Don McLean

Donald McLean III (/məˈkleɪn/; born October 2, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. Known as the "American Troubadour" or "King of the Trail", he is best known for his 1971 hit "American Pie", an eight-and-a-half-minute folk rock song that has been referred to as a "cultural touchstone". His other hit singles include "Vincent", "Dreidel", "Castles in the Air", and "Wonderful Baby", as well as renditions of Roy Orbison's "Crying" and the Skyliners' "Since I Don't Have You".

McLean's song "And I Love You So" has been recorded by Elvis Presley, Perry Como, Helen Reddy, Glen Campbell, and others. In 2000, Madonna had a hit with a rendition of "American Pie". In 2004, McLean was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In January 2018, BMI certified that "American Pie" had reached five million airplays and "Vincent" three million. Though most of McLean's music is in the folk rock genre, he has experimented with easy listening, country, and other genres as well.

McLean's grandfather and father, both also named Donald McLean, were of Scottish origin. McLean's mother, Elizabeth Bucci, was of Italian origin; her parents originated from Abruzzo in central Italy. McLean grew up in New Rochelle, New York, where he delivered newspapers as a boy.

Though some of his early musical influences included Frank Sinatra and Buddy Holly, as a teenager, McLean became interested in folk music, particularly the Weavers' 1955 recording The Weavers at Carnegie Hall. He often missed long periods of school because of childhood asthma, and although McLean slipped in his studies, his love of music was allowed to flourish. By age 16, he had bought his first guitar and began making contacts in the music business, becoming friends with the folk singers Erik Darling and Fred Hellerman of the Weavers. Hellerman said, "He called me one day and said, 'I'd like to come and visit you', and that's what he did! We became good friends – he has the most remarkable music memory of anyone I've ever known."

When McLean was 15, his father died. Fulfilling his father's request, McLean graduated from Iona Preparatory School in 1963, and briefly attended Villanova University, dropping out after four months. After leaving Villanova, McLean became associated with folk music agent Harold Leventhal for several months before teaming up with his personal manager, Herb Gart. For the next six years, he performed at venues and events including The Bitter End and the Gaslight Cafe in New York, the Newport Folk Festival, the Cellar Door in Washington, D.C., and the Troubadour in Los Angeles. Gart's 18-year tenure as McLean's manager ended acrimoniously in the 1980s. Following Gart's death in September 2018, McLean wrote:

I feel it is important to note that Herb did many good things for me in the beginning but could not deal with my success, as odd as that may sound.

In about 1982 Herb told me his associate Walter Hofer who ran Copyright Service Bureau (a collection business for song publishers) had stolen $90,000 from my account but had "put it back". This was a cover story and a lie. Furthermore the amount turned out to be more like $200,000 and because Gart was now complicit in this crime I fired him. He sued me but settled for a small amount and was never heard from again. There is so much of this in my business and artists usually sweep it under the rug but I don't.

I want people to know the truth about my journey.