American Pie

Not what I expected from the album with such an iconic song. It's a lot more melancholy, folksy, and interesting than I thought it would be. Favorite Song: American Pie, Vincent

Can one great tune sustain an album? No, it cannot.

American Pie really is an all-time song. Never noticed the great bassline before this listen - I try to always use good headphones or speakers for my 1001 albums listening. That being said, the rest of the record is just sort of folky singer-songwriter music and it is nice to listen to but nothing amazing. There's a hint of musical theater reprise in "Everybody Loves Me, Baby" which feels like "American Pie - Reprise" with the same chords and melody and rhyme structure. Solid 3/5 save for having one of the greatest songs of all time on it - but a hit single does not a great album make!

I like this album - I thought it was good for 2 songs, but there are some really nice songs on here. Do any of them hit the heights of "Vincent?" Well, no. But it was a perfectly pleasant record. 7/10

Now here is an interesting choice for the list. Obviously this is here for the title track. The rest of the record is fine, decent but unspectacular 70s singer songwriter stuff. And then there is AP. Is this a great song? Is it terrible? Is his viewpoint kind of weirdly conservative? Smartly, DM kept it just vague enough that you could fill in your own beliefs using his words. The song has been in my ears as long as I've had ears, so I can't really be objective. It's just part of the fabric of my life. I hear it, I sing along. I still don't know if I like it

It’s easy to like, but gets a little boring at times.

The title song is ubiquitous that it's become a meme. I listened to it and it's still an undeniable banger. Brings back memories of my friend's mom driving us around in their VW Beetle and singing along to the AM radio cut. Loss is a big theme of this album, but it really just made me numb to the impact of the later songs, particularly "The Grave".

Very very good.

(60/100)

100% my dad's music. Vincent 10/10 Empty Chair 10/10

I love his voice, and American Pie hits every time. Would listen again

Delightful album. Soft acoustic love songs. His voice comes out as so stripped down and intimate regardless of what is going. Highlight was the chorus moment in the last track. 4.5

Pretty good overall, but in starting with American Pie, I then spent the whole of the rest of the album comparing every track to that.

Does this record sound the same after twenty minutes? Absolutely (then we get "Everybody Loves Me, Baby"). It definitely rides one specific acoustic vibe into the ground. But since it clocks in at barely over half an hour, I can forgive the repetition. It’s effortless listening that asks very little of you. Just nice tunes and gentle strumming. You get in, enjoy the vibes, and get out. Spins: 2 Playlist Additions - American Pie - Vincent - Empty Chairs - Everybody Loves Me, Baby

The opening song is of course pretty much ubiquitous at this point. But I have a complicated relationship with long, meandering piano ballads, so this has never done much for me. McLean’s soft spoken, almost boyish vocals also don’t help. Overall, a lot of songs which feel overly affected and trying to be anthems, but apart from The Grave, it all left me feeling pretty cold.

Starts off strong with the iconic title track; the rest of the songs are great, too. A very short album though.

amerikanische Folkmusik, startet mit DEM Klassiker

Schöne Lieder, gefällt. Und natürlich der Evergreen American Pie.

its good but lowkey american pie the song is WAYYY too long his voice is really good though its just very samey

One album of wonders. Two chart topping hits surrounded by melancholy sounds.

I went into this kind of expecting to not like it, but I actually really enjoyed this. I think I’m a bigger fan of singer-songwriter stuff than I’d be willing to admit, and so this hit pretty hard. Like obviously the title track is phenomenal, but this had a really solid track list following it, I was pretty into it. Favorites: American Pie, Winterwood, The Grave

S’okay

This was highly enjoyable , nice adds will revisit for some time

Don McLean has a gorgeous voice but writes the sleepiest folk known to man.

grade school art teacher used to play that starry starry night and we all laughed at her

Bye bye American Pie. I could say that I liked you, but that is a lie. You drove me to drinking whiskey and rye, thinking "this is the day I hope I die, this is the day I hope I die"

goddamn this is the most boomer-coded bullshit I ever heard

Yikes. So many good albums that could have been on the list. So many good genres that are underrepresented. Don McLean...? Really...?

This one strikes a very personal note for me. As an undergrad, I wrote a very detailed analysis of the song American Pie for a sociology class. It was a unique and somewhat rebellious interpretation of the assignment, and the first straight A I earned in any college class. So, I really love that song. Unfortunately, the remainder of the album is not great 70's singer-songwriter fare. Don captured lightning in a bottle, but that's about it. Influence 2. Quality 3. Intangibles 4. Hits 4. Personal taste 4.

It's okay

the hit was the highlight and even that is not great due to overplaying everywhere

American pie is a banger and consequently I think the rest of the LP suffers. I like Maclean’s voice and the songs are good but the rest struggle to match the title track

This album gained an immediate 3.5 stars for the title track and another half star for Vincent. The title track is one of the greatest songs ever written, it’s telling of the history of cultural changes and rock and roll from the mid 50s up to that point makes it one of the most interesting and memorable songs of all time. It’s truly amazing, the lyrics, the music, McLean’s voice it’s all here. “Till Tomorrow” is a very pleasant folk rock tune. “Vincent” is goddamn gorgeous, the lyrics are really beautiful and the guitar work is wonderful. The piano on “Crossroads” is amazing and the lyrics are wonderful. I love the country twang of “Winterwood” it was one of my favorites from the record. “Empty Chairs” was a lovely tune with great lyrics. I really like the fun rockin vibe of “Everybody Loves Me, Baby” and the end of the chorus being the words “what’s wrong with you?” made me laugh. Fun song. “Sister Fatima” is wonderful. And “The Grave” is really good. I also loved the rendition of “Babylon”

I’m super basic. I like “American Pie.” And I think “Vincent” is one of the best pop songs ever written. The rest I could take or leave. 3/5

First track is a certified classic

It was OK.

The guy can turn a phrase!

American Pie was great. Babylon was also kind good. The album was never worse than medium.

If I had to choose only one song to listen to for the rest of my life....

Just way too much folk in the 1001.

Good folk album. Iconi music: american pie. Like Elton Jhon for me...little sad, but good...2,5

One monumental track followed by lesser versions of pretty much the same. Its not bad at all, its just hard to get through the album when you know the best part is already over.

Two stone cold classic songs, plus

listening when: home alone during the afternoon feeding jules thoughts: this was cute. a little slow for me but i loved it rating: 6/10

I've never listened to this album (47). Not just a one-hit wonder like I expected.

One good song and even that song is overly sappy, nostalgic and pandering.

One of the greatest songs ever written and some others

Aside from the monumental title track, there’s little here that truly stands out. Don McLean’s songwriting is pleasant enough, but after 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘗𝘪𝘦 the album drifts into forgettable early-’70s folk-pop. Without its famous opener, this would be just another competent singer-songwriter record from the era.

на любителя.

Love the guitar, love his voice, love the lyrics. Do I love this album so much because I have moderate to severe jet lag and Don McLean is cradling my brain gently in his guitar wielding arms?

Well pull up my britches and get my red white n blue ready, it's karaoke time. Easy top ten singalong tune there. Also Vincent reminds me of my grandma, so thanks for that.

I enjoyed it. I’m surprised how understated most of the album was after the title track. Vincent and the Grave were probably my favorites after that. Rating: 4.2

All the songs end up sounding the same after awhile 3/5

Song to hear - yes. In fact you can’t help but know this song. It’s a part of Americana. But the record? Kinda lame. His voice is too boyish and hopeful. Side note American pie if one of my favorite movies from the 90s. I wonder how much money don mclean got from that title. I’ll go ask chat gpt. He makes 300-500k a year in royalties on that song alone. The producers of the movie and him reached a seven figure settlement for using that title. Nice.

Didn’t realize how much Don McLean sounded like John Denver. I really like Vincent, more than I thought I would.

Not so bad

Ironic that I got this album from Don McLean following right after having had Tapestry by Carole King yesterday, when this album follows an album called Tapestry in Don's catalog which was released around the same time. Certainly, this album pales in comparison to King's great recording, but in fairness that is a super high bar. In truth, this album is still good, even if nothing on here is terribly surprising. We all know the song American Pie, one of the great tunes of all time. Personally, I like the original version, as opposed to the shortened radio track you hear occasionally. Just a great listen. What follows are a series of songs which are similar sounding, though nothing nearly as great or epic. I've heard Vincent before, but none of the others. All of them are decent: not great, but not bad either. I did enjoy The Grave the best, as it represented a bit of a departure from the others. Babylon was interesting in that it sounded like a church hymn in a way. Makes for a pleasant listen, though I might only go back for the title track. That said, given that we have a solid album with a truly great single song, this is really a 3.5-star album for me.

I know I should like this based on my other musical tendencies but I just don’t

Enjoyed this much more than expected. But maybe because it was only 27 minutes.

Obviously American pie is a huge hit, but the other songs were solid too.

Very inoffensive and safe. His voice doesn't have much character. I don't like it very much. Some songs are alright. Favorite song: Vincent.

Don McLean is the Bucky Dent or David Tyree of folk rock - transcedent for a moment (the title track) in a way that ensures he'll be remembered forever, even if the rest of his body of work remains pretty pedestrian. It's sort of hard to grapple with how good "American Pie" is against the relief of how bland and cliched the rest of McLean's attempts at poetry are here. Sometimes one play is all it takes, I guess.

I took the advice of another reviewer and started listening to this album at track 4. Then went back and listened to the ‘big two’. There were more than passing resemblances to Vincent and American Pie in some of the other tracks but I thought they were generally ok, with The Grave being the highlight of ‘the rest’. Without the two monster tracks this would be a 3. With those two, and because I’ve never got tired of them, it’s a 4.

Solid.

Pretty good album.

An all time classic. Not just for the title track. Full of absolute gems

I was hoping to find some sleepers on here -- the guy who wrote "American Pie" surely had some other good songs that somehow slipped out of radio play, right? Apparently, "Vincent" made the charts, but I wouldn't rate it among my faves from this album, partly because it has such a sleepy melody like many songs here. McLean's voice can convey enough pathos to almost carry them, but then he likes to sort of wander around in the melodies like he hasn't quite committed to them. Compare Joni Mitchell, whose melodies are also unconventional and can make wild and unexpected shifts, but there's a strong core that she swings around on like monkey bars or a balance beam. I want to like "Winterwood" and "Everybody Loves Me, Baby" more than I do; they feel close to being really good for different reasons. "Empty Chairs" is similar, though it has an intimacy that got to me, not to mention hitting close to home on a personal level. So, lots of thoughts on this album that I ultimately only thought was okay. But I could see putting it on a folk playlist for a coffee shop or camping or something.

Sometimes this project gives gifts, and few have been more clarifying than going from NWA to Don freaking McLean.

Title track and Vincent are absolute bangers, rest is mid

A couple of really good songs, but the rest of the album was just ok

Only ever knew 2 songs by Don and I'm glad this project forced me to listen to the whole album. I've never heard someone sound so much like Paul Simon (in a good way). This was really an enjoyable listen.

The year was 2020. It was summer and COVID restrictions had just been rolled back for the first time since lockdown began. I used the opportunity to visit my parents. One evening we end up going one of the strangest establishments I've ever visited. An American 1950s diner, located in a small town next to a motorway junction about 20 minutes outaide of Cologne, Germany. For some reason this bizzare little oasis was exactly what my heart and soul needed at that moment. On the drive home, full of burgers and milkshakes, American Pie came on my dad's playlists. All three of us belted out the chorus at full volume only to realize we didn't know a single verse. We also quickly realized the song was much much longer than any of remembered. Cue 9 minutes of alternating between total silence and us screaming "Bye bye Mrs. American Pie" at the top of our long. It's one of my favorite memories with my parents. The song is biblical. The rest of the album ain't bad neither.

2.8 I can see the logic for including American Pie on a list of 1,001 songs to hear before you die. Wouldn't include it on mine, but I get it. However, I think "albums" is a bit of a stretch. The rest of it just really, really bland. Luckily this list doesn't have many one hit wonders, but this certainly feels like one.

one great song can't make up for the rest of the album being mediocre, at best.

Title track is practically a modern American standard. The rest of the album is OK, but feels a bit samesy.

I had a geography test while listening to this. I'll probably fail. Damn.

loved it

I didnt think I'd know as many songs on this as I did. Great folk album.

Felt "classic" Kind of hard to untangle the nuances of whether I think that's a good thing or not yet but in this case overall I'm leaning towards good. Didn't overstay it's welcome but there was not a tone of variation.

I'm one of those listeners who knew Don McLean solely as the guy who stuck his dick in a pie, before getting caught by his comedy dad, but then someone pointed out that he did American Pie the SONG and not the movie, and I then came to know him as the American Pie singer. But now I know that he's so much more than that as well. American Pie is what it is. It's good upbeat fun. It's iconic. The rest of the album is really where it's at for me though. This isn't necessarily my kind of thing as a general rule, but the song writing and composition on these songs is just really on point. There's a collection of delightfully crafted songs, with undeniable quality and musicianship on display, and it's just a really nice listen. It's gentle, but it has substance.

A monster start to the album . The rest was a bit slow to get all the way to five stars.

I feel like this is a quintessencial USA album, but in a good way.

American Pie is a classic, I always thought it was such a neat song to encapsulate so much of the 60s. It's singer-songwriter week for me apparently. I do like his voice though, and it works well with the minimal instrumentation. Really enjoyable, but not sure any other track tops american pie. 4* Highlights: american pie, babylon (I'm a sucker for a good canon)

Pretty forgettable apart from the two songs everyone already knows. I think I would have been ok to die without hearing this one.

Realistically more like 3 stars, but gets the 4th solely on the basis of “American Pie”

Not my favorite

Gets a 4 for "Everybody Loves Me, Baby"

Well the title track really promised a lot that the rest of the album didn't really deliver. Went into it expecting more rocking folk tracks like American Pie, but aside from one other song (that's basically American Pie 2.0), the rest were really slow, acoustic folk songs. Good folk songs mind you, but nothing that particularly impressed me. I've definitely heard Babylon somewhere though (Edit: Mad Men. Man, it's been years since I've watched that. Surprised I remember). So yeah, solid album. Just not something that wowed me.

Classic 70’s

Folk rock

Good folk album. Love the sound 4.7

Without the song American Pie, this album doesn't make this list.

Standardno dosadnjikavo, ali kao kužim. 2/5, 4/10

If only for the title track it is worth 5 stars, but then you have Vincent and the upbeat Everybody Loves Me, Baby which is just fun to bop along to, and Empty Chairs. Definitely one that everyone needs to listen to a few times to get the full effect of it.

The title track is well known and if anything, a bit overplayed. I didn't find the rest of the album very compelling. I prefer more roots oriented folk.

You know American Pie. But what is it? Rock with a folksy side. AP known so well it's hard to listen critically. 2nd track - definitely folk. Oh, I've heard Vincent before but didnt know it was Don McLean Nothing special for me here. Decent folk, but a bit uninspiring. Actually Vincent and The Grave are very good songs. Babylon has good instrumentals and a nice round. Best track - Vincent, The Grave, Babylon 3.5 stars, call it 3

This album starts off with the Americana banger, American Pie, which is a such a great sing along classic. The album drops off a cliff after this song into boring dribble-drabble that never really recovered. The slight exception is The Grave near the end which I would have rated stand alone 3 stars. Giving this album 2 stars feels generous.

I know it has American Pie and Vincent but the rest is just not very good.

Shite

Two big hitters at the start of this album, but the rest stood up too

American Pie is a banger and the rest of the album is quite nice. A decent listen

Every time I listen to the song American Pie, it has an extra verse added to it. Love when this comes on in a bar, everyone is singing along for the first 2 verses, then dead silence cause nobody knows verses 3 through 26. Great fuckin tune though. Never heard the rest of the album before, aul Don could write a song hi, Vincent is beautiful. Overall a very enjoyable listen

This is one of my dad's favorite albums. I'm more familiar with Weird Al's lyrics for The Saga Begins than American Pie. Vincent was already on my favorites list, but I didn't realise Don McLean sang it.

This is clearly an accomplished artist, and a technically great recording. The opening 8 minutes and 42 seconds of American Pie is really enough Don McLean for one sitting though. The rest of the album isn't bad, but it's too slow and too sad to really do much for me.

A nice singer-songwritery album full of americana. 38 minutes of chill tunes. 4/5

Eh

That was pretty chill. I liked that.

3.5

(3.5) AMERICAN PIE IS EIGHT MINUTES?

At least one of the songs is good

I really like this album and I’m Glad I gave it chance some of the songs I’ve heard covers done by other artist like Vincent but never knew it came from him! he had a sweetness to his lyrics that I enjoy hearing I listened while chilling in bed

I enjoyed this album! American Pie was my favourite

The title track is so good, but then after that it nosedives pretty quick.

Its a 3

A couple classics on here, overall good album

McLean has a really great voice, and the title track is an all-timer for singing along to. The people who complain the rest of the album is unlistenable just don’t like that folk music is often more mellow than it is rock. These songs capture that mellow nature well. I would consider adding a handful of these songs to any American Folk playlist I make.

Pretty sure I have literally never heard anything on this album aside from the title track, until today, LOL. It was fine though. Not amazing, not bad.

8/10

American Pie holds a very special place in my heart. It was the first karaoke song I ever did with friends... JMK Nippon's in Rockford for a high school dance dinner. Outside of that song this album is boring. It's honest and emotional, but ultimately just boring.

Of course American Pie sounds good, the rest of album kind of sounded all the same, just good folk music.

Why is it that I always forget how long American Pie is

Really, really solid album. Usually I'm kinda hesitant to listen to singer-songwriters (thanks Bob Dylan) but this was great. Great voice, great songwriting, just beautiful all over. Obviously having "American Pie" will help lift your album a lot, but the rest did not disappoint at all. Really beautiful.

American Pie is iconic. love the storytelling on it. but rest of album was kinda ho-hum, bland folksy. not bad, just not memorable like American Pie

7/10 American Pie is an immense sprawling masterpiece - everything else on the album wilts in it's shadow, apart from Vincent. Still great though.

Absolutely turgid.

Pretty much every time I hear a male singer/songwriter I wish I were listening to Sixto Rodriguez instead and this goes double for Don McLean. I actually think this would be a great candidate for "albums you don't have to listen to before you die" because everything other than American Pie is just filler. Don MacLean, Iron Butterfly, Snow...maybe there is something there. What a snoozer...

Honestly I don’t like the song American Pie and never have. Despite this, I have been forced to listen it so many times that I know all the words. It is so popular (I dont know why) that in many occasions I have even sang along for social cohesion purposes. The rest of the album is fine but I must give this whole thing a 2.

Every song on this album is just great. So 70s folk. Of course the lead is really good. The rest have a nice mix of mellow and bangers

Favorite Track: Till Tomorrow

Apart from the first track it was kinda meh.

Is this the most middlebrow album ever made? American Pie is catchy as hell though.

Nostalgie très amusante

La title track carry l'album extrêmement fort. Tout de même une belle écoute.

2,4/5

I save Babylon! Wasn't expecting such a slow sad song in the end. The message of the album didn't really become too clear until then. Still, it was good music.

Beyond the title track -- which was superb -- the rest of the album held up. Classic folk rock, Don McLean delivers impactful lyrics, great sound, and an overall compelling listen. The album did however suffer from a lull in the middle which lost me a bit.

Album feels a little disconnected between the bookend tracks and everything in the middle. It is all good music, but it feels like he wanted to make his americana superstar song and the record label forced a whole album out of it, so he went with a bunch of love and loss songs. Still a good listen, but I imagine I never would have heard any of those middle 8 tracks without listening to the album as a whole.

This album peaked at the first track. Was all downhill from there I'll give it an average rating just because American Pie is such a banger 3 ⭐️

The title track is one of the greatest American songs ever written. The rest of the album is very good as well, with an absolutely hauntingly beautiful closer.

Classic title song! Such a good singer/songwriter

Have in collection , classic

Parasta tässä levyssä on American pie, ja se viekin jonkun kolmasosan?! Sinänsä hyvä veto, koska loput biisit ovat eri aiheistaan huolimatta suht samaa miestä ja pianoa. Tarvittiinko Babylonia loppuun? Se muutti tunnelman.

Not for me. 1/5

3.4

It wasn’t bad, just a little boring.

It's commercial Dylan and Cohen. If I never heard the title track again, that would be fine with me. Actually, it seems to have actually mostly gone away which is nice.

The title song is a classic. The rest of the songs tell a story. Musically sound, not really that special. Also didn't know Babylon was a Don McLean song.

Obvious opening classic of American Pie. Something about classics like this that have an original form and length. Great songwriting and noticing the lovely piano in it more. And maybe this song sets up a false image of the vulnerable, heart felt songwriting like “Vincent”. The rest of the album feels quite different and soul filled, despite the beauty of the sing-along classic. Returns a bit for ‘Everybody loves me, baby’ but then back to the soulful acoustic style that I am now correctly relating to Don McLean. Ended up listening a few times and is actually a great album.

Litt for følsom for undertegnede. American Pie trekker opp. Schlager.

Nice singer with clear vocals and calm music. American Pie and Vincent were my favourite songs.

I won’t discount my nostalgia for the title track and the rest of the album stands up!

This one was fine, but not really anything special to me. The title track stands on well on its own. I just found the rest to be mostly boring. It didn't really keep my interest or attention. The melancholy sound carried through the whole album without much to break it up. Overall: 2/5

A fine album with an obvious hit. Decent performances and writing, but nothing really stood out except for the Weird Al cover.

The first song was inconic a very well, but the rest werent a soul

Wait Don McLean recorded other songs? I see why they titled this album American Pie. No denying the power of that song. The rest were just fillers lacking any sort of substance. Poor guy. Really wanted to like the rest of this album. Unlike the cover, thumbs down.

I was reminded that “Vincent” was momentarily popular with my friend group in high school. This is at the intersection of too on the nose and even cheesy, and kind of fun to listen to.

I feel American Pie is one of the most overrated/overplayed songs ever...maybe second only to Sweet Caroline. The rest of the album is decent though...folk rock I could halfway get into. 3/5

I’ve always secretly hated America Pie. And I don’t care for the rest of this folky storytelling album either. 1.5

"American Pie" is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter Don McLean. Folk and Folk rock are the Wiki-listed genres. Yep, that fits. The album was dedicated to Buddy Holly. At the time of the recording, "McLean marriage was failing and the optimism and hopefulness of the 1960's was giving way to the hedonism and nihilism of the 1970's." McLean is lead vocalist and plays acoustic guitar and banjo. Producer Ed Freeman also used a variety of accomplished musicians for the recording. The album was released to much acclaimed and, commercially, it reached #1 in the US and #2 in the UK. The self-titled, 8-minute long song "America Pie" opens the album. "A long, long time ago" and the song is off. Everyone knows this song and, I'm sure has an opinion. A song about a sense of loss. The day the music die was a reference to the airplane crash which killed Buddy Holly, the Big Bopper and Richie Valens. A catchy chorus. The famous singalong ending with the West Forty Fourth Street Rhythm and Noise which included Pete Seegar, James Taylor and Carly Simon. The other single released was "Vincent" which is a tribute to Vincent Van Gogh. Guitar with strings and a vibraphone. It's very sparse and poetic. McLean names ones of his paintings, "The Starry Night." "Winterwood" has acoustic guitar, drums and an electric piano which gives this song a soulful vibe. McLean is missing a lover and realizing he's seeing things himself for the first time. Hey, McLean brings the rock in "Everybody Loves Me, Baby." A standard rock song with a piano, marimbas and a vibraphone. It's fun song...handclaps and whistling. The album takes a dramatic turn with "The Grave." Besides the acoustic guitar, there's drums, a piano and strings. An anti-war song as a solider is in a trench and realizes he's in his grave. I came into this album realizing I would have to focus on everything past the self-titled song which I do like by the way. I wasn't expecting much but to my surprise there's a lot to like. The music is mostly stark and folksy with the acoustic guitar which was accompanied by strings, a piano, a bass and/or drums. The strength is in McLean lyrics which are poetic and can be personal. Themes include a sense of loss in general, a sense of romantic loss, romantic longing, anti-war, art and a spiritual song. There's fun. There's serious. McLean vocals reminded me of early Tim Buckley, which is a good thing. This is a good album that, I think, mostly everyone would like to some extent (beyond the title song).

Featuring one 5-star classic and lots of 2-star crumbs.

Correcto

This list is 1001 ALBUMS, not 1001 SONGS. i know how iconic American Pie the Song is, but this album as a whole is largely unremarkable. Grave and Babylon were alright but this album isnt that good

American Pie has to be the moat one-hit album ever made, in the sense that it has only one hit. I bought this album on vinyl because I guessed that the man who wrote American Pie (the single), would have something interesting up his sleeve. Boy, was I wrong. Everything that isn't the title track on this album is boring, unimaginative crap. American Pie though is still a masterpiece.

classical album with great songs

Dos canciones inmensas; American pie y vincent. Buen nivel en las restantes. Un año mágico 1971

Good. Not the type that I would listen to in my day but it was good to know this song. Dramatic.

Genial. Creo que nunca había escuchado la versión original de American Pie (¡dura casi 9 minutos!), y también me sorprendió mucho que McLean fuera el autor de Vincent, canción que siempre me ha gustado. El resto del álbum tiene canciones poderosas y unos arreglos brutales. Mi único pero es que creo que tendría que haber terminado con The Grave, porque esa frase final es brutal, pero bueno. Un discazo de cabo a rabo.

This is a very nice listen.

The song American Pie is basically 25% of this album, and while the song is decent, it really should have capped at 3 minutes. The 8-and-a-half-minute version feels like a marathon that just won’t end. After all that energy, the other tracks are short and utterly forgettable. Honestly, it feels like this album was written on the day the music died...

One classic song.

I don't dislike it. I don't love it. It's okay. About as 3 starts as you can get.

I feel like this album warrants an automatic 4 stars just for the presence of the song American Pie. Then the question is - how does the rest of the album hold up? The good: the song Vincent is also amazing. Babylon is beautiful and distinctive. I love the clarity of McLean's voice. The not-so-good: the rest of the songs don't really stand out, and sound like they're recycling elements of his better songs.

american pie is 8 mins long!? oh dear. yeah that’s too long. i’ve never actually heard the full song before. i don’t enjoy 😅 “vincent” is a classic and i love it. i really enjoyed “the grave”. other than those two there wasn’t much i was keen on. it was kind of nice but perhaps wasn’t in the mood for it.

American Pie plus some other boring songs.

Never has 36 minutes felt so long. The title track is a drag to begin with and a song I’ve never really liked, and as for the rest of this, I find it mostly forgettable. It’s a meh from me.

Had to listen to this one twice to really get a good sense of my feelings about it. The title track is a true banger. The rest is good but not amazing, so I'm sticking with three stars.

American Pie is certainly one great album. It was honestly surprising to me just how slow and melodic this album really is. There are only two more lively songs here (Those being Everybody Loves Me, Baby and maybe American Pie too even if the latter is a mix of both styles). I really do like these songs though as they are incredibly relaxing and therapeutic and they really are further amplified by McLean's brilliant songwriting. It also did help the more lively songs stick out and become more memorable when it comes to this album. I also don't think there is a single bad song here as they all have something really good in them. This is certainly a really great album and one i really enjoyed. Best Song: American Pie Worst Song: Babylon

A great album, even if there could be a bit more variety in places, the track listing separates most of the similar songs and the album’s short length keeps it from becoming stale. The title track is one of the greatest pieces of rock ‘n’ roll ever and there are a good few great songs elsewhere on the record. “The Grave” is an amazing track and really shows the horrors of being faced with death in war. The softness of Don McLean’s voice is lovely and lends great emotions to the songs throughout the album. 4/5

Loved this album since I first heard it. American Pie is up there for one of the greatest songs ever

A lyrical masterclass over elevator music. Gotta be in the right mood for it, but it’s great for what it is.

Meh

Otro disco yankee, como el anterior no tiene tan marcado eso pero lo siento musicalmente inferior a los demás.

Los temas "movidos" son muy insulsos, no me termina de gustar. Llegó a Winterwood y cambio bastante mi parecer.Los temas acústicos generan buena melancolía. Se ganó un 3, y como descubrimiento le voy a poner un 4

Hmmmm this is who sings American Pie?! I never knew the artist lol This album was okay. I'll give it 3 stars.

Don MehClean

I've hated the title track of this album most of my life. Was not looking forward to listening to a whole album, but I did, and I was right. Nothing against Don or his fans, I just hate this type of music. Shoutout to a few small parts of The Grave for being almost listenable.

Surprisingly excellent. I was very much not thrilled when this popped up. I don't tend to like 70s rock very much, and the song American Pie is one of the most overrated songs in music history. That said, once I got past that, it turns out this guy is a terrific songwriter! The Grave is one of the most haunting songs I've ever heard, Empty Chairs perfectly encapsulates the incredulity and remorse of a breakup, and "Everybody loves me, baby, what's the matter with you?" is in the running for the funniest lyric of all time, even though it's hidden in what I'm pretty sure is a strong anti-war, anti-imperialism protest song. Excellent album, and one I'm certainly glad I was turned on to by this project.

3 stars 1 new playlist song

The first song is so good you almost don't realize the rest of the album is good too

American Pie is a great song. I believe that the radio version is superior to the 8+ minute album version but both are great. The rest of this album just meanders and doesn't stray into any interesting territory re music or lyrics. That is not to say that it is unpleasant or even boring just that it has a sameness to it that may just be this genre to my ears.

A sad, mournful, album about lost innocence. Obviously American Pie itself, but also Empty Chairs, Vincent, and The Grave. By and large, I've been listening to these albums on Apple Music and I've come to really appreciate the "lyric" option, as it helps me truly appreciate what a poet Don McLean is. Not just the quality of his voice and guitar, but the intense feeling behind his words. Gets a little more disjointed near the end - that song about why everyone likes him is kind of off-tone, but Jesus, the good works so well.

BYE BYE BYE MISS AMERICAN PIE TOOK MA CHEVY TO THE LEVEE BUT THE LEVEE WAS DRY AND ALL THE GOOD OLD BOYS DRINKING WHISKEY AND RYE SINGIN THISLL BE THE DAY THAT I DIE

Really liked this, surprised me, as I've kinda thought American Pie was pretty corny. But the songs were just so well written, and the piano and guitar were super clean, vocals on point. Really enjoyable

Mmmmm classics, but you're bored at the end. A great reminder of the nofx vincent cover however

This is a great collection of songs! First time through and I’ve gotta say it’s way more than I thought - which was ‘“American Pie” plus filler’. Solid songwriting, lovely voice.

One of my all timers. I threw up listening to this and when I got into vinyl in my teenage years I played this record endlessly. It has such a warm production. I have spent hours thinking about the title track and who is who (of course the jester is Dylan). When I was little I thought this was another Anne Murray record. It is so much more.

"American Pie" is great of course, but all I can hear is the Wierd Al Yankovic parody. The rest is...filler. 3/5

Takes you on a journey, and the accessible part was in the middle. You could really make a listener work for it back in the day.

My sister had the 45 of American Pie so I was only familiar with this song, although I know I've heard Vincent before. Aside from American Pie, which is so iconic that no more needs to be said about it, this album is a nice selection of folk tunes. The Grave is an exceptional song, relevant for every generation.

Liked the vibe and vocals

Starts strong, second half was a bit forgettable.

Its fine. Dont need a whole album, just the hit.

Rest of album not as awesome as the title song. But solid overall. Standout songs: American Pie Empty Chairs

mfw i drove my chevy to the levee but the levee was actually full of anti-war sentiment

Love letters to other artists and anti-war propaganda are a thumbs up from me

Very close to a 5

OH MYY, MYYY THIS HERE ANAKIN GUY MAYBE VADER SOMEDAY LATER, NOW HE'S JUST A SMALL FRY HE LEFT HIS HOME AND KISSED HIS MOMMY GOODBYE SAYING "SOON I'M GONNA BE A JEDI" "SOON I'M GONNA BE A JEDI" Title track is cool, really because I have a soft spot for it cause of the Weird Al cover. The rest was ok to me

Rip buddy holly you would’ve loved American Pie

Pretty standard 70s singer-songwriter. Composition is slightly above-average, very solid lyrics. Still think American Pie should have been the last track, not the first

Classic

Favorite song: Babylon

We all know the one song, why? Because it's the only one that's upbeat and has a bit of feeling to it. The other songs are a bit drab and slow. Not my gallon of milk.

Not my mug of mead

I thought it would have been related to the movies American Pie but guess not lol

American Pie is a top tier song and the rest of the album maintained a similar level of consistency, an enjoyable listen

5 stars for American Pie. The rest of the album could use some more bangers. Great voice, though!

it was okay but mostly kinda boring… vincent is really good

This is a nice enough album. It is dominated by its two most famous songs. The rest of the album is Ok, a pleasant enough listen but it doesn't reach those hights. I found this album difficult to rate overall. I rated each song individually, and to my surprise found it just squeaking in to be a 4 star album, but as an overall experience it felt more like a 3 star album. Would I listen to this album again? Every now and then. Would I buy this album? I did. I rarely play it. 1 "American Pie" - An iconic song. It is quite superb, especially if you like the music of the late 1950s and 1960s, and the story this song tells, with regard to that period of music history, albeit rather cryptically through its lyrics. It's fun guessing who the characters are and trying to catch the references. What often gets overlooked are the dynamics of the song, the performance of the band, the song has a great pop hook, and it is as catchy as it gets. An odd choice to open an album. - 5 Stars 2 "Till Tomorrow" - A lovely song beautifully sung. Hard to follow track one. - 4 Stars 3 "Vincent" - What a wonderful tune. Just sublime. - 5 Stars 4 "Crossroads" - 3 Stars 5 "Winterwood" - 3 Stars 6 "Empty Chairs" - 3 Stars 7 "Everybody Loves Me, Baby" - A little more up tempo but it sounds forced. - 2 Stars 8 "Sister Fatima" - This is an interesting song. Nicely sung and played. 4 Stars 9 "The Grave" - There's more dynamics in this song. Dramatic. 4 Stars 10 "Babylon" - 3 Stars Total - 36/50 Average - 3.6

beautiful album. Soft, warm voice with feeling..comforting in some ways actually. Empty Chairs has always affected me. Overall I like this album!

gostei mais do que deveria...... acho que a voz dele me surpreendeu ?? não sei dizer

fucking great. obviously i know the title track super well and while that more upbeat tone doesn't carry through most of the album this is a really solid folk rock album with some great writing

Terrible

Eli tätä Vietnamin sodan protestisukupolvea. Liidibiisi on se madonnankin versioima American Pie. Lyhentämä koska se on kasiminuuttinen raita. Tykkään näistä rotestilauluista. Huomas mikä kansanliike se oli eikä olis ilman tätä loppunut. Siellä sodittais varmaan vieläkin 😅

Took the advice of a fellow reviewer and started the album on the fourth song, then ended by listening to the first three songs. Great decision. This is a mellow folk-pop album languishing in the shadow of the inescapable title song and 'Vincent'. I loved 'Winterwood' and 'Empty Chairs' but other songs felt like filler. However, minus one star because McLean is (allegedly!) a POS.

Artiste inconnu. L'album n'est pas désagréable (+1), mais il ne présente aucun intérêt musical. Le titre éponyme m'a paru interminable: 8 mn sans aucune originalité instrumentale ... Et encore il est plutôt dynamique, ce qui n'est pas le cas d'une grande partie des autres morceaux. Il sera aussi vite oublié qu'écouté ... =>2/5

Happy 80th birthday king. Vincent & American Pie are bangers. This is overall a great album.

American Pie is het nummer bij uitstek om mee te kelen op een iets te leutige vrijdagavond. Enkel jammer dat ze dit bijna nooit in den uitgang draaien. Zou nochtans werken. De rest (buiten Vincent) voelt wat opvulling. 3.2

Donny Mac hitting it out the park on this one. Opening with American Pie and managing to keep the high bar is pretty impreasive. Having never listened to a Don McLean album before this was fantastic. Great voice, quiet, thoughtful song writing. Great entry!

This was surprisingly good! Some mellow piano numbers, some upbeat tunes reminiscent of Loggins and Messina, the titular American Pie, Vincent!!! Yeah this was great

Classique

J'ai ecoute Harmonium a la place..

Des belles chansons à texte dans la plus pure des traditions folk États-Unienne, rien à redire. Même si c'est la St Jean et non pas le 4th of July. Highlight Babylon très belle adptation du psaume 137 plus à mon goût que celle de Boney M Vincent je connaissais pas très jolie. Everybody loves me, baby c'est le low point. Pas de rock pour toi, donny!

Du bon folk des années 70. Je connaissais le refrain de American Pie mais je crois que c’est la première fois que je l’écoute dans son entièreté. J’ai trouvé ça assez grandiose. Le reste est bon mais malheureusement la meilleure est clairement la première!

It was okay. Reasonably pleasant to listen and slightly different to what i was expecting. That said, Everybody Loves me baby sounds exactly like american Pie! pretty much uses the same chord arrangement. Would I listen to this again? Maybe as background music. Do I want to own it? No. 3 Stars

Classic!

American Pie the song, classic. American Pie the album, boring.

Off the bat, before I even listened to it, this album had two issues to deal with: first, the "& Other Great Songs!" problem. Y'know, those albums where the first song is not only the title track, but also its most famous and well-known song? Think of Rush's 2112, or Funkadelic's MAGGOT BRAIN, or... Heck, even think of ELP's TARKUS, if you want. Iron Butterfly's IN-A-GADDA-DA-VIDA almost counts, but the title track comes last — either way, you get it. But yeah, it's albums where the first song is such a behemoth in the popular consciousness, it's like, "How in the world could the rest even compare in the face of those beasts?" I've yet to come across one where the rest just can't (that Iron Butterfly album hasn't shown up), and I'm thankful for that so far, honestly, but I had my wonderings: would this album be it? 'Coz, I mean... Come on. Come on: it's "American Pie". We all know this song, or at least the phrase it coined: The Day The Music Died. That's how popular it is; that we use its wording to refer to the day Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper died. Hell, I know this song twice — Weird Al's "The Saga Begins" might just be the best thing to come out of the first STAR WARS movie. In short: "American Pie" is a towering epic chronicling, at least in one man's words, the transition from the optimistic 60's to the... Well, less hopeful 70's. (Again: one man's words.) How **do** you compete with that? Then we have the issue of this being a singer-songwriter folk album — and, look, for those who've somehow managed to follow my reviews and babbles who ain't been in my group, let me keep this short: I do not have a particularly good relationship with folky singer-songwriter types. Often, to my ears, they come across as poets who think they're musicians just because they can plink-plonk on an acoustic guitar. The only reason I don't say they're up their own asses is because my AuDHD ass has enough of a hard time trying to understand regular lyrics as it is; understanding **these** guys's words enough to figure out if **they're** pretentious is another story entirely. So, already, coming into this thing, I found myself with a bias here: an early 70's singer-songwriter? Oh, no. Outside of the title track... I mean, I already gave that Joni Mitchell album from later in the decade an "I don't give a shit," so I could only imagine what I was gonna think of **this**. There was only one way to find out, though. So I let the title track play, enjoyed it, and set myself up for the worst, and... Can I be real a second? For just a millisecond? This shit is beautiful. Damn beautiful. Oh, my goodness me, I was not prepared at all for how much I'd like this album. Beyond the title track, and besides one or two songs later on, the entire album is made up of these sparsely arranged pieces that focus solely on either piano or guitar. On its face, it seems like something I'd have no patience for: I gave two Leonard Cohen albums 2's mostly for how every track looped the same guitar piddling over and over again (and I felt real bad to do that to a Canadian legend). But here? The arrangements are clearly closer to channeling pop sensibilities than what I'd typically expect out of this kind of music — even from Dylan's electric music. I mean, hell, there may not be any clear hooks, but, damn, there's **melody**. Actually **melody**. And it's so pretty yet melancholic... This is some **good** stuff, goodness. Even the **lyrics** managed to pull me in, and I'll tell you exactly why: they're not complicated. I mean, sure, these aren't Tracy Chapman "simple yet powerful" lyrics; they're still aiming to use poetic language. I mean, I'm sure the title track alone is damn incomprehensible to a lot of people because of the language, y'know? But what I mean is, these aren't Dylan lyrics, where you need a scholarship and bachelor's degree in English literature in order to understand them. You don't hafta sit down and think **really hard** about them, way more than you would about the actual music. They're just comprehensible enough that you can spend just as much time appreciating how gorgeous the backing and playing is. It's like, honestly, the only two songs I feel like I weren't all for were "Everybody Loves Me, Babe" and "Babylon". In the case of the former, it's like, after falling as hard in love with the sparseness as I did, it was a bit of an adjustment to suddenly run into another full band track. I **did** enjoy the lyrics poking at the power dynamics of kings and emperors and all that. As for the latter, meanwhile... Yeah, I gotta agree with a group buddy: it is no closer like "The Grave" shoulda been. Could you imagine this album ending with **that**? What a whopper of an emotional hit **that** woulda been? Instead of, like... I'unno? This short-ass thing with lyrics based on this one Bible verse or something? I can understand wanting to end the album on a lighter note than "The Grave", but seriously, it woulda been **phenomenal**, and shame on 'em for chickening out of that. But other than that (really just the one being kinda misplaced), yeah, no, yeah, it's a great record. Obviously, nothing on here is as iconic as "American Pie", but damn if almost the entire rest of it don't stack up pretty close — especially "Vincent". If I recommend any one cut off of this album, check out "Vincent"; it's the other single and it might be the prettiest song here? But you be the judge of that. As for me right now, all I can do is give this album a big "American-flag painted" thumbs up. (Is that what it looks like when you stick your thumb into an American pie? Like some ultra patriotic Jack Horner? Hm. I'll be.)

Asides from the title track-shaped elephant in the room, this is some pretty nice folk. 4.5 bumped up to 5.

I’m at a 5. Honestly, I’m a bit higher, though not quite at a 10. Well, I’m very glad this isn’t just American Pie & then 28 minutes of tracks that also happen to be there. It’s American Pie and roughly 26 minutes of tracks that stand close enough to the shoulders of the giant that is the title track, keeping things entertaining & keeping the album at a consistently strong quality. My apologies to “Babylon”, it just feels sort of flat as the ending, especially when it could’ve closed perfectly on “The Grave”. I’m really learning that 70s singer-songwriters are more my speed; gone is the verbosity & overt flowery language of the man that Don McLean calls a jester on this album, and in comes a group of artists inspired by the pacing & pop sensibilities of the Beatles & Elvis, while still channeling a lot of the sobering emotions that an artist like Bob Dylan brought out of these guys. It is a much nicer blend to my ears, and one that’s perhaps best personified by “American Pie”, which stands as an all-timer for a reason. I don’t think I need to use any extra words on it, because it’s that good. How about the rest of them, then? “Till Tomorrow” is very James Taylor-y, and it just clicked really nicely for me, as a guitar-driven earnest ballad on love slipping away. “Vincent” is the other monster hit here, & it’s a brilliantly performed tribute to Vincent van Gogh. I’ve never heard it until today, but I deeply enjoyed it. “Crossroads” & “Winterwood” both tackle love as it relates to religion & reconnecting with it, but they’re written in such a way where you can see it as just a passionate love being a cure. I liked them both. I think “Empty Chairs” is just beautiful. Simple as that, really. “Everybody Loves Me, Baby” is a pretty fun track about power dynamics & deconstructing the stature of emperors, kings, pharaohs, or any other imperialistic figures. I especially appreciate the way he sort of bites the structure of “American Pie” on it, just to be a bit meta. “Sister Fatima” is fine; I wish it were a bit more clear about the scammy nature of exploitative people in religion, but the sarcasm comes through well enough. “The Grave” is a fantastic track that honestly should’ve closed the album; it’s a very clear statement against the Vietnam War, and the imagery present between the muddy shithole this soldier died in & the idealistic grave his family makes for him at the end acts as a sobering image, and it would’ve been perfect to end on. I don’t want to hate on “Babylon” that much, but it just feels like more of a transition track that should’ve been put between “Winterwood” & “Empty Chairs”, as opposed to an epilogue piece to “The Grave” and the overarching themes of “American Pie”. It’s a fine track, not bad at all, and it has a place somewhere in the album. It just shouldn’t have ended the entire thing, though I get the feeling ending on something religious was important to Don McLean. Regardless, it’s a great, great album. A little emphasis towards the lyrics is needed here, since it is kind of just guitar-driven singer-songwriter stuff otherwise, but they’re all really well-written. It clicked wonderfully for me, and I’m glad the full album is on the list. It’s a very easy 5; a bit higher, really.

Muy chulo umas baladas preciosas

In 1971, There was American Pie. It was everywhere - Radio, TV, Boy Scout Camp Singalong. That song was unavoidable. At eight and a half minutes, it was exceedingly long for top 100 radio of the day, yet there it was. Every day and everywhere. It never really stopped either. The song became an instant cultural icon. You can still hear it on the radio today and I have heard high school students singing it. The funny thing is, it's not that great of a song. It has weird tempo changeups and is easily too long. The lyrics are as obscure now as they were then. Supposedly about Buddy Holly's death, even people who were teens in the 1950s, people like my parents, didn't get it. And yet, here we are; It's still around. The thing is, American Pie is the outlier on the album. Everything else, including his follow up single Vincent, are typical early 70s singer-songwriter music - drippy, overwrought, and musically simple. It's the kind of thing that made even a 9-year-old wretch then... and now. But that song! It endures.

Not good. So old. Didn’t pull much from it

Banging title track

Other than a couple of classic songs….it’s an ok album. Very much of it’s time. More mellow than I had anticipated. Still a classic.

American Pie

Title track gets it to a 4 but the rest is just ok

Any goodwill earned with American pie was lost with the g slur. 1 star

A bit repetitive, but very good

American Pie (the much shortened radio version) was known by everyone and most people knew all the lyrics. The album was no where near as popular, Marc had it on vinyl and we would listen to Side A on occasion to hear Am Pie and Vincent. We listened to the B Side just a couple of times. I’d forgotten how sad but good this album is. 1001 Must Hear List worthy because of the mega hit, the cover art, and folk music wasn’t dead yet. The generation lost in space rates it at (3.4*s)

Here's a slice of Americana (Pie). Donny is really only known for the title track but it's a good one. Gotta hear it every 4th of July or you just ain't a patriot. Even if Weird Al made a better parody, it gets this album on the list. The rest of the songs are lackluster in my opinion. McLean is a poet and is a solid lyrical storyteller but I'm dozing off. Won't revisiting this record but will play the hit annually...1.35 stars.

American Pie is such an iconic song that it is reason enough to put this album on the list. I was pleased to hear that the remainder of the album ain't bad either though. Vincent is a solid second entry, and I enjoyed a couple others including the more upbeat Everybody Loves Me, Baby. Don McLean has a certain charm to his vocals that he is able to elevate even the most basic of tunes up a notch. I figured I'd get through the song American Pie and then tune out for the remainder of the album but it was solid enough to keep me interested for 36 minutes. 2.54 stars

Good folk album with the amazing highs of american pie and vincent

Dit vind ik wel een leuk album. Het begint natuurlijk met de bekende hit, maar ook de rest is best leuk om te luisteren, maar misschien wel wat rustig voor mij.

Some brilliance, some boring.

3/5 can't hate American Pie but a lot of the album is a little generic

Very good album, perfect for easy morning

Pleasant, like a late summer lazy afternoon. Two tracks particularly chimed with me - American Pie and Vincent, very tender and delicate.

Not good. Boring. Sounds like open night mic at the local dive bar...

Title song is alright - played way too much. Wish other songs would get more attention... give it a try.

The literal bridge between old, folk, and modern rock. He even wrote a song about the history of the genre. Everyone's familiar with American Pie, but the rest of the album gets lost which is a shame. It's a great folk, singer-songwriter focused record. 4/5

He's like a serious meatloaf

Sing-along for the ages. 3.4.

I appreciate this album is 36 minutes long and the 1st song takes up 8 minutes. Iconic opener. Vincent is beautiful. Personal enjoyment: 4/5 Relevance to this list: 5/5

I read many negative reviews, but I found this album sweet and mellow, it felt like a caress

One great song on a sub par album

Overplayed, overcooked, and overwrought, but damn if the title track still isn’t a great tune. In fact there’s a few great songs here, and a lot that’s trying (sometimes literally) to match those songs in quality. It’s eerie to hear how similar McLean’s voice is to Will Oldham; he’s only half the songwriter though. Still, when he’s on, he’s on, and songs like “Vincent”, “Winterwood” and “The Grave” stand apart a bit from the rest.

title track & vincent are really awesome but it does get a little samey in the back half

Iconic and meaningful folk/country. Important.

Instant positive of this album is it gave us one of the greatest Weird Al songs of all time, The Saga Begins. I would honestly put it above American Pie as a song, firstly because it shaves off 3 or so minutes, but also it is about the best Star Wars film, The Phantom Menace. So yeah big ups Mr McLean for that.

 Nah but this is a class album, I had never heard it before but was very pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. While American Pie itself is a classic song, I really enjoyed the more sparse arrangements of songs like Till Tomorrow and Empty Chairs. The album did feel like it lost a bit of steam in the latter half but no major complaints here. Good album Don. Favourites - American Pie, Till Tomorrow, Winterwood, Empty Chairs

The cheek of starting an album with an all time classic about ‘the day the music died’ and subsequently filling the rest of the album with some of the most uninspired, tired folk songs ever committed to record. Also, does Dimery understand the concept of an all time great album? Starting to question if he does or if he just kind of went ‘oh yeah, American Pie’s a good song, slap the album on there!’ The album’s fine I guess. American Pie IS a banger though. Weird Al’s version might be better. American Pie (10/10) Till Tomorrow (7/10) Vincent (7/10) Crossroads (5/10) Winterwood (6/10) Empty Chairs (6/10) Everybody Loves Me, Baby (6/10) Sister Fatima (4/10) The Grave (5/10) Babylon (7/10) 6.2/10

The fun novelty song "American Pie" dominates most of this record, and is nothing like the rest of it - a bunch of 70s era California folk singer-songwriter stuff in the vein, if not the quality, of Jackson Browne. Few of the tunes are all that memorable, and they can run together with a certain mopey sameness. It makes for an erratic listening experience, and not a particularly great album.

love don, classic oldies album that is peaceful and sad

Beyond the all time great title track, there’s a nice little album here. Would be a 3, but American Pie brings the whole thing up.

I like the first three songs, but the rest was kind of boring.

Doesn't stand the test of time. This is the guy who brings the acoustic guitar to the party and instead of playing songs everyone can sing along with, he wants to play you some of his "originals", totally killing the vibe.

Kinda boring. Never been a big fan of American Pie and it was by far the highlight of the album.

Ok so here's the thing - I hate the title track for this album, always have. I think I may be the only one in the whole world that does. I mean everyone has heard that song so many times. And I think it is objectively a really well written song, I just can't stand it. But, I don't think I've ever heard the rest of this album, I could just never get past the first song and I don't think I ever gave the rest of the album a chance. So we'll see how this goes... Ok so about halfway through and it's kind of putting me to sleep. It's all just so soft and sappy. The lyrics are pretty great, the guy could definitely write a good song but pick it up a little Don. Should this album be on the list? Absolutely, just for the first song being such an iconic staple of pop culture. Will I ever listen to it again? Absolutely not. 2/5

You know, the title song really feels like it goes on for 12+ minutes. It’s well worth my time so I don’t really care. That was just a thought I had that I needed to express. I have just realized that Don McLean is the male Joni Mitchell. That’s a problem for me. It’s whiney hippy angled music. I love me some acoustic guitar and a single vocal. This album though, I feel like it falls flat on its face as soon as the final note of the title track is complete. Woah, bravo Don. I hear “Everybody Loves me Baby” come on and it really brought like to a dull album. I’m willing to bet the tempo goes lame again. Oh ya, I was right. Thoroughly disappointed with this one. Choice cut: American Pie

I kinda slept on this album ngl, I enjoyed it. Sad that yet again, controversy surrounding the artist hinders it slightly. Highlights: Empty Chairs, Vincent and American Pie is iconic let's be real.

Loved Vincent, it was so beautiful. American pie is a certified banger of course. Rest of the album was fine. Might like it more with a couple more listens. Favourites: Vincent, American Pie

A solid album, I do think American Pie should come later in the album Fave songs - American Pie, Vincent

Great voice. There's something about the way this was recorded that really feels like it captures everything in the recording. There's an easiness of listening to that a lot of albums don't find. This one gets flack for having a couple of songs people focus on but it has strengths throughout.

I have this one on vinyl. It's an album. A cohesive collection of songs. As a bonus for this it's a quick listen. I did one full listen and skipped the first track on 2 more listens. Easy listen, a great song writer. As a whole it is a nice calm listen, but the individual parts don't stick with me.

I SO wanted to give this two stars, but dammit, Vincent.

I enjoyed that more than i thought

Its been a minute, but American Pie and Vincent are all time classics

Bops

Some phenomenal highs; but is mostly forgettable albeit enjoyable folk. Probably a victim of overstated importance.

Dated. But still beautiful.

Two of the greatest songs ever but the rest of the album is also very good.

Very solid album.

This album is most famous for the very long song "American Pie." That song has been played so much, it's hard to enjoy it anymore. While there are other songs on the album, none of them stand out much. Overall, it's not a bad album, but it's not great either.

Incredible record, all songs sound great, have deep and recognizable lyrics, catchy and legendary. No complaints, but a good surprise that I will keep listening to.

Listening to this the week the music died. Not my thing but 3 ⭐️ regardless

"American Pie" gets this to five stars right off the bat. "Do you believe in rock n' roll? Can music save your mortal soul? And can you teach me how to dance, realllll slow" Does the rest of the album live up to that song? No. But it's greatness on its own gets it the 5 star rating. I liked "Everybody Loves Me, Baby" and "Empty Chairs".

Un folk rock bello, non essendo americano non mi coglie cotanto ma non è male.

Afar hugljúft hjá afa Don. Hittararnir eru legendary en hitt er bara óþekkt held ég. Fannst það allt í lagi samt.

Fínt bara. Smellirnir 2 frábærir og hitt ósköp hugljúft.

naslovna je pjesma dobra, a ostatak je zaboravljiv

One hit wonder with some genuinely nice lullabyesque songs that follow it. 7/10