American Pie

by

Don McLean

Edit

I was fortunate enough to see a very young and nervous Don McLean perform alone at a high school "performing artist" assembly on a wintry March afternoon in 1970, right after his debut environmentally conscious "Tapestry" album had been released, but before "American Pie" was released the next year. Anyone who saw him knew he would be a superstar if that's what he wanted. Sure enough, with the release of "American Pie" he got fame with spades, and promptly retreated from that kind of public attention ever since. he has had a number of excellent albums; but has never recaptured the sort of outrageous success he achieved with this one; indeed, he seems to be singularly uninterested in anything to do with it. Instead, he has spent the last 30 years following the whimsy of his own heart and artistic sensibilities.

Yet all the brilliant talent and ability is here, folks, from the legendary title cut to "Vincent", an esoteric paean to Vincent Van Gogh, "Winterwood", a lovely love song, "Empty Chairs" and a number of others, all of which should still get FM air time but never have. By the way, I have had to chuckle over the years at all the questioning and active efforts at second-hand interpretation that has gone on regarding what the title cut is really all about. Such wondering and endless intellectual speculation really misses the point that McLean the incredibly gifted artist so singularly makes in the song itself; the music is the thing. It's the music that makes us smile. As did Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper, and Ritchie Valens, so to with Don McLean. Listen to what he has to say, and how artfully and wonderfully he phrases it. This is a timeless work that will always be around. Enjoy!

I would not recommend purchasing this pressing! This album is one of my all time favorites and I was replacing my ancient original with this purchase and I am not impressed. The album arrived in a timely fashion, but the quality is certainly not audiophile. The pressing was not deburred and so many bits of loose vinyl were present in the jacket that I immediately threw it away and used a fresh one. After several cleanings to remove the residue, the album was finally playable, but has numerous visible and audible surface defects. I do not expect perfection in vinyl, but at this price tag, I do expect a much higher level of quality control and workmanship!