I believe that in an Interview when he was asked what "
American Pie" meant
Don McLean replied:
"It means I never have to work again if I don't want to."
On a less flippant note there are various additional interpretations I have heard.
- The quartet practiced in the park - has been suggested as referring to the Beatles' last concert in Candlestick Park (after which their music died).
- While Sergeants played a marching tune - There was a very successful record "The Ballad of the Green Berets" that was sung by Staff Sgt. Barry Sadler (released I believe in 1966) which this might refer to.