The 300 year-old snowball that Gizmo purchased online had finally melted and now he was at the bar, showing me a pretty good copy of a painting by Vincent Van Gogh.

“Don McLean was right when he wrote about ‘Vincent’ – ‘The world was never meant for one as beautiful as you,’” Gizmo said.

“I could have that song playing on my B&O turntable in 20 seconds,” I told him and he began singing, at the top of his weary lungs, “Starry, Starry Night ….”

Sometimes, I’ll think of an old song and play it immediately. Why? It’s instant gratification -- and it doesn’t hurt anybody or cost a thing.

Overheard while dancing at a wedding in Roanoke.

A 25 year-old guy said, “Don McLean never did anything besides “Bye, Bye, Miss American Pie.”

We were dancing in groups to, you guessed it, “Bye, Bye, Miss American Pie.”

I’m sure the guy never heard “Vincent” or “Everybody Loves Me, Baby – What’s the Matter With you?” or “Crossroads.”

It’s a case of “What have you done for me lately?” McLean is chastised by some folks for only writing one masterful song and a couple more great tunes … but still not enough. That’s a tough crowd.

I found these Don McLean song lyric samples. Tell me if you think he’s a “one-hit wonder.”

Crossroads
By Don McLean (1972)

You know I've heard about people like me,
But I never made the connection.
They walk one road to set them free
And find they've gone the wrong direction.

But there's no need for turning back
`Cause all roads lead to where I stand.
And I believe I'll walk them all
No matter what I may have planned.

I give the above poem to my students when I assign an essay on Robert Frost’s, “The Road Not Taken.” Here’s another verse from the “American Pie” album.

Yes, and the ocean parts when I walk through,

and the clouds dissolve and the sky turns blue
I'm held in very great value by everyone I meet but you
'cause I've used my talents as I could, I've done some bad,

I've done some good
I did a whole lot better than they thought I would

so, c'mon and treat me like you should!
Because everybody loves me, baby, what's the matter with you?
tell me what did I do to offend you?

Here’s one more McLean sample lyric, from “Vincent”:

Starry, starry night
Portraits hung in empty halls
Frameless heads on nameless walls
With eyes that watch the world and can't forget
Like the strangers that you've met
The ragged men in ragged clothes
A silver thorn on a bloody rose
Lie crushed and broken on the virgin snow

Now I think I know
What you tried to say to me
How you suffered for your sanity
How you tried to set them free
They would not listen they're not listening still
Perhaps they never will

Despite what appears above, I really did hear someone in Roanoke, VA, complain that Don McLean only wrote one good song in his life.

I was upset. (Most of wife’s family was already upset by some of the comments we heard at the wedding so no one really noticed my IED kicking in.)

Finally, my wife pulled me into a side room and brought two fingers to her eyeballs to get me to focus on what she was about to say.

“Forget about it, Donnie,” she whispered. “It’s Roanoke.”

-- Donnie