American Pie

American Pie may refer to:

  • American Pie (album), a 1971 album by Don McLean
  • "American Pie" (song), a song from the album
  • American Pie (film series), a series of teen films
  • American Pie (film), a 1999 film, first in the series
  • American Pie, a 1996 sitcom pilot starring Andy Buckley
  • Tim Rice's American Pie, a British radio programme about American music, hosted by Tim Rice
  • American Pie (film series)

    American Pie is a series of teen films conceived by Adam Herz. The first film in the series was released on July 9, 1999, by Universal Pictures, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, spawning three direct sequels. The second and third films were released at two-year intervals, whereas the fourth film was released in 2012. From 2005 to 2009, four spin-off films were released. A ninth feature film has been announced in response to the success of the eighth film.

    Throughout the first film in the original series, Jim Levenstein (Jason Biggs) tries to develop a relationship with his school classmate Nadia (Shannon Elizabeth), and along with his best friends Kevin Myers (Thomas Ian Nicholas), Paul Finch (Eddie Kaye Thomas), and Chris Ostreicher (Chris Klein), attempts to lose his virginity. In the second film, with good friend, and Finch's frenemy Steve Stifler (Seann William Scott), the friends host a summer party and Jim switches his interest to his friend Michelle Flaherty (Alyson Hannigan). In the third film, Jim and Michelle plan to marry, but the forced invitation of Stifler could ruin everything. In the fourth film, the gang gets back together in anticipation for their thirteenth high school reunion. The spin-off series revolves around relatives of Stifler, including his brother Matt (Tad Hilgenbrink) and cousins Erik (John White), Dwight (Steve Talley), Scott (John Patrick Jordan), and their respective friends attempting similar activities.

    American Pie (song)

    "American Pie" is a song by American folk rock singer and songwriter Don McLean. Recorded and released on the American Pie album in 1971, the single was a number-one US hit for four weeks in 1972. In the UK, the single reached No. 2 on its original 1972 release and a reissue in 1991 reached No. 12. The song was listed as the No. 5 song on the RIAA project Songs of the Century.

    Background

    Don McLean wrote the song in Cold Spring, New York and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The song made its debut in Philadelphia at Temple University when he opened for Laura Nyro on March 14, 1971.

    Interpretations

    Except to acknowledge that he first learned about Buddy Holly's February 3, 1959 death when he was folding newspapers for his paper route on the morning of February 4, 1959 (the line "February made me shiver/with every paper I'd deliver"), McLean has generally avoided responding to direct questions about the song lyrics, such as saying, "They're beyond analysis. They're poetry." He also stated in an editorial published in 2009 on the 50th anniversary of the crash that killed Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson, that writing the first verse of the song exorcised his long-running grief over Holly's death and that he considers the song to be "a big song (…) that summed up the world known as America." McLean dedicated the American Pie album to Holly.

    Podcasts:

    PLAYLIST TIME:

    American Pie

    by: Don McLean

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




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