DON MCLEAN - AND I LOVE YOU SO

AND I LOVE YOU SO

DON MCLEAN

SONGWRITER: DAN MCLEAN

COUNTRY: U. S. A.

ÁLBUM: TAPESTRY

LABEL: MEDIARTS RECORDS

GENRE: FOLK

YEAR: 1970

 

       Donald McLean III (born October 2, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter, best known for his 1971 hit song "American Pie", an 8.5-minute folk rock "cultural touchstone" about the loss of innocence of the early rock and roll generation.

          His other hit singles include "Vincent", "Dreidel", a rendition of Roy Orbison's "Crying", a rendition of the Skyliners' "Since I Don't Have You", and "Wonderful Baby".

           His composition "And I Love You So" has been sung by Elvis Presley, Perry Como, Helen Reddy, Glen Campbell, and others, and in 2000, Madonna had a hit with a rendition of "American Pie".

         In 2004, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In January 2018, BMI certified that "American Pie" and "Vincent" had reached five million and three million airplays respectively.

         "And I Love You So" is a popular song written by folk singer and guitarist Don McLean and released on his 1970 debut album, Tapestry. Its chorus features an unusual rhyming scheme for a popular song: A-B-B-A versus the usual A-B-C (or A)-B

          Tapestry is the debut studio album by American folk singer Don McLean. The album was originally released by Mediarts Records but was re-launched in 1971 by United Artists after United Artists' purchase of Mediarts. The album was also reissued in 1981 on Liberty Records, but without including the song "Three Flights Up".

        The title track "Tapestry" was an inspiration for the formation of the Greenpeace environmental movement. "And I Love You So" is one of McLean's most recorded songs, with versions by artists ranging from Elvis Presley in the 1970s and to Glen Campbell nearly 30 years later. Perry Como had a huge international hit with the song in 1973.

        The album was produced by Jerry Corbitt of the Youngbloods.

And I love you so,

The people ask me how,

How I've lived 'till now

I tell them I don't know

 

I guess they understand

How lonely life has been

But life began again

The day you took my hand

 

And yes I know how lonely life can be

The shadows follow me

And the night won't set me free

But I don't let the evening get me down

Now that you're around me

 

And you love me too

Your thoughts are just for me

You set my spirit free

I'm happy that you do

 

The book of life is brief

And once a page is read

All but love is dead

This is my belief

 

And yes I know how loveless life can be

The shadows follow me

And the night won't set me free

But I don't let the evening bring me down

Now that you're around me

 

And I love you so

People ask me how

How I've lived till now

I tell them I don't know.