When pressed for an interpretation of his own lyrics, Don McLean will often name drop Buddy Holly and then make vague references to Americana while outright refusing any specificity. Most people believe the song is a cache of references to (then) current events and other musical acts (some of whom are not even American) of the era. In trying to pinpoint exactly what this obese musical monstrosity is getting at everyone seems to miss the point, which is that there probably is no point. This is just incredibly terrible poetry set to sugar free vanilla soft rock. A long, long time ago I can still remember how that music Used to make me smile And I knew if I had my chance That I could make those people dance And maybe they'd be happy for a while A cataclysm of mixed up usage of past and present tense, which is every editor's nightmare. Obviously no editor ever touched these lyrics, or they could not possibly exist in this form. Is he remembering that he was remembering a long, lo