Grammy-winning Songwriters Hall of Fame member Don McLean celebrates the 50th anniversary of his global hit “American Pie” reaching #1 on the Billboard chart, where it stayed for four weeks! To commemorate the anniversary, McLean has coined his international 50th Anniversary “American Pie” World Tour which will visit multiple destinations in N. America, UK/Europe, and Australia!
American Songwriter discusses the oft-debated meaning of “American Pie” here. And CBS News Radio’s Steve Futterman caught up with McLean recently and shared this story with their listeners.
“I was writing songs and started singing ‘A long, long time ago’ right through ‘til the day the music died… I can still remember how that music used to make me smile…’ on and on right that day – just that whole thing right into the tape recorder. And I said, ‘Man, what is that?? That is so neat.’ I realized I’d captured the thing about Buddy and his death that I’d been feeling all those years in that one piece of music. Then I waited about three months and I figured out what I was gonna do and just wrote the whole thing in about an hour…,” said McLean.
McLean kicks off his international tour next Friday, January 28 at the Blue Note in Hawaii, then takes a midwestern swing with a stop at The Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa. “American Pie” was birthed from death – ‘The Day The Music Died’ – coined after the fatal flight when pop/rock legends Buddy Holly (“That’ll Be The Day”, “Peggy Sue”), Ritchie Valens (“La Bamba”), J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson, Jr. (“Chantilly Lace”) tragically lost their lives in an airplane crash after the concert February 3, 1959. McLean will pay tribute to the legendary trio with his sold-out anniversary concert there on February 3, 2022.
50th Anniversary ‘American Pie’ World Tour 2022 North American Dates:
January 28, 2022 – Honolulu, HI – Blue Note Hawaii
January 29, 2022 – Honolulu, HI – Blue Note Hawaii
January 30, 2022 – Honolulu, HI – Blue Note Hawaii
February 3, 2022 – Clear Lake, IA – Surf Ballroom
February 5, 2022 – Grand Forks, ND – Chester Fritz Auditorium
February 11, 2022 – The Villages, FL – Sharon L. Morse Performing Arts Center
February 12, 2022 – Ponte Vedra Beach, FL – Ponte Vedra Concert Hall
February 14, 2022 – Port Canaveral, FL – Rock Legends Cruise
February 15, 2022 – Port Canaveral, FL – Rock Legends Cruise
February 16, 2022 – Port Canaveral, FL – Rock Legends Cruise
February 17, 2022 – Port Canaveral, FL – Rock Legends Cruise
February 18, 2022 – Port Canaveral, FL – Rock Legends Cruise
February 19, 2022 – Clearwater, FL – Bilheimer Capitol Theatre
February 24, 2022 – Tucson, AZ – Fox Tucson Theatre
April 29, 2022 – Kansas City, MO – Uptown Theater
May 1, 2022 – Indianapolis, IN – Clowes Memorial Hall
May 7, 2022 – Toronto, Canada – John W H Bassett Theatre
May 12, 2022 – Nashville, TN – Ryman Auditorium
May 13, 2022 – Atlanta, GA – Atlanta Symphony Hall
May 19, 2022 – St. Louis, MO – Blanche M. Touhill Performing Arts Center
May 20, 2022 – Springfield, MO – Gillioz Theatre
June 2, 2022 – Albany, NY – The Egg
June 3, 2022 – Boston, MA – Shubert Theatre
June 4, 2022 – New York, NY – Town Hall
June 11, 2022 – Baltimore, MD – The Lyric
June 12, 2022 – Tysons, VA – Capital One Hall
June 17, 2022 – Grand Rapids, MI – DeVos Performance Hall
June 18, 2022 – Milwaukee, WI – The Pabst Theater
June 24, 2022 – San Antonio, TX – Tobin Center for the Performing Arts
June 25, 2022 – Houston, TX – Cullen Performance Hall
June 26, 2022 – Austin, TX – Paramount Theatre
July 7, 2022 – Denver, CO – Paramount Theatre
July 8, 2022 – Grand Junction, CO – The Avalon Theatre
July 9, 2022 – Phoenix, AZ – Orpheum Theatre
50th Anniversary ‘American Pie’ World Tour 2022 European Dates:
September 11, 2022 – Cardiff, U.K. – St. Davids
September 13, 2022 – Ipswich, U.K. – Ipswich Regent Theatre
September 14, 2022 – Birmingham, U.K. – Symphony Hall
September 16, 2022 – Bath, U.K. – The Forum
September 17, 2022 – Torquay, U.K. – Princess Theatre
September 18, 2022 – Bournemouth, U.K. – Bournemouth Pavilion Theatre
September 20, 2022 – Brighton, U.K. – Brighton Dome Concert Hall
September 21, 2022 – Southend-on-sea, U.K. – Cliffs Pavilion
September 23, 2022 – Manchester, U.K. – Bridgewater Hall
September 24, 2022 – Gateshead, U.K. – Sage Gateshead
September 25, 2022 – Glasgow, U.K. – The Glasgow Royal Concert Hall
September 27, 2022 – Edinburgh, U.K. – Usher Hall
September 28, 2022 – York, U.K. – York Barbican
September 30, 2022 – Leicester, U.K. – De Montfort Hall
October 1, 2022 – Sheffield, U.K. – City Hall
October 2, 2022 – Liverpool, U.K. – Liverpool Philharmonic Hall
October 4, 2022 – London, U.K. – London Palladium
October 7, 2022 – Dublin, Ireland – 3Arena
October 9, 2022 – Nijmegen, Netherlands – Concertgebouw de Vereeniging
October 10, 2022 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Koninklijk Theater Carré
October 14, 2022 – Bergen, Norway – Peer Gynt Salen
October 15, 2022 – Stavanger, Norway – Stavanger Kuppelhallen
October 16, 2022 – Oslo, Norway – Sentrum Scene
October 18, 2022 – Göteborg, Sweden – Lorensbergsteatern
October 20, 2022 – Turku, Finland – Logomo
October 21, 2022 – Helsinki, Finland – Kulttuuritalo
October 23, 2022 – Stockholm, Sweden – Göta Lejon
October 24, 2022 – Malmö, Sweden – Palladium
October 25, 2022 – Greve, Denmark – Portalen
October 27, 2022 – Hamburg, Germany – Fabrik
October 28, 2022 – Neuruppin, Germany – Kulturkirche
October 29, 2022 – Berlin, Germany – Admiralspalast
November 1, 2022 – Antwerp, Belgium – De Singel
November 11, 2022 – Munich, Germany – Prinzregententheater
November 13, 2022 – Linz, Austria – Posthof
For tickets and more information, visit donmclean.com.
About Don McLean:
Don McLean is a Grammy award honoree, a Songwriter Hall of Fame member, a BBC Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, and his smash hit “American Pie” resides in the Library of Congress National Recording Registry and was named a top 5 song of the 20th Century by the Recording Industry of America (RIAA). A New York native, Don McLean is one of the most revered and respected songwriters in American history. After paying his dues in the New York club scene in the late ‘60s, he went on to score mega-hits like “Vincent (Starry, Starry Night),” “Castles in the Air” and many more. His catalog of songs has been recorded by Madonna, Garth Brooks, Josh Groban, Drake, “Weird Al” Yankovic, and countless others. In 2015, McLean’s handwritten manuscript of the lyrics to “American Pie” was auctioned by Christies, selling for just over $1.2 Million. 2019 honored Don with a star on the Las Vegas Walkway of Stars and his song “And I Love You So” was the theme for Prince Harry and Megan Markle’s wedding. Don landed a new recording contract with Time Life in 2020, with whom he released a catalog of recordings as well as a new album ‘Still Playin’ Favorites’. 2021 brought Don’s “American Pie” features in the Avengers’ Black Widow and the new Tom Hanks movie Finch. Don received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, celebrated the 50th anniversary of “American Pie,” recorded a version of the song with a cappella group Home Free, a children’s book has been written, and much more! And when you think things are slowing down, not so for Don McLean!
