Don McLean

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For other people with similar names see Don MacLean.

Don McLean
Background information
Birth name	Don McLean
Born	2 October 1945
Genre(s)	singer-songwriter
Occupation(s)	singer, songwriter, musician
Instrument(s)	guitar
Years active	1970 - present
Website	http://www.don-mclean.com/

Don McLean (born October 2, 1945 in New Rochelle, New York) is an American singer-songwriter. He is most famous for his 1971 ballad American Pie.

1 Early Life
2 Songs
3 Trivia
4 Discography
5 References
6 External links

Don’s McLean was profoundly affected by the deaths of both Buddy Holly and John F. Kennedy. In his personal life, he endured the death of his father in 1961. McLean graduated from Iona Preparatory School in 1963 but dropped out of Villanova University (not Iona College) before getting a degree.[1] He was a popular folk singer at campus events. With the help of a grant from the New York State Council on the Arts, he began reaching a wider public, with visits to towns up and down the Hudson River. He learned the art of performing from his friend and mentor Pete Seeger. McLean accompanied Seeger on his Clearwater boat up the Hudson River in 1969 to protest environmental pollution in the river. The Clearwater campaign was widely credited for improving water quality in the Hudson River.

Main article: American Pie

Don McLean's most famous composition, American Pie is often interpreted to be about the tragic loss of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper in an airplane crash on February 3, 1959, spawning the phrase, "The Day the Music Died". McLean has stated that the lyrics are also somewhat autobiographical and present an abstract story of his life from the mid 1950's until the time he wrote the song in the late 1960's. 'American Pie' symbolizes the ongoing radical and tumultuous changes in popular music during this period, evolving from the often raw but fresh, upbeat sounds that marked the earliest days of rockabilly and the rock eras of the 1950's to the darker, more introspective, often cynical, and increasingly socially conscious music of the late 1960's, driven by the sweeping social upheavals and volatile political atmosphere that had engulfed and defined America by the end of the decade.

Don McLean's 'American Pie' has remained the subject of intense scrutiny and philosophical interpretation for more than 30 years as music historians, scholars, professors of modern American literature, and his fans alike continue to search for its 'deeper meaning'. In interviews, Don claims to be amused that many interpretations start with the premise that he never talks about the song nor has ever provided insight into the meaning of the lyrics.

McLean's other well-known songs include:

And I Love You So, covered by Elvis Presley, a 1973 hit for Perry Como.
Vincent, a tribute to the 19th century Dutch painter, Vincent van Gogh.
Castles in the Air
Winterwood
Wonderful Baby, a tribute to Fred Astaire that Astaire himself recorded.
Superman's Ghost, a tribute to George Reeves, who portrayed Superman on television in the 1950s.

The album American Pie features a version of Psalm 137, Babylon arranged by Don McLean and Lee Hays (The Weavers). Boney M would have a number one hit in the UK with this song in 1978 under the title Rivers of Babylon, although the two renditions are so different it is not immediately noticeable that they are versions of the same song.

In 1980, McLean had an international number one hit with the Roy Orbison classic, Crying. Only following the record's success overseas was it released in the USA, becoming a top 10 hit in 1981. Orbison himself once described McLean as "the voice of the century", and a subsequent re-recording of the song saw Orbison incorporate elements of McLean's version.

In 1991, Don McLean returned to the UK top 20 with a re-issue of American Pie. The song became a worldwide smash again in 2000 when covered by Madonna.

As of 2006, Don continues to tour extensively both in the U.S. and Europe. His new album Addicted to Black is expected to be released in the near future, along with his biography Killing Us Softly: The Don McLean Story.

A poem about McLean, Killing Me Softly With His Blues by Lori Lieberman, was reworked into a song called Killing Me Softly With His Song by Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel. Lieberman was the first to record it (in 1972), but the song has two more well-known covers. The first major hit version was by Roberta Flack in 1973; The Fugees's version was a major hit in 1996.

McLean had a series of conflicts with Saturday Night Live writer Andy Breckman, starting when Breckman opened for McLean on tour in 1980. Breckman and McLean have penned competing renditions of the origins of this feud, both of which are available online.^[1]

In 2003, George Michael covered Don's anti-war song The Grave from the American Pie album in protest at the imminent invasion of Iraq by the US and allied forces.

In 2005, 15 year old Matt Navin impersonated Don McLean on the UK's 'Kids Stars in Their Eyes' hosted by Cat Deeley.^{[citation needed]}

Cover	Year	Album
	1970	Tapestry
	1971	American Pie
	1972	Don McLean
	1973	Playin' Favorites
	1974	Homeless Brother
	1976	Solo (LIVE)
	1977	Prime Time
	1978	Chain Lightning
	1981	Believers
	1982	Dominion (LIVE)
	1987	Love Tracks
	1989	For the Memories Vols I & II
	1989	And I Love You So (UK Release)
	1990	Headroom
	1991	Christmas
	1995	The River of Love
	1997	Christmas Dreams
	2001	Sings Marty Robbins
	2001	Starry Starry Night (LIVE)
	2003	You've Got to Share: Songs for Children
	2003	The Western Album
	2004	Christmas Time!
	2005	Rearview Mirror: An American Musical Journey