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February 3, 1959: The Day the Music Died

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Fifty-seven years ago today, Buddy Holley, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper died when the plane they were in crashed in Clear Lake, IA. It usually calls for a little extra driving around for me when American Pie comes on the radio and I am almost to wherever I am going. It's one of my favorite songs of all time (up there with Hotel California, Turn the Page, Stairway to Heaven and Nights in White Satin).

From wikipedia:

On February 3, 1959, rock and roll musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson were killed in a plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa, together with the pilot, Roger Peterson. The event later became known as "The Day the Music Died", after singer-songwriter Don McLean so referred to it in his song "American Pie". At the time, Holly and his band, consisting of Waylon Jennings, Tommy Allsup, and Carl Bunch, were playing on the "Winter Dance Party" tour across the Midwest. Rising artists Valens and Richardson had joined the tour as well.

The long journeys between venues on board the cold, uncomfortable tour buses adversely affected the performers, with cases of flu and even frostbite. After stopping at Clear Lake to perform, and frustrated by such conditions, Holly fatefully decided to charter a plane to reach their next venue in Moorhead, Minnesota. Richardson, who had flu, swapped places with Jennings, taking the latter's seat on the plane, while Allsup lost his seat to Valens on a coin toss. Soon after take-off, late at night and in poor, wintry weather conditions, the pilot lost control of the light aircraft, a Beechcraft Bonanza, which subsequently crashed into a cornfield, leaving no survivors.
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It's amazing how one decision could impact so many lives... Never know what they could've accomplished had they lived longer.
 
I didn't even realize that was today. I love this song (and the others that you listed)
Girardcorp said:
It's amazing how one decision could impact so many lives... Never know what they could've accomplished had they lived longer.
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It is crazy to think of the impact that decision made.
 
"while Allsup lost his seat to Valens on a coin toss."

This would mess with my head a bit if my life was saved by a coin flip.
 
Awkward silence said:
"while Allsup lost his seat to Valens on a coin toss."

This would mess with my head a bit if my life was saved by a coin flip.
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There's an interview with Allsup about this very subject floating around Youtube. If I remember correctly, Valens' family/girlfriend/wife is interviewed as well.
 
jt2929 said:
There's an interview with Allsup about this very subject floating around Youtube. If I remember correctly, Valens' family/girlfriend/wife is interviewed as well.
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Ill serach around for it. I have watched that movie "La Bamba" and every time I yell at the TV for them not to get on that damn plane. Famous people need to stop getting on small troubled planes.
 
Waylon Jennings gave several interviews about that night, he said he always felt like the reason he wasn't on the plane was that he was destined for something more.
 
I was obviously not alive then, but History is an interesting subject and events like this always peak my interest. I've watched and read about this in the past.
 
Agent Jay said:
I was obviously not alive then, but History is an interesting subject and events like this always peak my interest. I've watched and read about this in the past.
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Even old farts like me weren't alive then....LOL
 
Amazing how far transportation has come in that time... I bet most planes that size (and all commercial airliners) fly in weather like that now without much thought.
 
I was not alive then but know the story. Can only imagine if something liked that happen today with starts at the level those guys were. There would be a world morning day. I do love American Pie, one of my favorite songs.
 
Awkward silence said:
"while Allsup lost his seat to Valens on a coin toss."

This would mess with my head a bit if my life was saved by a coin flip.
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And to think Waylon's final words to Buddy Holly were "I hope your plane crashes". This came after he gave up his seat and Buddy said he hoped Waylon froze on the bus.
 
It is amazing at how many hits Buddy had in such a short time frame.

Paul McCartney was a huge fan and he said they took the name the beatles as a tribute to the crickets.
 
Girardcorp said:
Amazing how far transportation has come in that time... I bet most planes that size (and all commercial airliners) fly in weather like that now without much thought.
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It wasn't the plane, it was the pilot. He did not hold an instrument rating and flew into IFR conditions. The matter of time it takes for a VFR pilot to lose spatial orientation in IFR conditions is measured in mere seconds.
 
We just went to see the Buddy Holly story play a few weeks ago and it told Buddy's story well and was entertaining. Such great talents lost early on. Buddy had an amazing career in such a short time frame. Incredible vision for music.
 
The crash was just a bit before my time. Like others have said, I wonder what Holly, Valens, and Richardson's careers would have been like.

Hotel California, Turn the Page, Stairway to Heaven and Nights in White Satin. Hmm, no matter what people say about you Smalls you have good taste in music. :D
 
Thanks Smalls...the crash just a few months before I was born, my oldest sister remembered it as she was huge Buddy Holly fan.

The song is also one of my all time favorites, as I was a teenager when it came out. it was years later when one of my college professiors spent an entire class discussing the meaning of it. With all the references to Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Mick Jaggar, The Rolling Stones, Janis Joplin, JFK, the Black Panthers. I had no idea until then, I just thought it was a really cool song.

Thanks for posting it.
 
CAA_Beat said:
Thanks Smalls...the crash just a few months before I was born, my oldest sister remembered it as she was huge Buddy Holly fan.

The song is also one of my all time favorites, as I was a teenager when it came out. it was years later when one of my college professiors spent an entire class discussing the meaning of it. With all the references to Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Mick Jaggar, The Rolling Stones, Janis Joplin, JFK, the Black Panthers. I had no idea until then, I just thought it was a really cool song.

Thanks for posting it.
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The song takes on a whole new meaning when you lump some of that stuff in it and get a full understanding of the song.

The crash and song were both WELL before my time, but I still love the song.
 
TripleBogieTim said:
Even old farts like me weren't alive then....LOL
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Then I must be a REALLY old fart!

I heard American Pie this morning on the way to work and mentioned this after. Sad day indeed.
 
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