've been on our own
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And moss grows fat on a rolling stone
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But, that's not how it used to be
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When the jester sang for the king and queen
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In a coat he borrowed from James Dean
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And a voice that came from you and me
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Oh, and while the king was looking down
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The jester stole his thorny crown
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The courtroom was adjourned
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No verdict was returned
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And while Lennon read a book on Marx
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The quartet practiced in the park
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And we sang dirges in the dark
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The day the music died
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We were singin'
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Bye, bye Miss American Pie
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Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry
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Them good ole boys were drinking whiskey and rye
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Singin' this'll be the day that I die
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This'll be the day that I die
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Helter skelter in a summer swelter
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The birds flew off with a fallout shelter
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Eight miles high and falling fast
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Landed flat on the grass
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The players tried for a forward pass
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With the jester on the sidelines in a cast
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Now the half-time air was sweet perfume
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While sergeants played a marching tune
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We all got up to dance
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Oh, but we never got the chance
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'Cause the players tried to take the field
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The marching band refused to yield
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Do you recall what was revealed
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The day the music died
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We started singin'
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Bye, bye Miss American Pie
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Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry
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Them good ole boys were drinking whiskey and rye
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Singin' this'll be the day that I die
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This'll be the day that I die
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Oh, and there we were all in one place
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A generation lost in space
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With no time left to start again
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So come on Jack be nimble, Jack be quick
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Jack Flash sat on a candlestick
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'Cause fire is the devil's only friend
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And as I watched him on the stage
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My hands were clenched in fists of rage
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No angel born in Hell
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Could break that Satan's spell
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And as the flames climbed high into the night
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To light the sacrificial rite
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I saw Satan laughing with delight
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The day the music died
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He was singin'
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Bye, bye Miss American Pie
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Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry
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Them good ole boys were drinking whiskey and rye
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Singin' this'll be the day that I die
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This'll be the day that I die
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I met a girl who sang the blues
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And I asked her for some happy news
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But she just smiled and turned away
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I went down to the sacred store
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Where I'd heard the music years before
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But the man there said the music wouldn't play
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And in the streets the children screamed
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The lovers cried, and the poets dreamed
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But not a word was [Spoken]
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The church bells all were broken
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And the three men I admire most
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The Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost
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They caught the last train for the coast
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The day the music died
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And they were singin'
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Bye, bye Miss American Pie
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Drove my Chevy to
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-----------------
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American Pie
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| Don McLean |
