American Pie

Madonna cover American pop star Madonna released a cover version of the song in March 2000 to promote the soundtrack to her film The Next Best Thing (2000). Her cover is much shorter than the original (it contains only the beginning of the first verse and all of the second and sixth verses) and was recorded as a pop-dance song. Don McLean himself praised the cover, saying it was "a gift from a goddess", and that her version is "mystical and sensual." Due to the success of the single, it was included as a bonus track on her 2000 studio album Music, however this was not available on the North American version. Madonna explained in a 2001 interview on BBC Radio 1 with Jo Whiley, the reason that the song was omitted from her 2001 greatest hits compilation GHV2: "It was something a certain record company executive twisted my arm into doing, but it didn't belong on the (Music) album so now it's being punished". Cover history:: The cover was produced by Madonna and William Orbit, who had previously worked with her on the 1998 studio album Ray of Light and 1999 single "Beautiful Stranger". Released in March 2000, the song was a big worldwide hit, reaching number one in many countries, including the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Italy, Germany (her first since "La Isla Bonita", in 1987), Switzerland, Austria and Finland. The song was the 19th best selling of 2000 in the UK. There was no commercial single release in the US, but the single still reached the number twenty-nine spot on Billboard's Hot 100, based on airplay alone. The music video, directed by Philipp Stölzl, depicts a diverse array of Americans, including a scene showing a lesbian couple kissing, which resulted in the video being censored on certain music shows in the United States.[citation needed] Two official versions of the video were produced, the first of which now appears on Madonna's greatest-hits DVD compilation, Celebration, and was released as the official video worldwide. The second version was issued along with the "Humpty Remix", a more upbeat and dance-friendly version of the song. This video was aired on MTV's dance channel in the United States to promote the film The Next Best Thing, starring Madonna and Rupert Everett; it contains totally different footage and new outtakes of the original and omits the lesbian kiss. Everett, who provides backing vocals in the song, is also featured in the video.

[Verse 1] A long, long time ago I can still remember how that music used to Make me smile And I knew that if I had my chance I could make those people dance And maybe they'd be happy for a while [Verse 2] 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 'n' roll And can music save your mortal soul And can you teach me how to dance real slow? [Verse 3] 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 [Verse 4] I was a lonely teenage bronking buck With a pink carnation and a pick-up truck But I knew that I was out of luck The day the music died I started singing [Chorus] Bye, bye, Miss American Pie Drove my Chevy to the levee But the levee was dry And good old boys were drinking whiskey and rye Singing this'll be the day that I die This'll be the day that I die [Verse 5] I met a girl who sang the blues And I asked her for some happy news But she just smiled and turned away Well, 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 [Verse 6] Well now, 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 the most The Father, Son and the Holy Ghost They caught the last train for the coast The day the music died We started singing [Chorus] Bye, bye, Miss American Pie Drove my Chevy to the levee But the levee was dry And good old boys were drinking whiskey and rye Singing this'll be the day that I die This'll be the day that I die Bye, bye, Miss American Pie Drove my Chevy to the levee But the levee was dry And good old boys were drinking whiskey and rye Singing this'll be the day that I die This'll be the day that I die [Outro] We started singing We started singing We started singing We started singing