What are Good Old Boys in the context of American Pie (song)

Hi, sorry this is another 'lyric translation' query, this time for a very popular radio song in Britain, American Pie.

There's actually a wiki article on this, but I'm still none the wiser. So I'm going to ask you guys

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_ol'_boy

Aparently the phrase can be positive or negative depending on context. So who are the 'good old boys' drinking whiskey and rye in Don's song?

Don McLean is still among the living. Perhaps someone can ping his talent agency and ask?

Starry, Starry Night is, IMO, the most lyrically well-constructed song ever written.
Not a note, a breath, a syllable wasted.

"Good ol' boys" drinking whiskey and rye...a good group of fellows you might encounter at your local watering hole. Generally a positive reference, I think, unless they over-indulge.

The "good ol' boy" network in small towns is what I call the movers and shakers. Based on familial connections and longevity in the community (preferably generations), they can be rather hide-bound, resistant to new ideas and change. In this light, it's a negative. Towns that have too strong of a "good ol' boy" network can experience considerable "brain drain" IMO.

http://understandingamericanpie.com/chorus.htm

"Good Old Boys" in a general context means a group of people, usually males, who have each other's backs and generally look out for each other to the exclusion of letting outsiders in. This may refer to the suits of those long ago music labels.

I always felt that part of the chorus was more of an ode to old Irish folk songs.

On the other hand it might be a reference to how the most popular music of the day was being made by southerners, who were not always viewed by the north as sophisticated. Until they started singing.

But it might be a reference to Buddy Holly's "That'll Be The Day."

DavidEduardo said:

The music business was very entrepreneurial in the first decade or so of the rock and roll era. Lots of labels sprung, Barry Gordy, Ahmet Ertegun, Herb Alpert and Sam Phillips fashion, from local studios and promoters. Most of the management was down-to-earth and hardly "suits".

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It all depends upon what the song's author thought of them.

FreddyE1977 said:

Starry, Starry Night is, IMO, the most lyrically well-constructed song ever written.
Not a note, a breath, a syllable wasted.

Click to expand...

Those are the opening lines but I think that song is called 'Vincent'. It was his biggest UK hit,actually, "American Pie" stalled at number two on this side of the pond.

Two great records, both still sounding good on the radio.