[Intro BPM 138] A [G] long, [D/F#] long time [Em7] ago [Am] I can still re [C] member how that [Em] music used to make me [D] smile And [G] I knew [D/F#] if I had [Em7] my chance That [Am] I could make those [C] people dance and [Em] maybe they'd be [C] happy for a [D] while
But [Em] February [Am] made me shiver, [Em] with every paper I'd [Am] deliver [C] Bad news [G/B] on the [Am] doorstep, I couldn't [C] take one more step [D] I [G] can't remem [D/F#] ber if I [Em] cried when I [Am7] read about his [D] widowed bride [G] Something [D/F#] touched me [Em] deep inside The [C] day the [D7] music died [G]
[Chorus] So [G] bye, [C] bye Miss [G] American [D] Pie Drove my [G] Chevy to the [C] levy but the [G] levy was [D] dry And them [G] good old [C] boys were drinkin' [G] whiskey and [D] rye Singin' [Em*] this will be the day that I [A7*] die, [Em*] this will be the day that I die [D7]
[Verse 2] [G] Did you write the [Am] book of love And do [C] you have faith in [Am] God above, [Em] if the bible [D] tells you so? [G] Do you [D/F#] believe in [Em] rock and roll Can [Am7] music save your [C] mortal soul and [Em] can you teach me [A7] how to dance [D] real slow?
Well I [Em*] know that you're in [D*] love with him 'cuz I [Em*] saw you dancin' [D*] in the gym You [C] both kicked [G/B] off your [Am] shoes, man I [C] dig those rhythm and [D7] blues I was a [G] lonely [D/F#] teenage [Em] bronckin' buck with a [Am] pink carnation and a [C] pickup truck But [G] I knew [D/F#] I was [Em] out of luck the [C] day the [D7] music [G] died [C] , [G] I started [D] singin'
[Chorus] So [G] bye, [C] bye Miss [G] American [D] Pie Drove my [G] Chevy to the [C] levy but the [G] levy was [D] dry And them [G] good old [C] boys were drinkin' [G] whiskey and [D] rye Singin' [Em*] this will be the day that I [A7*] die, [Em*] this will be the day that I die [D7]
[Verse 3] Now for [G] ten years we've been [Am] on our own and [C] moss grows fat on a [Am] rolling stone [Em] but that's not how it [D] used to be When the [G] jester [D/F#] sang for the king [Em] and queen in a [Am7] coat he borrowed [C] from James Dean in a [Em] voice that came [A7] from you and [D] me
Oh, and [Em*] while the king was [D*] looking down, the [Em*] jester stole his thorny [D*] crown The [C] courtroom [G/B] was ad [A7] journed, [C] no verdict was re [D7] turned And while [G] Lennin read [D/F#] a book [Em] on Marx, the [Am] quartet practiced [C] in the park And [G] we sang [D/F#] dirges [Em] in the dark the [C] day the [D7] music [G] died [C] , [G] we were [D] singin'
[Chorus] [G] bye, [C] bye Miss [G] American [D] Pie Drove my [G] Chevy to the [C] levy but the [G] levy was [D] dry And them [G] good old [C] boys were drinkin' [G] whiskey and [D] rye Singin' [Em*] this will be the day that I [A7*] die, [Em*] this will be the day that I die [D7]
[Verse 4] [G] Helter skelter in a [Am] summer swelter [C] the birds flew off with [Am] a fallout shelter, [Em] eight miles high and [D] fallin' fast [G] It landed [D/F#] foul [Em] on the grass the [Am7] players tried for a [C] forward pass [Em] with the jester on the [A7] sidelines in a [D] cast
Now the [Em*] half-time air was [D*] sweet perfume, while [Em*] sergeants played a [D*] marching tune [C] We all got [G/B] up to dance [A7] but we [C] never got the [D7] chance 'Cuz the [G] players [D/F#] tried to [Em] take the field, the [Am] marching band re [C] fused to yield Do [G] you re [D/F#] call what [Em] was revealed the [C] day the [D7] music [G] died [C] , [G] we started [D] singin'
[Chorus] [G] bye, [C] bye Miss [G] American [D] Pie Drove my [G] Chevy to the [C] levy but the [G] levy was [D] dry And them [G] good old [C] boys were drinkin' [G] whiskey and [D] rye Singin' [Em*] this will be the day that I [A7*] die, [Em*] this will be the day that I die [D7]
[Verse 5] And [G] there we were all [Am] in one place a [C] generation [Am] lost in space, [Em] with no time left to [D] start again So come on [G] Jack be [D/F#] nimble, [Em] Jack be quick, [Am7] Jack Flash sat on a [C] candle stick, [Em] 'cuz fire is the devil's [A7] only friend [D]
And as [Em*] I watched him [D*] on the stage, my [Em*] hands were clenched in [D*] fists of rage No [C] angel [G/B] born in [A7] Hell could [C] break that Satan's [D7] spell And as the [G] flames climbed [D/F#] high into [Em] the night to [Am] light the sacri [C] ficial rite I saw [G] Satan [D/F#] laughing [Em] with delight the [C] day the [D7] music [G] died [C][G] he was [D] singin'
[Chorus] [G] bye, [C] bye Miss [G] American [D] Pie Drove my [G] Chevy to the [C] levy but the [G] levy was [D] dry And them [G] good old [C] boys were drinkin' [G] whiskey and [D] rye Singin' [Em*] this will be the day that I [A7*] die, [Em*] this will be the day that I die [D7]
[Verse 6] I [G] met a [D/F#] girl who [Em] sang the blues And I [Am] asked her for some [C] happy news, but [Em] she just smiled and turned [D] away I [G] went down [D/F#] to the [Em] sacred store Where I'd [Am] heard the music [C] years before, but [Em] the man there said [C] the music wouldn't [D] play
But [Em*] in the streets the [Am*] children screamed, the [Em*] lovers cried and the [Am*] poets dreamed But [C] not a [G/B] word was [Am] spoken, the [C] church bells all were [D] broken And the [G] three men [D/F#] I admire [Em] most, the [Am7] Father, [C] Son, and the [D7] Holy Ghost [G] They caught the [D/F#] last train [Em] for the coast the [C] day the [D7] music [G] died, [N.C.] And they were singin'
[Chorus] [G] bye, [C] bye Miss [G] American [D] Pie Drove my [G] Chevy to the [C] levy but the [G] levy was [D] dry And them [G] good old [C] boys were drinkin' [G] whiskey and [D] rye Singin' [Em*] this will be the day that I [A7*] die, [Em*] this will be the day that I die [D7]
They were singin' [G] bye, [C] bye Miss [G] American [D] Pie Drove my [G] Chevy to the [C] levy but the [G] levy was [D] dry And them [G] good old [C] boys were drinkin' [G] whiskey and [D] rye Singin' [C] this will be the [D7] day that I [G] die [C][G]
[Intro] Ab/Bb Bb x4 then Bm on the 4th beat of the 4th Bb
[Chorus] Cm7 Gm7 Fm7 Gm7 How long has this been goin' on Cm7 Gm7 Fm7 Gm7 How long has this been goin' on
[Verse 1] Ab/Bb Bb Friends with their fancy persuasion Ab/Bb Bb Don't admit that it's part of a scheme Ab/Bb Bb But I can't help but have my suspicions Ab/Bb Bb 'Cause I ain't quite as dumb as I seem Ab/Bb Bb And you said you was never intendin' Ab/Bb Bb To break up our scene in this way Ab/Bb Bb But there ain't any use in pretendin' Ab/Bb Bb Bm It could happen to us any day
[Chorus] Cm7 Gm7 Fm7 Gm7 How long has this been goin' on Cm7 Gm7 Fm7 Gm7 How long has this been goin' on
[Musical Interlude: 16 measures of Cm to Bb]
[Verse 2] Oh, your friends with their fancy persuasion Don't admit that it's part of a scheme But I can't help but have my suspicion 'Cause I ain't quite as dumb as I seem
Oh, you said you was never intending To break up our scene in this way But there ain't any use in pretendin' It could happen to us any day
And how long has this been going on How long has this been going on How long
[Chorus] Cm7 Gm7 Fm7 Gm7 How long has this been goin' on Cm7 Gm7 Fm7 Gm7 How long has this been goin' on Cm7 Gm7 Fm7 Gm7 How long has this been goin' on Cm7 Gm7 Fm7 Gm7 How long has this been goin' on How long How long has this been going on been going on