"American Pie" by Don McLean
Merceydeis Falk-Huzar
Historical Reference 1
- "So bye-bye, Miss American Pie" is thought to be referenced after Holly's plane called "American Pie."
- Don told fans that that information is false.
- Although know one knows why the main chorus is Miss American Pie, we know that Don created the term himself.
Historical Reference 2
- "Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry" is about the American dream dying.
- Chevrolets were a very popular brand of cars at the time of this song.
Historical Reference 3
- "Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry" also references to drag races that would happen at levees.
Historical Reference 4
- The line that has "good ole boys" is a slightly altered portion from one of Buddy Holly's songs. "Tat'll be the Day."
Historical Reference 5
- "Oh and there we were all in one place" is most likely from the music festivals of 1969
- Many people of that time were mainly young adolescents who went to express themselves and enjoy the life of good music.
Historical Reference 6
- "With no time left to start again" Don's generation was "growing up" and unfortunately running out of hopeful figures in music, pop culture, and society to relate/rely on.
Historical Reference 7
- "Jumpin Jack Flash" was a song by the Rolling Stones in 1970
Historical Reference 8
- Other than the dreadful show "Lost in space", this was a time when younger kids in the generation were high, on drugs, and addicted to many other things.
- This was also around the time of people landing on the moon. Although he doesn't specify if this is really what he means.
Historical Reference 9
- "No angel born in hell"
- Meredith hunter was stabbed to death by Hells Angel Alan Passaro.
Historical Reference 10
- Many people could never agree on why Passaro killed Hunter, according to Don, Passaro might as well be evil itself. Or is, for that matter.
Conclusion
My Opinion/thoughts
I really liked this critique. I'm going to be honest and say it was harder than the Biographical critique, because we need to actually break down each stanza or line that we were reading and then research what the similarities are within those time periods. However, I still really enjoyed this one and I liked it because I didn't realize that music could be a part of literature. Especially songs like "American Pie."