The tragic death of Tom Petty took me back to last year, a year that could also be described as, “The Year the Music Died.” We lost sixteen great musicians, a loss that will be felt for a long time to come.
In 1971 Don Mclean wrote the pop classic, American Pie, it contained the line “the day the music died”. He was referring to the deaths of Buddy Holly, Richy Valens and J.P. “Big Bopper” Richardson in a plane crash on the 3rd of February 1959. Tom Alsup a guitarist with the group lost a coin toss and gave up his seat to the 17 year old Richie Valens. A coin toss that saved his life.
Don McLean
Image Source
Don Mclean recalls that he was delivering newspapers at the time of the crash and refers to it in his lyrics as, "February made me shiver/with every paper I'd deliver." It was Don’s way of dealing with the death of his idol, Buddy Holly.
It was the end of an era, a loss of innocence and the transition to the music scene of the sixties. I think there are as many interpretations as there are words in the lyrics. The immortal jester refers to Bob Dylan (“In a coat he borrowed from James Dean”) wearing a coat on the cover of a “Freewheelin Bob Dylan.
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By Rowland Scherman - U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Public Domain
The king is Elvis who is being replaced by Bob Dylan and taking his title away. Charles Manson “Helter Skelter” draws attention to the horrific murders carried by Charles Manson’s “family” bringing an end to the hippie era.
There are references to the Beatles with, “While sergeants played a marching tune” a reference to Sergeant Peppers. Numerous religious phrases crop up throughout the lyrics but one of the most significant themes is the reference to the concert at Altamont (The Altamont Free Festival) Where the Rolling Stones performed. In what is possibly one of the worst decisions they made, they enlisted the help of the Hell’s Angels to provide security at the concert, a really bad idea. The Stones were the final act and were preceded by Santana, Jefferson Airplane, The Flying Burrito Brothers, and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. The crowd went wild with the Hell’s Angels causing much of the mayhem. Meredith Hunter was fatally stabbed, scores were injured and cars were stolen.
Image Source
Von Lee Brimelow from San Francisco Bay Area, USA - Hells Angels, CC BY 2.0
Don Mclean illuminates the chaos with poignant lyrics:
Oh, and there we were all in one place
A generation lost in space
With no time left to start again
So come on Jack be nimble, Jack be quick
Jack Flash sat on a candlestick
'Cause fire is the devil's only friend
Oh and as I watched him on the stage
My hands were clenched in fists of rage
No angel born in Hell
Could break that Satan's spell
And as the flames climbed high into the night
To light the sacrificial rite
I saw Satan laughing with delight
The day the music died
This really was the end of an era, music would never be the same again.
As I said before, last year was a bad year for music. I know that life must go on but it seems that many of the older artists are not being replaced by others of equal talent. Rap offers us lyrics but the power of the golden era (my words) has been lost. Perhaps we will see a new impetus in modern music in time to come but sadly the artists we have lost are gone forever.
Another music related post.
https://steemit.com/music/@petruska13/tom-petty-a-cultural-icon-sadly-passed-away-aged-66