DON MCLEAN, the singer-songwriter whose 'American Pie', 'Vincent', and 'And I Love You So' are standards in the great songbook, not just of America, but of the world, returns to Galway in June.
In a career spanning almost 50 years, Don McLean has enjoyed more than 40 gold and platinum records worldwide, among them three of his best known LPs - Tapestry (1970 ), American Pie (1971 ), and Don McLean (1972 ), the last cited by REM's Mike Mills as his all time favourite album.
His great song, ‘Vincent’ is played daily at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam and a copy of the sheet music is buried with Van Gogh artefacts in a time capsule. Indeed from his best known songs, he also holds five trademarks - ‘American Pie’, ‘Starry Starry Night’, ‘The Day The Music Died’, ‘Bye Bye Miss American Pie’, and ‘Don McLean’. His song ‘Babylon’ became the theme song for the German Green Party. McLean is also an excellent interpreter of others material, and his version of Percy French's ‘The Mountains of Mourne’ is among the best ever recorded, reaching to No 1 in Ireland in 1973.
As well as music, McLean is a noted charity worker. The Don McLean Foundation sends disadvantaged people to college through the New York Times College Fund and contributes to homeless shelters and food banks in Maine.
He also enjoys a stellar reputation as a live performer. “A concert of well-worn rock’n’roll and acoustic folk that placed the singer-songwriter somewhere between entertainer and poetic maverick” (The Times ); “The singer’s easy wit and arch anecdotes provided enough colour and context to carry the evening" (The Daily Telegraph ); "It turns into a sing-song marathon, and one chap is escorted away after simulating the act of prayer at the singer’s feet." (The Guardian ).
Don McLean plays a 'Róisín Dubh presents...' concert in Leisureland, Salthill on Friday June 8 and Saturday 9. Tickets are on sale from www.roisindubh.net, the Ticket Desk at OMG Zhivago, Shop Street, and The Róisín Dubh.
