I’m sure very few of the younger Rolling Stone readers have any idea how big Buddy Holly was for what we call Rock Music. He wrote his own songs, used his real band on recordings, he played a mean electric guitar. He didn’t look like the other stars. He was proudly a southerner (and had a twang in his voice to prove it). If he had lived I bet he would have beaten The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix and Paul Simon to their sound. He was on a path to reach that place.

Buddy Holly was my hero.we were very poor but i managed to scrape up enough money to buy “peggy Sue”. my all time favorite Holly song.

As a 23 year old music fan, I love Buddy Holly and his music! I know there isnt many people my age who like him or even know he was. I’ll make sure to listen to some songs of his and Valens and Bopper come Tuesday!

I was a week shy of ten when Buddy Holly died. Somehow I knew then that something special was gone.
We should all be so lucky to accomplish in our lifetimes a tenth of what Buddy Holly achieved in his short life. For many fans, Buddy still lives. What an artist. Thank you, Mr. Holly. Long live Rock & Roll.

Buddy Holly was the sh*t, people. Singer, songwriter, guitar player, producer, band leader. He did it all. Not good in all categories – great. Huge loss. Love, Mackey

That was truly the day the music died. Buddy, you will always be remembered. Rest in peace, man.

peace and love

“The Music Didn’t Die, cos Buddy Holly lives every time we play Rock & Roll” – Sonny Curtis

Cheers
Pete Carroll & The Crickets Sound Project
http://www.myspace.com/thecri cketssoundproject

Paul McCartney may just show up at the Winter Dance Party Anniversary finale in Clear Lake, IA tomorrow night. He’s been doing PR in the US the last few weeks, owns the BH songs, and took the time to make the “Real” Buddy Holly Story. A 50 year anniversary is special… “I don’t say that it’s true, I’ll just leave that up to you”…

Check your research, guys. The tour poster you reproduced on the contents page is a fake. Per the Buddy/Crickets official site, the only official tour poster was yellow and white.

hey dummies where in the world is srv?…stevie ray vaughn

hey dummies where in the world is srv?…stevie ray vaughn

If Buddy Holly would had been alive & well today we might had been calling him “The King” of Rock & Roll not Elvis. This man influenced & left a bigger impact in Rock history than Elvis. He was more gifted as a singer,songwriter,arranger & producer something that Elvis Presley lacked. By the time of his death in 1959 Buddy Holly was in someways in Elvis’s level & was the genre’s top star since Elvis was in the Army. Nobody knows what would had become of this great artist & musician if he had lived.I think that even 50 years later after his death he still doesn’t get the recognition that Elvis or The Beatles get & that’s just ashamed that he doesn’t.Hail! to the uncrowned “King” Buddy Holly may your music & memory live forever & rest in peace!

Yean Hey !!! What I Think Is Most Amazing Thing About Buddy Holly Is The Fact That If He Didn’t Die We Wouldn’t Of Have Had The Beatles ! Apparently Before He Died He Was Already Experimenting With Sounds And About Laying His Tracks Down With Every Other Kind Of Musical Instrument Out There, Wanting To Put Strings On Couple Of Them Etc. Just Like How The Beatles Ended Up Doing With Their Songs On Albums Like Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt. Pepper. That’s Why After He Had Died They Were Able To Release A Few Songs He Had Left Was Because Buddy Holly Hadn’t Finish With Them Yet ! He Demanded More Tuba ! Just Think What That Would Of Done To Music Scene If He Stuck Around And We Had Electric Ladyland Happen In 1961 ! Rock’n'Roll !!!

When I think of the plane crash….I feel sad,angry and cheated.Three young and talented men who died way before their time.I like Buddy Holly and they are not gone as long as people put their music on and let their memory go back to an innocent time…

Anthony is absolutely right !

First to use Double Tracking (him and Norman Petty), first artist to have records recorded/released in stereo, his string session songs created a new Pop genre for 60’s artists (Adam Faith, Billy Fury), Buddy was making plans to start his own Publishig Co, his own Record Label, His own Pressing Plant, 10 years before The Beatles set up Apple ! he was planning to Produce Ritchie Valens and his new records, he wanted to do a duet album with Ray Charles, he was producing new artists (Waylon Jennings/Lou Giordano), he had planned new songs with a Count Basie feel & arrangments, Buddy was Home Recording (The Apartment Tapes) 40 years before it was the norm for musicians/songwriters !!, Home recording has only caught on in the past 20 years, he was taking acting lessons and was hoping to get into film, he wanted to learn Flamenco Guitar, and no doubt he would have ventured into Film Score. He could play guitar, drums, bas, some piano, mandolin, banjo….He would have been as big and as an innovative a Producer as George Martin, Brian Wilson…

This young fella had just turned 22 !!

Just think of the contributions he could have made to the world of music & film !

Every band today can trace their musical heritage back to Buddy Holly & The Crickets. After they appeared on TV in the UK on Sunday Night at the London Palladium in 1958, guitar sales in the UK rocketed and new bands were formed becuase of their appearance on TV, and those new bands had memebers who went on to become household names in the 60’s (Clapton, Bob Dillan, Jimmy Page, Hendrix, Beatles, Stones, The Hollies, all the 60’s Pop/Rock bands), who in turn influenced a new generation of artists.

22 years old !

I was still trying to figure out who and where I was at, at 22 !!

Pete

Rave On !

The heights he would have reached in music as a writer,producer,performer is staggering, he was truly GREAT

I love Holly, too, and am especially proud of a fellow Texan.

re:double tracking – Les Paul pioneered that a while before Buddy, right?

Words of Love has a very eery feel though.

Bye bye Miss American Pie
Drove my Chevy to the levee
But the levee was dry
Them good ole boys
Were drinking whiskey and rye
Saying this will be the day that I die…

It’s great to see Buddy Holly and his music getting the attention they deserve. Yes, Jungleland2 is right– some younger Rolling Stone readers may not know how important Buddy is to rock ‘n’ roll. That’s why I wrote a new book for teens about him.

To us here in England, Buddy Holly made the impossible possible for everyone. On 2nd March 1958, the world shuddered on its axis, when The Crickets played live on Sunday Night at the London Palladium, a long forgotten British TV programme. Although the performance was just 6 minutes long, it fired up the imaginations of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Mick Jagger (who saw him play in London on tour), Keith Richards, Graham Nash, Allan Clarke, and thousands of others. Although he wasn’t the first rock and roll star to tour England, he was the one who took everybody by storm. Why? Because he looked and sounded like an ordinary guy, one who could have easily been your friend, not some unattainable star. From his first recordings in Clovis to his last ones in New York, he was constantly changing, moving direction as he went; you would not be out of order to say that the West Texas sound of 1957 became the Liverpool sound of 1964. Such an innovator, such a tragedy; in England we have never forgotten him and his contribution to our culture. Not Fade Away? You betcha.

Re- Les Paul

Yeh, Les Paul was experimenting with Multi-tracking and had to record in 1/4 & 1/2 speed – one composition had eight tracks.

Buddy along with Norman Petty’s ingenuity done it live with two tape machines, which require great mixing skills and also bouncing the signal into an echo chamber and back to the final mix, hence the eerie feel/sound to Words of Love. Quite dynamic back then though !

Buddy & Norman were the first really to use it commercially as Artist/Pruducer and influencing other artists.

However, Les had broke the barriers technically, that’s probably where Norman Petty heard about it. Both Les & Norman (& Buddy for being able to grasp it and do it) were innovators in that field.

What a great era !

This may be the only time ever that nary a negative post at all could be found on a thread. Simply put, nothing negative can be said – it was all great!

I am one of the very few people at my age (16) to actually listen to buddy holly. I am able to appriciate his music and all that it has done to rock and roll.

I am one of the very few people at my age (16) to actually listen to buddy holly. I am able to appriciate his music and all that it has done to rock and roll. its good that he is getting the respect he deserves and hopefully more people my age will be able to realize how much he has done for rock and roll

In retrospect, it becomes obvious that a mistake has been made in putting Bruce Springsteen on the front cover. Holly should’ve had this cover. This is the rare time I accept no argument whatsoever from Bruce fans. I think that if Bruce himself had to weigh in on it, he’d say the same thing.

I am especially sad today because I remember 50 years ago today. I’ve been sad every year on February 3 but more today because it’s 50 years.

There is no question that had Buddy Holly lived he would have been more popular than Elvis Presley because, among other things he could write and arrange songs, was a superior musician and had just as much appeal to everyone. Buddy, Ritchie and JP remain deep in my soul to this day!

Cause that’ll be the day when I die
–Buddy Holly

On this day of remembering of Buddy Holly’s magnificent legacy, I’d like to share a little story:

In 1963, a 7-year-old girl from Lubbock, Texas (who later became my wife), wrote a letter to the Rolling Stones. She suggested that they record “Not Fade Away.” The Stones took her up on the suggestion, recording the song in 1964. They even sent her a check for $100 to say ‘Thank you.’ And why would the Rolling Stones give attention to the suggestion from a 7-year-old girl from Lubbock? It may have been because her daddy is Buddy’s older brother, Travis.

i am so glad that there finally getting mentioned, i am a huge buddy holly fan and i named my son buddy, i had the lovely oppertunity to visit, with friends and family in lubbock this thanks giving, we took pictures in front of the statue, then i went to the cemeitary and said a special prayer, all i have to say is this i think buddy holly would have been bigger and more respected then elvis, and please dont ever let his music fade away.

Rave on ! Everyone

thank you for commemorating this occasion. i’ve struggled to find anywhere that’s actually choosing to remember these people, who were so important to contemporary music. it just shows the extent to which this world is so obsessed by menial things, when the snowfall in london can get on the news, but the 50th anniversary of the death of buddy holly doesn’t get a mention.

I started to play guitar because of Buddy over 30 years ago. What would I be without you, Buddy …

On September 23, 1958 I called Buddy Holly on the phone, twice. We talked for about 10 minutes and I recorded the interview/converstaion. I’ll play it in public tonight for the 1st and only time. I had just turned 14 on the 14th and he turned 22 on the 7th. He was on the road, I believe with his wife, Maria Elena, doing a radio station promo tour in support of The Cricket’s latest release, IT’S SO EASY. I found him at The Gibson Hotel in Cincinnati. It’s very rare, insightful, unusual and a true testimony to his being a real genuine, intelligent, nice guy. Buddy altered music as we know it today. Had he lived, it would be much different. It was his premature death that molded the music of today.

So who played at the tribute show last night? I heard about Graham Nash and JP Richardson Jr and Los Lobos, but who else was there? My local news reported that the 11:15 slot was left open for “someone un-named” and that a private jet landed at Mason City just a few hours eaelier with some high profile performer on it. Did anybody find out who that was?

A rapid review on the net clearly demonstrates that we are more than a handful to whom today bears a special meaning (certainly not here, in France, but who cares?). Apart from unique personal anecdotes, I was especially delighted to read posts from very young fans. As far as I’m concerned I just can say I discovered his music 30 Years ago, when I was 16.
Thanks for reading those words I wanted “to share with those who really care”.

At my High School we’re having a tribute show.
Today we celebrate The Music, and there lives. It’s a Happy Day, there isn’t no reason to be sad, for Buddy Holly lives in the hearts of all of us who remeber him and even those who don’t. He played a part in all of the music that came after him from punk to disco to rap and hip-hop.
Nobody has or will ever do more for music then he did and still does.

when i was 10 buddy came to birmingham town hall.i asked my mum if i could go. she said no and added he will be back again.i stillwonder if my life would have been different if i would have seen him live.

As a 8 year old,I was playing a pinball machine at a candy store-both still existed back then-when a Fonzie like character came in the door to tell everyone what he had just on the radio.

Naturally,I was stunned.Death had never entered my world.I thought it was something that only old people did.

At the time,we didn’t have a 24 news cycle.Today,CNN camera crews would be at the scene within minutes.People with cell phone cameras would be in abundance.But this was 1959.News travelled slowly.

Elvis had just gone into the Army.Now Buddy was dead.

Yes,it was a very dark day.

Fifty years later, Buddy Holly still is played on records and radio. He made the Fender Stratocaster the guitar of choice for many rockers following him, his horn-rimmed glasses his personal fashion statement.
Fifty years later, Buddy Holly is still played by any musician looking for inspiration, regardless of musical style, from rock and country to alternative and indie.
Fifty years later, he’s not faded away if in spirit. There is so much Buddy Holly in every musician.

Ritchie Valenz has been one of my heroes throughout my life because of the movie La Bamba. I was only 3 when I first saw it and it started my love for Rock n Roll. Later I would discover Buddy Holly and The Big Bopper and grow to love them endlessly. We will be listening to them all day and for the rest of eternity.

Thank you and R.I.P. gentlemen.

Here’s a tribute verse I wrote for Buddy 10 years ago on the 40th anniversary of his death. It’s taken from my Selected Poems: Elegies & Epiphanies (Lagan Press, Belfast, 2005):

Elegy for Charles Hardin Holley
(Buddy Holly, died 3rd Feb.1959)
…………………………
Forty years on from the night
that you died near a frozen
Clear Lake in Iowa,
I heard an airplane’s engine
drone over the roof of my house
in Harold’s Cross in Dublin,
the sad noise fading away
slowly into the long dark night.

That was a blue day, black night,
there was fire in the snow.

Dear Buddy, it’s been so long
since you were a shooting star:
but you left some afterglow.
Thank you for the music,
and thank you for the jive.

Shooting star
afterglow —
there was fire in the snow.

Hugh McFadden
————-

I remember the day Buddy died. I was 10 & at school in New Malden England. My best friend John Remington told me he’d been killed and I wept. I’ve never stopped loving him. He is still THE BEST!

Today is my “50th” b-day. 2/3/59

R.I.P guys

If Buddy Holly had looked liked Elvis he would have been hailed as the King of Rock ‘n Roll, which he was/is anyway. What he accomplished in two short years; the many great and influential songs he wrote; and his overall talent and abilities easily overshadowed Elvis. Still does. Elvis was a great singer, no doubt, but he lacked the overall talent of Buddy Holly. And yes, the cover of the latest Rolling Stone should have been of him, not Bruce Springsteen, on the 50th anniversary of his death.

I turned 27 on feb 3, 2009.. is that a bad thing?

Very few articles ever mention the fact that Dion and Belmonts were on that tour, but not on the plane. I loved Buddy Holly, but had Dion gone that night, I would’ve been inconsolable.

Buddy Holly – I´ll always remember you with tears in my eyes. (Eddie Cochran “3 Stars” 1959)

Buddy Holly & The Crickets at No 13 in the UK Album Charts !!

Wishing it well and here’s hoping it gets into the top 5 !!

Pete

Rave On !

Beginning in 1954, Chuck Berry wrote his own songs, used his real band on recordings, and played a mean electric guitar.

As a young boy my elder brother took me and my sister to see Buddy Holly &The Crickets in Sydney.I have never forgotten Buddy and everyday i think of him and play his music often. What a talented performer he was,the very best.

My dad saw him at the surf ballroom the night he died. that was a sad day

This man was the king of rock and roll. Elvis was good. Holly was great. He wrote his own songs, played his own instruments and even got into record production. His music was a foreshadowing of the sixties when The Beatles and others would take his ideas to the natural extreme. He was really pushing the boundaries. Had he lived we could of seen something like Sgt.Pepper as early as 1962. We could of had something like Dark side of the moon by 1967 and he still would of kept inovating. Of course this is all just speculation, but based on the kind of stuff he was working on when he died, you just know it would of been a huge leap in rock. The kind we wouldn’t see until about 1965. So ahead of his time, just like Hendrix a few years later, another truly innovative artist who was working on expanding musics horizons when he died. Like Billy Joel once sang, only the good die young. Holly,Hendrix,Joplin,Morrison, Moon,Lennon,Bonham,Scott,Rhoad s,Cobain.

i have to do a report on him !!!!!
yay!

I have an original buddy and the crickets winter dance party concert poster.