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- ♪ MTV ♪
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- ♪ A long, long time ago ♪
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- This could, quite possibly,
be the greatest
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00:00:29,197 --> 00:00:30,398
song in music history.
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- ♪ I can still remember ♪
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♪ How that music used
to make me smile ♪
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- There's something
magical about it.
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It's transcendent.
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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 ♪
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- ♪ For a while ♪
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- It feels like
it's always existed.
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- ♪ So bye-bye,
Miss American Pie ♪
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- ♪ Drove my Chevy
to the levee ♪
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♪ But the levee was dry ♪
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- ♪ Them good old boys were
drinking whiskey and rye ♪
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- 90-year-old people
to 10-year-old kids,
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00:01:07,468 --> 00:01:08,836
everybody knows that song.
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00:01:08,902 --> 00:01:13,073
- ♪ This'll be the day
that I die ♪
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- ♪ Did you write
the book of love? ♪
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- "American Pie" is an epic.
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It's "War and Peace."
It's the big novel.
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- ♪ If the Bible
tells you so? ♪
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- It's woven into the fabric
of America and our culture.
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- ♪ Do you believe
in rock 'n' roll? ♪
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I thought it was a cool idea.
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I could go deliver the paper,
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and one day
there was this story,
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three rock 'n' roll stars
killed in a plane crash.
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Buddy was now dead.
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♪ Well, I know that you're
in love with him ♪
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- This is where the music died.
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- ♪ Dancin' in the gym ♪
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The country was in an advanced
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state of psychic shock.
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And so, I said, "I got to have
a big song about America."
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One day, it all came out
like a genie out of a bottle.
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I knew I had the tiger
by the tail.
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00:02:01,922 --> 00:02:04,525
♪ The day the music ♪
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Everything took off
like a rocket.
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- It went to number one so fast.
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- ♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
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- "American Pie" blew up
the world.
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- ♪ But the levee was dry ♪
46
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- I think I know the album cover
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as much as I know the song.
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I mean, Captain America thumb,
it's iconic.
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- ♪ This'll be the day
that I die ♪
50
00:02:23,110 --> 00:02:26,013
- "American Pie" was
really encapsulating
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the experience
of a whole generation.
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- ♪ Now for ten years
we've been on our own ♪
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- Everybody can relate
to that song.
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"American Pie" drew you in
deeply.
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- ♪ But that's not
how it used to be ♪
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I'm trying to do
a kaleidoscopic,
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dream-like story about America.
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♪ The jester stole
his thorny crown ♪
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I say "the jester stole
his thorny crown."
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Elvis did not have
a thorny crown.
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"A pink carnation," sure,
I went to a lot of proms,
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but I never had a pickup truck.
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But I could have anything
I wanted in my songs.
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♪ I saw Satan laughing
with delight ♪
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- It's the kind of song
you dream about writing
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that has meaning and has depth,
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00:03:09,156 --> 00:03:11,792
has relevance to generations,
you know, ongoing.
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All:
♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
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- We're in the age of TikTok.
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Meanwhile,
an eight-minute song is still
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getting radio play
all over the world.
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- ♪ Singin', "This'll
be the day that I die" ♪
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It is a masterpiece.
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- No one's ever written
anything like it since.
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- There's a reason it's
been around for 50 years.
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♪ The day ♪
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♪ The music died ♪
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- This is
what the power of music is.
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♪ A long, long time ago ♪
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You can see the house
I grew up in
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in New Rochelle,
it's still there.
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Being in the house
with my parents,
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00:04:00,674 --> 00:04:02,443
who I loved very much,
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00:04:02,510 --> 00:04:07,047
and they were great people,
but it was very restrictive.
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I was white,
suburban, middle-class.
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We believed in God.
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We believed in the church.
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We believed in our government.
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I was ill quite a bit.
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00:04:21,295 --> 00:04:24,732
I had asthma and I would
be out of school
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for weeks and weeks,
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stuck in the house and looking
at kids playing outside.
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And I developed differently
than they did.
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My father's idea
of what he wanted for his son
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was a West Point guy,
an athlete, warrior,
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intellectual, crew cut,
upright American boy.
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And I thought,
"I can't be farther apart
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from this guy than I am."
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- ♪ Well, now,
if your baby leaves you ♪
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00:04:54,562 --> 00:04:56,997
♪ And you've got
a tale to tell ♪
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♪ Well, just take a walk ♪
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00:04:58,566 --> 00:05:00,501
- And that's when I first
heard Elvis Presley.
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- ♪ Heartbreak Hotel ♪
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00:05:02,436 --> 00:05:06,239
- "Heartbreak Hotel,"
magic, takes your brains.
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00:05:06,306 --> 00:05:08,742
- ♪ You'll be lonely ♪
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00:05:08,809 --> 00:05:11,845
♪ You'll be so lonely,
you could die ♪
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00:05:11,912 --> 00:05:13,781
- It just seemed to me that
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00:05:13,847 --> 00:05:16,917
that image was
a very romantic image.
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I've always been
in love with romance,
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00:05:19,186 --> 00:05:21,021
you know,
whether it was Robin Hood
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00:05:21,088 --> 00:05:23,491
or Superman or the Lone Ranger,
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00:05:23,557 --> 00:05:26,494
and I started thinking
I could morph myself
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into this somehow, maybe
if I could play the guitar.
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I've never talked about this
in the song all these years,
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but I talk
about "the sacred store,"
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and the sacred store
is the House of Music
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on Main Street in New Rochelle,
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and that's where I bought
my records,
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and that's where I bought
my first guitar.
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And I started to learn.
I learned three chords,
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and I was off to the races,
but I drove everybody crazy.
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I'd play records over
and over and over.
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Bo Diddley and Gene Vincent,
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all these great groups.
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I fell in love with Buddy Holly.
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He had a rollicking sound.
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00:06:07,267 --> 00:06:10,571
He was always full
of joy and exuberance.
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A happy country boy sound
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00:06:17,244 --> 00:06:19,680
with jingling
and jangling guitars.
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And his songs were great.
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00:06:23,417 --> 00:06:26,053
There was something else
about Buddy Holly
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that he is only 21 or 22.
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He had a certain genius.
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He was a serious guy, you know.
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Country people were serious.
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You know,
they've been through a lot,
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and they worked hard
for their money.
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I mean, you go to Lubbock, Texas
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and all you see
are cotton fields.
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Holly Tile was the company
that the father had.
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00:06:48,075 --> 00:06:50,110
Buddy would have been
laying tile floors
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in bathrooms or picking cotton.
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- Where do you come from...
Lubbock, Texas?
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- Lubbock, Texas, yes.
- Right after high school,
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you started playing together?
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- Yes, sir, that's right.
- You were a big hit right
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00:07:01,188 --> 00:07:03,557
from the start or has it
been sort of a long...
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00:07:03,624 --> 00:07:06,860
- Well, we've had a few
rough times, I guess you'd say,
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00:07:06,927 --> 00:07:08,862
but we've been real lucky
getting it this quick.
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00:07:08,929 --> 00:07:11,899
- He had made recordings
in Nashville,
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which were not successful.
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And then he went
to Clovis, Mew Mexico,
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to Norman Petty's studio
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and recorded many of
the same songs,
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including "That'll Be The Day,"
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and suddenly he had
a number one record.
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Norman Petty was the difference.
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He knew what to do
to commercialize Buddy Holly.
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There was a... an alchemy.
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He made magic.
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And knowing it was not
only all over the country,
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but all around the world.
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- We are very proud
Iowa farmers.
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My grandfather started
the tradition
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back in the 1920s.
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This is my son, and now Andrew
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00:08:20,000 --> 00:08:21,501
and his cousin
are involved in it.
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00:08:23,571 --> 00:08:26,173
- This field has been
in our family for generations,
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and it's really important to us
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because it's our livelihood,
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but also there's no other field
in the countryside
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that's got more history
than this field.
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- This is a place
where one of the first
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big rock 'n' roll
tragedies occurred.
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It's very simple,
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it's in the middle
of a cornfield,
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it's not fancy,
no flashing lights.
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This is where the music died.
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00:09:00,908 --> 00:09:03,677
This is where the music died.
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00:09:03,744 --> 00:09:07,014
- ♪ I can't remember
if I cried ♪
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00:09:07,080 --> 00:09:10,584
♪ When I read
about his widowed bride ♪
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- In 1971, I was just
beginning to explore music,
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00:09:15,188 --> 00:09:17,524
and "American Pie" was one
of those songs.
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I listened to it
over and over again.
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00:09:21,161 --> 00:09:23,296
I had no idea
that it had anything
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00:09:23,363 --> 00:09:26,533
to do about Clear Lake
or the farm that we owned.
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00:09:29,236 --> 00:09:30,804
- This story in
from Clear Lake, Iowa,
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00:09:30,871 --> 00:09:32,928
three of the nation's top
rock 'n' roll singing stars,
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00:09:32,940 --> 00:09:35,275
Ritchie Valens, J.P.
"The Big Bopper" Richardson,
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00:09:35,342 --> 00:09:37,210
and Buddy Holly died today
with their pilot
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00:09:37,277 --> 00:09:39,246
in the crash
of a chartered plane.
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00:09:40,948 --> 00:09:46,086
- In 1979, when a local DJ
named the Mad Hatter started
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00:09:46,153 --> 00:09:48,555
the first Buddy Holly tribute,
194
00:09:48,622 --> 00:09:50,691
and then this gentleman,
Ken Paquette,
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00:09:50,758 --> 00:09:52,459
did the research and said,
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00:09:52,525 --> 00:09:55,495
"Okay, this is where
the plane crashed."
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00:09:59,833 --> 00:10:01,601
He put a monument out there,
198
00:10:01,669 --> 00:10:03,804
and people started coming
searching for the place,
199
00:10:03,871 --> 00:10:06,940
so I had our welder make
an extra big set of glasses,
200
00:10:07,007 --> 00:10:08,541
and I mounted 'em out there,
201
00:10:08,608 --> 00:10:10,298
and of course, that's kind of
turned into a little bit
202
00:10:10,310 --> 00:10:12,245
of a monument in itself.
203
00:10:13,380 --> 00:10:17,718
When Don's song came out,
it just lit up the enthusiasm
204
00:10:17,785 --> 00:10:20,453
and the interest in Buddy
and in that story.
205
00:10:22,489 --> 00:10:23,957
Buddy and Ritchie
and The Bopper,
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00:10:24,024 --> 00:10:25,693
the guys were so young.
207
00:10:25,759 --> 00:10:27,127
Ritchie was only 17.
208
00:10:27,194 --> 00:10:28,561
That fateful night,
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00:10:28,628 --> 00:10:30,898
they entertained
a couple thousand fans.
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00:10:30,964 --> 00:10:32,900
It all ended out here.
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00:10:32,966 --> 00:10:34,802
Now this is a pilgrimage.
212
00:10:34,868 --> 00:10:37,237
People from all over
the world travel here.
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00:10:37,304 --> 00:10:39,306
We'll occasionally have
a hayride out here,
214
00:10:39,372 --> 00:10:41,008
and we'll sing "American Pie."
215
00:10:41,074 --> 00:10:43,143
Everybody knows that song.
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00:10:43,210 --> 00:10:47,147
That is the song of our lives.
217
00:10:47,214 --> 00:10:50,818
- ♪ A long, long time ago ♪
218
00:10:50,884 --> 00:10:55,088
♪ I can still remember
how that music ♪
219
00:10:55,155 --> 00:10:59,760
♪ Used to make me smile ♪
220
00:10:59,827 --> 00:11:02,896
- "American Pie,
it's woven into the fabric
221
00:11:02,963 --> 00:11:05,332
of America and our culture.
222
00:11:05,398 --> 00:11:08,501
- ♪ That I could make
those people dance ♪
223
00:11:08,568 --> 00:11:11,671
- It just sort of feels
like it's always existed.
224
00:11:11,739 --> 00:11:14,407
It's just ubiquitous
and predates
225
00:11:14,474 --> 00:11:15,843
time itself or something.
226
00:11:15,909 --> 00:11:20,680
- ♪ The day the music ♪
227
00:11:20,748 --> 00:11:24,117
- I'm told we're the world's
first all-vocal country band.
228
00:11:24,184 --> 00:11:28,388
All: ♪ Bye-bye,
Miss American Pie ♪
229
00:11:28,455 --> 00:11:31,024
- "American Pie,"
it's one of those songs
230
00:11:31,091 --> 00:11:33,493
that I have known as long
as I can remember.
231
00:11:33,560 --> 00:11:35,796
- I've been singing that song
my whole life.
232
00:11:35,863 --> 00:11:39,199
- I remember my mother singing
that song to me, just as a song
233
00:11:39,266 --> 00:11:40,889
that never leaves you,
it's just always there.
234
00:11:40,901 --> 00:11:44,571
- By the time I remember
hearing that song on the radio,
235
00:11:44,637 --> 00:11:46,706
I feel like I already knew
all the words.
236
00:11:46,774 --> 00:11:49,242
♪ Did you write
the book of love? ♪
237
00:11:49,309 --> 00:11:52,746
♪ And do you have faith
in God above? ♪
238
00:11:52,813 --> 00:11:55,482
- When our manager mentioned
to us that Don was interested
239
00:11:55,548 --> 00:11:57,885
in doing a special edition
of the song
240
00:11:57,951 --> 00:12:00,453
for its 50th anniversary
and including us,
241
00:12:00,520 --> 00:12:02,189
we didn't even have
to think about it.
242
00:12:02,255 --> 00:12:05,192
- ♪ Can music save
your mortal soul? ♪
243
00:12:05,258 --> 00:12:08,996
- We certainly felt
a sense of responsibility,
244
00:12:09,062 --> 00:12:12,399
just being handed the reins
245
00:12:12,465 --> 00:12:14,868
to such an important,
iconic song.
246
00:12:14,935 --> 00:12:19,206
- ♪ With a pink carnation
and a pickup truck ♪
247
00:12:19,272 --> 00:12:22,575
- Don put a lot of trust
in us, and so, luckily,
248
00:12:22,642 --> 00:12:25,779
he was thrilled
with what we came up with.
249
00:12:25,846 --> 00:12:29,216
He just added his vocal
to the mix and it was magic.
250
00:12:29,282 --> 00:12:32,419
All: ♪ Bye-bye,
Miss American Pie ♪
251
00:12:32,485 --> 00:12:35,655
♪ Drove my Chevy to the levee,
but the levee was dry ♪
252
00:12:35,722 --> 00:12:38,391
- The day the music died
was such
253
00:12:38,458 --> 00:12:40,593
an earth-shattering moment,
254
00:12:40,660 --> 00:12:43,797
and then Don actually
put it into words,
255
00:12:43,864 --> 00:12:47,267
what everybody was feeling,
but wasn't really able to say.
256
00:12:47,334 --> 00:12:51,638
He used such incredible
imagery and metaphors
257
00:12:51,704 --> 00:12:54,641
that allowed the audience
to inject their own
258
00:12:54,707 --> 00:12:57,010
personal meaning
into the song as well.
259
00:13:02,649 --> 00:13:06,887
There's a lot of things that
can unify us in strange ways.
260
00:13:06,954 --> 00:13:10,190
We're united in our grief
and sense of loss.
261
00:13:10,257 --> 00:13:11,658
That is what Don was able
262
00:13:11,724 --> 00:13:13,593
to articulate
through "American Pie."
263
00:13:13,660 --> 00:13:15,762
Just the imagery
of that chorus alone,
264
00:13:15,829 --> 00:13:18,365
the idea of a bunch
of good old boys
265
00:13:18,431 --> 00:13:20,067
drinking whiskey
and rye and singing,
266
00:13:20,133 --> 00:13:21,501
"This'll be the day
that I die."
267
00:13:21,568 --> 00:13:24,237
It's a horrible thing
to be singing about,
268
00:13:24,304 --> 00:13:26,673
yet they're all singing
about it together.
269
00:13:26,739 --> 00:13:30,310
- ♪ And the three men
I admire most ♪
270
00:13:30,377 --> 00:13:33,513
♪ The Father, Son,
and the Holy Ghost ♪
271
00:13:33,580 --> 00:13:35,282
- When he wrote it,
we were kind of
272
00:13:35,348 --> 00:13:38,418
on the tail end
of the two-minute pop song.
273
00:13:38,485 --> 00:13:41,488
Meanwhile, he comes out
with this eight-minute song
274
00:13:41,554 --> 00:13:44,524
that gets played on the radio,
and that's unheard of.
275
00:13:44,591 --> 00:13:50,430
- ♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
276
00:13:50,497 --> 00:13:52,432
- Now we're in the age of TikTok
277
00:13:52,499 --> 00:13:53,955
where people don't want
to see anything
278
00:13:53,967 --> 00:13:55,135
longer than a few seconds.
279
00:13:55,202 --> 00:13:57,404
Meanwhile,
"American Pie" is still
280
00:13:57,470 --> 00:13:59,839
getting radio play
all over the world.
281
00:13:59,907 --> 00:14:04,111
- ♪ Singing "This'll be
the day that I die" ♪
282
00:14:04,177 --> 00:14:05,745
- We were on tour in Europe.
283
00:14:05,812 --> 00:14:08,581
I was at some bar
at 1:00 in the morning,
284
00:14:08,648 --> 00:14:09,983
and then "American Pie" came on,
285
00:14:10,050 --> 00:14:11,484
and everyone sang every word,
286
00:14:11,551 --> 00:14:13,153
and no one spoke any English.
287
00:14:13,220 --> 00:14:17,224
- ♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
288
00:14:17,290 --> 00:14:18,825
♪ Drove my Chevy to the levee ♪
289
00:14:18,892 --> 00:14:20,281
- There's something
magical about it.
290
00:14:20,293 --> 00:14:21,861
Everyone knows that song.
291
00:14:21,929 --> 00:14:25,232
Everyone on the planet can
sing a chorus of that song.
292
00:14:25,298 --> 00:14:26,666
It's transcendent.
293
00:14:26,733 --> 00:14:33,306
- ♪ Singing "This'll be
the day that I die" ♪
294
00:14:42,615 --> 00:14:44,551
- My father wanted me to work,
295
00:14:44,617 --> 00:14:46,186
so I thought it was a cool idea,
296
00:14:46,253 --> 00:14:47,420
I could go deliver the paper,
297
00:14:47,487 --> 00:14:49,656
and that would be fun.
298
00:14:52,525 --> 00:14:57,597
I had a Sears Roebuck
fat tire bike.
299
00:14:57,664 --> 00:15:00,467
It had no gears or anything.
300
00:15:00,533 --> 00:15:02,970
It was like riding
a cast-iron lawn-mower,
301
00:15:03,036 --> 00:15:04,804
is what it was like.
302
00:15:07,540 --> 00:15:09,776
I like the romance
of throwing the paper,
303
00:15:09,842 --> 00:15:12,512
and "Yes, I'm the paper boy,
that's right.
304
00:15:12,579 --> 00:15:14,269
I'll have your paper tomorrow,
don't worry."
305
00:15:14,281 --> 00:15:15,949
You know, this kind of thing.
306
00:15:18,451 --> 00:15:19,652
It was cold.
307
00:15:19,719 --> 00:15:22,155
February in those days was cold.
308
00:15:22,222 --> 00:15:25,158
♪ February made me shiver ♪
309
00:15:25,225 --> 00:15:27,927
And you can see my house,
310
00:15:27,995 --> 00:15:31,498
there's kind of a stoop,
there's a cement block,
311
00:15:31,564 --> 00:15:34,867
and they would throw
the papers on that,
312
00:15:34,934 --> 00:15:36,536
and they'd be bound up,
313
00:15:36,603 --> 00:15:38,771
and so you'd cut it open
314
00:15:38,838 --> 00:15:41,908
and start putting
the papers in your sack.
315
00:15:47,147 --> 00:15:50,417
And one day I opened it up,
and there was this story.
316
00:15:50,483 --> 00:15:56,723
♪ Bad news on the doorstep ♪
317
00:15:56,789 --> 00:16:01,294
Three rock 'n' roll
stars killed in plane crash,
318
00:16:01,361 --> 00:16:04,197
and it was my guy
who was killed.
319
00:16:04,264 --> 00:16:06,566
Buddy was now dead.
320
00:16:08,301 --> 00:16:11,371
I was in absolute shock.
321
00:16:11,438 --> 00:16:13,273
Man, I read the whole story.
322
00:16:13,340 --> 00:16:18,778
I think I might have actually
cried, it was that personal.
323
00:16:18,845 --> 00:16:21,714
I felt like, you know,
you lost your first love,
324
00:16:21,781 --> 00:16:24,051
or you broke up
with your first girlfriend.
325
00:16:24,117 --> 00:16:26,753
You know, that dark,
horrible thing
326
00:16:26,819 --> 00:16:28,721
that comes over a teenager,
you know,
327
00:16:28,788 --> 00:16:30,290
and it's like the end
of the world.
328
00:16:37,064 --> 00:16:40,767
All of a sudden,
you get this horrible death
329
00:16:40,833 --> 00:16:43,603
personally affecting me
with this pain
330
00:16:43,670 --> 00:16:45,938
that I never had
experienced before.
331
00:16:50,009 --> 00:16:51,878
So it just hurt.
332
00:16:51,944 --> 00:16:54,947
Can't intellectualize it.
It hurt me.
333
00:16:58,685 --> 00:17:01,088
And then when that
"Buddy Holly Story: Volume 1"
334
00:17:01,154 --> 00:17:03,623
came out right after,
335
00:17:03,690 --> 00:17:05,225
that just did me in
336
00:17:05,292 --> 00:17:07,760
because there were so many
beautiful songs on there.
337
00:17:07,827 --> 00:17:12,732
♪ Something
touched me deep inside ♪
338
00:17:12,799 --> 00:17:15,902
You know, I was
so touched and moved
339
00:17:15,968 --> 00:17:17,837
by this beautiful face,
340
00:17:17,904 --> 00:17:20,039
and nobody talked about him
'cause he was dead.
341
00:17:20,107 --> 00:17:22,809
Americans didn't talk
about dead people.
342
00:17:22,875 --> 00:17:23,875
Onward.
343
00:17:29,749 --> 00:17:32,219
- The original
Winter Dance Party,
344
00:17:32,285 --> 00:17:34,020
it was kind of a mishmash.
345
00:17:34,087 --> 00:17:35,888
It was kind of
a last minute tour
346
00:17:35,955 --> 00:17:38,391
that was put together
all over the Midwest
347
00:17:38,458 --> 00:17:41,361
in the middle of January,
when it was cold and windy
348
00:17:41,428 --> 00:17:44,364
and snowy and had
a lousy bus without a heater.
349
00:17:44,431 --> 00:17:46,733
The heater kept breaking down,
so you can imagine
350
00:17:46,799 --> 00:17:49,102
how cold it was on that bus.
351
00:17:54,974 --> 00:17:56,609
Buddy and Ritchie
and The Bopper,
352
00:17:56,676 --> 00:17:58,811
these were the rock 'n' roll
stars of the day.
353
00:17:58,878 --> 00:18:02,815
They all had top hits,
and it was a thrill to have
354
00:18:02,882 --> 00:18:06,853
this group of artists come
to little old Clear Lake, Iowa
355
00:18:06,919 --> 00:18:09,922
to perform on the stage
at the Surf Ballroom.
356
00:18:14,427 --> 00:18:17,130
From the Surf, they were
scheduled to go to Minnesota.
357
00:18:17,197 --> 00:18:20,700
Even in today's day and age,
those are long treks.
358
00:18:20,767 --> 00:18:23,102
So when they got to Clear Lake,
359
00:18:23,170 --> 00:18:25,405
Buddy was tired of riding
on that cold bus,
360
00:18:25,472 --> 00:18:28,040
and so he asked Carol Anderson,
361
00:18:28,107 --> 00:18:29,709
who was the manager of the Surf,
362
00:18:29,776 --> 00:18:33,646
to find a plane
so they could fly to Fargo
363
00:18:33,713 --> 00:18:36,082
and play in Moorhead, Minnesota.
364
00:18:42,355 --> 00:18:44,557
- ♪ Para bailar La Bamba ♪
365
00:18:44,624 --> 00:18:47,126
♪ Para bailar La Bamba ♪
366
00:18:47,194 --> 00:18:49,962
♪ Se necesito
una poca de gracia ♪
367
00:18:50,029 --> 00:18:51,586
- The show that night
was a fabulous show.
368
00:18:51,598 --> 00:18:53,200
I mean, you can imagine.
369
00:18:53,266 --> 00:18:54,667
It was unbelievable.
370
00:18:54,734 --> 00:18:57,904
- ♪ Arriba, y arriba ♪
371
00:18:57,970 --> 00:18:59,772
♪ Y arriba, y arriba ♪
372
00:18:59,839 --> 00:19:03,876
♪ Por ti seré,
por ti seré, por ti ♪
373
00:19:03,943 --> 00:19:07,113
♪ Yo no soy marinero ♪
374
00:19:07,180 --> 00:19:10,183
♪ Yo no soy marinero,
soy capitán ♪
375
00:19:10,250 --> 00:19:13,486
♪ Soy capitán, soy capitán ♪
376
00:19:15,988 --> 00:19:18,758
- The show ended
about after midnight.
377
00:19:18,825 --> 00:19:22,195
Waylon Jennings
and Buddy had this exchange.
378
00:19:22,262 --> 00:19:24,564
Buddy said,
"I hope the bus breaks down."
379
00:19:24,631 --> 00:19:26,351
And Waylon says,
"I hope the plane crashes."
380
00:19:26,366 --> 00:19:28,868
♪ Para bailar La Bamba ♪
381
00:19:28,935 --> 00:19:30,903
♪ Para bailar La Bamba ♪
382
00:19:30,970 --> 00:19:35,708
♪ Se necesito
una poca de gracia ♪
383
00:19:35,775 --> 00:19:37,210
♪ Una poca de gracia ♪
384
00:19:37,277 --> 00:19:40,247
♪ Para mi, para ti,
y arriba, y arriba ♪
385
00:19:44,984 --> 00:19:47,487
- And Carol was the manager,
he was the one that put 'em
386
00:19:47,554 --> 00:19:49,689
in the station wagon
and took 'em out
387
00:19:49,756 --> 00:19:51,491
to the Mason City Airport.
388
00:19:53,893 --> 00:19:56,563
- I put 'em in the airplane,
389
00:19:56,629 --> 00:19:59,866
and I talked to all three
of those boys that night
390
00:19:59,932 --> 00:20:02,034
before they got in the airplane.
391
00:20:02,101 --> 00:20:04,971
They were just kids.
392
00:20:11,744 --> 00:20:15,047
- They took off about 1:00,
and to be honest,
393
00:20:15,114 --> 00:20:16,783
they weren't
in the air very long.
394
00:20:19,151 --> 00:20:20,871
- I could see the taillight
of the airplane,
395
00:20:20,887 --> 00:20:22,221
and the aircraft, in my opinion,
396
00:20:22,289 --> 00:20:25,124
was going down slowly,
397
00:20:25,191 --> 00:20:27,927
and it went down about
three miles northwest of us.
398
00:20:30,430 --> 00:20:32,465
I said to the man
in the tower with me,
399
00:20:32,532 --> 00:20:35,101
who was a weatherman, that
the airplane was going down,
400
00:20:35,167 --> 00:20:37,337
and he said, "No,
that's an optical illusion,"
401
00:20:37,404 --> 00:20:39,339
but I'd watched a lot
of airplanes,
402
00:20:39,406 --> 00:20:42,275
and I hoped I was wrong.
403
00:20:44,176 --> 00:20:47,079
- Well, the FAA report says
it was pilot error.
404
00:20:47,146 --> 00:20:49,749
Roger Peterson, who was
a young Clear Lake kid,
405
00:20:49,816 --> 00:20:54,654
got disoriented
and actually just wasn't able
406
00:20:54,721 --> 00:20:56,389
to read the instruments
correctly,
407
00:20:56,456 --> 00:20:59,426
got discombobulated,
and thought he was going up,
408
00:20:59,492 --> 00:21:00,860
and he was really descending,
409
00:21:00,927 --> 00:21:02,895
and just flew the plane
into the ground.
410
00:21:05,632 --> 00:21:07,400
They couldn't have been
in the air more
411
00:21:07,467 --> 00:21:11,704
than three or four minutes,
maybe four or five miles.
412
00:21:13,139 --> 00:21:17,577
Their plane came down
at a very high rate
413
00:21:17,644 --> 00:21:20,613
of descent because one
of the wings cut
414
00:21:20,680 --> 00:21:22,482
a trench into the frozen ground.
415
00:21:22,549 --> 00:21:26,753
They skidded about 500 feet
with the tail going up,
416
00:21:26,819 --> 00:21:28,476
and because there was
a little bit of a ridge
417
00:21:28,488 --> 00:21:30,757
at the fence line.
418
00:21:30,823 --> 00:21:33,560
Jerry Dwyer actually
got up the next morning
419
00:21:33,626 --> 00:21:34,994
and went out and got in a plane,
420
00:21:35,061 --> 00:21:36,563
'cause he'd heard
that they had not
421
00:21:36,629 --> 00:21:38,598
reached their destination.
422
00:21:38,665 --> 00:21:41,634
In just a couple of minutes
after he was airborne,
423
00:21:41,701 --> 00:21:43,002
he radioed back to the airport,
424
00:21:43,069 --> 00:21:44,737
and then they called
the Sheriff.
425
00:21:46,673 --> 00:21:48,174
- I did call to make sure
426
00:21:48,240 --> 00:21:49,964
that the people got out there
as quick as they could.
427
00:21:49,976 --> 00:21:52,512
I was hoping that some
of the people were still alive
428
00:21:52,579 --> 00:21:53,746
or maybe all of 'em,
429
00:21:53,813 --> 00:21:55,247
and it turned out they weren't,
430
00:21:55,314 --> 00:21:56,983
any of them.
431
00:22:00,420 --> 00:22:03,055
- It was a very tragic scene.
432
00:22:03,122 --> 00:22:06,959
A lot of officials,
photographers.
433
00:22:10,363 --> 00:22:15,101
Something that Clear Lake
never wished to be famous for.
434
00:22:15,167 --> 00:22:17,367
- Three of the nation's top
rock 'n' roll singing stars,
435
00:22:17,404 --> 00:22:19,706
Ritchie Valens, J.P.
"The Big Bopper" Richardson,
436
00:22:19,772 --> 00:22:21,741
and Buddy Holly died today
with their pilot
437
00:22:21,808 --> 00:22:23,376
in the crash
of a chartered plane.
438
00:22:23,443 --> 00:22:25,945
- A lot of family members
heard it on the news
439
00:22:26,012 --> 00:22:28,648
rather than being notified.
440
00:22:33,620 --> 00:22:37,390
So it was a gruesome scene,
and it was a real tragedy.
441
00:22:49,536 --> 00:22:51,504
- I grew up in the middle
of America.
442
00:22:51,571 --> 00:22:53,139
I grew up in Oklahoma.
443
00:22:53,205 --> 00:22:55,875
Dad worked in the oil fields,
444
00:22:55,942 --> 00:22:57,844
Golden Gloves boxing champion,
445
00:22:57,910 --> 00:22:59,912
former Marine Corps Korean War.
446
00:22:59,979 --> 00:23:02,081
My mom was a housewife,
447
00:23:02,148 --> 00:23:04,116
former singer who gave it up
448
00:23:04,183 --> 00:23:07,119
to raise six children,
and I was the baby of the six.
449
00:23:08,555 --> 00:23:12,258
Mom loved Patsy.
She loved Aretha, Jack Greene.
450
00:23:12,324 --> 00:23:14,694
Dad was more
of the working man's stuff,
451
00:23:14,761 --> 00:23:17,363
so Jones, Haggard, Buck Owens,
452
00:23:17,430 --> 00:23:21,200
and there I was, the guy
that was taking it all in.
453
00:23:21,267 --> 00:23:23,903
Me and my mom hung out a lot
because I was the baby.
454
00:23:23,970 --> 00:23:26,238
So some days, you know,
you'd be sick for school.
455
00:23:26,305 --> 00:23:28,174
We had one car,
so we'd have to drive Dad in
456
00:23:28,240 --> 00:23:30,309
and out of Oklahoma City
and go pick him up.
457
00:23:30,376 --> 00:23:31,811
And in that car ride,
458
00:23:31,878 --> 00:23:33,245
I remember
hearing "American Pie"
459
00:23:33,312 --> 00:23:36,148
for the first time
and just loving it.
460
00:23:36,215 --> 00:23:39,952
- ♪ Oh, and there we were,
all in one place ♪
461
00:23:40,019 --> 00:23:43,389
♪ A generation lost in space ♪
462
00:23:43,456 --> 00:23:46,092
- The youth that's
in those drums,
463
00:23:46,158 --> 00:23:49,095
the youth that's in that piano,
that's all over the place.
464
00:23:49,161 --> 00:23:52,499
- ♪ Come on, Jack be nimble,
Jack be quick ♪
465
00:23:52,565 --> 00:23:56,603
- And this soft voice
that is so confident
466
00:23:56,669 --> 00:24:00,507
it earns its place among
all that activity going on.
467
00:24:00,573 --> 00:24:02,475
It's fabulous.
468
00:24:02,542 --> 00:24:06,412
- ♪ Oh, and as I watched him
on the stage ♪
469
00:24:06,479 --> 00:24:08,380
- So I knew that song
backward and forward
470
00:24:08,447 --> 00:24:11,417
before I could ever
play guitar or anything.
471
00:24:11,484 --> 00:24:15,788
What I didn't know was
how much of a song
472
00:24:15,855 --> 00:24:17,890
it would become for me.
473
00:24:17,957 --> 00:24:23,295
♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
474
00:24:23,362 --> 00:24:25,164
Especially early in your career,
475
00:24:25,231 --> 00:24:27,099
it was fun, man,
you'd try and shake it up,
476
00:24:27,166 --> 00:24:29,046
so you'd do sing-alongs
at the end of the night,
477
00:24:29,068 --> 00:24:31,437
and "American Pie" was
probably 90% of the time.
478
00:24:31,504 --> 00:24:35,207
♪ Boys was drinking
whiskey and rye ♪
479
00:24:35,274 --> 00:24:36,976
It was always what
we ended Willies with
480
00:24:37,043 --> 00:24:38,410
when I played colleges.
481
00:24:40,780 --> 00:24:42,670
We get a record label, and
probably about the third day,
482
00:24:42,682 --> 00:24:43,838
there's a thing called Bull Run.
483
00:24:43,850 --> 00:24:45,184
Bull Run is this thing in DC
484
00:24:45,251 --> 00:24:47,186
where they're gonna put
about 12 acts on stage.
485
00:24:47,253 --> 00:24:49,455
People are going to know
the last two or three,
486
00:24:49,522 --> 00:24:51,858
but all the ones up front,
they kind of sit through.
487
00:24:51,924 --> 00:24:53,244
I'm one of those
sit through guys,
488
00:24:53,292 --> 00:24:55,094
'cause we don't have
anything out yet.
489
00:24:57,830 --> 00:25:00,733
Right after the first song,
the big downbeat,
490
00:25:00,800 --> 00:25:02,769
something goes wrong,
491
00:25:02,835 --> 00:25:04,503
Everything is out,
492
00:25:04,571 --> 00:25:06,873
everything except my guitar
and my mic.
493
00:25:06,939 --> 00:25:08,379
And the first line
out of my mouth...
494
00:25:08,407 --> 00:25:10,127
I'll remember it
the rest of my life, was...
495
00:25:10,176 --> 00:25:13,946
♪ A long, long time ago ♪
496
00:25:14,013 --> 00:25:16,849
And you just watch
the whole place stop.
497
00:25:16,916 --> 00:25:20,753
The guy going up to get a beer
stopped, turns, and you see it.
498
00:25:20,820 --> 00:25:22,722
They came in.
499
00:25:22,789 --> 00:25:24,223
They don't know who this guy is,
500
00:25:24,290 --> 00:25:25,970
but he's singing
probably the greatest song
501
00:25:25,992 --> 00:25:27,226
in music history,
502
00:25:27,293 --> 00:25:28,573
and they're all singing
with you.
503
00:25:28,595 --> 00:25:32,031
And at that point,
not only did I have them,
504
00:25:32,098 --> 00:25:35,935
more importantly,
I knew they had me.
505
00:25:36,002 --> 00:25:38,805
But to take it on
to the next level
506
00:25:38,871 --> 00:25:40,873
and see it happen there too,
507
00:25:40,940 --> 00:25:43,175
it was just amazing.
508
00:25:48,180 --> 00:25:53,452
- I had been doing
extremely poorly in school.
509
00:25:53,519 --> 00:25:57,456
I was a freshman
at Iona Preparatory School,
510
00:25:57,523 --> 00:26:00,526
Catholic, taught
by Irish Christian brothers.
511
00:26:00,593 --> 00:26:04,496
They looked like priests,
and it was very Dickensian.
512
00:26:06,065 --> 00:26:08,367
My mother had gone away,
and I'm waiting
513
00:26:08,434 --> 00:26:10,803
for this horrible
report card to come home.
514
00:26:10,870 --> 00:26:12,793
My father's in a good mood.
You know, I think, "Oh, man,
515
00:26:12,805 --> 00:26:14,862
when this happens, he ain't
gonna be in a good mood."
516
00:26:14,874 --> 00:26:17,176
So the report card comes.
517
00:26:18,945 --> 00:26:21,247
My father,
he looked at this thing,
518
00:26:21,313 --> 00:26:23,182
and he said, "This is awful",
519
00:26:23,249 --> 00:26:25,251
"and you cannot go on like this,
520
00:26:25,317 --> 00:26:27,253
and what is gonna
become of you?"
521
00:26:27,319 --> 00:26:29,521
Course, it wasn't low-key.
He was yelling, you know,
522
00:26:29,588 --> 00:26:31,290
'cause he had a temper.
523
00:26:31,357 --> 00:26:35,995
He felt all this silliness
with music was impinging on
524
00:26:36,062 --> 00:26:38,931
and diminishing my schoolwork.
525
00:26:38,998 --> 00:26:40,767
So I went to sleep.
526
00:26:40,833 --> 00:26:44,336
It's like 1:00 in the morning,
and all of a sudden,
527
00:26:44,403 --> 00:26:47,539
my father has his arms
around his chest.
528
00:26:47,606 --> 00:26:50,342
He comes in to me
and he's crying.
529
00:26:50,409 --> 00:26:53,379
He's saying, "God, help me."
530
00:26:53,445 --> 00:26:55,481
Ambulance came, the police came,
531
00:26:55,547 --> 00:26:58,284
and they had him wrapped up
on a stretcher.
532
00:26:58,350 --> 00:27:00,052
They're bringing him
down the stairs,
533
00:27:00,119 --> 00:27:02,021
and he just looked up at me
and he smiled.
534
00:27:04,190 --> 00:27:07,026
Two hours later, I'm sleeping.
535
00:27:07,093 --> 00:27:10,229
The door opens,
and my uncle is there.
536
00:27:10,296 --> 00:27:12,832
He said, "There's some
bad news for you, Donny,"
537
00:27:12,899 --> 00:27:14,901
and he told me.
538
00:27:14,967 --> 00:27:17,103
"Your father died tonight."
539
00:27:20,873 --> 00:27:22,975
I am ruined.
540
00:27:23,042 --> 00:27:25,177
I mean, I was really mad.
541
00:27:26,713 --> 00:27:30,382
That was very painful,
and it lasted a long time.
542
00:27:31,851 --> 00:27:36,022
It was almost like
the happy '50s were over.
543
00:27:38,157 --> 00:27:40,326
When my father died,
home left me,
544
00:27:40,392 --> 00:27:41,961
'cause it wasn't there anymore.
545
00:27:42,028 --> 00:27:45,497
You can imagine how important
music became to me,
546
00:27:45,564 --> 00:27:48,000
creating something
out of myself,
547
00:27:48,067 --> 00:27:50,236
moving away from all this.
548
00:27:52,638 --> 00:27:57,409
Once I had the guitar going,
this folk thing started.
549
00:27:57,476 --> 00:28:02,081
I'd just write songs
and follow my instincts.
550
00:28:02,148 --> 00:28:04,450
And I started playing
around town.
551
00:28:04,516 --> 00:28:08,520
I would plan a concert
almost every month.
552
00:28:08,587 --> 00:28:12,925
It was now about 1964,
so I was about 18,
553
00:28:12,992 --> 00:28:14,560
and I had quit school
554
00:28:14,626 --> 00:28:16,128
'cause I wanted to be a singer.
555
00:28:16,195 --> 00:28:20,767
- ♪ John Henry,
when he was a baby ♪
556
00:28:20,833 --> 00:28:23,736
♪ Settin' down
on his mammy's knee ♪
557
00:28:23,803 --> 00:28:26,372
- But now I was learning songs
558
00:28:26,438 --> 00:28:28,808
that had substance of some kind.
559
00:28:28,875 --> 00:28:31,510
They weren't little songs.
They were big songs.
560
00:28:31,577 --> 00:28:34,146
Woody Guthrie's
"Roll On, Columbia"
561
00:28:34,213 --> 00:28:36,515
was a big song
about the Columbia River
562
00:28:36,582 --> 00:28:38,751
and the men that built
the Grand Coulee Dam.
563
00:28:38,818 --> 00:28:41,153
- ♪ There's a great
and peaceful river ♪
564
00:28:41,220 --> 00:28:43,155
♪ In a land that's fair to see ♪
565
00:28:43,222 --> 00:28:45,091
- A song like
"Roll On, Columbia,"
566
00:28:45,157 --> 00:28:46,625
you start about talking about
567
00:28:46,692 --> 00:28:48,995
our country took the challenge,
568
00:28:49,061 --> 00:28:50,629
so you describe how it was.
569
00:28:50,696 --> 00:28:54,266
- ♪ Roll, Columbia,
won't you roll, roll, roll ♪
570
00:28:54,333 --> 00:28:55,835
- And each time,
"Roll on, Columbia."
571
00:28:55,902 --> 00:28:57,970
- ♪ Won't you roll, roll, roll ♪
572
00:28:58,037 --> 00:29:00,739
- And then you're talking
about these mighty men labored
573
00:29:00,807 --> 00:29:03,342
by day and by night
to build this thing.
574
00:29:03,409 --> 00:29:07,046
- ♪ Seldom you see
such a beautiful sight ♪
575
00:29:07,113 --> 00:29:08,948
- Third verse,
you're understanding
576
00:29:09,015 --> 00:29:10,516
what's happening.
577
00:29:10,582 --> 00:29:12,484
And by the fourth verse,
you hear that chorus,
578
00:29:12,551 --> 00:29:14,553
I mean, it all makes sense.
579
00:29:14,620 --> 00:29:15,922
That's the key.
580
00:29:15,988 --> 00:29:19,591
- ♪ Roll on, Columbia, roll on ♪
581
00:29:19,658 --> 00:29:23,896
♪ Roll on, Columbia, roll on ♪
582
00:29:23,963 --> 00:29:28,100
♪ Your power is turning
our darkness to dawn ♪
583
00:29:28,167 --> 00:29:29,435
♪ So roll on ♪
584
00:29:29,501 --> 00:29:31,037
- "Tutti Frutti"
and "Don't Be Cruel"
585
00:29:31,103 --> 00:29:32,905
are fabulous small songs,
586
00:29:32,972 --> 00:29:35,374
and they changed the world
with those simple songs,
587
00:29:35,441 --> 00:29:38,010
but these songs were
more complicated
588
00:29:38,077 --> 00:29:40,479
and more interesting in terms
of what they're teaching you
589
00:29:40,546 --> 00:29:42,748
about your country
and about yourself.
590
00:29:42,815 --> 00:29:45,151
You know,
who are we as Americans?
591
00:29:45,217 --> 00:29:46,552
A guy like me thought,
592
00:29:46,618 --> 00:29:48,420
"Wow, gee, I could
write a song like that
593
00:29:48,487 --> 00:29:50,756
"with a little chorus
in between and a little story,
594
00:29:50,823 --> 00:29:53,059
and a little chorus,
and a little story,"
595
00:29:53,125 --> 00:29:55,294
and that's
what "American Pie" does.
596
00:29:55,361 --> 00:29:58,630
- ♪ Well, come on,
let's go, let's go ♪
597
00:29:58,697 --> 00:30:00,766
♪ Let's go, little darlin' ♪
598
00:30:00,833 --> 00:30:03,402
♪ And tell me that you'll
never leave me ♪
599
00:30:03,469 --> 00:30:05,171
- I'm Connie Valens.
600
00:30:05,237 --> 00:30:07,206
Ritchie Valens was my brother.
601
00:30:07,273 --> 00:30:08,875
- ♪ Again, again, and again ♪
602
00:30:08,941 --> 00:30:10,676
♪ Well now, swing ♪
603
00:30:10,742 --> 00:30:13,112
- The classic car show,
it's about the time,
604
00:30:13,179 --> 00:30:15,347
it's about the '50s,
just like my brother.
605
00:30:15,414 --> 00:30:17,249
You know, there's still
an innocence there.
606
00:30:17,316 --> 00:30:18,918
There's a purity.
607
00:30:23,389 --> 00:30:26,258
We were born
in the San Fernando Valley.
608
00:30:26,325 --> 00:30:28,460
Ritchie, he was just real warm,
609
00:30:28,527 --> 00:30:30,729
real loving, very protective.
610
00:30:33,099 --> 00:30:35,455
He discovered he was a pretty
good singer and guitar player.
611
00:30:35,467 --> 00:30:39,271
My mom used to say he could
make that guitar cry.
612
00:30:40,907 --> 00:30:43,742
The next thing you know,
he's touring.
613
00:30:43,809 --> 00:30:46,245
Everything was just
happening so fast.
614
00:30:46,312 --> 00:30:49,448
He was 17 with a big dream.
615
00:30:52,684 --> 00:30:55,554
My sister and I were
walking home from school,
616
00:30:55,621 --> 00:30:58,124
and somebody said,
"Your brother's dead."
617
00:30:58,190 --> 00:31:01,093
We just held hands and started
running towards our house.
618
00:31:03,229 --> 00:31:06,032
Mama was sitting in the middle
of the living room,
619
00:31:06,098 --> 00:31:07,521
and she turned around
and looked at me,
620
00:31:07,533 --> 00:31:09,801
and she just looked so sad,
621
00:31:09,868 --> 00:31:12,972
and she just said
622
00:31:13,039 --> 00:31:15,507
that Ritchie had been killed.
623
00:31:15,574 --> 00:31:18,945
I remember just dropping
to my knees
624
00:31:19,011 --> 00:31:21,347
and putting my head in her lap,
625
00:31:21,413 --> 00:31:25,351
and she just
put her hand on my head.
626
00:31:26,652 --> 00:31:28,254
And that was the beginning
627
00:31:28,320 --> 00:31:30,189
of a very dark time
in our lives.
628
00:31:37,429 --> 00:31:41,067
The Surf is the cathedral
of rock 'n' roll.
629
00:31:41,133 --> 00:31:43,135
This is the last place he was,
630
00:31:43,202 --> 00:31:46,772
and a little part
of him will always be here,
631
00:31:46,838 --> 00:31:49,841
and every time I walk in,
I feel it.
632
00:31:53,145 --> 00:31:55,948
And sometimes I just
come up on the stage,
633
00:31:56,015 --> 00:31:57,849
and I stand where he stood.
634
00:31:59,418 --> 00:32:03,956
And it's like
he's still with us.
635
00:32:04,023 --> 00:32:06,058
He always will be.
636
00:32:06,125 --> 00:32:11,964
- ♪ Oh, Donna, oh, Donna ♪
637
00:32:12,031 --> 00:32:14,700
- I first heard of Don McLean
and "American Pie"
638
00:32:14,766 --> 00:32:16,668
in the '70s
when it was released.
639
00:32:16,735 --> 00:32:20,672
- ♪ Donna was her name ♪
640
00:32:20,739 --> 00:32:23,275
- I thought he did
a beautiful job.
641
00:32:23,342 --> 00:32:25,611
Obviously, he felt something
642
00:32:25,677 --> 00:32:28,247
very near and dear
in the tragedy.
643
00:32:28,314 --> 00:32:29,648
It was so heartfelt,
644
00:32:29,715 --> 00:32:33,019
and the lyrics
are just beautiful.
645
00:32:33,085 --> 00:32:34,553
I thought it was pretty cool
646
00:32:34,620 --> 00:32:37,256
that somebody would
care enough to do that.
647
00:32:37,323 --> 00:32:42,128
- ♪ Oh, Donna, oh ♪
648
00:32:42,194 --> 00:32:44,430
- We were all very touched.
649
00:32:44,496 --> 00:32:47,366
It was another little bit
of healing for our family.
650
00:32:50,802 --> 00:32:53,972
- There was this inch-square
advertisement
651
00:32:54,040 --> 00:32:55,607
in the "New York Times,"
652
00:32:55,674 --> 00:32:59,011
said, "Pete Seeger sings
for Hudson River sloop."
653
00:33:00,679 --> 00:33:04,350
I got in my car,
and it was a little concert
654
00:33:04,416 --> 00:33:06,518
in Garrison, New York,
655
00:33:06,585 --> 00:33:09,721
directly across from West Point.
656
00:33:12,891 --> 00:33:15,727
And then I find
Osborne's Castle,
657
00:33:15,794 --> 00:33:18,364
which is where
this event was held.
658
00:33:18,430 --> 00:33:20,866
The castle was way up
on the hill,
659
00:33:20,932 --> 00:33:24,070
but there was this low area
with rolling fields.
660
00:33:24,136 --> 00:33:28,674
- ♪ I'm gonna lay down
my sword and shield ♪
661
00:33:28,740 --> 00:33:31,643
♪ Down by the riverside ♪
662
00:33:31,710 --> 00:33:35,647
- Seeger, he plays banjo
on this plywood stage
663
00:33:35,714 --> 00:33:37,516
and the one microphone,
664
00:33:37,583 --> 00:33:40,186
and then during a break,
I introduced myself,
665
00:33:40,252 --> 00:33:42,142
and he knew who I was
because I'd been writing him
666
00:33:42,154 --> 00:33:43,789
since junior high school.
667
00:33:43,855 --> 00:33:48,527
And he liked me and he asked
me to be on a concert in 1968.
668
00:33:48,594 --> 00:33:51,397
And I got right involved
with that, right away.
669
00:33:51,463 --> 00:33:55,801
All: ♪ Bye, bye-bye,
bye-bye, bye-bye ♪
670
00:33:55,867 --> 00:33:58,070
- He took me under his wing
and brought me around
671
00:33:58,137 --> 00:34:01,373
and had me open for him
or be a guest on his show,
672
00:34:01,440 --> 00:34:03,642
and then he put this gang
of singers together,
673
00:34:03,709 --> 00:34:05,010
and I was part of that.
674
00:34:05,077 --> 00:34:09,915
- ♪ Well, I thought
I heard the captain say ♪
675
00:34:09,981 --> 00:34:12,718
- Suddenly,
I'm in this whole world.
676
00:34:12,784 --> 00:34:16,655
It's art, it's recordings,
it's live performing.
677
00:34:19,191 --> 00:34:22,528
Seeger took us to the Newport
Folk Festival in 1969.
678
00:34:22,594 --> 00:34:24,730
That was a big deal.
679
00:34:24,796 --> 00:34:27,533
It's still one of the high
points of my entire life.
680
00:34:29,067 --> 00:34:33,739
Van Morrison, James Taylor,
Muddy Waters was there.
681
00:34:35,541 --> 00:34:36,975
Somehow or other,
682
00:34:37,042 --> 00:34:40,412
they let the Everly Brothers
come to Newport...
683
00:34:40,479 --> 00:34:41,747
Rock 'n' roll.
684
00:34:41,813 --> 00:34:44,483
- ♪ Gimme rock 'n' roll music ♪
685
00:34:44,550 --> 00:34:47,386
♪ Whoo, any old way
you choose it ♪
686
00:34:47,453 --> 00:34:48,920
- Wow.
687
00:34:48,987 --> 00:34:54,793
They came on stage,
and they were incredible.
688
00:34:54,860 --> 00:34:57,863
- ♪ If you knew, Peggy Sue ♪
689
00:34:57,929 --> 00:35:01,533
♪ Just how my heart yearned
for you, oh, Peggy ♪
690
00:35:01,600 --> 00:35:02,968
- I had been reading, you know,
691
00:35:03,034 --> 00:35:04,703
what little bit I could,
and I knew
692
00:35:04,770 --> 00:35:07,539
that the Everlys were
very close to Buddy Holly.
693
00:35:07,606 --> 00:35:10,509
- ♪ I need you, Peggy Sue ♪
694
00:35:10,576 --> 00:35:12,311
- So after the show was over,
695
00:35:12,378 --> 00:35:14,713
I had to say hello to them.
696
00:35:14,780 --> 00:35:17,115
So I went to Phil Everly,
and I said,
697
00:35:17,183 --> 00:35:19,551
"You know, I know
that you knew Buddy Holly.
698
00:35:19,618 --> 00:35:22,288
Could you tell me a little bit
about him and what happened?"
699
00:35:22,354 --> 00:35:25,391
He said, "We were very
good friends," he said,
700
00:35:25,457 --> 00:35:27,326
"And Buddy decided
to take a plane
701
00:35:27,393 --> 00:35:30,629
to get out ahead of the tour
to get his laundry done."
702
00:35:30,696 --> 00:35:35,100
"He died for dirty laundry,"
I thought to myself. Wow.
703
00:35:35,167 --> 00:35:37,536
Man, he's a human being
704
00:35:37,603 --> 00:35:39,971
with a sack of dirty clothes.
705
00:35:40,038 --> 00:35:42,774
Gee, the whole thing
started coming back.
706
00:35:42,841 --> 00:35:47,979
Front and center, it was
absolutely haunting me now.
707
00:35:49,581 --> 00:35:54,720
- ♪ A long, long time ago ♪
708
00:35:54,786 --> 00:35:56,466
When you look back
at Garth Brooks' career,
709
00:35:56,522 --> 00:35:57,989
if you remember
anything from it,
710
00:35:58,056 --> 00:36:00,292
you'll remember Central Park
will be the crown jewel.
711
00:36:00,359 --> 00:36:03,094
1997, August 7, beautiful night.
712
00:36:03,161 --> 00:36:06,632
♪ And I knew
if I had my chance ♪
713
00:36:06,698 --> 00:36:08,634
- Garth Brooks,
I'd heard about him singing.
714
00:36:08,700 --> 00:36:10,536
"American Pie"
from the beginning
715
00:36:10,602 --> 00:36:12,170
when he was just
getting started.
716
00:36:12,238 --> 00:36:14,473
Then bigger, bigger, bigger,
every year, bigger,
717
00:36:14,540 --> 00:36:16,174
always singing this song.
718
00:36:16,242 --> 00:36:20,512
So the big word now is that
he's gonna play Central Park.
719
00:36:20,579 --> 00:36:23,782
- ♪ With every paper
I'd deliver ♪
720
00:36:23,849 --> 00:36:27,052
- So I get a fax,
he wants me to be on the show.
721
00:36:27,118 --> 00:36:30,589
- ♪ I couldn't take
one more step ♪
722
00:36:30,656 --> 00:36:33,325
We had a million
people show up, live TV.
723
00:36:33,392 --> 00:36:35,060
It could not be going better,
724
00:36:35,126 --> 00:36:39,331
and then we go into our final
leg of our stuff,
725
00:36:39,398 --> 00:36:43,201
and knowing that you're
about to tell these people
726
00:36:43,269 --> 00:36:46,272
that Don McLean's gonna come
out and sing "American Pie,"
727
00:36:46,338 --> 00:36:48,139
you were 16-foot tall.
728
00:36:48,206 --> 00:36:49,206
You knew it.
729
00:36:49,241 --> 00:36:51,076
Ladies and gentlemen,
730
00:36:51,142 --> 00:36:53,712
it's a great honor
and a great privilege,
731
00:36:53,779 --> 00:36:55,146
Mr. Don McLean.
732
00:36:58,884 --> 00:37:03,722
And when I introduced him,
God, he looked fantastic.
733
00:37:03,789 --> 00:37:05,724
He came out with that smile,
734
00:37:05,791 --> 00:37:08,460
and he gets to be the guy
in the cape.
735
00:37:08,527 --> 00:37:11,229
And he wears the cape well, man.
736
00:37:14,266 --> 00:37:16,868
- Sing the chorus again!
737
00:37:16,935 --> 00:37:20,238
♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
738
00:37:20,306 --> 00:37:24,810
♪ Drove my Chevy to the levee,
but the levee was dry ♪
739
00:37:24,876 --> 00:37:27,513
- He comes out, and he just gets
740
00:37:27,579 --> 00:37:31,016
that big old guitar going,
and it's just a little slower,
741
00:37:31,082 --> 00:37:34,853
so you see all million
people just kind of lean in,
742
00:37:34,920 --> 00:37:37,956
and everybody's
inner child comes out.
743
00:37:38,023 --> 00:37:40,726
- ♪ And I went down
to the sacred store ♪
744
00:37:40,792 --> 00:37:44,162
♪ Where I'd heard
the music years before ♪
745
00:37:44,229 --> 00:37:48,434
♪ But the man there said
the music wouldn't play ♪
746
00:37:48,500 --> 00:37:51,236
I like a crowd that's happy,
747
00:37:51,303 --> 00:37:52,671
And they were very happy.
748
00:37:52,738 --> 00:37:55,106
It was a summer night,
and they were loose,
749
00:37:55,173 --> 00:37:57,242
and they were ready,
and I love that.
750
00:37:57,309 --> 00:38:03,949
Both:
♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
751
00:38:04,015 --> 00:38:10,922
♪ Drove my Chevy to the levee,
but the levee was dry ♪
752
00:38:10,989 --> 00:38:14,326
- "American Pie" isn't
about a nation as much
753
00:38:14,393 --> 00:38:17,796
as it is about that drive
of independence,
754
00:38:17,863 --> 00:38:19,398
that drive of discovery,
755
00:38:19,465 --> 00:38:22,267
that drive of believing
anything is possible.
756
00:38:22,334 --> 00:38:24,202
Freedom within you.
757
00:38:24,269 --> 00:38:25,871
Okay now, New York.
758
00:38:25,937 --> 00:38:29,508
We want to hear
just you guys singing.
759
00:38:29,575 --> 00:38:31,710
♪ We were singin'... ♪
760
00:38:31,777 --> 00:38:33,078
all: ♪ Bye-bye... ♪
761
00:38:33,144 --> 00:38:36,848
- People found a road map
in this song
762
00:38:36,915 --> 00:38:38,684
that is a million
different things
763
00:38:38,750 --> 00:38:40,085
to a million different people.
764
00:38:40,151 --> 00:38:42,554
"American Pie" is one
of those few songs
765
00:38:42,621 --> 00:38:43,889
you can stand behind and go,
766
00:38:43,955 --> 00:38:45,924
"This is what
the power of music is."
767
00:38:45,991 --> 00:38:50,228
both:
♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
768
00:38:50,295 --> 00:38:53,031
- Talk about the perfect night
needs the perfect ending,
769
00:38:53,098 --> 00:38:54,488
how about pulling one
of the greatest
770
00:38:54,500 --> 00:38:57,403
singer-songwriter artists
in history out?
771
00:38:57,469 --> 00:38:59,538
How about him singing
his ass off,
772
00:38:59,605 --> 00:39:02,608
and then, oh, yeah,
this could quite possibly be
773
00:39:02,674 --> 00:39:04,443
the greatest song
in music history
774
00:39:04,510 --> 00:39:07,078
that you get to end the biggest
night of your career on.
775
00:39:07,145 --> 00:39:08,580
Don McLean!
776
00:39:10,382 --> 00:39:13,452
I think you're looking
at a 50-year-old song
777
00:39:13,519 --> 00:39:15,987
that gets prettier every year,
778
00:39:16,054 --> 00:39:18,089
classier every year.
779
00:39:18,156 --> 00:39:20,459
This thing...
This thing is timeless,
780
00:39:20,526 --> 00:39:24,696
because no one's ever written
anything like it since.
781
00:39:29,535 --> 00:39:31,202
- I graduated in 1968
782
00:39:31,269 --> 00:39:33,972
with this degree
that I knew I'd never use.
783
00:39:35,373 --> 00:39:39,645
In 1969, I had just been
out of school a year
784
00:39:39,711 --> 00:39:42,781
and I had a three-album deal
with Media Arts Records.
785
00:39:42,848 --> 00:39:44,883
♪ And if she asks you why ♪
786
00:39:44,950 --> 00:39:47,986
♪ You can then tell her
that I told you ♪
787
00:39:48,053 --> 00:39:51,657
♪ That I'm tired
of castles in the air ♪
788
00:39:51,723 --> 00:39:54,192
I moved up to the Hudson River.
789
00:39:54,259 --> 00:39:56,495
♪ Hills of forest green ♪
790
00:39:56,562 --> 00:39:59,130
♪ Where the mountains
touch the sky ♪
791
00:39:59,197 --> 00:40:01,867
I lived in this
little gate house
792
00:40:01,933 --> 00:40:04,736
to an estate
in Cold Spring, New York.
793
00:40:04,803 --> 00:40:06,972
It was pretty primitive.
794
00:40:07,038 --> 00:40:09,675
No heat,
very cold in the winter,
795
00:40:09,741 --> 00:40:12,210
but I rented it
very inexpensively.
796
00:40:12,277 --> 00:40:17,382
♪ Save me from all
the trouble and the pain ♪
797
00:40:17,449 --> 00:40:19,084
Up on the second floor,
798
00:40:19,150 --> 00:40:20,886
there was a tiny little bedroom,
799
00:40:20,952 --> 00:40:24,122
and there was a chair
I put rockers on,
800
00:40:24,189 --> 00:40:26,224
and I would rock on that thing
801
00:40:26,291 --> 00:40:30,161
and type on my little
typewriter and write songs.
802
00:40:30,228 --> 00:40:32,063
♪ Why I can't remain ♪
803
00:40:32,130 --> 00:40:34,265
I was writing furiously now.
804
00:40:34,332 --> 00:40:36,401
I was inspired
by the people that I met,
805
00:40:36,468 --> 00:40:38,069
the artists, the writers,
806
00:40:38,136 --> 00:40:41,372
the scientists,
the political people.
807
00:40:41,439 --> 00:40:45,110
And the first album
I made was called "Tapestry."
808
00:40:45,176 --> 00:40:47,979
And I'm making "Tapestry"
in 1969
809
00:40:48,046 --> 00:40:51,917
in Berkeley, California,
and there'd be a small riot
810
00:40:51,983 --> 00:40:54,419
every day I was making
that record.
811
00:40:54,486 --> 00:40:58,790
They are gassing the guys
coming to the sessions,
812
00:40:58,857 --> 00:41:01,126
like, every day,
so I'm thinking,
813
00:41:01,192 --> 00:41:03,895
it's crazy, what's gonna
happen to the country now?
814
00:41:03,962 --> 00:41:05,296
Things are getting worse.
815
00:41:08,967 --> 00:41:12,070
We had
had numerous assassinations
816
00:41:12,137 --> 00:41:13,972
throughout the '60s.
817
00:41:15,273 --> 00:41:17,008
The Kennedy assassination,
818
00:41:17,075 --> 00:41:19,277
Martin Luther King,
819
00:41:19,344 --> 00:41:22,213
and RFK.
820
00:41:22,280 --> 00:41:24,415
We had the war in Vietnam.
821
00:41:26,885 --> 00:41:28,987
Rage against Nixon
822
00:41:29,054 --> 00:41:32,257
and the chaotic insanity
that was out there.
823
00:41:34,092 --> 00:41:36,127
It broke up families,
824
00:41:36,194 --> 00:41:37,963
tearing the whole place apart.
825
00:41:39,565 --> 00:41:43,401
The country was
in an advanced state
826
00:41:43,468 --> 00:41:44,903
of psychic shock.
827
00:41:46,437 --> 00:41:49,207
Drugs everywhere.
Everybody's smoking dope
828
00:41:49,274 --> 00:41:51,376
and sleeping
with everybody else.
829
00:41:53,478 --> 00:41:56,615
And all this bedlam
and riots and burning cities,
830
00:41:56,682 --> 00:42:00,151
and I'm always standing back
trying to read the signs.
831
00:42:00,218 --> 00:42:01,887
All right, what's this mean?
832
00:42:01,953 --> 00:42:04,122
You know,
and tried to put it somehow
833
00:42:04,189 --> 00:42:06,925
in my simple way
into some of these songs.
834
00:42:09,460 --> 00:42:11,129
I was working
on this second record,
835
00:42:11,196 --> 00:42:12,898
but I wasn't happy with it,
836
00:42:12,964 --> 00:42:16,968
and so I said, "I got to have
a big song about America."
837
00:42:17,035 --> 00:42:19,170
I just really knew
I wanted to do this.
838
00:42:23,775 --> 00:42:27,913
One day, I was up there
sitting on the little bed,
839
00:42:27,979 --> 00:42:31,249
and I turned
this tape recorder on,
840
00:42:31,316 --> 00:42:35,153
and I just started singing...
841
00:42:35,220 --> 00:42:38,456
♪ A long, long time ago ♪
842
00:42:38,523 --> 00:42:43,829
♪ I can still remember how that
music used to make me smile ♪
843
00:42:45,496 --> 00:42:47,465
♪ And I knew
if I had my chance ♪
844
00:42:47,532 --> 00:42:49,768
♪ That I could make
those people dance ♪
845
00:42:49,835 --> 00:42:54,005
♪ And maybe they'd
be happy for a while ♪
846
00:42:54,072 --> 00:42:57,676
♪ But February made me shiver ♪
847
00:42:57,743 --> 00:43:00,378
♪ With every paper I'd deliver ♪
848
00:43:00,445 --> 00:43:03,014
♪ Bad news on the doorstep ♪
849
00:43:03,081 --> 00:43:06,618
♪ I couldn't take
one more step ♪
850
00:43:06,685 --> 00:43:08,419
♪ I can't remember if I cried ♪
851
00:43:08,486 --> 00:43:11,923
♪ When I read
about his widowed bride ♪
852
00:43:11,990 --> 00:43:15,727
♪ But something
touched me deep inside ♪
853
00:43:15,794 --> 00:43:21,900
♪ The day the music died ♪
854
00:43:21,967 --> 00:43:25,436
I said, whoa.
855
00:43:25,503 --> 00:43:27,138
What is that?
856
00:43:27,205 --> 00:43:29,775
This whole thing was
coming up in me,
857
00:43:29,841 --> 00:43:35,046
for all those years before
of thinking of Buddy,
858
00:43:35,113 --> 00:43:37,148
and it all came out
right through
859
00:43:37,215 --> 00:43:38,684
to the day the music died.
860
00:43:38,750 --> 00:43:41,419
Every single word
I wrote just came
861
00:43:41,486 --> 00:43:43,655
like a genie out of a bottle.
862
00:43:43,722 --> 00:43:47,358
And I said to myself,
"Wow, I got something."
863
00:43:47,425 --> 00:43:50,595
So I'm thinking
as a few weeks went by,
864
00:43:50,662 --> 00:43:52,597
I don't want this
to be a ballad,
865
00:43:52,664 --> 00:43:55,734
so I got to write a hot chorus.
866
00:43:55,801 --> 00:43:57,102
I waited a long time,
867
00:43:57,168 --> 00:43:59,304
and then I came up
with this crazy chorus.
868
00:43:59,370 --> 00:44:03,008
♪ So bye-bye,
Miss American Pie ♪
869
00:44:03,074 --> 00:44:07,545
♪ I drove me Chevy to the
levee, but the levee was dry ♪
870
00:44:07,612 --> 00:44:11,216
♪ Them good old boys were
drinking whiskey and rye ♪
871
00:44:11,282 --> 00:44:15,620
♪ And singing, "This'll
be the day that I die" ♪
872
00:44:15,687 --> 00:44:19,324
♪ This'll be the day
that I die ♪
873
00:44:19,390 --> 00:44:21,259
I had already written
about the idea,
874
00:44:21,326 --> 00:44:23,528
the Holly thing was now
right front and center,
875
00:44:23,594 --> 00:44:25,384
and so I said, "This'll
be the day that I die."
876
00:44:25,396 --> 00:44:26,898
I had to have that in there.
877
00:44:26,965 --> 00:44:30,501
You know, that way I keep it
flowing forward in the chorus.
878
00:44:30,568 --> 00:44:33,104
It was from, "That'll
Be the Day That I Die."
879
00:44:33,171 --> 00:44:35,306
Buddy learned that phrase
880
00:44:35,373 --> 00:44:37,709
from "The Searchers,"
the John Wayne movie
881
00:44:37,776 --> 00:44:40,645
where the Duke says,
"That'll be the day."
882
00:44:40,712 --> 00:44:44,649
And there was a song
that Pete Seeger used to sing,
883
00:44:44,716 --> 00:44:47,118
and it was called
"Bye-bye, My Roseanna."
884
00:44:47,185 --> 00:44:48,519
And he would sing...
885
00:44:48,586 --> 00:44:52,791
both: ♪ Bye-bye, bye-bye,
bye-bye, bye-bye ♪
886
00:44:52,858 --> 00:44:56,995
♪ Bye-bye, my Roseanna ♪
887
00:44:57,062 --> 00:44:59,064
And that "bye-bye" thing
stayed in my head,
888
00:44:59,130 --> 00:45:02,500
I think, from that one,
so I put it in there.
889
00:45:02,567 --> 00:45:06,704
I chose "American Pie,"
because you're as American,
890
00:45:06,772 --> 00:45:09,307
as apple pie, but I just
dropped the apple out,
891
00:45:09,374 --> 00:45:13,278
and I said, "American Pie,
whoa, that's great."
892
00:45:13,344 --> 00:45:15,546
I knew I had the tiger
by the tail.
893
00:45:18,383 --> 00:45:20,285
I got this hot chorus,
894
00:45:20,351 --> 00:45:22,387
and I got
this beautiful opening,
895
00:45:22,453 --> 00:45:25,390
and now I'm thinking,
well, where do I go with this?
896
00:45:25,456 --> 00:45:28,093
'Cause I want to write a song
about America,
897
00:45:28,159 --> 00:45:29,694
but I don't want to write a song
898
00:45:29,761 --> 00:45:33,965
like anybody ever wrote
about America before.
899
00:45:41,306 --> 00:45:42,540
- I was second-generation,
900
00:45:42,607 --> 00:45:44,642
'cause I grew up
in a Greek household.
901
00:45:44,709 --> 00:45:47,478
I was born in San Francisco,
only there for a year,
902
00:45:47,545 --> 00:45:49,714
in LA another year, and then
grew up in Gary, Indiana.
903
00:45:51,316 --> 00:45:52,884
Before even I'm an artist,
904
00:45:52,951 --> 00:45:55,153
I'm somebody who's just
interested in the humanities
905
00:45:55,220 --> 00:45:56,822
and in history, you know,
and philosophy,
906
00:45:56,888 --> 00:45:58,489
especially, and poetry.
907
00:45:58,556 --> 00:46:00,725
And a lot of these people
that I've sculpted
908
00:46:00,792 --> 00:46:02,593
have pressed
the boundaries of things.
909
00:46:02,660 --> 00:46:04,329
They wanted
to see a better world,
910
00:46:04,395 --> 00:46:06,531
they wanted to be part of that.
911
00:46:08,066 --> 00:46:09,767
Don, I had seen him in a show,
912
00:46:09,835 --> 00:46:11,970
"The American Dream Machine,"
and I thought, wow.
913
00:46:12,037 --> 00:46:13,371
It was so sensitive,
914
00:46:13,438 --> 00:46:15,773
and he was reshaping how
I thought about the ecology.
915
00:46:18,209 --> 00:46:19,710
I said I'd like to sculpt him,
916
00:46:19,777 --> 00:46:21,479
and I think
the first time he sat,
917
00:46:21,546 --> 00:46:24,615
he played the guitar
for ten hours straight.
918
00:46:24,682 --> 00:46:25,939
Then he came here
and did the same thing
919
00:46:25,951 --> 00:46:27,118
right in this very room.
920
00:46:29,254 --> 00:46:31,489
He doesn't miss a thing.
921
00:46:31,556 --> 00:46:34,659
He's very open to the muse,
922
00:46:34,725 --> 00:46:37,328
so all that goes into the music.
923
00:46:37,395 --> 00:46:38,684
"American Pie" is
"War and Peace."
924
00:46:38,696 --> 00:46:42,267
It's the "Moby Dick."
It's the big novel.
925
00:46:42,333 --> 00:46:44,435
He has a narrative like a dream.
926
00:46:44,502 --> 00:46:46,025
You create all the characters
in your dreams,
927
00:46:46,037 --> 00:46:47,538
so you're part of all of them.
928
00:46:47,605 --> 00:46:49,841
You know,
the jester and the king.
929
00:46:49,908 --> 00:46:52,743
He was there at the right time
and captured so much
930
00:46:52,810 --> 00:46:55,213
of that history
that he was part of too,
931
00:46:55,280 --> 00:46:57,215
but he knows
that history so well.
932
00:46:59,184 --> 00:47:00,718
If Don hadn't written
"American Pie,"
933
00:47:00,785 --> 00:47:02,420
no one would
ever have written it.
934
00:47:02,487 --> 00:47:04,622
See, it's unique to who he was,
935
00:47:04,689 --> 00:47:07,225
where in space
and time he grew up.
936
00:47:10,795 --> 00:47:13,498
We're in front
of my Freedom Sculpture.
937
00:47:13,564 --> 00:47:15,867
You see the struggle
to break free.
938
00:47:17,869 --> 00:47:20,638
And I wanted to put a poet
in my sculpture,
939
00:47:20,705 --> 00:47:23,441
and the poet in my life,
besides reading Robert Frost
940
00:47:23,508 --> 00:47:25,710
and T.S. Eliot and others,
was Don McLean.
941
00:47:27,778 --> 00:47:30,548
Don's song, "American Pie,"
is an epic song,
942
00:47:30,615 --> 00:47:32,050
not just because of its length,
943
00:47:32,117 --> 00:47:33,851
but because of its scope,
944
00:47:33,919 --> 00:47:37,488
and I wanted to have some
sense of that in my sculpture.
945
00:47:39,357 --> 00:47:42,193
"American Pie" is
an open-ended piece.
946
00:47:42,260 --> 00:47:43,962
It's not so specific
947
00:47:44,029 --> 00:47:46,331
that you can't put yourself
in there.
948
00:47:47,665 --> 00:47:49,200
What happens
with Don McLean's song,
949
00:47:49,267 --> 00:47:52,803
and with this for me,
is if you leave it open-ended,
950
00:47:52,870 --> 00:47:55,140
you're inviting people
to participate and to have
951
00:47:55,206 --> 00:47:57,608
a dialogue with you,
to make themselves part of it,
952
00:47:57,675 --> 00:47:59,710
and they become
very emotionally involved.
953
00:48:02,347 --> 00:48:05,583
With Don, "American Pie",
there are little mysteries,
954
00:48:05,650 --> 00:48:07,752
and Don is about mystery
with his music.
955
00:48:07,818 --> 00:48:09,575
He even talks about his song,
"American Pie,"
956
00:48:09,587 --> 00:48:11,456
being a kind of a dream.
957
00:48:11,522 --> 00:48:12,991
Turning your dreams into reality
958
00:48:13,058 --> 00:48:14,725
is what we do as artists.
959
00:48:25,470 --> 00:48:28,306
I was working on this
"American Pie" song,
960
00:48:28,373 --> 00:48:30,508
and I had eight or nine songs
961
00:48:30,575 --> 00:48:32,743
that were going
to go on the album,
962
00:48:32,810 --> 00:48:34,845
and now the question was
how to make
963
00:48:34,912 --> 00:48:36,447
a good record out of it.
964
00:48:36,514 --> 00:48:39,350
- ♪ I have tried in my way ♪
965
00:48:39,417 --> 00:48:40,918
- I heard a couple of records,
966
00:48:40,986 --> 00:48:43,188
one by Tim Hardin
called "Bird on a Wire."
967
00:48:43,254 --> 00:48:45,423
- ♪ Tried in my way ♪
968
00:48:45,490 --> 00:48:46,958
- Ooh, I liked that record.
969
00:48:47,025 --> 00:48:48,926
There was some
nice things on there.
970
00:48:48,994 --> 00:48:50,561
- ♪ Free ♪
971
00:48:50,628 --> 00:48:52,830
- Ed Freeman is the producer,
972
00:48:52,897 --> 00:48:55,733
so I said,
I want this guy, Ed Freeman.
973
00:48:58,036 --> 00:49:01,106
- Don came over
to my apartment in New York
974
00:49:01,172 --> 00:49:04,042
and played me some songs,
and I wasn't
975
00:49:04,109 --> 00:49:05,776
all that impressed, frankly.
976
00:49:05,843 --> 00:49:10,348
But I needed a job,
so I thought, well, okay.
977
00:49:10,415 --> 00:49:13,484
And then, slowly,
as we started working,
978
00:49:13,551 --> 00:49:15,586
I started realizing,
oh, wait a minute,
979
00:49:15,653 --> 00:49:17,855
this guy is the real deal.
980
00:49:20,825 --> 00:49:23,228
- I had the album, I knew
how I wanted it to sound,
981
00:49:23,294 --> 00:49:24,895
I had the producer.
982
00:49:24,962 --> 00:49:28,133
It was all progressing,
but I didn't have the big one,
983
00:49:28,199 --> 00:49:32,637
and the big one had
to blow them all away.
984
00:49:35,540 --> 00:49:38,543
- I remember Don played me
the first verse
985
00:49:38,609 --> 00:49:40,645
and chorus of "American Pie,"
986
00:49:40,711 --> 00:49:43,348
and he said he hadn't finished
writing it at that point,
987
00:49:43,414 --> 00:49:45,150
so I said,
"You should finish that,
988
00:49:45,216 --> 00:49:47,285
that it sounds
like it could be a hit."
989
00:49:49,087 --> 00:49:51,889
- Now I'm thinking,
well, where do I go with this?
990
00:49:51,956 --> 00:49:54,159
'Cause I want to write
a song about the new America,
991
00:49:54,225 --> 00:49:57,195
which is rock 'n' roll,
which is people's involvement
992
00:49:57,262 --> 00:50:00,731
in politics and the connection
between all that,
993
00:50:00,798 --> 00:50:03,301
rather than, you know,
"My Country, 'Tis of Thee,"
994
00:50:03,368 --> 00:50:05,036
or "This Land is your Land."
995
00:50:05,103 --> 00:50:09,474
♪ So bye-bye,
Miss American Pie ♪
996
00:50:09,540 --> 00:50:10,975
♪ I drove my Chevy
to the levee ♪
997
00:50:11,042 --> 00:50:12,765
The chorus came out,
and then when I had that,
998
00:50:12,777 --> 00:50:14,479
I said, well,
I've got the engine now
999
00:50:14,545 --> 00:50:15,880
to get this thing going.
1000
00:50:15,946 --> 00:50:19,584
All I've got to do
is sing the slow part
1001
00:50:19,650 --> 00:50:22,587
of the song
to a rock 'n' roll beat.
1002
00:50:22,653 --> 00:50:25,256
In other words, and take
"A long, long time ago.
1003
00:50:25,323 --> 00:50:26,857
Did you write
the book of love?"
1004
00:50:26,924 --> 00:50:30,461
It's the same thing,
sped up to rock 'n' roll.
1005
00:50:30,528 --> 00:50:33,131
♪ Did you write
the book of love? ♪
1006
00:50:33,198 --> 00:50:36,534
♪ And do you have faith
in God above? ♪
1007
00:50:36,601 --> 00:50:38,669
And it must have been
a month or two later,
1008
00:50:38,736 --> 00:50:41,739
I wrote all the verses in,
like, an hour.
1009
00:50:41,806 --> 00:50:44,975
♪ Do you believe
in rock and roll? ♪
1010
00:50:45,042 --> 00:50:47,678
I was building it.
I could hear it.
1011
00:50:47,745 --> 00:50:49,402
I could feel it,
that something was going on,
1012
00:50:49,414 --> 00:50:50,915
bigger than me.
1013
00:50:50,981 --> 00:50:53,851
I was trying to create
some sort of an abstract,
1014
00:50:53,918 --> 00:50:57,788
dream-like story about America.
1015
00:50:57,855 --> 00:51:00,958
♪ Well, I know that you're
in love with him ♪
1016
00:51:01,025 --> 00:51:04,395
♪ I, I saw you dancing
in the gym ♪
1017
00:51:04,462 --> 00:51:06,564
The song came to me in one shot.
1018
00:51:06,631 --> 00:51:08,766
There were a lot
of spiral notebook pages,
1019
00:51:08,833 --> 00:51:11,569
and I say how the song
is gonna be constructed,
1020
00:51:11,636 --> 00:51:14,272
I make a little blueprint
of the song.
1021
00:51:14,339 --> 00:51:18,709
♪ In a coat he borrowed
from James Dean, and a voice ♪
1022
00:51:18,776 --> 00:51:22,180
After I wrote the whole thing,
I'm sure I sat down,
1023
00:51:22,247 --> 00:51:23,369
and I was still trying
to figure out
1024
00:51:23,381 --> 00:51:24,682
how to get out of it.
1025
00:51:24,749 --> 00:51:26,984
♪ And when he'd had
enough of that ♪
1026
00:51:27,051 --> 00:51:30,221
♪ He pinched the queen
and passed the hat ♪
1027
00:51:30,288 --> 00:51:32,257
You know, it couldn't end
and it couldn't fade,
1028
00:51:32,323 --> 00:51:33,658
so I didn't know what to do.
1029
00:51:33,724 --> 00:51:34,813
So I thought, well,
the only thing I can do
1030
00:51:34,825 --> 00:51:36,561
is slow down like it started.
1031
00:51:36,627 --> 00:51:39,464
Perfect. Exactly right.
1032
00:51:39,530 --> 00:51:41,932
♪ And the three men
I admire most ♪
1033
00:51:41,999 --> 00:51:44,335
♪ The Father, Son,
and the Holy Ghost ♪
1034
00:51:44,402 --> 00:51:47,205
- Then, of course, he finished
"American Pie," and I thought,
1035
00:51:47,272 --> 00:51:50,541
well, no radio station
is gonna play this thing
1036
00:51:50,608 --> 00:51:53,077
because it's 8.5 minutes long,
1037
00:51:53,144 --> 00:51:54,979
but it's a really good song.
1038
00:51:55,045 --> 00:51:59,450
- ♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
1039
00:51:59,517 --> 00:52:01,286
I just knew I had something
1040
00:52:01,352 --> 00:52:04,755
that I thought was incredibly
great and fun,
1041
00:52:04,822 --> 00:52:07,892
but that nobody else might
dig at all.
1042
00:52:07,958 --> 00:52:14,332
♪ Singing, "This'll be
the day that I die" ♪
1043
00:52:14,399 --> 00:52:17,034
That's enough for today,
1044
00:52:21,272 --> 00:52:23,274
- Welcome to Philadelphia.
1045
00:52:23,341 --> 00:52:25,610
It's a beautiful city
on a beautiful day,
1046
00:52:25,676 --> 00:52:28,846
and it's my pleasure
to show you my hometown.
1047
00:52:28,913 --> 00:52:31,081
This building right here
is the true
1048
00:52:31,148 --> 00:52:32,883
ground zero
of the United States.
1049
00:52:32,950 --> 00:52:36,187
Independence Hall
established justice.
1050
00:52:36,254 --> 00:52:38,589
This is where the Declaration
of Independence
1051
00:52:38,656 --> 00:52:39,957
"promote the general welfare."
1052
00:52:40,024 --> 00:52:41,859
The articles of Confederation
1053
00:52:41,926 --> 00:52:43,928
"ensure domestic tranquility,"
1054
00:52:43,994 --> 00:52:46,431
and the Constitution
of the United States
1055
00:52:46,497 --> 00:52:47,765
were all written and signed.
1056
00:52:47,832 --> 00:52:50,768
That is the birthplace
of the United States.
1057
00:52:52,102 --> 00:52:55,673
My name is Clark DeLeon,
and I saw Don McLean sing.
1058
00:52:55,740 --> 00:52:57,508
"American Pie"
for the first time.
1059
00:53:00,711 --> 00:53:02,913
The story was that Don
performed "American Pie"
1060
00:53:02,980 --> 00:53:05,750
for the first time
at Temple University,
1061
00:53:05,816 --> 00:53:08,686
but I know this happened
at St. Joe's University
1062
00:53:08,753 --> 00:53:10,955
at the field house.
1063
00:53:11,021 --> 00:53:13,624
I am a columnist at
the "Philadelphia Inquirer,"
1064
00:53:13,691 --> 00:53:15,860
so I wrote about it,
I talked to Don McLean
1065
00:53:15,926 --> 00:53:17,862
and I just set
the record straight.
1066
00:53:17,928 --> 00:53:20,665
And then when I called him up,
he readily admitted it.
1067
00:53:25,303 --> 00:53:27,004
It was March,
it was a rainy day.
1068
00:53:27,071 --> 00:53:29,440
My wife and I went
to see Laura Nyro.
1069
00:53:29,507 --> 00:53:33,278
Now, Don McLean was just a
throw in and the opening act.
1070
00:53:33,344 --> 00:53:35,045
So we got there,
and this field house,
1071
00:53:35,112 --> 00:53:36,914
I remember we were
sitting in the side.
1072
00:53:36,981 --> 00:53:39,550
He came out and was just...
Immediately had the crowd,
1073
00:53:39,617 --> 00:53:41,719
but then he said,
"I've got this new song.
1074
00:53:41,786 --> 00:53:43,921
It's so new, I haven't
even learned all the words."
1075
00:53:43,988 --> 00:53:45,556
And he said,
"I'm gonna need some help
1076
00:53:45,623 --> 00:53:46,957
"from the audience here.
1077
00:53:47,024 --> 00:53:48,959
"Can you... " and he holds it
to a young woman.
1078
00:53:49,026 --> 00:53:50,361
"Would you mind
holding these up?"
1079
00:53:50,428 --> 00:53:52,997
while he began the song.
1080
00:53:53,063 --> 00:53:55,266
- ♪ A long, long time ago ♪
1081
00:53:55,333 --> 00:53:58,769
♪ I can still remember
how that music ♪
1082
00:53:58,836 --> 00:54:01,406
♪ used to make me smile ♪
1083
00:54:01,472 --> 00:54:04,642
In '70, I was still
doing double bills,
1084
00:54:04,709 --> 00:54:06,477
and I was opening
for Laura Nyro.
1085
00:54:06,544 --> 00:54:07,945
After I had written the song
1086
00:54:08,012 --> 00:54:10,848
and I had all the handwritten
pages and stuff,
1087
00:54:10,915 --> 00:54:14,051
I went and typed up something
so I could remember it,
1088
00:54:14,118 --> 00:54:17,288
and I seem to remember
that I had a little girl come
1089
00:54:17,355 --> 00:54:20,458
out of the crowd, and I gave
her the lyrics to hold,
1090
00:54:20,525 --> 00:54:22,293
and I sang the song.
1091
00:54:22,360 --> 00:54:25,730
♪ And while Lennon read
a book on Marx ♪
1092
00:54:25,796 --> 00:54:28,799
- The actual singing
of the song got lost
1093
00:54:28,866 --> 00:54:31,702
in my memory
of all these words, you know,
1094
00:54:31,769 --> 00:54:33,225
and you didn't know
what the song was about,
1095
00:54:33,237 --> 00:54:35,105
you just knew it had
a really snappy chorus.
1096
00:54:35,172 --> 00:54:36,807
And of course, by the end of it,
1097
00:54:36,874 --> 00:54:38,163
everyone's
singing "American Pie."
1098
00:54:38,175 --> 00:54:39,344
It was great.
1099
00:54:39,410 --> 00:54:42,847
- ♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
1100
00:54:42,913 --> 00:54:44,482
- What was the crowd reaction?
1101
00:54:44,549 --> 00:54:46,283
- Not much. Okay.
1102
00:54:46,351 --> 00:54:47,818
Because the song was
so different,
1103
00:54:47,885 --> 00:54:49,620
they never heard
anything like it.
1104
00:54:49,687 --> 00:54:52,122
♪ This'll be the day
that I die ♪
1105
00:54:52,189 --> 00:54:54,058
You know, you can
get immediate reaction
1106
00:54:54,124 --> 00:54:55,793
from an audience,
it doesn't necessarily
1107
00:54:55,860 --> 00:54:57,194
mean the song's any good.
1108
00:54:57,261 --> 00:54:59,797
You know, this had to be
made into a record.
1109
00:54:59,864 --> 00:55:02,199
♪ The day that I die ♪
1110
00:55:02,266 --> 00:55:04,457
- By the end of the song, you
knew something was going on.
1111
00:55:04,469 --> 00:55:06,504
He said, you might
be hearing this soon.
1112
00:55:06,571 --> 00:55:07,772
He said that from the stage,
1113
00:55:07,838 --> 00:55:09,574
and he was right.
1114
00:55:13,444 --> 00:55:16,547
- One of the most talented
young singer-songwriters
1115
00:55:16,614 --> 00:55:18,383
I know, his name is Don McLean,
1116
00:55:18,449 --> 00:55:20,651
and he's just written
a brand-new song
1117
00:55:20,718 --> 00:55:22,620
that has got me bugged.
1118
00:55:22,687 --> 00:55:23,921
I can't get it out of my head,
1119
00:55:23,988 --> 00:55:25,856
even though I can't
sing it right.
1120
00:55:25,923 --> 00:55:29,026
It's a history of
rock 'n' roll in six verses,
1121
00:55:29,093 --> 00:55:31,028
and it's got a beautiful chorus.
1122
00:55:31,095 --> 00:55:32,718
Now, believe it or not,
this is the first time
1123
00:55:32,730 --> 00:55:35,666
I've ever sung the song.
1124
00:55:35,733 --> 00:55:39,269
♪ Long, long time ago,
I can still remember ♪
1125
00:55:39,336 --> 00:55:41,939
♪ How that music used
to make me smile ♪
1126
00:55:42,006 --> 00:55:43,941
- The record label,
they weren't entirely
1127
00:55:44,008 --> 00:55:47,011
secure about Don at all.
1128
00:55:47,077 --> 00:55:51,449
At one point, the head
of A&R called me up and said,
1129
00:55:51,516 --> 00:55:53,017
"This guy is a no-talent."
1130
00:55:53,083 --> 00:55:54,919
Those were his exact words.
1131
00:55:54,985 --> 00:55:59,089
- ♪ The day the music died ♪
1132
00:55:59,156 --> 00:56:00,379
Now, I suppose
I have the drummers
1133
00:56:00,391 --> 00:56:02,527
and everybody else coming
in here.
1134
00:56:02,593 --> 00:56:05,095
- We recorded in studio A
1135
00:56:05,162 --> 00:56:07,197
at the Record Plant
on 48th Street.
1136
00:56:09,199 --> 00:56:11,235
- We started to work together.
1137
00:56:11,301 --> 00:56:13,303
It was a contentious
relationship.
1138
00:56:15,272 --> 00:56:17,307
- We had some terrible
disagreements.
1139
00:56:17,374 --> 00:56:19,944
We used to stand
out in the hallway,
1140
00:56:20,010 --> 00:56:22,913
and I would start
conversations with,
1141
00:56:22,980 --> 00:56:24,982
"The trouble
with you is, Don..."
1142
00:56:25,049 --> 00:56:27,284
You know?
1143
00:56:27,351 --> 00:56:28,607
- Oh, well,
he didn't even want me
1144
00:56:28,619 --> 00:56:30,287
to play guitar on the record.
1145
00:56:30,354 --> 00:56:33,658
- But I did not appreciate
his rhythm guitar playing,
1146
00:56:33,724 --> 00:56:35,660
and originally
I wanted to replace it
1147
00:56:35,726 --> 00:56:37,462
with a studio guitarist.
1148
00:56:37,528 --> 00:56:40,765
- I said, well, I'm playing
guitar on the record, okay?
1149
00:56:43,167 --> 00:56:46,403
Here I was, coming into his
life as crazy as I could be.
1150
00:56:46,471 --> 00:56:48,305
He wasn't all that sane either,
1151
00:56:48,372 --> 00:56:50,174
but at the same time,
he brought in wonderful
1152
00:56:50,240 --> 00:56:53,511
players and wrote
some beautiful strings.
1153
00:56:53,578 --> 00:56:54,879
He was very talented.
1154
00:56:57,314 --> 00:57:00,050
And so, I was being
constantly thrilled.
1155
00:57:00,117 --> 00:57:01,519
I had "Empty Chairs,"
1156
00:57:01,586 --> 00:57:03,921
I had "Crossroads,"
I had "Winter Wood."
1157
00:57:03,988 --> 00:57:07,157
I had the album,
but I didn't have the big one.
1158
00:57:07,224 --> 00:57:10,961
♪ Did you write
the book of love? ♪
1159
00:57:11,028 --> 00:57:13,163
♪ Do you have faith
in God above? ♪
1160
00:57:13,230 --> 00:57:15,633
- "American Pie,"
we put together
1161
00:57:15,700 --> 00:57:17,401
in the rehearsal studio.
1162
00:57:17,468 --> 00:57:21,872
Don was not really comfortable
playing with a rhythm section.
1163
00:57:21,939 --> 00:57:24,174
What I did with Don
is I got him together
1164
00:57:24,241 --> 00:57:27,411
with a couple of players
who were very good,
1165
00:57:27,478 --> 00:57:30,781
but weren't hardcore
studio players,
1166
00:57:30,848 --> 00:57:33,584
and we rehearsed for two weeks.
1167
00:57:33,651 --> 00:57:38,055
- ♪ Well, I know that you're
in love with him ♪
1168
00:57:38,122 --> 00:57:40,591
- It was just myself,
Don, Freeman,
1169
00:57:40,658 --> 00:57:43,027
and I believe,
the drummer, Roy Markowitz.
1170
00:57:43,093 --> 00:57:44,929
So it was just Don
and a rhythm section,
1171
00:57:44,995 --> 00:57:46,230
kind of bare bones.
1172
00:57:48,633 --> 00:57:51,368
- We started rehearsals.
This is a struggle.
1173
00:57:51,435 --> 00:57:54,572
In a way, "American Pie,"
it kept sounding like a polka,
1174
00:57:54,639 --> 00:57:55,840
and it really annoyed me.
1175
00:57:55,906 --> 00:57:58,008
I said, this is really bad.
1176
00:58:01,011 --> 00:58:02,980
The day we're
recording "American Pie,"
1177
00:58:03,047 --> 00:58:04,649
we still didn't have it right.
1178
00:58:04,715 --> 00:58:06,283
The groove, we don't have it.
1179
00:58:06,350 --> 00:58:08,719
To Ed Freeman's credit,
he would come up
1180
00:58:08,786 --> 00:58:11,155
with things that would
just save everything,
1181
00:58:11,221 --> 00:58:13,323
and he brings a young man
1182
00:58:13,390 --> 00:58:15,760
to the session
named Paul Griffin.
1183
00:58:15,826 --> 00:58:17,995
- We added the electric guitar
1184
00:58:18,062 --> 00:58:21,098
and Paul Griffin on piano
at the last minute.
1185
00:58:21,165 --> 00:58:23,167
I had worked
with Griffin before.
1186
00:58:23,233 --> 00:58:24,935
I knew he was the right guy.
1187
00:58:26,571 --> 00:58:29,106
- Griffin had never heard
the song in his life,
1188
00:58:29,173 --> 00:58:31,576
so here we are trying it
for the first time.
1189
00:58:35,913 --> 00:58:37,948
- We stumbled
through a few takes.
1190
00:58:38,015 --> 00:58:39,850
Paul Griffin, he didn't
really know what to do
1191
00:58:39,917 --> 00:58:41,717
with the first verse,
and he was very nervous.
1192
00:58:44,689 --> 00:58:48,993
- And they put my guitar
in his earphones.
1193
00:58:52,496 --> 00:58:55,966
And I hit that thing hard,
and I play it loud.
1194
00:58:56,033 --> 00:58:59,570
And all of a sudden, Griffin,
he starts playing this thing.
1195
00:59:02,773 --> 00:59:05,175
He's going, "Whoa!"
And he starts playing
1196
00:59:05,242 --> 00:59:07,311
the piano like
a gospel stride piano.
1197
00:59:10,247 --> 00:59:12,216
He's just rolling and rocking
1198
00:59:12,282 --> 00:59:16,086
and kicking it here
and backing off there and,
1199
00:59:16,153 --> 00:59:17,755
you know,
just changing everything
1200
00:59:17,822 --> 00:59:21,058
as we're moving along and
building from verse to verse.
1201
00:59:23,127 --> 00:59:24,995
- Paul Griffin was the hero.
1202
00:59:25,062 --> 00:59:26,797
He was just an amazing cat.
1203
00:59:26,864 --> 00:59:28,899
Gospel, jazz, chops...
1204
00:59:28,966 --> 00:59:30,768
Just such a monster.
1205
00:59:30,835 --> 00:59:33,738
- ♪ Them good old boys were
drinking whiskey and rye ♪
1206
00:59:33,804 --> 00:59:36,641
I'm kicking his ass, you know,
and he's kicking my ass,
1207
00:59:36,707 --> 00:59:38,709
and the two of us together
making the drummer go
1208
00:59:38,776 --> 00:59:40,044
where he's supposed to go,
1209
00:59:40,110 --> 00:59:41,545
and everybody else falls
in line.
1210
00:59:43,513 --> 00:59:46,951
- The track was just,
like, so rocking, man.
1211
00:59:48,552 --> 00:59:50,142
- Well, I knew we were
where we were supposed to be.
1212
00:59:50,154 --> 00:59:52,456
It felt great.
It was jumping and,
1213
00:59:52,522 --> 00:59:54,024
you know, it was what I wanted.
1214
00:59:54,091 --> 00:59:57,127
♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
1215
00:59:57,194 --> 01:00:00,497
- There was that one take
where it was just magic,
1216
01:00:00,564 --> 01:00:01,999
and it just happened.
1217
01:00:02,066 --> 01:00:04,434
- ♪ Boys were drinking
whiskey and rye ♪
1218
01:00:04,501 --> 01:00:07,137
Paul Griffin, he came in
at the last moment,
1219
01:00:07,204 --> 01:00:10,675
and Hail Mary pass,
saved the whole dang thing.
1220
01:00:10,741 --> 01:00:12,476
I said, that's it!
1221
01:00:14,011 --> 01:00:17,247
- When they finished,
I just hit the talk back,
1222
01:00:17,314 --> 01:00:18,983
and I said,
"Y'all better come in here
1223
01:00:19,049 --> 01:00:20,184
and take a listen to this."
1224
01:00:20,250 --> 01:00:21,952
And everybody was high-fiving
1225
01:00:22,019 --> 01:00:23,921
each other and dancing around.
1226
01:00:23,988 --> 01:00:26,456
It was clear to everybody,
1227
01:00:26,523 --> 01:00:29,559
we all knew it was great.
1228
01:00:35,232 --> 01:00:38,669
Well, then we did the vocals.
1229
01:00:38,736 --> 01:00:41,739
- I sang the song probably
about 30 times,
1230
01:00:41,806 --> 01:00:45,910
singing things that were very
riffy, you know, high notes.
1231
01:00:45,976 --> 01:00:47,444
Ed didn't like that.
1232
01:00:48,946 --> 01:00:51,415
- We went to the mat
about that more than once.
1233
01:00:51,481 --> 01:00:55,185
What I ended up doing is
recording a lot of vocals
1234
01:00:55,252 --> 01:00:57,487
and then splicing together the
parts
1235
01:00:57,554 --> 01:00:58,956
that I considered iconic.
1236
01:00:59,023 --> 01:01:00,457
But we got it, in the end.
1237
01:01:00,524 --> 01:01:04,228
- Well, finally, we got
a coherent mix and vocal.
1238
01:01:04,294 --> 01:01:06,997
Everything was right,
and it was very good.
1239
01:01:07,064 --> 01:01:08,365
- I think the only thing
1240
01:01:08,432 --> 01:01:10,400
that we were in agreement about,
1241
01:01:10,467 --> 01:01:13,337
is that we were
both fiercely committed
1242
01:01:13,403 --> 01:01:15,773
to this song being
a masterpiece.
1243
01:01:15,840 --> 01:01:17,407
We were not leaving the studio
1244
01:01:17,474 --> 01:01:20,110
until this thing was brilliant,
1245
01:01:20,177 --> 01:01:22,713
and we didn't, and it is.
1246
01:01:32,790 --> 01:01:36,894
- You have freedom
to be whoever you want to be.
1247
01:01:36,961 --> 01:01:38,562
You have a right
to dream in the US.
1248
01:01:38,628 --> 01:01:39,628
It's the American Dream.
1249
01:01:43,500 --> 01:01:45,870
RCA Studios is definitely
one of the most
1250
01:01:45,936 --> 01:01:48,405
beautiful studios I've ever
been in my entire life.
1251
01:01:48,472 --> 01:01:49,673
My second record,
1252
01:01:49,740 --> 01:01:51,541
"Different Kinds of Light,"
I cut here.
1253
01:01:53,778 --> 01:01:56,346
But now I've got to return
and do this amazing song here.
1254
01:01:56,413 --> 01:01:59,649
♪ February made me shiver ♪
1255
01:02:01,251 --> 01:02:02,853
"American Pie" in the UK,
1256
01:02:02,920 --> 01:02:04,621
literally everywhere
at the end of a night.
1257
01:02:04,688 --> 01:02:06,208
Yeah, everyone will have
a beer in hand
1258
01:02:06,256 --> 01:02:09,426
and be singing that
in a camaraderie way.
1259
01:02:09,493 --> 01:02:13,764
I just remember being
extremely struck by that song.
1260
01:02:13,831 --> 01:02:16,700
This thing about the melody
that feels completely timeless.
1261
01:02:16,767 --> 01:02:18,023
- Are you ready?
- Yeah, I'll give it a go,
1262
01:02:18,035 --> 01:02:19,804
see what happens.
1263
01:02:19,870 --> 01:02:23,307
♪ A long, long time ago ♪
1264
01:02:23,373 --> 01:02:25,275
- Think it's
the album cover, right?
1265
01:02:25,342 --> 01:02:27,144
I think I know the album cover
1266
01:02:27,211 --> 01:02:28,512
as much as I know the song.
1267
01:02:28,578 --> 01:02:29,701
I mean,
the Captain America thumb,
1268
01:02:29,713 --> 01:02:30,647
I mean, come on.
1269
01:02:30,714 --> 01:02:31,949
It's this chord.
1270
01:02:32,016 --> 01:02:33,571
- Yeah, I think it's...
- Whatever that is.
1271
01:02:33,583 --> 01:02:36,954
Honestly, this song
is terrifying to cut.
1272
01:02:37,021 --> 01:02:39,389
I woke up this morning, had a
little panic attack about it.
1273
01:02:39,456 --> 01:02:41,892
I think she did too,
because it's such an iconic
1274
01:02:41,959 --> 01:02:43,427
song you've heard
a million times.
1275
01:02:43,493 --> 01:02:46,096
It is so ingrained in people's
mind,
1276
01:02:46,163 --> 01:02:48,365
and so to even dare touch it
1277
01:02:48,432 --> 01:02:50,567
or try to reinvent it
is pretty crazy.
1278
01:02:50,634 --> 01:02:56,874
- ♪ A long, long time ago,
I can still remember ♪
1279
01:02:56,941 --> 01:03:02,512
♪ How that music used
to make me smile ♪
1280
01:03:02,579 --> 01:03:07,017
♪ And I knew
if I had my chance ♪
1281
01:03:07,084 --> 01:03:10,254
It made me feel sad when I was
singing the start of the song.
1282
01:03:10,320 --> 01:03:13,657
The somberness of, you know,
"Bye-bye, Miss American Pie,"
1283
01:03:13,723 --> 01:03:16,626
the story of that,
I felt that pretty heavy today.
1284
01:03:16,693 --> 01:03:20,931
♪ So bye-bye,
Miss American Pie ♪
1285
01:03:20,998 --> 01:03:23,733
♪ Drove my Chevy to the levee ♪
1286
01:03:23,800 --> 01:03:25,702
To be telling a story
like Don's,
1287
01:03:25,769 --> 01:03:27,872
to be telling a story
like "American Pie,"
1288
01:03:27,938 --> 01:03:30,640
with Dave, with these
incredible musicians,
1289
01:03:30,707 --> 01:03:32,409
and to be a part of that,
I feel, like,
1290
01:03:32,476 --> 01:03:34,078
genuinely, truly honored.
1291
01:03:34,144 --> 01:03:36,680
♪ This'll be
the day that I die ♪
1292
01:03:36,746 --> 01:03:38,382
It is a masterpiece.
1293
01:03:38,448 --> 01:03:39,972
There's a reason it's been
around for 50 years.
1294
01:03:39,984 --> 01:03:43,487
♪ Oh, did you write
the book of love? ♪
1295
01:03:43,553 --> 01:03:47,224
♪ And do you have faith
in God above? ♪
1296
01:03:47,291 --> 01:03:50,594
♪ If the Bible tells you so? ♪
1297
01:03:52,129 --> 01:03:55,765
- I'm Rudy Perez, and I was
born in Pinar Del Río, Cuba.
1298
01:03:55,832 --> 01:03:58,435
I remember the first time
I heard "American Pie,"
1299
01:03:58,502 --> 01:04:00,370
it must have been in '76.
1300
01:04:00,437 --> 01:04:03,207
It was a song that drew you in
deeply.
1301
01:04:03,273 --> 01:04:06,310
- ♪ Real slow ♪
1302
01:04:06,376 --> 01:04:08,645
- Everybody can relate
to that song.
1303
01:04:08,712 --> 01:04:11,348
"American Pie" crossed
generations
1304
01:04:11,415 --> 01:04:14,218
and is still resonating
with people today.
1305
01:04:14,284 --> 01:04:17,554
- ♪ You both kicked off
your shoes ♪
1306
01:04:17,621 --> 01:04:21,691
♪ Man, I dig those
rhythm and blues, oh ♪
1307
01:04:21,758 --> 01:04:24,794
- With the turmoil
that's still going on,
1308
01:04:24,861 --> 01:04:26,931
that song is still
very up-to-date.
1309
01:04:26,997 --> 01:04:28,465
I mean, it's just magical.
1310
01:04:28,532 --> 01:04:32,736
- ♪ But I knew I was
out of luck the day ♪
1311
01:04:32,802 --> 01:04:34,939
- When I listen
to "American Pie,"
1312
01:04:35,005 --> 01:04:37,874
it just reminds me
of what America means to me.
1313
01:04:37,942 --> 01:04:39,509
America means freedom.
1314
01:04:39,576 --> 01:04:42,812
- ♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
1315
01:04:42,879 --> 01:04:45,015
♪ Drove my Chevy to the levee ♪
1316
01:04:45,082 --> 01:04:47,617
♪ But the levee was dry ♪
1317
01:04:47,684 --> 01:04:49,653
- I think the song
"American Pie" has just always
1318
01:04:49,719 --> 01:04:51,555
echoed through
the United States' history.
1319
01:04:51,621 --> 01:04:53,757
It's almost like
a national anthem of sorts
1320
01:04:53,823 --> 01:04:55,192
to a lot of people.
1321
01:04:55,259 --> 01:04:58,662
- ♪ This'll be the day
that I die ♪
1322
01:04:58,728 --> 01:05:01,565
"Newsweek" magazine came out
with this big article
1323
01:05:01,631 --> 01:05:04,668
about the top ten dying cities
in the United States.
1324
01:05:04,734 --> 01:05:07,371
My hometown, Grand Rapids,
Michigan, was one of them,
1325
01:05:07,437 --> 01:05:08,772
and we were like, you know what,
1326
01:05:08,838 --> 01:05:11,075
we need to strike back
against this.
1327
01:05:11,141 --> 01:05:14,411
- ♪ When the jester sang
for the king and queen ♪
1328
01:05:14,478 --> 01:05:16,380
- We were like,
let's make this lip dub video
1329
01:05:16,446 --> 01:05:17,948
and just pack it full
of everyone
1330
01:05:18,015 --> 01:05:20,117
with all the energy
and fight back
1331
01:05:20,184 --> 01:05:21,418
and say, this is who we are.
1332
01:05:23,587 --> 01:05:26,090
The track that I chose,
"American Pie,"
1333
01:05:26,156 --> 01:05:29,159
it felt so full of Americana
1334
01:05:29,226 --> 01:05:31,495
and this hope for the future,
1335
01:05:31,561 --> 01:05:33,597
and it felt representative
of the city
1336
01:05:33,663 --> 01:05:34,786
and what we were trying to do.
1337
01:05:34,798 --> 01:05:37,934
- ♪ No verdict was returned ♪
1338
01:05:38,002 --> 01:05:42,572
- We loved it
because it spoke to dark times
1339
01:05:42,639 --> 01:05:45,642
in our country's history,
as well as to our hope
1340
01:05:45,709 --> 01:05:47,744
that we could change it
and that we could
1341
01:05:47,811 --> 01:05:49,579
uplift ourselves
to a higher place.
1342
01:05:49,646 --> 01:05:52,049
- ♪ The music died ♪
1343
01:05:52,116 --> 01:05:54,551
- Grand Rapids, Michigan was
"American Pie."
1344
01:05:54,618 --> 01:05:57,354
- ♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
1345
01:05:57,421 --> 01:05:58,701
- All of these people singing it
1346
01:05:58,722 --> 01:06:00,524
out in the streets together,
1347
01:06:00,590 --> 01:06:02,726
they associated with that song,
1348
01:06:02,792 --> 01:06:04,728
and they knew that it meant
something
1349
01:06:04,794 --> 01:06:08,098
and that it did represent
what this town was about,
1350
01:06:08,165 --> 01:06:11,468
the all-American story
that we still idealize,
1351
01:06:11,535 --> 01:06:13,237
that we still want to be true.
1352
01:06:13,303 --> 01:06:15,572
- ♪ The day ♪
1353
01:06:15,639 --> 01:06:22,712
♪ The music died ♪
1354
01:06:29,919 --> 01:06:32,856
- "American Pie" really hit
the nail on the head.
1355
01:06:32,922 --> 01:06:34,924
The record company,
they loved it
1356
01:06:34,991 --> 01:06:38,628
and sent me over to a man
named George Whiteman,
1357
01:06:38,695 --> 01:06:41,131
who was a fashion photographer,
1358
01:06:41,198 --> 01:06:44,734
and he had a big studio
and long-legged ladies were
1359
01:06:44,801 --> 01:06:47,137
coming in and kissing Georgie,
"Oh, Georgie."
1360
01:06:47,204 --> 01:06:49,173
He says, "Hi Don, you know,
I heard the record.
1361
01:06:49,239 --> 01:06:52,509
Great record. Come on inside.
I'm gonna paint your thumb."
1362
01:06:54,010 --> 01:06:55,612
So he painted my thumb,
1363
01:06:55,679 --> 01:06:58,115
and then I looked
down the guitar.
1364
01:06:58,182 --> 01:07:00,350
And the thing is that
there are children's
1365
01:07:00,417 --> 01:07:02,752
nursery rhymes
in "American Pie."
1366
01:07:02,819 --> 01:07:04,788
You know, "Jack be nimble,
Jack be quick."
1367
01:07:04,854 --> 01:07:06,490
So he went one step further...
1368
01:07:06,556 --> 01:07:08,392
"Little Jack Horner sat
in the corner,
1369
01:07:08,458 --> 01:07:10,327
"eating his Christmas pie,
1370
01:07:10,394 --> 01:07:11,683
put in his thumb
and pulled out a plum,
1371
01:07:11,695 --> 01:07:13,563
and said,
what a good boy am I."
1372
01:07:13,630 --> 01:07:16,366
That's not in the song,
but the implication is that,
1373
01:07:16,433 --> 01:07:18,335
you now,
it's another nursery rhyme.
1374
01:07:18,402 --> 01:07:20,137
I said,
absolutely right, perfect.
1375
01:07:20,204 --> 01:07:22,539
I would have never thought
of it in 100 million years.
1376
01:07:25,409 --> 01:07:28,245
And then, about two weeks
later, we get the word
1377
01:07:28,312 --> 01:07:32,349
that United Artists is
buying Media Arts Records.
1378
01:07:34,618 --> 01:07:36,920
Mainly because
they love "American Pie."
1379
01:07:36,986 --> 01:07:39,156
They think it's a hit record
and a hit album,
1380
01:07:39,223 --> 01:07:40,357
and they're all excited.
1381
01:07:47,197 --> 01:07:48,932
Everything took off
like a rocket.
1382
01:07:48,998 --> 01:07:51,768
♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
1383
01:07:51,835 --> 01:07:54,171
♪ Drove my Chevy to the levee ♪
1384
01:07:54,238 --> 01:07:55,805
♪ But the levee was dry ♪
1385
01:07:55,872 --> 01:07:59,776
- It went from zero
to number one so fast.
1386
01:07:59,843 --> 01:08:02,912
- ♪ This'll the day that I die ♪
1387
01:08:02,979 --> 01:08:05,715
♪ This'll be the day
that I die ♪
1388
01:08:05,782 --> 01:08:07,684
"American Pie" blew up
the world.
1389
01:08:07,751 --> 01:08:11,455
♪ Now, for ten years
we've been on our own ♪
1390
01:08:11,521 --> 01:08:13,190
♪ And moss grows fat ♪
1391
01:08:13,257 --> 01:08:16,260
- The album and the single
became number one,
1392
01:08:16,326 --> 01:08:19,028
and it stayed up there
for weeks and weeks.
1393
01:08:20,564 --> 01:08:22,666
- It was the longest hit record
1394
01:08:22,732 --> 01:08:24,168
that had ever been released.
1395
01:08:24,234 --> 01:08:27,036
- Three minutes was the limit
to any song,
1396
01:08:27,103 --> 01:08:29,539
but "American Pie" just
broke that rule.
1397
01:08:29,606 --> 01:08:32,008
It was just
a complete phenomenon.
1398
01:08:33,777 --> 01:08:35,545
- People heard the short
version of the song
1399
01:08:35,612 --> 01:08:38,047
on the radio, and they heard
the long version on the album,
1400
01:08:38,114 --> 01:08:40,417
and they called up all
the radio stations and said,
1401
01:08:40,484 --> 01:08:41,706
we want to hear the whole thing
1402
01:08:41,718 --> 01:08:43,220
when you play the top 40.
1403
01:08:43,287 --> 01:08:44,954
So now they all had
to make decisions,
1404
01:08:45,021 --> 01:08:46,623
do we play this one guy's song?
1405
01:08:46,690 --> 01:08:48,392
We've got to give him
8.5 minutes?
1406
01:08:48,458 --> 01:08:50,047
But they did it,
played it off the album.
1407
01:08:50,059 --> 01:08:52,962
- ♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
1408
01:08:53,029 --> 01:08:54,864
- There was a radio station,
I remember,
1409
01:08:54,931 --> 01:08:56,766
in New York that played it
over and over,
1410
01:08:56,833 --> 01:09:00,804
end to end with nothing else
for eight hours in a row.
1411
01:09:00,870 --> 01:09:03,207
- ♪ This'll be the day
that I die ♪
1412
01:09:03,273 --> 01:09:04,508
- It was just unheard of.
1413
01:09:04,574 --> 01:09:06,643
- ♪ This'll be the day
that I die ♪
1414
01:09:06,710 --> 01:09:08,578
So I'm thinking,
1415
01:09:08,645 --> 01:09:11,047
this is amazing,
and I'm loving it.
1416
01:09:12,649 --> 01:09:14,284
There's never been a phenomenon
1417
01:09:14,351 --> 01:09:15,485
like "American Pie."
1418
01:09:15,552 --> 01:09:16,786
I was smiled on.
1419
01:09:16,853 --> 01:09:19,189
I was as surprised as anybody
1420
01:09:19,256 --> 01:09:20,924
that I could make magic.
1421
01:09:25,762 --> 01:09:27,130
- The more I listened to it,
1422
01:09:27,197 --> 01:09:30,734
I thought, wow,
this is like an epic.
1423
01:09:39,343 --> 01:09:42,646
"American Pie" was
really encapsulating
1424
01:09:42,712 --> 01:09:44,581
the experience
of a whole generation.
1425
01:09:44,648 --> 01:09:47,083
We were witness to the death
1426
01:09:47,150 --> 01:09:49,319
of the American dream.
1427
01:09:49,386 --> 01:09:52,422
We went through
both Kennedys being shot,
1428
01:09:52,489 --> 01:09:54,924
Malcolm X, Martin Luther King,
1429
01:09:54,991 --> 01:09:57,694
Vietnam, you know,
hippies thought we were gonna
1430
01:09:57,761 --> 01:10:00,096
take over the world
with love and peace...
1431
01:10:02,399 --> 01:10:04,668
And it didn't happen.
1432
01:10:04,734 --> 01:10:07,537
For me,
"American Pie" is the eulogy
1433
01:10:07,604 --> 01:10:11,641
for a dream
that didn't take place.
1434
01:10:13,109 --> 01:10:15,445
It was real important that way.
1435
01:10:15,512 --> 01:10:17,614
I think we all needed it.
1436
01:10:17,681 --> 01:10:20,484
It was an acknowledgment
of what we had been through,
1437
01:10:20,550 --> 01:10:24,187
and in a way, because it was
an acknowledgment,
1438
01:10:24,254 --> 01:10:25,955
we could move on.
1439
01:10:40,604 --> 01:10:44,841
- Here we go, Don McLean.
Take two, mark.
1440
01:10:44,908 --> 01:10:46,564
- I feel like I want
to talk about the actual
1441
01:10:46,576 --> 01:10:48,044
writing of the song.
1442
01:10:48,111 --> 01:10:49,546
- Okay.
1443
01:10:49,613 --> 01:10:52,616
I'm trying to do
a kaleidoscopic,
1444
01:10:52,682 --> 01:10:56,520
dream-like, impressionistic,
1445
01:10:56,586 --> 01:10:58,955
yet understandable thing.
1446
01:10:59,022 --> 01:11:03,660
The first verse
of the song is biographical.
1447
01:11:03,727 --> 01:11:06,029
♪ Long, long time ago ♪
1448
01:11:06,095 --> 01:11:08,498
♪ I can still remember
how that music ♪
1449
01:11:08,565 --> 01:11:10,934
♪ Used to make me smile ♪
1450
01:11:11,000 --> 01:11:12,969
Buddy was like a lost brother
1451
01:11:13,036 --> 01:11:15,905
or somebody that died
in the war or...
1452
01:11:15,972 --> 01:11:19,743
There was this yearning
I had in me always,
1453
01:11:19,809 --> 01:11:22,245
and I could never talk
to anybody about it,
1454
01:11:22,312 --> 01:11:24,548
because it was just all in me.
1455
01:11:24,614 --> 01:11:29,152
♪ The day the music died ♪
1456
01:11:29,218 --> 01:11:31,254
So let's see now,
the second verse...
1457
01:11:31,321 --> 01:11:32,321
How's it go?
1458
01:11:32,356 --> 01:11:33,890
Do you remember?
1459
01:11:33,957 --> 01:11:37,761
♪ Now do you believe
in rock 'n' roll? ♪
1460
01:11:37,827 --> 01:11:41,998
♪ Can music save
your mortal soul? ♪
1461
01:11:42,065 --> 01:11:45,335
"Can music save
your mortal soul?"
1462
01:11:45,402 --> 01:11:48,304
See, that's the theology
in me coming out.
1463
01:11:48,372 --> 01:11:51,307
In the church, they only talk
about your immortal soul.
1464
01:11:51,375 --> 01:11:54,578
I'm saying, can music save
your mortal soul,
1465
01:11:54,644 --> 01:11:57,313
as a man, now, being alive?
1466
01:11:57,381 --> 01:11:59,416
♪ Well, I know that you're in ♪
1467
01:11:59,483 --> 01:12:01,184
"Well, I know that you're
in love with him
1468
01:12:01,250 --> 01:12:03,620
"'cause I saw you dancing
in the gym.
1469
01:12:03,687 --> 01:12:05,889
You both kicked off
your shoes."
1470
01:12:05,955 --> 01:12:07,275
♪ You both kicked off
your shoes ♪
1471
01:12:07,290 --> 01:12:09,926
"Man, I dig those
rhythm and blues."
1472
01:12:09,993 --> 01:12:11,595
So this is all me,
little old me,
1473
01:12:11,661 --> 01:12:14,464
seeing other kids being happy
1474
01:12:14,531 --> 01:12:17,367
and hearing the music
going on behind them,
1475
01:12:17,434 --> 01:12:21,971
and seeing other things happen
that I wasn't a part of.
1476
01:12:22,038 --> 01:12:25,241
"Yeah, I was a lonely
teenage broncin' buck."
1477
01:12:25,308 --> 01:12:28,878
Now, that's a take off
on having bronchial asthma.
1478
01:12:28,945 --> 01:12:30,980
I was "bronching,"
but I was still a stallion,
1479
01:12:31,047 --> 01:12:32,348
you know what I mean?
1480
01:12:32,416 --> 01:12:35,485
♪ I was a lonely
teenage broncin' buck ♪
1481
01:12:35,552 --> 01:12:37,387
"With a pink carnation..."
1482
01:12:37,454 --> 01:12:40,289
♪ And a pickup truck,
but I knew I ♪
1483
01:12:40,356 --> 01:12:42,058
Sure, I went to a lot of proms,
1484
01:12:42,125 --> 01:12:43,893
but I never had a pickup truck,
1485
01:12:43,960 --> 01:12:46,362
but I could have anything
I wanted in my songs.
1486
01:12:49,065 --> 01:12:52,268
Since my father died,
I have no family.
1487
01:12:52,335 --> 01:12:54,638
You know, I have my mother,
but my mother
1488
01:12:54,704 --> 01:12:56,473
and I went sort of
different ways.
1489
01:12:56,540 --> 01:12:59,008
♪ Oh, for ten years
we've been on our own ♪
1490
01:12:59,075 --> 01:13:00,755
That's me talking,
"For ten years I've been
1491
01:13:00,810 --> 01:13:02,245
"on my own.
1492
01:13:02,311 --> 01:13:04,047
Moss grows fat
on a rolling stone."
1493
01:13:04,113 --> 01:13:05,302
I think I was putting on weight.
1494
01:13:05,314 --> 01:13:06,771
I thought I was,
you know, getting fat
1495
01:13:06,783 --> 01:13:08,284
and lazy and stuff.
1496
01:13:08,351 --> 01:13:11,120
♪ When the jester sang
for the king and queen ♪
1497
01:13:11,187 --> 01:13:13,322
"When the jester sang
for the king and queen."
1498
01:13:13,389 --> 01:13:15,659
Now, there's been
this discussion
1499
01:13:15,725 --> 01:13:17,561
about the jester over and over.
1500
01:13:17,627 --> 01:13:20,897
You know, I certainly would
have mentioned Dylan's name
1501
01:13:20,964 --> 01:13:22,298
if I had meant to mention him.
1502
01:13:22,365 --> 01:13:24,333
I would have said Bob
or something else,
1503
01:13:24,400 --> 01:13:26,302
but I didn't,
'cause it ain't him.
1504
01:13:26,369 --> 01:13:31,007
The king, I say, "The jester
stole his thorny crown."
1505
01:13:31,074 --> 01:13:33,142
I didn't mention Elvis Presley,
1506
01:13:33,209 --> 01:13:35,545
because Elvis did not
have a thorny crown.
1507
01:13:35,612 --> 01:13:38,081
Jesus Christ has a thorny crown.
1508
01:13:38,147 --> 01:13:41,017
If I'd wanted to say Elvis
instead of the King,
1509
01:13:41,084 --> 01:13:42,852
I would have said Elvis.
1510
01:13:42,919 --> 01:13:45,054
I say James Dean in the song.
1511
01:13:45,121 --> 01:13:49,292
So what you have is this
mythology that I'm inventing
1512
01:13:49,358 --> 01:13:52,929
of this insulting, happy jester.
1513
01:13:52,996 --> 01:13:56,500
Oh, I'll just grab
the king's crown off his head
1514
01:13:56,566 --> 01:13:58,301
and see if he laughs at that,
1515
01:13:58,367 --> 01:13:59,669
see if that's funny.
1516
01:13:59,736 --> 01:14:04,007
♪ And while Lennon read
a book on Marx ♪
1517
01:14:04,073 --> 01:14:06,175
"And Lennon read
a book on Marx."
1518
01:14:06,242 --> 01:14:09,546
Well, that applies to both
John Lennon and the real Lenin.
1519
01:14:11,247 --> 01:14:13,416
Communism radicalized
John Lennon,
1520
01:14:13,483 --> 01:14:16,252
and Lenin was radicalized
by Marx.
1521
01:14:18,622 --> 01:14:20,089
So now the next verse is...
1522
01:14:20,156 --> 01:14:23,259
♪ Helter-skelter
in the summer swelter ♪
1523
01:14:23,326 --> 01:14:26,963
"Eight miles high" definitely
came from the name of a song.
1524
01:14:27,030 --> 01:14:30,299
♪ Eight miles high
and falling fast ♪
1525
01:14:30,366 --> 01:14:31,735
I thought that was a great song.
1526
01:14:31,801 --> 01:14:34,638
The "eight miles high" idea,
I loved that.
1527
01:14:34,704 --> 01:14:38,708
Now, there was a song
that Josh White used to sing
1528
01:14:38,775 --> 01:14:40,777
called "Bottle Up and Go."
1529
01:14:40,844 --> 01:14:44,480
♪ There I am in the grass ♪
1530
01:14:44,548 --> 01:14:46,783
♪ Mm-mmm a forward pass ♪
1531
01:14:46,850 --> 01:14:49,318
♪ You got to bottle up and go ♪
1532
01:14:49,385 --> 01:14:52,822
So that was the idea
of a forward pass in the grass.
1533
01:14:52,889 --> 01:14:56,492
♪ The grass, the players tried
for a forward pass ♪
1534
01:14:56,560 --> 01:14:59,763
"With a jester
on the sidelines."
1535
01:14:59,829 --> 01:15:01,665
That meant,
this wasn't funny anymore.
1536
01:15:01,731 --> 01:15:03,332
This wasn't funny at all.
1537
01:15:03,399 --> 01:15:06,302
♪ The halftime air was
sweet perfume ♪
1538
01:15:06,369 --> 01:15:09,739
♪ While the sergeants played
a marching tune ♪
1539
01:15:09,806 --> 01:15:13,209
And then the rest of the lyric
is about the people trying
1540
01:15:13,276 --> 01:15:15,411
to take over,
and they would be pushed back
1541
01:15:15,478 --> 01:15:19,215
by the marching band, the
military-industrial complex.
1542
01:15:19,282 --> 01:15:22,451
♪ The marching band refused
to yield ♪
1543
01:15:22,518 --> 01:15:24,821
I was always marching
against the war in Vietnam.
1544
01:15:24,888 --> 01:15:27,957
We were constantly
being pushed aside
1545
01:15:28,024 --> 01:15:31,995
in this relentless desire
to destroy Southeast Asia.
1546
01:15:32,061 --> 01:15:35,098
♪ There we were
all in one place ♪
1547
01:15:35,164 --> 01:15:38,301
"The generation lost
in space."
1548
01:15:38,367 --> 01:15:42,672
We're out in the middle
of an endless universe.
1549
01:15:42,739 --> 01:15:46,810
None of us are important
except to each other,
1550
01:15:46,876 --> 01:15:48,645
and we're all lost in space,
1551
01:15:48,712 --> 01:15:52,315
because the war was hotter
than it ever was before.
1552
01:15:52,381 --> 01:15:55,051
♪ I met a girl
who sang the blues ♪
1553
01:15:55,118 --> 01:15:58,121
♪ And I asked her
for some happy news ♪
1554
01:15:58,187 --> 01:16:00,056
"I met a girl
who sang the blues,
1555
01:16:00,123 --> 01:16:01,557
I asked her
for some happy news."
1556
01:16:01,625 --> 01:16:03,793
Well, you see,
I'd gotten the bad news
1557
01:16:03,860 --> 01:16:05,028
in the front of the song.
1558
01:16:05,094 --> 01:16:06,896
Now I'm asking her
for some happy news
1559
01:16:06,963 --> 01:16:08,765
at the end of the song.
1560
01:16:08,832 --> 01:16:12,135
♪ But she just smiled
and turned away ♪
1561
01:16:12,201 --> 01:16:13,770
And you know how it is
when a woman
1562
01:16:13,837 --> 01:16:17,506
or anybody smile
and turn away like that?
1563
01:16:17,573 --> 01:16:20,877
She knew something, but
she wasn't gonna say anything.
1564
01:16:20,944 --> 01:16:23,012
She doesn't give me good news.
1565
01:16:23,079 --> 01:16:25,715
♪ And I went down
to the sacred store ♪
1566
01:16:25,782 --> 01:16:28,985
♪ Where I'd heard the music
years before ♪
1567
01:16:29,052 --> 01:16:31,054
"Went down
to the sacred store."
1568
01:16:31,120 --> 01:16:33,256
Now I'm going back
to New Rochelle.
1569
01:16:33,322 --> 01:16:36,159
They said, "The music doesn't
play anymore, Don."
1570
01:16:36,225 --> 01:16:38,327
The country was headed
in the wrong direction,
1571
01:16:38,394 --> 01:16:41,564
toward an evil god of some sort,
1572
01:16:41,631 --> 01:16:43,466
and that's how the song ends.
1573
01:16:43,532 --> 01:16:45,802
♪ And the three men
I admire most ♪
1574
01:16:45,869 --> 01:16:48,104
♪ The Father, Son,
and the Holy Ghost ♪
1575
01:16:48,171 --> 01:16:50,439
"The three men I admire most,
1576
01:16:50,506 --> 01:16:53,376
caught the last train
for the coast,"
1577
01:16:53,442 --> 01:16:57,446
so even God has been corrupted.
1578
01:16:57,513 --> 01:17:01,484
He's going to Los Angeles.
1579
01:17:10,593 --> 01:17:15,231
- "A long, long time ago lived
a lonely newspaper boy."
1580
01:17:15,298 --> 01:17:16,632
I'm Peter Gallagher.
1581
01:17:16,700 --> 01:17:19,168
I'm an actor and singer.
1582
01:17:19,235 --> 01:17:21,671
I'm here to read an audiobook
1583
01:17:21,738 --> 01:17:23,907
all inspired by Don McLean's
1584
01:17:23,973 --> 01:17:26,209
epic, "American Pie."
1585
01:17:26,275 --> 01:17:28,845
"He never missed a porch
or a sidewalk
1586
01:17:28,912 --> 01:17:30,980
with his finely crafted fling."
1587
01:17:31,047 --> 01:17:33,216
What this song
and this story provides
1588
01:17:33,282 --> 01:17:35,919
all of us is the chance
for us to recognize
1589
01:17:35,985 --> 01:17:39,088
what we share
in terms of the past.
1590
01:17:39,155 --> 01:17:42,591
"His bike transformed
into a stealthy steed."
1591
01:17:42,658 --> 01:17:44,894
It's just a whole world
in there,
1592
01:17:44,961 --> 01:17:46,562
and you can hear and see in it
1593
01:17:46,629 --> 01:17:50,399
what you need to hear
and see in any given moment.
1594
01:17:50,466 --> 01:17:53,970
"The newspaper boy gently
picked up the guitar
1595
01:17:54,037 --> 01:17:55,805
and slung it
over his shoulder."
1596
01:17:55,872 --> 01:17:58,975
I was eager to contribute
to something
1597
01:17:59,042 --> 01:18:01,978
that might make people feel
connected again.
1598
01:18:02,045 --> 01:18:06,615
"Something had touched him
deep inside."
1599
01:18:06,682 --> 01:18:07,917
- ♪ We started singin' ♪
1600
01:18:07,984 --> 01:18:10,754
♪ My, my, this here Anakin guy ♪
1601
01:18:10,820 --> 01:18:12,488
♪ May be Vader someday later,
1602
01:18:12,555 --> 01:18:14,257
♪ Now he's just a small fry ♪
1603
01:18:14,323 --> 01:18:17,460
Well, in 1999 when "Star Wars"
was coming out
1604
01:18:17,526 --> 01:18:19,216
with the "Phantom Menace,"
so I knew I wanted
1605
01:18:19,228 --> 01:18:22,231
to write a song parody
about "Star Wars."
1606
01:18:22,298 --> 01:18:24,700
And I flashed on the idea
of using "American Pie,"
1607
01:18:24,768 --> 01:18:27,003
because it's one of my
all-time favorite songs.
1608
01:18:27,070 --> 01:18:29,438
♪ We finally got to Coruscant ♪
1609
01:18:29,505 --> 01:18:31,574
I think "American Pie"
is eternal.
1610
01:18:31,640 --> 01:18:34,377
There's some magic
baked into that song.
1611
01:18:34,443 --> 01:18:36,412
♪ How good the boy could be ♪
1612
01:18:38,381 --> 01:18:39,983
When "The Saga Begins" came out,
1613
01:18:40,049 --> 01:18:41,985
it was a huge hit
on Radio Disney,
1614
01:18:42,051 --> 01:18:43,987
so a lot of pre-teens were
listening to the song.
1615
01:18:44,053 --> 01:18:45,454
They didn't know "American Pie,"
1616
01:18:45,521 --> 01:18:46,643
they just thought,
oh, it's a funny Weird Al
1617
01:18:46,655 --> 01:18:47,991
song about "Star Wars."
1618
01:18:48,057 --> 01:18:51,727
The following year,
Madonna did a cover version
1619
01:18:51,795 --> 01:18:54,030
of "American Pie,"
like, kind of a disco version,
1620
01:18:54,097 --> 01:18:56,732
and all these
kids were thinking,
1621
01:18:56,800 --> 01:19:00,369
how come Madonna is doing
an unfunny version
1622
01:19:00,436 --> 01:19:02,671
of a Weird Al song?
1623
01:19:15,351 --> 01:19:17,020
- I remember when you called me.
1624
01:19:17,086 --> 01:19:18,888
"Hey, doing the remake
1625
01:19:18,955 --> 01:19:20,723
"of 'American Pie, '
1626
01:19:20,790 --> 01:19:23,059
our version,
putting Spanish in it."
1627
01:19:23,126 --> 01:19:24,828
I was like, man,
are you kidding me?
1628
01:19:24,894 --> 01:19:26,762
What an honor, no-brainer.
1629
01:19:26,830 --> 01:19:29,698
- I mean, it's such a classic.
- It's just so powerful.
1630
01:19:40,309 --> 01:19:42,478
- Jencarlos,
he really understood
1631
01:19:42,545 --> 01:19:45,481
how to, someway,
say the same story
1632
01:19:45,548 --> 01:19:47,783
of the original song,
but in Spanish.
1633
01:19:50,753 --> 01:19:52,755
I knew about the song
since I was like 12.
1634
01:19:52,822 --> 01:19:54,157
My dad had it.
1635
01:19:54,223 --> 01:19:56,659
It's such an impactful song.
1636
01:19:59,662 --> 01:20:04,433
♪ Again, bye-bye,
Miss American Pie ♪
1637
01:20:04,500 --> 01:20:06,323
- You know how many times
growing up that song played?
1638
01:20:06,335 --> 01:20:10,406
- I've been singing this song
as a fan for so many years.
1639
01:20:10,473 --> 01:20:12,241
♪ Them good old boys ♪
1640
01:20:12,308 --> 01:20:14,944
I see it as us,
from our culture,
1641
01:20:15,011 --> 01:20:16,946
tipping our hats off
to the original.
1642
01:20:17,013 --> 01:20:19,548
♪ The day that I die ♪
1643
01:20:19,615 --> 01:20:22,919
Still, to date,
that song has transcended.
1644
01:20:22,986 --> 01:20:25,088
It's still so inspiring.
1645
01:20:25,154 --> 01:20:26,923
What a masterpiece.
1646
01:20:26,990 --> 01:20:30,626
- ♪ And there we were
all in one place ♪
1647
01:20:30,693 --> 01:20:34,563
♪ A generation lost in space ♪
1648
01:20:34,630 --> 01:20:36,599
When I first heard
"American Pie," I said,
1649
01:20:36,665 --> 01:20:38,355
hey, what is this
new record I'm listening to?
1650
01:20:38,367 --> 01:20:40,136
You know,
and I listened and listened,
1651
01:20:40,203 --> 01:20:43,072
and I was so blown away because
he takes you on a journey.
1652
01:20:43,139 --> 01:20:45,541
It's like,
each verse is different,
1653
01:20:45,608 --> 01:20:47,143
he goes
through different phases.
1654
01:20:47,210 --> 01:20:48,811
I love the melody,
1655
01:20:48,878 --> 01:20:50,746
and of course,
Don's lyrics are really great.
1656
01:20:50,813 --> 01:20:53,482
♪ You both kicked
off your shoes ♪
1657
01:20:53,549 --> 01:20:55,551
"We both kicked off our shoes,
1658
01:20:55,618 --> 01:20:57,586
and I dig those
rhythm and blues."
1659
01:20:57,653 --> 01:21:01,724
♪ As the flames climbed high
into the night ♪
1660
01:21:01,790 --> 01:21:03,859
Don, well, he's up there
with the best of them.
1661
01:21:03,927 --> 01:21:06,996
He's just a very,
very talented songwriter,
1662
01:21:07,063 --> 01:21:09,265
and he deserves his success.
1663
01:21:09,332 --> 01:21:10,934
Thank you.
1664
01:21:13,002 --> 01:21:16,940
All: ♪ We were singin'
"Bye-bye, Miss American Pie" ♪
1665
01:21:17,006 --> 01:21:18,241
- I was doing a TV show
1666
01:21:18,307 --> 01:21:19,875
called "Zoey's
Extraordinary Playlist,"
1667
01:21:19,943 --> 01:21:21,444
and after my character dies,
1668
01:21:21,510 --> 01:21:24,047
the entire cast sing
"American Pie."
1669
01:21:24,113 --> 01:21:27,316
all: ♪ Singing, this'll be
the day that I die ♪
1670
01:21:27,383 --> 01:21:29,418
- It was amazing to see just
1671
01:21:29,485 --> 01:21:32,421
how powerful
that song is, still.
1672
01:21:32,488 --> 01:21:33,689
It really is timeless.
1673
01:21:33,756 --> 01:21:37,493
- ♪ I met a girl
who sang the blues ♪
1674
01:21:37,560 --> 01:21:39,162
- "Zoey's" was a show that I was
1675
01:21:39,228 --> 01:21:41,931
executive music producer for
and produced a lot of songs,
1676
01:21:41,998 --> 01:21:44,867
none better or bigger
than "American Pie"
1677
01:21:44,934 --> 01:21:46,169
for the finale of the season.
1678
01:21:46,235 --> 01:21:49,005
- ♪ I went down
to the sacred store ♪
1679
01:21:49,072 --> 01:21:50,406
♪ Where I'd heard the music ♪
1680
01:21:50,473 --> 01:21:52,475
- As a songwriter,
it's the kind of song
1681
01:21:52,541 --> 01:21:54,410
you dream about writing,
that has meaning
1682
01:21:54,477 --> 01:21:56,412
and has depth, has relevance,
1683
01:21:56,479 --> 01:21:58,714
and is something
that continues to be relevant
1684
01:21:58,781 --> 01:22:00,916
to generations,
you know, ongoing.
1685
01:22:00,984 --> 01:22:04,487
- ♪ In the streets,
the children screamed ♪
1686
01:22:04,553 --> 01:22:08,958
♪ The lovers cried
and the poets dreamed ♪
1687
01:22:09,025 --> 01:22:10,960
"American Pie" has always been
a part of my life.
1688
01:22:11,027 --> 01:22:13,262
You know, when my dad drove me
to preschool,
1689
01:22:13,329 --> 01:22:14,763
we were listening to it.
1690
01:22:14,830 --> 01:22:17,033
My dad wanted me to know
the history of that song,
1691
01:22:17,100 --> 01:22:18,100
because it's important.
1692
01:22:18,134 --> 01:22:20,269
It's heavy.
It's meaningful.
1693
01:22:20,336 --> 01:22:23,939
♪ And the three men
I admire the most ♪
1694
01:22:24,007 --> 01:22:26,742
There's a world that's
created with this song
1695
01:22:26,809 --> 01:22:29,112
that is our world,
but also isn't.
1696
01:22:29,178 --> 01:22:32,315
It's more tragic
and it's more beautiful.
1697
01:22:32,381 --> 01:22:34,583
♪ The day ♪
1698
01:22:34,650 --> 01:22:40,289
♪ The music died ♪
1699
01:23:19,695 --> 01:23:22,531
- Don, my name's Jeff Nicholas.
I'm president of the Surf,
1700
01:23:22,598 --> 01:23:24,700
I want to welcome you
to the Surf Ballroom.
1701
01:23:24,767 --> 01:23:26,269
- Pleasure to be here.
- I'd like to
1702
01:23:26,335 --> 01:23:27,424
show you the ballroom
a little bit.
1703
01:23:27,436 --> 01:23:28,837
- Definitely.
- Yeah.
1704
01:23:28,904 --> 01:23:31,840
So the ballroom was designed
to simulate walking out
1705
01:23:31,907 --> 01:23:37,213
on the beach and dancing
under the deep blue sky.
1706
01:23:37,280 --> 01:23:38,481
We kind of consider it
1707
01:23:38,547 --> 01:23:40,716
the soundstage
of American music.
1708
01:23:40,783 --> 01:23:43,552
- Well, it's certainly
an important place.
1709
01:23:43,619 --> 01:23:46,489
- ♪ American boy ♪
- ♪ American boy ♪
1710
01:23:46,555 --> 01:23:50,693
- ♪ Invented rock 'n' roll ♪
- ♪ Rock 'n' roll ♪
1711
01:23:50,759 --> 01:23:53,262
- All that stuff
from the late '40s
1712
01:23:53,329 --> 01:23:55,631
right on through
to the mid '60s,
1713
01:23:55,698 --> 01:23:58,634
that music is the essence
of everything.
1714
01:23:58,701 --> 01:24:01,237
- ♪ They caused a sensation ♪
1715
01:24:01,304 --> 01:24:04,873
- So here we are, walking
on the stage of American music.
1716
01:24:04,940 --> 01:24:08,377
- ♪ Shook up the nation ♪
- ♪ American boy ♪
1717
01:24:08,444 --> 01:24:10,713
- The original stage ended
right here.
1718
01:24:10,779 --> 01:24:12,369
- So you mean Buddy would
be standing here?
1719
01:24:12,381 --> 01:24:15,851
- Buddy would have stood here,
Waylon would have stood here,
1720
01:24:15,918 --> 01:24:17,986
and Tommy also would
have been here,
1721
01:24:18,053 --> 01:24:19,888
and you know,
Carl Bunch, the drummer,
1722
01:24:19,955 --> 01:24:22,024
was still in the hospital
in Green Bay
1723
01:24:22,091 --> 01:24:23,826
with frostbitten fingers
and toes.
1724
01:24:23,892 --> 01:24:26,129
They mixed and matched.
Buddy would play drums,
1725
01:24:26,195 --> 01:24:28,631
and Ritchie would play drums,
and everybody,
1726
01:24:28,697 --> 01:24:31,667
they just figured out a way
to make the show.
1727
01:24:31,734 --> 01:24:34,170
- And I've been thinking
about Buddy Holly a lot.
1728
01:24:34,237 --> 01:24:36,605
When I came up with that
original part of the song,
1729
01:24:36,672 --> 01:24:39,975
it came out in a sad,
poignant way.
1730
01:24:40,042 --> 01:24:43,045
- When "American Pie" came on,
that was the time I believed
1731
01:24:43,112 --> 01:24:45,581
that the focus started
to be back on those guys.
1732
01:24:45,648 --> 01:24:48,617
- Well, I remember
the song was number one,
1733
01:24:48,684 --> 01:24:51,587
and they started
playing Buddy's music
1734
01:24:51,654 --> 01:24:53,088
on the radio again.
1735
01:24:53,156 --> 01:24:56,825
Buddy brought me to life,
I brought Buddy to life.
1736
01:25:02,131 --> 01:25:04,167
- Oh, my goodness.
1737
01:25:04,233 --> 01:25:05,801
- How do you do?
- How do you do?
1738
01:25:05,868 --> 01:25:08,937
What a pleasure
and an honor, Mr. McLean.
1739
01:25:09,004 --> 01:25:11,039
Thank you. Thank you.
1740
01:25:11,106 --> 01:25:13,376
I have a little something
I want to say.
1741
01:25:13,442 --> 01:25:14,610
I just want to thank you
1742
01:25:14,677 --> 01:25:17,646
for writing
"The Day the Music Died."
1743
01:25:17,713 --> 01:25:23,018
You immortalized my brother,
JP, and Buddy.
1744
01:25:23,085 --> 01:25:28,491
You took a terrible tragedy
and made rock 'n' roll history.
1745
01:25:28,557 --> 01:25:32,161
Thank you.
Thank you so much.
1746
01:25:32,228 --> 01:25:33,596
See that up there?
1747
01:25:33,662 --> 01:25:36,399
- I hardly don't know
what to say.
1748
01:25:36,465 --> 01:25:37,654
- A friend of ours painted that,
1749
01:25:37,666 --> 01:25:40,169
and all around
that is our family.
1750
01:25:40,236 --> 01:25:41,337
Everybody signed it.
1751
01:25:41,404 --> 01:25:42,705
- Your brother
is very important,
1752
01:25:42,771 --> 01:25:44,673
more important now than ever.
1753
01:25:44,740 --> 01:25:46,842
- Ritchie was
a rock 'n' roll pioneer.
1754
01:25:46,909 --> 01:25:48,076
- He was.
1755
01:25:48,143 --> 01:25:49,645
- The first time
I heard your song,
1756
01:25:49,712 --> 01:25:51,046
I had to keep listening to it,
1757
01:25:51,113 --> 01:25:52,781
because I thought, "Oh, my gosh."
1758
01:25:52,848 --> 01:25:54,883
"He's singing about my brother.
1759
01:25:54,950 --> 01:25:57,853
He's singing about the... you
know, the day the music died."
1760
01:25:57,920 --> 01:26:03,125
- If the song helps people
love that music the way I do
1761
01:26:03,192 --> 01:26:05,994
and the way I did,
then that's something I did
1762
01:26:06,061 --> 01:26:08,464
in my life
that I'm very proud of.
1763
01:26:08,531 --> 01:26:10,065
We should never
forget this music.
1764
01:26:10,132 --> 01:26:12,167
- Never.
- And these guys were
1765
01:26:12,235 --> 01:26:13,602
incredibly important.
1766
01:26:13,669 --> 01:26:16,339
This was brand-new at the time.
1767
01:26:16,405 --> 01:26:17,773
- Yes.
1768
01:26:17,840 --> 01:26:19,875
- Ritchie was only 17.
- He was only 17.
1769
01:26:19,942 --> 01:26:21,844
- So he started working
as a musician,
1770
01:26:21,910 --> 01:26:24,247
making some money, and then
he bought his Fender guitar.
1771
01:26:24,313 --> 01:26:25,553
- That's... yeah, that's right.
1772
01:26:25,614 --> 01:26:26,849
- So that's when he developed
1773
01:26:26,915 --> 01:26:28,717
that great sound on that guitar.
1774
01:26:28,784 --> 01:26:30,353
- Yes.
- You know, it's that sort of
1775
01:26:30,419 --> 01:26:32,621
edgy, heavy sound, you know...
1776
01:26:34,957 --> 01:26:36,692
You know, it's got
that thing to it,
1777
01:26:36,759 --> 01:26:38,361
very distinctive.
1778
01:26:38,427 --> 01:26:40,929
- ♪ Para bailar La Bamba ♪
1779
01:26:40,996 --> 01:26:42,931
- You know, he sang
that traditional "La Bamba,"
1780
01:26:42,998 --> 01:26:45,133
which he probably sang
with your family.
1781
01:26:45,200 --> 01:26:46,757
- Well, he made it
rock 'n' roll though.
1782
01:26:46,769 --> 01:26:48,437
- Yeah.
What's it about?
1783
01:26:48,504 --> 01:26:50,806
- "Para bailar La Bamba,"
to dance the Bamba,
1784
01:26:50,873 --> 01:26:53,141
"Se necesito
una poca de gracia,"
1785
01:26:53,208 --> 01:26:54,843
we need a little grace.
1786
01:26:54,910 --> 01:26:57,346
"Poquito para ti,
poquito para mi,"
1787
01:26:57,413 --> 01:26:59,147
a little for you,
a little for me.
1788
01:26:59,214 --> 01:27:01,650
♪ Una poca de gracia,
para mi, para ti ♪
1789
01:27:01,717 --> 01:27:03,352
♪ Y arriba, y arriba ♪
1790
01:27:03,419 --> 01:27:05,321
Higher and higher.
- Great.
1791
01:27:05,388 --> 01:27:07,690
- Yeah.
- So it's simple lyrics,
1792
01:27:07,756 --> 01:27:09,057
but just so great.
- It is, yeah.
1793
01:27:09,124 --> 01:27:11,694
- Well, thank you
for coming here.
1794
01:27:11,760 --> 01:27:13,296
This is a big deal for me.
1795
01:27:13,362 --> 01:27:14,597
- Thank you so much.
1796
01:27:14,663 --> 01:27:16,365
God bless you.
1797
01:27:16,432 --> 01:27:17,966
- You take care now.
- I will.
1798
01:27:18,033 --> 01:27:19,201
Both: Thank you.
1799
01:27:23,572 --> 01:27:25,374
- My name is Nelson Crabb,
1800
01:27:25,441 --> 01:27:28,711
and I happen to be the mayor
of Clear Lake, Iowa.
1801
01:27:28,777 --> 01:27:31,314
February 3rd of 1959,
1802
01:27:31,380 --> 01:27:33,882
I was a freshman
at Rutgers University.
1803
01:27:33,949 --> 01:27:37,152
Going back one Sunday,
when on the car radio,
1804
01:27:37,219 --> 01:27:39,755
I heard about this
terrible accident
1805
01:27:39,822 --> 01:27:41,624
just north of town here.
1806
01:27:41,690 --> 01:27:43,191
The car got quiet,
1807
01:27:43,258 --> 01:27:46,362
and, you know,
very, very sad time,
1808
01:27:46,429 --> 01:27:49,298
but tonight is when
we celebrate the music
1809
01:27:49,365 --> 01:27:53,302
of those three gentlemen,
and tonight is especially neat
1810
01:27:53,369 --> 01:27:57,005
because we have Don McLean's
"American Pie" here,
1811
01:27:57,072 --> 01:27:59,608
and that's very,
very neat for our community.
1812
01:27:59,675 --> 01:28:01,444
- Hey, everybody.
1813
01:28:01,510 --> 01:28:05,681
Welcome to Clear Lake, Iowa
and the legendary Surf Ballroom
1814
01:28:05,748 --> 01:28:08,751
for the 2022 Winter Dance Party.
1815
01:28:08,817 --> 01:28:13,055
Please welcome America's
legendary singer-songwriter,
1816
01:28:13,121 --> 01:28:18,727
the American troubadour,
Don McLean!
1817
01:28:24,467 --> 01:28:25,801
- Well, all right!
1818
01:28:25,868 --> 01:28:27,670
So here we are,
1819
01:28:27,736 --> 01:28:30,072
50 years since
that song came out,
1820
01:28:30,138 --> 01:28:32,174
50 years.
1821
01:28:32,240 --> 01:28:33,542
It's incredible.
1822
01:28:33,609 --> 01:28:35,844
You take a time like this
to call that
1823
01:28:35,911 --> 01:28:38,381
"the day the music died"
from my song.
1824
01:28:38,447 --> 01:28:44,520
I am so touched, really,
to be here and to sing for you.
1825
01:28:48,056 --> 01:28:50,893
♪ Did you write
the book of love? ♪
1826
01:28:50,959 --> 01:28:54,863
♪ Do you have faith
in God above? ♪
1827
01:28:54,930 --> 01:28:59,167
♪ If the Bible tells you so? ♪
1828
01:28:59,234 --> 01:29:02,738
♪ Now, do you believe
in rock n' roll? ♪
1829
01:29:02,805 --> 01:29:07,843
♪ Can music save
your mortal soul? ♪
1830
01:29:07,910 --> 01:29:12,214
♪ Can you teach me
how to dance real slow? ♪
1831
01:29:13,682 --> 01:29:17,052
♪ Well, I know that you're
in love with him ♪
1832
01:29:17,119 --> 01:29:21,156
♪ 'Cause I saw you dancing
in the gym ♪
1833
01:29:21,223 --> 01:29:24,827
♪ You both kicked
off your shoes ♪
1834
01:29:24,893 --> 01:29:27,830
♪ I dig those rhythm and blues ♪
1835
01:29:27,896 --> 01:29:32,100
♪ I was a lonely
teenage broncin' buck ♪
1836
01:29:32,167 --> 01:29:35,337
♪ With a pink carnation
and a pickup truck ♪
1837
01:29:35,404 --> 01:29:39,374
♪ But I knew I was out of luck ♪
1838
01:29:39,442 --> 01:29:43,846
♪ The day the music died ♪
1839
01:29:43,912 --> 01:29:45,548
Come on, sing it!
1840
01:29:45,614 --> 01:29:50,218
♪ Started singing,
"Bye-bye, Miss American Pie" ♪
1841
01:29:50,285 --> 01:29:52,387
♪ Drove my Chevy to the levee ♪
1842
01:29:52,455 --> 01:29:53,989
♪ But the levee was dry ♪
1843
01:29:54,056 --> 01:29:57,560
♪ Them good old boys were
drinking whiskey and rye ♪
1844
01:29:57,626 --> 01:30:01,830
♪ Singing, "This'll be
the day that I die" ♪
1845
01:30:01,897 --> 01:30:05,333
♪ This will be the day
that I die ♪
1846
01:30:07,002 --> 01:30:12,875
♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
1847
01:30:12,941 --> 01:30:15,310
- I think the song
"American Pie" is just one
1848
01:30:15,377 --> 01:30:18,280
of those heartfelt
American classics that just
1849
01:30:18,346 --> 01:30:20,449
makes you pause and be grateful
1850
01:30:20,516 --> 01:30:22,250
for everything that you have.
1851
01:30:26,154 --> 01:30:28,323
- "American Pie,"
one of my favorite songs.
1852
01:30:28,390 --> 01:30:32,127
This night in 1959,
the day that music died,
1853
01:30:32,194 --> 01:30:34,530
but we believe
the music's still alive.
1854
01:30:44,573 --> 01:30:46,141
- It's a classic song.
1855
01:30:46,208 --> 01:30:48,677
It spans the generations,
everyone loves it,
1856
01:30:48,744 --> 01:30:51,013
and it just will
live on forever.
1857
01:31:04,459 --> 01:31:07,763
All:
♪ Bye-bye, Miss American Pie ♪
1858
01:31:07,830 --> 01:31:09,732
♪ Drove my Chevy to the levee ♪
1859
01:31:09,798 --> 01:31:11,366
♪ But the levee was dry ♪
1860
01:31:11,433 --> 01:31:15,037
♪ Them good old boys were
drinking whiskey and rye ♪
1861
01:31:15,103 --> 01:31:18,240
♪ Singing, "This'll be
the day that I die" ♪
1862
01:31:18,306 --> 01:31:22,511
♪ This will be the day
that I die ♪
1863
01:31:24,112 --> 01:31:26,782
- ♪ Helter skelter
in the summer swelter ♪
1864
01:31:26,849 --> 01:31:30,953
♪ The birds flew off
with a fallout shelter ♪
1865
01:31:31,019 --> 01:31:36,024
♪ Eight miles high
and falling fast ♪
1866
01:31:36,091 --> 01:31:38,994
♪ It landed foul on the grass ♪
1867
01:31:39,061 --> 01:31:42,164
♪ the players tried
for a forward pass ♪
1868
01:31:42,230 --> 01:31:48,270
♪ With the jester
on the sidelines in a cast ♪
1869
01:31:48,336 --> 01:31:52,107
- ♪ Now the halftime air
was sweet perfume ♪
1870
01:31:52,174 --> 01:31:55,844
♪ While the sergeants played
a marching tune ♪
1871
01:31:55,911 --> 01:31:58,480
♪ We all got up to dance ♪
1872
01:31:58,547 --> 01:32:02,084
♪ Oh, but we never
got the chance ♪
1873
01:32:02,150 --> 01:32:05,954
♪ 'Cause the players tried
to take the field ♪
1874
01:32:06,021 --> 01:32:09,391
♪ The marching band refused
to yield ♪
1875
01:32:09,457 --> 01:32:12,561
♪ Do you recall
what was revealed ♪
1876
01:32:12,628 --> 01:32:18,266
♪ The day the music died? ♪
1877
01:32:18,333 --> 01:32:22,671
- ♪ We started singing,
"Bye-bye, Miss American Pie" ♪
1878
01:32:22,738 --> 01:32:27,175
♪ Drove my Chevy to the levee,
but the levee was dry ♪
1879
01:32:27,242 --> 01:32:30,545
♪ Them good old boys were
drinking whiskey and rye ♪
1880
01:32:30,613 --> 01:32:34,883
♪ Singing, "This'll be
the day that I die" ♪
1881
01:32:34,950 --> 01:32:38,253
♪ This'll be the day
that I die ♪
1882
01:32:39,622 --> 01:32:44,059
- ♪ Oh, and there we were
all in one place ♪
1883
01:32:44,126 --> 01:32:47,295
♪ A generation lost in space ♪
1884
01:32:47,362 --> 01:32:50,899
♪ With no time left
to start again ♪
1885
01:32:52,334 --> 01:32:56,138
♪ So come on, Jack be nimble,
Jack be quick ♪
1886
01:32:56,204 --> 01:32:59,274
♪ Jack Flash sat
on a candlestick ♪
1887
01:32:59,341 --> 01:33:06,314
♪ 'Cause fire is
the devil's only friend ♪
1888
01:33:06,381 --> 01:33:09,785
- ♪ Oh, and as I watched him
on the stage ♪
1889
01:33:09,852 --> 01:33:13,856
♪ My hands were clenched
in fists of rage ♪
1890
01:33:13,922 --> 01:33:16,725
♪ No angel born in hell ♪
1891
01:33:16,792 --> 01:33:20,195
♪ Could break
that Satan's spell ♪
1892
01:33:20,262 --> 01:33:24,466
♪ As the flames climbed high
into the night ♪
1893
01:33:24,532 --> 01:33:27,235
♪ To light
the sacrificial rite ♪
1894
01:33:27,302 --> 01:33:30,973
♪ I saw Satan laughing
with delight ♪
1895
01:33:31,039 --> 01:33:36,679
♪ The day the music died ♪
1896
01:33:36,745 --> 01:33:41,049
♪ He was singing,
"Bye-bye, Miss American Pie" ♪
1897
01:33:41,116 --> 01:33:44,953
♪ Drove my Chevy to the levee,
but the levee was dry ♪
1898
01:33:45,020 --> 01:33:48,290
♪ Them good old boys were
drinking whiskey and rye ♪
1899
01:33:48,356 --> 01:33:52,527
♪ Singing, "This'll be
the day that I die" ♪
1900
01:33:52,594 --> 01:33:56,564
♪ This'll be the day
that I die ♪
151220
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