The day the music died is universally considered to be February 3, 1959; that was the night Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper, and Ritchie Valens died tragically in plane crash a few miles from their departure, Clear Lake, IA.
Buddy always wanted to be a rock and roll star, so after graduation he dedicated his life to music. Did you know that very early in his career he once opened for Elvis in February of 1955?
Buddy was a hopeless romantic, proposing his hand in marriage to Maria Elena Santiago on their first date. The two were married on August 15, 1958.
Buddy was the single most innovative musician of his time. In the early days of popular music, the record label would have a pack of writers create a song, and then assigned an artist that was at the label to record it. Buddy relented, writing and producing his own music. Buddy also made popular the studio technique of ‘overdubbing’ and brought in violins and other non-rock instruments to appear on the track.