Musical Artist - McLean, Don

Don McLean is an American singer and songwriter best known for his 1971 epic American Pie, a musical commemoration of the 1959 airplane crash that killed early rock icons Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and the Big Bopper. In addition to American Pie, Mclean had success with several other songs including Vincent, Castles in the Air, Wonderful Baby, Superman's Ghost, and a cover version of Crying. McLean also recorded the opening them for the 1982 animated movie Flight of the Dragons.

In addition to his success as a recording artist, McLean has had a substantial career as a songwriter. He wrote the song And I Love You So, which was recorded by Elvis Presley, Helen Reddy, Shirley Bassey, Glen Campbell, Engelbert Humperdinck, Howard Keel, Claude François, Perry Como. Fellow songwriter Lori Lieberman asserts that McLean wrote the Roberta Flack hit Killing Me Softly, with a rather convoluted trail of events leading from McLean to the eventual creation of the song. Although Lieberman's account has been contested, contemporaneous records seem to support her claims.

Over the course of his career, McLean has recorded and released more than twenty albums. He has been inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. American Pie has been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and designated as an aural treasure by the Library of Congress, and deemed worthy of preservation in the National Recording Registry.

McLean has an official website named Don McLean. He can also be found on Twitter and Facebook.

Musical Monday Selections:

08/27/18: Crying

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