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Holly, born Charles Holley in Lubbock, Texas, and just 22 when he died, began singing country music with high school friends before switching to rock and roll after opening for various performers, including Elvis Presley. By the mid-1950s, Holly and his band had a regular radio show and toured internationally, playing hits like "Peggy Sue," "Oh, Boy!," "Maybe Baby" and "Early in the Morning." Holly wrote all his own songs, many of which were released after his death and influenced such artists as Bob Dylan and Paul McCartney.

Another crash victim, J.P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson, 28, started out as a disk jockey in Texas and later began writing songs. Richardson's most famous recording was the rockabilly "Chantilly Lace," which made the Top 10. He developed a stage show based on his radio persona, "The Big Bopper."

The third crash victim was Ritchie Valens, born Richard Valenzuela in a suburb of Los Angeles, who was only 17 when the plane went down but had already scored hits with "Come On, Let's Go," "Donna" and "La Bamba," an upbeat number based on a traditional Mexican wedding song (though Valens barely spoke Spanish). In 1987, Valens' life was portrayed in the movie La Bamba, and the title song, performed by Los Lobos, became a No. 1 hit. Valens was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001.

Singer Don McLean memorialized Holly, Valens and Richardson in the 1972 No. 1 hit "American Pie," which refers to February 3, 1959 as "the day the music died."

Holly was one of the first big stars to play the Fender Stratocaster, which would shortly be the world’s best selling and most copied guitar (also played by Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Eric Clapton & David Gilmour among many other rockers).

Holly’s parents opened their home as a museum/memorial to Buddy and allowed visitors to walk in and play one of Holly’s original Stratocasters for many years after he died. It was only after the Strat began to get so worn it was in danger of falling apart that they stopped doing this.

The Winter Dance Party Tour

"Holly spent 1958 touring non-stop at home and abroad, yet by the end of the year he was virtually penniless thanks to bad management. He was also expecting a baby with his new wife and had begun plans to create his own record company and recording studio.
Holly reluctantly agreed to headline the Winter Dance Party of 1959, a tour that was beneath his stature but offered quick cash.
“The only reason Buddy went on that tour was because he was broke - flat broke,” Waylon Jennings, Holly’s bass player on the ill-fated tour, would say years later. “He didn’t want to go but he had to make some money.”
The tour of the upper Midwest was organized by General Artists Corporation (GAC), a shoestring outfit headed by a druggist who sold records from his pharmacies and cared little about rock-n-roll.
The schedule for the Winter Dance Party was absurd. The group had to endure daily bus travels back and forth across Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin. GAC accepted any offer that came along and filled the dates regardless of the distance involved. Holly was appalled when he received the schedule. He told GAC he wanted out, but it was too late, the deal was done.
Expectant dad Holly reluctantly said goodbye to his wife – both had experienced premonitions in the days leading up to the tour – and headed to Milwaukee where the Winter Dance Party was set to debut January 23, 1959.

More Here: http://www.classicwisconsin.com/features/buddyholly.html

RIP, Charles Hardin Holley.

One of the most influential rock and roll artists in history.

"Listen to any new release. Buddy will be in it somewhere. His stuff just works." - Keith Richards.

"I play Buddy Holly every night before going onstage. It keeps me honest." - Bruce Springsteen