A A worldwide radio staple, Don McLean’s American Pie cemented itself in listeners’ ears thanks to a melodic journey that tells a story of America and, presumably, a loss of innocence that was shaking the country. during the time of its 1971 release. But what the singer-songwriter was really trying to convey has been the subject of debate for the past half-century, with generations of fans and critics scrutinizing every nuance of its nearly nine-minute run. It’s a discussion that has carried over into the current era, with the song and McLean himself the subject of the new documentary aptly dubbed The day the music died: American Pie.
American Pie isn’t the only song in the vast history of popular music that has been ripped apart word for word like a biblical text. Examined for double or even triple meanings, they are the metaphor-, allusion-, and allegory-heavy hits that rocked the charts and, as a result, took root in the culture.
Taylor Swift – All Too Good
It’s the latest example of a song that’s more layered than an onion, with fans happily pulling each piece apart. The 10-minute version of Taylor Swift’s All Too Well, an epic soliloquy about a relationship gone wrong that later resulted in a short film, sparked an avalanche of arguments with Swift’s legion of fans trying to decipher the song line by line. . Was the song really about the star’s real-life relationship with actor Jake Gyllenhaal? Which lines are fiction and which are reality? And what happened to her infamous red scarf? After all, Swift has built her career by leaving clues, hints, and riddles, both in the form of lyrics and promo, for her rabid Swifties. As a result of the uproar, last fall the song became the longest-running No. 1 hit in Billboard history.
Don McLean – American Pie
“I wanted to write a song about America, but I didn’t want to write a song about America like nobody’s written before,” says Don McLean in the aforementioned documentary, directed by Mark Moormann. McLean did exactly that, although he did not set out to paint a rosy patriotic picture along the lines of George M Cohan. According to the track’s producer, Ed Freeman: “To me, American Pie is a eulogy for a dream that never happened. We witnessed the death of the American dream.”
While the lyrics focus on the tragic February 1959 plane crash that killed early rock stars Buddy Holly, Big Bopper, and Richie Valens, listeners have debated who and what else the song refers to since the early days. 1970s. For starters: no, Janis Joplin was not “the girl who sang the blues” and Elvis was not the “king” that MacLean spoke of. According to Spencer Proffer, producer of the documentary: “Every time you listen, you think of something else.”
Leonard Cohen – Hallelujah
Ironically, the subject of another new documentary in the form of Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, A Journey, A Song, what became Leonard Cohen’s signature theme, has captivated listeners thanks to a seemingly sacred quality that gives the song a deep resonance. It is perhaps no surprise then that Cohen first studied poetry and literature before his towering career in music, with the song’s lyrics reading like a rich novel, complete with references to biblical characters (David and the Lord) and allusions. modern (including tying yourself to a kitchen chair).
It’s all another much-debated musical Rorschach test. Christians who have taken up the song as their own may be surprised to learn that Cohen was actually deeply passionate about his Jewish faith. “The word Hallelujah appears in all religions and beliefs,” explained author Alan Light, who wrote a book about the song. “People take what they need from him and what they want him to be. I think that’s why it’s played everywhere, from weddings to funerals to births.”
Beyoncee – Lemonade
As the world patiently awaits the release of Beyoncé’s seventh studio album, Renaissance, this Friday, one can’t help but recall the conversation and speculation surrounding her fifth. Part confessional therapy session, part reflection on modern culture, politics and racism, 2016’s Lemonade art rocked the world, with listeners going through each of her acclaimed 12 songs, lyric by lyric.
Conceived as an audio-visual album, listeners and critics have dissected it all: from the personal allusions (like the mysterious identity of “Becky with the pretty hair” in Sorry, the woman who was supposedly Jay-Z’s mistress ), to its political and social (with the anthem blowing the minds of countless political pundits and, as a result, the song becoming an instant protest anthem). It’s no wonder Lemonade’s layered totality is still considered the singer’s best.
John Lennon-Imagine
One of the most acclaimed and played songs in music history is also the most misunderstood. Imagine, the most successful single of John Lennon’s solo career, is played at moments of tragedy and triumph and has been discussed and dissected as a patriotic ode and spiritual testament since its release in 1971. Even President Jimmy Carter was so far as to point out once: “You hear John Lennon’s song Imagine used almost equally with the national anthems.”
Carter himself might be surprised to hear that Lennon once described the song in no uncertain terms as, well, downright communist: “’Imagine there was no more religion, no more country, no more politics,’ is virtually the Communist Manifesto, even though I’m not particularly a communist and I don’t belong to any movement,” he once said. That didn’t stop listeners of the last 50 years from taking a microscope to uncover potential meanings or, worse yet, inserting their own. According to Lennon: “The World Church called me once and asked, ‘Can we use the lyrics from Imagine and just change it to ‘Imagine one religion’?” That showed me that they didn’t understand it at all. It would defeat the whole purpose of the song, the whole idea.