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Week 30:
Buddy Holly
Artist Introduction
Charles Hardin Holley, aka Buddy Holly, was born in September 1936 and sadly was killed in a plane crash in February 1959, Age 22. But in his short life, from the release of his first record in July 1957, “That’ll Be The Day”, until his death, Buddy Holly changed the way music had ever been heard before. The man was an absolute genius, an early pioneer, and an innovator of technique, sound, and production of rudimentary Rock & Roll. A self-taught guitar player, B.H. made his bones playing country/western music in Texas in the early 1950’s. His first T.V. appearance was in 1952 (age 15) and actually opened for Elvis Presley in 1955 (age 18). It was around this time that B.H. started to experiment in studio recordings, changing his sound towards edgier (for that time) music. His record company agreed to let B.H. take over most of the production of his music, which had developed into 2 guitar, bass, and drums Rock & Roll. From estimated 1955 to mid 1957, while recording numerous singles in the studio, B.H. was performing live shows, opening for Jerry Lee Lewis, Waylon Jennings, and other popular acts of the time. With the release of “That’ll Be The Day” in July 1957, the Buddy Holly bandwagon (with alternating musicians The Crickets backing him) took off. He now headlined large musical showcases, both in America and Europe. During this time,he also appeared on numerous T.V. programs, including American Bandstand and The Ed Sullivan Show (twice, YouTube it, kinda cool). He also did the unthinkable. For 1 week in 1957, Buddy Holly and The Crickets played The Apollo Theatre in Harlem, the very first white act to perform at this legendary venue. I mentioned innovator early in the intro so I’ll give a few examples for now. He was the first to attach strings and orchestras to Rock & Roll studio recorded music. He also was the first to overdub his own voice to R & R recordings. Unheard of during this time. He experimented in the studio, using body slaps, foot stomps, odd musical instruments, and different vocalizations while recording. As for his overall music and lyrics, we’re not getting very deep here. Most of his music is basic 3 or 4 chord rhythm, with most songs covering about 3 minutes, give or take. There are a few basic, quick guitar leads, but mostly strumming and chords. His lyrics are simple, easy love tunes mostly (he was actually married at Age 21). And many of his songs sound similar, though with different arrangements. But Buddy Holly has influenced countless Rock & Roll music artists, including but not limited to, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones (listen to their version of Not Fade Away), Linda Ronstadt, Bob Dylan, Elton John (who once said there may not have been an Elton John without a Buddy Holly), and Eric Clapton. Many of these, and others, have recorded Buddy Holly music. A 2010 survey in Rolling Stone magazine listed Buddy Holly as #13 in the top 100 Greatest Musicians. The same magazine, in 2023, listed Buddy Holly as #74 in the top 200 Greatest Singers. He was inducted into the very first class of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1986. While only 3 of his albums, along with 22 singles, were released while he was alive, he had recorded enough music that his record companies were able to release new materials for 10 years after his death. And as we all know, his death was memorialized in the Don McClean song American Pie, “The Day The Music Died”. I know we sometimes get bored listening to 9 songs from one artist, especially when the songs are similar sounding. So take your time with this one. Listen to the arrangements and the different sounds. Rudimentary? Absolutely. But remember, it was mid to late 1950’s, and for that time, it was new, fresh, and exciting. Enjoy Buddy Holly.
Dad Cascella
Most Popular
It's So Easy
A rock-a-billy sound to another love song (of course), this one features a short, cool guitar lead, but by Cricket Tommy Allsup, not B.H. Again, nothing fancy, but Buddy’s use of raspy voice at times works in this one. Covered and recorded by numerous artists, and regularly performed by the Beatles live. In fact, Paul McCartney recorded his version in 2011 for the tribute album Rave On. And Linda Ronstadt’s version hit #5 on Billboard charts. Not bad.
Maybe Baby
How cool musically is this opening. So different for music in the 1950’s. Again, a rock-a-billy sound, with B.H. overdubbing his own voice in verses, with the Crickets contributing harmonies, another common feature in Buddy Holly music. A song of hoping for love, “It’s funny honey, you don’t care. You never listen to my prayer. Maybe baby, you will love me someday”. One of the United Kingdom’s all time favorites, it charted at #4 in the U.K. at the time.
Everyday
I’ll start the selections with a very simple optimistic love song, with easy music and lyrics. A minimalistic sound, common in B.H. music. An acoustic guitar, stand-up bass, and that rhythmic percussion tapping you hear is knee slapping. And the instrumental bridge is from an instrument called a Celesta, a keyboard made to produce a bell-like sound. Already we’re seeing how Buddy Holly experimented in the studio with different sounds. Rolling Stone magazine named Every Day the 238th Best Song Of All Time.
Personal Favorites
True Love Ways
Maybe my favorite Buddy Holly song. This beautiful, haunting love song was a gift to Buddy’s wife, Maria, recorded just 3 months before his tragic death, and not released until after his death. With deeper lyrics compared to previous selections, it features a soft, strumming guitar, very light percussion, and an array of violins, harps, violas, and a saxophone lead. Again, unheard of instrumentation in Rock and Roll recording for that time. Mickey Gilley’s 1980 version hit #1 on Billboards Country Singles. And this song was in consideration for me and mom’s wedding song, but lost out to Wonderful Tonight.
Not Fade Away
A rocking Be-Bop sound (look it up boys) with very simple music and lyrics, with Buddy’s voice following the rhythmic drumming, which mostly was performed in the studio recording on a cardboard box. Something about the off-beatness really works for me. And B.H. has short guitar spurts throughout. The Rolling Stones recorded this one in 1964, their very first Top 10 hit, peaking at #3 in the U.K., and #48 in the U.S.
Rave On
A rocker/rock-a-billy song, almost the exact same as “Oh Boy”, (which didn’t make the cut). Simple 3 or 4 chord rhythm, featuring a piano lead midway, this song was kind of risque for the time. “Rave on, it’s a crazy feelin’, and I know it’s got me reelin” and “Rave on with me”. Overly enthusiastic or just downright horny. This song features numerous what is called Buddy Holly hiccups, a singing style such as the opening lyric “Well” pronounced with a stuttering “a-weh-uh-weh-uh-ell”. In 2014 Rolling Stone magazine ranked Rave On as the #154 Greatest Song of All Time.
Unique Songs
Well... Alright
Featuring just Buddy Holly on strumming acoustic guitar, not electric (different) and very soft bass and brushed drum. While its got pretty much the same formula as others, it’s different in that these are probably B.H.’s best lyrics in these selections. It’s a very quiet, soft song, which he sings straightforward and clear, with no hiccup styles or yelps. Oddly, this was a B-side of another song. Many music writers consider this song one of best all-time B-side songs.
That'll Be The Day
Opening with guitar strumming and leading to a bass leading rhythm (different). We also get a very short guitar lead. Again, nothing fancy, and nothing too new. It’s also different in that it’s the only Buddy Holly song to reach #1 in both the U.S. and the U.K. while he was still alive. Can’t find too much different/unique in B.H. music. But an interesting fact about THAT’LL BE THE DAY. It’s the very first song the Quarrymen (a.k.a. The Beatles) recorded as a demo to play for record companies. Pretty Cool. Ronstadt’s version also hit #11. Rolling Stone named That’ll Be The Day #39 of 500 Greatest Songs Of All Time.
Words of Love
Of course, we’ll end the selections with another love song. Music pretty similar to many others, though the twangy guitar throughout is a little different. But the main uniqueness is that B.H. sang the whole thing in a studio, didn’t like its sound, then overdubbed the whole song singing in a different octave. While he overdubs his own voice in others, this one covers the whole (short) song. Never had been done by a Rock & Roll artist. It’s also different because it was Buddy Holly’s first #1 hit, though not as recording artist, as a band called The Diamonds released it before B.H. He was credited as the writer/composer. And again, this song was a regular in live Beatles concerts.
Conclusions
So that’s Buddy Holly. As written in my intro, whereas Buddy Holly was a prolific writer of music and lyrics, his songs are basic, simple, and many sound alike. But it’s his uniqueness at the time of his career, 1950’s, that makes him stand out. Considering he was only in the spotlight for approximately 18 months, his influence on the creation of what we now know as Rock & Roll is undeniable. The countless, countless musical artists who have recorded, and charted, with Buddy Holly music is incredible. No single performing artist comes close to having this influence. NONE. PERIOD. With this in mind, I have to give Buddy Holly a solid 8.0
Cascella Family Reviews
Vin Cascella
I want to start off my review by mentioning how crazy it is that Dad went from Tool in his last selection to Buddy Holly this week. Makes me wonder what Buddy Holly would have to say about the direction some of the music he helped pioneer has transformed into over the last 50+ years. That being said, this will be a very different review for me. There isn’t much to say musically, or lyrically. The entire 9 song selection barely makes it over 19 minutes. However, not acknowledging the importance of his work would be a disservice to this club.
It’s So Easy: Just a solid early days rock n’ roll song. It’s a quick song at just over two minutes but it makes use of literally every second. No wind up or outro on this one, just straight into a short chorus. This song has pretty much everything that you’d find in a solid rock song today. Little guitar solos, vocal inflections, backing vocals, drum and bass fills. I like the snappy ending, gotta save space on the record.
Maybe Baby: Not to be outdone by the previous track, Buddy Holly was able to find a way to chop off 7 more seconds to get this song down to 2:02 and somehow the song even features an intro, bridge, and outro. Sonically it's very similar to most of his other work, as is to be expected.
Everyday: This is the first of the songs that I actually know well. I know most of the songs to some extent but this and That’ll be The Day are the two I’m most familiar with. Probably the most unique sounding song on the entire list. I like the lyrics and vocal inflections. I can’t stand the knee slap percussion. Sounds like drumming on my fat gut, why does it sound wet? For the time period the Celesta is a nice touch as well. I don’t like it now, it sounds like part of a kid’s show. Super innovative song, but it annoys me.
True Love Ways: This is a nice song. A mix of early rock and jazz with a nice ensemble of instruments. Probably my second favorite on the list. And it almost takes a staggering 3 minutes!
Not Fade Away: Lots of vocal inflections on this one. I’m sure that stutter-step singing influenced a ton of music. I can think of a few songs selected in this club that have featured a similar vocal style. The song is fine, it’s different from a lot of the other tracks while still sounding distinctly Buddy Holly.
Rave On: Check out this punk rocker! Getting it down under 1:50. Who needs a longer song when you can play the notes twice as fast in half the amount of time. This is the closest Elvis/ Chuck Berry sounding song on the list. Definitely the most “Rock n’ Roll”. Cool song. Wonder if the masses were calling this the “Devil’s Music” at the time. Rave On.
Well… All Right: I think my conclusions will focus more on this that in the individual songs but it is really cool that we wrote his own music. Strong lyrics in this one and I like the guitar picking up in the chorus. Once again, sounds like Buddy Holly.
That’ll Be The Day: This is definitely my favorite Buddy Holly track. Never knew that it was also his first single to be released. Really came out of the gates swinging. It sounds like a few other acts from that era with the rock a billy guitar and drums and the Elvis-esque vocal stylings. But yea it's just a solid early Rock song. The drum flair in this song is also really fun.
Words of Love: The melody of this song feels so similar to Everyday but without the kneeslapping. Outside of that nothing much new to say. Although the selection is barely over 19 minutes it does drag a bit. My social media age riddled brain doesn’t have the attention sometimes.
Normally I focus on the music in my reviews but in the case of Buddy Holly there is so much more to discuss. Getting the music out of the way quickly. It's good, simple early days Rock N’ Roll. Nothing too crazy by today’s standards but that's just a fruitless comparison. Instead I think this review will be much better served discussing how an artist who was really only on the scene for 18 months had a lasting impact that helped shape music as we know it today. I always knew Buddy Holly as one of the pioneers of rock but I was very unaware of the things that he did that were actually unique and different for the time. Outside of overdubbing his vocals I didn’t know that Buddy Holly and the Crickets were one of the earliest formations of a core rock band. Lead and rhythm guitar, bass, drums, and vocals. It’s kind of crazy that such a normal practice would have been considered revolutionary 70 years ago. Buddy Holly also wrote, produced, and recorded his music. At the time it was unheard of for an artist to be involved in all aspects of the music production. Not that that was a bad thing, just a sign of the times. But with all of that being said how do I rate this? Subjectively I can’t really listen to this music for more than a few songs before I’m painfully bored. But that’s not fair at all and his work demands a ton of respect, possibly more than anyone else we’ve covered so far in this group. Grading on a curve here.
7.3
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