While Tapestry received some positive reviews, it’s presence was mostly limited to folk music circles. The song became a staple at Presley’s live shows until his death two years later. “And I Love You So” became a number one hit for Perry Como in 1973 and was also recorded by one of McLean’s earliest influences – Elvis Presley – in 1975. The album contained two singles – “Castles in the Air” and “And I Love You So,” the latter of which went on to greater success when it was picked up and covered by two artists a few years later. McLean recorded his first album, Tapestry, in 1969 in Berkeley, CA and it was released in October of 1970. Seeger would mentor young McLean, inviting him to tour with him as they promoted environmental awareness in addition to sharing their music. It was also during this time when he met Folk music icon Pete Seeger.

the Troubadour and Ash Grove in Los Angeles, and the Newport Folk Festival. He performed at college campuses and venues across the United States including the Bitter End and Gaslight Cafe in New York, the Cellar Door in Washington D.C. Inspired by The Weaver’s 1955 recording Live at Carnegie Hall, he spent the sixties integrating himself into the vibrant folk-revival scene. This included Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley and the young, rising star, Buddy Holly.īy 1961, teenage McLean’s health had improved and he had begun to develop a strong interest in folk music. He was an omnivore, listening to rock and roll, folk and popular music, but it was the earliest rock ‘n rollers that inspired him to pick up a guitar. He thus spent his time at home, indoors, listening to music. He struggled with poor health and asthma for much of his childhood and missed a great deal of school.

12 years later, McLean took that poignant memory and created one of the most iconic and beloved ballads of all time, “American Pie.” The song takes listeners on a nostalgic journey through rock ‘n roll’s history, beginning with “the day the music died” and traveling across all of the major musical, cultural and political events of the sixties.ĭonald McLean III was born in New Rochelle, New York in 1945, and grew up amid the anxious tranquility of the post-war decades. Don McLean was only 13 years old, delivering his hometown newspaper route when he found out that his idol Buddy Holly had died in a tragic plane accident.

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