Chords with lyrics (Ver. 4)
American Pie - Guitar Chords
-------------------------
G+G 
D MajorD 
E minor 7Em7
A augmentedA long, long time ago,
A minorAm 
C majorC 
E minorEm D MajorD
I can still remember how that music used to make me smile
G+G D MajorD E minor 7Em7
And I know if I had my chance,
A minorAm C majorC E minorEm C majorC D MajorD
That I could make those people dance and maybe they'd be happy for a while
E minorEm A minorAm E minorEm A minorAm
But February made me shiver, with every paper I'd deliver
C majorC G+G A minorAm C majorC D MajorD
Bad news on the doorstep, I couldn't take one more step
G+G D MajorD E minorEm 
Am7Am7 D MajorD
I can't remember if I cried when I read about his widowed bride
G+G D MajorD E minorEm
Something touched me deep inside
C majorC 
D7D7 G+G C majorC G+G
The day the music died
CHORUS
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
So bye, bye Miss American Pie
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
Drove my Chevy to the levy but the levy was dry
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
E minorEm 
A7A7 E minorEm D7D7
Singin' this will be the day that I die, this will be the day that I die
VERSE
G+G A minorAm
Did you write the book of love
C majorC A minorAm E minorEm D MajorD
And do you have faith in god above, if the bible tells you so?
G+G D MajorD E minorEm
Do you believe in rock and roll
Am7Am7 C majorC E minorEm A7A7 D MajorD
Can music save your mortal soul and can you teach me how to dance real slow?
E minorEm D MajorD E minorEm D MajorD
Well I know that you're in love with him 'cuz I saw you dancin' in the gym
C majorC G+G A7A7 C majorC D7D7
You both kicked off your shoes, man I dig those rhythm and blues
G+G D MajorD E minorEm A minorAm C majorC
I was a lonely teenage broncin' buck with a pink carnation and a pickup truck
G+G D MajorD E minorEm C majorC D7D7 G+G C majorC G+G
But I knew I was out of luck the day the music died, I started singin'
CHORUS
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
So bye, bye Miss American Pie
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
Drove my Chevy to the levy but the levy was dry
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
E minorEm A7A7 E minorEm D7D7
Singin' this will be the day that I die, this will be the day that I die
VERSE
G+G A minorAm
Now for ten years we've been on our own,
C majorC A minorAm E minorEm D MajorD
and moss grows fat on a rolling stone but that's not how it used to be
G+G D MajorD E minorEm
When the jester sang for the king and queen
Am7Am7 C majorC E minorEm A7A7 D MajorD
in a coat he borrowed from James Dean in a voice that came from you and me
E minorEm D MajorD E minorEm D MajorD
And while the king was looking down, the jester stole his thorny crown
C majorC G+G A7A7 C majorC D7D7
The courtroom was adjourned, no verdict was returned
G+G D MajorD E minorEm A minorAm C majorC
And while Lenin read a book on Marx, the quartet practiced in the park
G+G D MajorD E minorEm C majorC D7D7 G+G C majorC G+G
And we sang dirges in the dark the day the music died, we were singin'
CHORUS
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
So bye, bye Miss American Pie
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
Drove my Chevy to the levy but the levy was dry
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
E minorEm A7A7 E minorEm D7D7
Singin' this will be the day that I die, this will be the day that I die
VERSE
G+G A minorAm
Helter skelter in a summer swelter
C majorC A minorAm E minorEm D MajorD
the birds flew off with a fallout shelter, eight miles high and fallin' fast
G+G D MajorD E minorEm
It landed foul on the grass
Am7Am7 C majorC E minorEm A7A7 D MajorD
the players tried for a forward pass, with the jester on the sidelines in
A augmentedA cast
E minorEm D MajorD E minorEm D MajorD
Now at halftime there was sweet perfume, while sergeants played a marching
Tune
C majorC G+G A7A7 C majorC D7D7
We all got up to dance, but we never got the chance
G+G D MajorD E minorEm A minorAm C majorC
'Cuz the players tried to take the field, the marching band refused to yield
G+G D MajorD E minorEm C majorC D7D7 G+G C majorC G+G
Do you recall what was the feel the day the music died, we started singin'
CHORUS
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
So bye, bye Miss American Pie
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
Drove my Chevy to the levy but the levy was dry
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
E minorEm A7A7 E minorEm D7D7
Singin' this will be the day that I die, this will be the day that I die
VERSE
G+G A minorAm
And there we were all in one place,
C majorC A minorAm E minorEm D MajorD
a generation lost in space, with no time left to start again
G+G D MajorD E minorEm Am7Am7 C majorC
So come on Jack be nimble, Jack be quick, Jack Flash sat on a candle
E minorEm A7A7 D MajorD
stick, 'cuz fire is the devil's only friend
E minorEm D MajorD E minorEm D MajorD
And as I watched him on the stage, my hands were clenched in fists of rage
C majorC G+G A7A7 C majorC D7D7
No angel born in Hell could bread that Satan's spell
G+G D MajorD E minorEm A minorAm C majorC
And as the flames climbed high into the night to light the sacrificial rite
G+G D MajorD E minorEm C majorC D7D7 G+G C majorC G+G
I saw Satan laughing with delight the day the music died, he was singin'
CHORUS
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
So bye, bye Miss American Pie
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
Drove my Chevy to the levy but the levy was dry
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
E minorEm A7A7 E minorEm D7D7
Singin' this will be the day that I die, this will be the day that I die
LAST VERSE
G+G D MajorD E minorEm
I met a girl who sang the blues
A minorAm C majorC E minorEm D MajorD
And I asked her for some happy news, but she just smiled and turned away
G+G D MajorD E minorEm
I went down to the sacred store
A minorAm C majorC E minorEm C majorC
Where I'd heard the music years before, but the man there said the music
D MajorD
wouldn't play
E minorEm A minorAm E minorEm A minorAm
But in the streets the children screamed, the lovers cried and the poets
dreamed
C majorC G+G A minorAm C majorC D MajorD
But not a word was spoken, the church bells all were broken
G+G D MajorD E minorEm Am7Am7 C majorC D7D7
And the three men I admire most, the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost
G+G D MajorD E minorEm Am7Am7 D7D7 G+G
They caught the last train for the coast the day the music died,
D7D7
And they were singin'
FINAL CHORUS
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
So bye, bye Miss American Pie
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
Drove my Chevy to the levy but the levy was dry
G+G C majorC G+G D MajorD
And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye
C majorC D7D7 G+G C majorC G+G
Singin' this will be the day that I die.
Other versions of American Pie
Alternative guitar chords and tabs for American pie ukulele by Don Mclean
