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THE DAY THE MUSIC DIED

Buddy Holly

At the end of January 1959 Buddy Holly was at the peak of his career. It had been three years since the young rock 'n' roll singer and guitar player had begun recording his music, and he had enjoyed a handful of hits: "That'll be the Day," "Oh Boy!," and "Peggy Sue," which had been in the top ten rock 'n' roll songs in both the United States and Great Britain. Holly had recently left his hometown band and fired his business manager in an attempt to capitalize fully on his success, with the help of his new wife.

The Tour

Despite his hit records, he needed money in winter 1958-1959. His wife was pregnant, and he was building his career, so he signed up to tour with the Winter Dance Party, a rock 'n' roll show scheduled to play in remote locations throughout the Midwest. The attractions, in addition to Holly, were two acts that had just enjoyed their first hits: Ritchie Valens, whose "Donna" reached number two on the rock charts, had just recorded "La Bamba"; and the Big Bopper (J. P. Richardson), whose "Chantilly Lace" had sold over one million copies, a performance he hoped his new record, "Big Bopper's Wedding," would duplicate.

The Problems

The tour began poorly. Before the musicians made it to the stage, their bus broke down and Holly's drummer was hospitalized with frostbite. Subsequent engagements proceeded so shakily that Holly considered going home. The severe winter weather caused a succession of delays, and as a result he was unable to do his laundry regularly. Because he was repeatedly forced to perform tired and disheveled, he feared the tour would damage his reputation.

The Plane

On Monday 2 February Holly desperately sought relief. He chartered a plane to take him and two of his sidemen from Clear Lake, Iowa, where they were scheduled to play that night, to the next stop on the tour, Moorhead, North Dakota, a distance of some four hundred miles. The benefit was a night in a hotel instead of the tour bus.

The Crash

When Valens and Richardson found out about Holly's plan, they managed to appropriate the seats of Holly's sidemen, Tommy Allsup and bass player Waylon Jennings. That night the Winter Dance Party played to an audience of eleven hundred at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake. Just after midnight the plane took off in light snow and heavy fog. Within ten minutes it had crashed, killing the pilot and all three passengers.

The Shock

No rock 'n' roll star had ever tragically lost his life before. The day 3 February 1959 has come to be known as "the day the music died," after the phrase in Don McLean's hit song of another decade, "American Pie."