American pieDon McLean

A long long time ago
I can still remember
How that music used to make me smile
And I knew if I had my chance
That I could make those people dance
And maybe they'd be happy for a while
But February made me shiver
with every paper I'd deliver
Bad news on the doorstep
I couldn't take one more step
I can't remember if I cried
When I read about his widowed bride
But something touched me deep inside
The day the music died
So...

*Bye, bye Miss American Pie
Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry
Them good ole boys were drinking whiskey and rye
Singing this'll be the day that I die
This'll be the day that I die

Did you write the book of love
And do you have faith in God above
If the Bible tells you so?
Now do you believe in rock and roll?
Can music save your mortal soul?
And can you teach me how to dance real slow?

Well, I know that you're in love with him
'cause I saw you dancing in the gym
You both kicked off your shoes
Man, I dig those rhythm and blues
I was a lonely teenage broncing buck
With a pink carnation and a pickup truck
But I knew I was out of luck
The day the music died
I started singing(*)

Now, for ten years we've been on our own
And moss grows fat on a rolling stone
But that's not how it used to be
When the jester sang for the king and queen
In a coat he borrowed from James Dean
And a voice that came from you and me
Oh and while the king was looking down
The jester stole his thorny crown
The courtroom was adjourned
No verdict was returned
And while Lenin read a book on Marx
The quartet practiced in the park
And we sang dirges in the dark
The day the music died
We were singing(*)

Helter skelter in a summer swelter
The birds flew off with a fallout shelter
Eight miles high and falling fast
Landed foul on the grass
The players tried for a forward pass
With the jester on the sidelines in a cast
Now the half-time air was sweet perfume
While sergeants played a marching tune
We all got up to dance
Oh, but we never got the chance
'Cause the players tried to take the field
The marching band refused to yield
Do you recall what was revealed
The day the music died?
We started singing(*)

Oh, and there we were all in one place
A generation lost in space
With no time left to start again
So come on Jack be nimble, Jack be quick
Jack Flash sat on a candlestick
'Cause fire is the devil's only friend
And as I watched him on the stage
My hands were clenched in fists of rage
No angel born in hell
Could break that Satan's spell
And as the flames climbed high into the night
To light the sacrificial rite
I saw Satan laughing with delight
The day the music died
He was singing(*)

I met a girl who sang the blues
And I asked her for some happy news
But she just smiled and turned away
I went down to the sacred store
Where I'd heard the music years before
But the man there said the music wouldn't play
And in the streets the children screamed
The lovers cried, and the poets dreamed
But not a word was spoken
The church bells all were broken
And the three men I admire most
　the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost
They caught the last train for the coast
The day the music died
And they were singing(*)

美国派唐麦克林

很久很久以前
我依然记得
音乐是如何让我会心微笑
我知道，如果我有机会
我可以让人们闻乐起舞
也许他们会快乐好一阵子
但二月使我颤抖
因为我送的每一份报纸
丢在门口的噩耗
使我举步维艰
我不记得自己有没有哭
当我读到他那位新寡妻子的新闻时
某种情绪深深触动了我
在音乐死亡的那一天
那么......

再见了，美国派小姐
开着雪佛兰到河堤上，但河堤已干涸
老好人们饮着威士忌和麦酒
唱着这会是我死的那一天
这会是我死的那一天

你写过爱之书吗？
你相信天上的上帝吗？
如果圣经是这么告诉你的
你相信摇滚乐吗？
音乐可以拯救你的灵魂吗？
你可以教我如何放慢速度来跳舞吗？

我知道你爱上了他
因为我看到你们在体育馆里跳舞
你们踢掉鞋子
老天，我深深感受到节奏与蓝调
那时的我是个寂寞的年轻人
别着一朵粉红色的康乃馨，有一辆小货车
但我明白自己并不走运
在音乐死亡的那一天
我开始唱着......(*)

如今十年了，我们全靠自己熬过来了
滚动的石头上长满了青苔
但，它原来不是这个样子的
当弄臣（注）为国王与皇后歌唱
穿著向詹姆斯狄恩借来的外套
用来自你我的声音
当国王低头
弄臣偷走了荆棘桂冠
法庭当时休会
没有任何判决宣判
当蓝尼读着马克思主义的书
四重奏在公园里排练
我们在黑暗中唱着挽歌
在音乐死去的那天
我们唱着......(*)

在酷暑中手忙脚乱
鸟群飞过辐射尘防护罩
高度为八英哩，急速下降
错误的降落在草地上
球员尝试把球向前传
靠着边线上弄臣的帮忙
在中场休息时间，空气中充满着大麻的香味
当士官们奏起了进行曲
我们都起身准备跳舞
但我们始终没有机会
因为球员们占据了球场
军乐队拒绝让步
你还记得当时透露了什么讯息吗？
在音乐死去的那天
我们开始唱着......(*)

我们都聚集在同一个地方
在太空中迷失的一代
没有时间可以重振旗鼓
来吧！杰克，快点！
闪电杰克坐在烛台上
因为火焰是魔鬼唯一的朋友
当我看到他在舞台上
我愤怒的握紧拳头
诞生在地狱的天使
也无法破除撒旦的咒语
当火焰升高至夜空
照亮了整个祭典
我看见撒旦高兴的大笑
在音乐死去的那天
他唱着......(*)

我遇到一个唱蓝调的女孩
我向她打听一些愉快的消息
但她只是笑了笑便转身而去
我走到一家宗教用品店
在那里，可以听到好几年前的音乐
但是店里的人说那些音乐不能播放
街头上的孩子们尖叫着
恋人们在哭泣，诗人们作着梦
却不发一语
教堂的钟都残破不堪
我最景仰的三个人──
圣父、圣子与圣灵
他们都搭乘末班车到海边去了
在音乐死去的那天
他们唱着......(*)

　长达八分多钟的"American pie"绝对是流行歌坛的经典作品，玛丹娜还曾翻唱成舞曲风味的版本，但一向颇欣赏娜姐的安德森，这回却觉得她亵渎了这首歌。
　写作并演唱这首歌曲的唐麦克林，是因为他的偶像 Buddy Holly于一九五九年二月三日飞机失事身亡，有感而发写下这首长篇钜作。那场空难使美国歌坛失去了三位摇滚乐的重量级人物，除了前面提及的 Buddy Holly以外，还包括 The Big Bopper和 Ritchie Valens。
　歌词中处处影射当时美国政治、文化的诸多现象，若非亲身经历过那个时代，一般乐迷从歌词根本瞧不出端倪。