McLean gave an interview to a friend of mine years ago. He stated that the song was about the death or Rock’n Roll, and that the Father, Son and Holy Ghost represented Ritchie Valens, Buddy Holly and J. P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson. Looks like something else has been resurrected here.
Yeah, I think Rock-n-Roll came from Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis... But mostly wild-ass black artists. Bo-Diddey, Screamin Jay Hawkins, Fat’s Domino