Buddy Holly

Buddy Holly lived a short life from September 7, 1936 – February 3, 1959. His real name was Charles Hardin Holley but he was far better known as 'Buddy Holly'. His success was cut short as he died at just 22 in an airplane crash. Buddy Holly had huge potential and his success only lasted a year and a half. He had only been recording for 2 years, yet during these 2 years he wrote and performed some of the most progressive music of his time, becoming an inspiration to many musicians. He created a musical foundation for bands such as The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. His early rock and roll/rockabilly genre proved very popular amongst the general public.



The Life of Buddy Holly:

Charles Hardin Holley was born in Texas as the youngest of four children. The 'e' in Buddy Hollys surname was dropped because there was a spelling error on his first recording contract, but due to excitement and not wanting to put his contract in jeopardy he signed it anyway, with his name as 'Buddy' and used his childhood nickname, Holly.

Buddy began making music from a very early age at 11 with piano lessons. Though after 9 months of lessons and being praised by many people including his teacher as one of her top students, without any explanation, Buddy quit. However he took up playing the guitar and entertained friends and family with his talent.

Buddy's and Bob Montgomery went to school together and performed with one another, known by family and friends as 'Buddy and Bob'. They began to perform local events throughout their home town of Texas. Following opening a show for Elvis Presley at a local gig in 1955 Buddy knew where his future lied in music. Buddy and Bob didnt particularly hit off well, so Buddy formed his new group. "The Crickets."

The Crickets consisted of:
- Jerry Allison (Drums)
- Nick Sullivan (Guitar)
- Joe Maudlin (Bass)
- Buddy Holly (Vocals)

The crickets recorded 'That'll be the day' and it became top of the charts in September 1957. Here's a video of it.

The group continued with their success with songs such as "Oh Boy" and "Peggy Sue." Buddy began to get restless and due to legal problems concerning royalty money, he split from the Crickets.

Buddy Holly then joined with Valens and Richardson and toured doing the "Winter Dance Party". The 3 along with pilot Roger Peterson took off from Mason City airport on Feburary 3rd. Their four seat aircraft crashed soon after takeoff. The surviving members did not want to continue the tour but gave in to the pressures of performing the final show. However when they appeared on stage without Buddy, audiences were shocked and it was a tragedy that took the musical community by complete shock as Buddy was a huge upcoming star. Don Mclean dedicated his 1971 hit "American Pie" to Buddy Holly and stated it was “The day the music died.”



Record Label:

Buddy Holly has been signed up to Decca, Brunswick and the one he last signed with was Coral. Coral was based in the USA and various Swing and Jazz recordings were made with Coral.

Discography:

Buddy Holly released 3 albums in his lifetime, but due to the amount of material he had written, Coral were able to release his music for up to 10 years after his death.