LEWISTON — Don McLean’s not ready to say “bye, bye.”

However, the singer-songwriter best known for the folk anthem “American Pie” said he is considering retirement.

“I’ll be 70 in about four years,” McLean said in a phone interview this week while touring in California. “People, if they are interested in seeing me, should really get out and do it.”

Their chance is coming next week.

On Friday, April 13, McLean will kick off the Lewiston Auburn Film Festival with a concert at the Franco-American Heritage Center.

What should audiences expect?

“They should be looking for a hell of a good time, which is what they’re going to have,” said McLean, who is bringing with him a four-piece band of Nashville musicians. “The band sounds large because the musicians are so good.”

And they all have been busy.

Though he lives in the Camden area with his wife, Patrisha, McLean has 35 concerts scheduled to take him across the United States, Canada and Europe this year. Among the planned stops is a show at London’s Royal Albert Hall.

It’s a pace that can be tough to keep up.

“I really don’t know how long I’m going to be doing what I’m doing,” he said. “It’s been 44 years I’ve been traveling. I haven’t needed to work for many years. I like singing for people. You just never know when you get up in years whether or not something’s going to happen.

“You might not be able to sing as well or whatever,” he said.

That would seem unlikely for the guy who released the album, American Pie, in 1971. It had the hit “Vincent,” known by fans as “Starry, Starry Night” and the ubiquitous title track. The song “American Pie” spawned numerous covers, including a hit by Madonna, inspired ‘Wierd Al Yankovic’s silly “American Jedi” and became the namesake for a series of movie comedies.

“I’m for all of that stuff, because it shows that the song is becoming a folk song,” he said. “It’s become a part of folklore, and that’s a thrill.”

Does he know why the song is so popular?

“I have no idea,” he said. “It’s like The Beatles. That song was always huge, and it’s still huge.”

And after all these years, it’s still fun to sing.

“I just get a big kick out of the audience enjoying it,” McLean said. “I wish I had five more like it because the audience likes it so much.”

One certain fan who will be watching carefully at the Franco Center will be Josh Shea, the film festival’s director. He figures he has 100 or so tickets left for the concert at $50 and $60 each.

“There are a lot of good seats left,” Shea said.

McLean would be the biggest name yet to play the Franco Center.

“He is a music icon,” Shea said. “It blows me away that we’re doing this.”

McLean said he has made a point of performing few shows in Maine. The New Rochelle, N.Y., native settled decades ago and tried to keep a low profile.

“I really haven’t wanted to draw attention to myself at all in Maine because this is where we live,” he said. “But this nice thing came through in Lewiston.”

The singer is currently the subject of a wave of retrospectives. A recent PBS film titled “American Troubadour” has been released on DVD. The documentary is accompanied by a new, two-disk compilation of his hits and a glossy coffee-table book.

McLean clearly enjoys the attention. He also continues to enjoy performing.

“When it comes down to it, I want the audience to be exhilarated and have a good time,” he said.

So far, his voice remains strong, still reaching the high notes of hits like “Cryin'” and “Castles in the Air.”

“I still sing everything in the same key,” he said. “I guess it does all right.”

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