The American music icon is on a winter holiday tour
Don McLean is music history personified. As the saying goes, he’s forgotten more about the formation of rock and roll than most scholars will ever learn.
That encyclopedic knowledge and personal affinity was on full display at The Birchmere on Friday night (Dec 13th). McLean gave two deeper cuts from the American Pie album, “Winterwood” and “Crossroads.” The former featured McLean backed only by his pianist.
McLean also featured newer works. “Botanical Gardens” is a groovy blues number from McLean’s 2018 album. “American Boys,” which the multi-hall of famer told me is the “sequel” to his megawatt hit “American Pie,” preceded a cover of the Dwight Yoakam hit “Little Sister.”
A highlight of any Don McLean concert is his rendition of “Crying,” which he penned and was made a hit by Roy Orbison. McLean told the Birchmere crowd it was one of his first international hits. (And yes, the 79-year-old can hit the high notes!)
Showcasing his songwriting history, McLean dug back far for the rocker “Headroom,” one of the faster-paced songs of the evening. Given the unrest overseas, the simple peacetime message in “Jerusalem” was packed full of meaning at this performance.
Towards the end of the evening, McLean offered a few heartwarming Christmas classics. “White Christmas” followed “The Christmas Song,” and the band was featured in “The Christmas Waltz.” He told the crowd he chose them as songs of “peace” that can be a holiday reminder of a less divided America like the one he grew up in.
Of Course, “American Pie” closed the night. A man who grew up admiring the collection of music known as the Great American Songbook has written the song most identified with American culture. And it’s clear that long after McLean steps off the stage for the final time, that song will continue to ingrain itself into the national consciousness.
Notoriously nebulous in its meaning, the tune is strikingly effective in igniting passionate singalongs and unifying in a way that seems to leave McLean permanently satisfied. At least that’s what his beaming smile communicated to the crowd on a starry, starry December night.
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