The Curse of Buddy Holly
The Curse of Buddy Holly
The Curse of 27
The Curse of Buddy Holly
Anyone familiar with the history of Rock knows the story of Buddy Holly: A charismatic and wildly talented songwriter/performer,      Holly achieved enormous success while just barely into his 20s. After breaking with his band, The Crickets, Holly sets out on a      disastrous national tour (the Winter Dance Party) with other Rock luminaries, in order to support his new wife and unborn child.      After a performance at the Surf Ballroom on 3 February 1959, he charters a plane to take him, "The Big Bopper," and Ritchie Valens      to the next gig. Tragically, the plane crashes, killing all three. (For a detailed account of that night's events, please visit      the Holly-Bopper-Valens Tribute .) There is more to Buddy Holly's story. An ominous undertone supports      the events leading up to Holly's death, and continues through to recent times, dispensing tragedy and claiming the lives of many      artists associated with the legendary performer. Continue reading for a brief overview of the strange events surrounding Holly's      death, followed by a list of musicians who died early and tragically and their connection to the singer-songwriter.
Buddy Holly
Premonitions
Shortly before embarking on the Winter Dance Party Tour, both Buddy Holly and his new wife, Maria Elena, were simultaneously      disturbed by violent and eerily prophetic dreams. Maria Elena had dreamt of a fireball descending to earth in the middle of a      field, followed by an explosion that left a great gaping hole in the ground. When she woke up Holly, he related that he had      also just had a strange dream. He dreamt that he, his wife, and his brother were in a plane. His brother persuaded Holly to      leave Maria Elena on top of a building, with the intention of returning for her. Reportedly, Holly was wracked with guilt for      having left her behind in the dream. Maria Elena was supposed to accompany her husband on the Winter Dance Party tour.      He had convinced her to stay behind, because of her morning sickness.
Warnings
While Holly was touring England in 1958, he received an ominous message from Joe Meek, a British recording engineer and      producer. On a night in January of that year, Meek had attended a tarot reading. The message delivered that night was      "February third, Buddy Holly, dies." Holly thanked Meek for the warning, but did not seem concerned since February the      third had already passed. Buddy Holly would die on 3 February 1959.
The crash site.
The Winter Dance Party
The Winter Dance Party was plagued with problems. The tour buses continually broke down, the heaters refused to work,      and both The Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens had taken ill. Holly's drummer, Carl Bunch, had to leave the tour after he suffered      severe frostbite on his feet. Holly's last song, "It Doesn't Matter Anymore," was released shortly before his death.     After the fatal plane crash, Maria Elena Holly miscarried the only child of Buddy Holly.
"The Big Bopper"
Jiles Perry (J.P.) Richardson - a.k.a. "The Big Bopper" - was on the Winter Dance Party tour, enjoying the success of         his single, "Chantilly Lace." Richardson, who had the flu, persuaded Waylon Jennings (member of Holly's backing band) to         give up his seat on Holly's rented plane. "The Big Bopper" was the oldest person on the plane to perish. He was 28.
Ritchie Valens
Ritchie Valens ("La Bamba," "Oh Donna") was also a member of the Winter Dance Party. He convinced Tommy Allsup, another member         of Holly's backing band, to flip a coin for the third seat on Holly's chartered plane. Valens, like "The Big Bopper," was also         sick. He called "heads" and won, commenting that it was the first time he had ever won anything. Valens was only 17 at the time         of the crash. (Years later, Tommy Allsup would open a club named "The Head's Up Saloon" to commemorate this life-saving coin         toss.)
Eddie Cochran and Gene Vincent
Singer Eddie Cochran (above) recorded "Three Stars," in honor of the performers killed in the plane crash. Cochran ("Summertime         Blues") was supposed to have been on the Winter Party Dance tour. When he heard of the crash, Cochran felt as though he had         cheated death, and was supposedly plagued by guilt and fear that death would soon come for him.
On 17 April 1960, Cochran, his girlfriend, hit songwriter Sharon Sheeley (Ricky Nelson's "Poor Little Fool," Ritchie Valens's        "Hurry Up"), and singer Gene Vincent ("Be-Bop-A-Lula") were on their way to London's Heathrow Airport for a return flight to the        U.S. On the way, the Ford Consul they were riding in blew a tire. Vincent (above) re-injured the knee that had previously been hurt in a        motorcycle accident. He would walk with a limp for the rest of his life. Sheeley suffered a broken neck and back. Cochran was        thrown from the vehicle and rushed to St. Martin's Hospital, where he was visited by the original Crickets (Jerry Allison, Sonny        Curtis and Joe B. Maudlin) who were touring in England at the time. He died the next day of massive head injuries. He was 22.        The last single released by Cochran was "Three Steps to Heaven." The Crickets were the backing band. (Vincent would die in 1971       of internal bleeding from a ruptured stomach ulcer; he was 36. Sadly, his family lacked sufficient funds and the city of        Los Angeles had to bury him.)
Ronnie Smith
Singer Ronnie Smith was hired to replace Buddy Holly for the remainder of the Winter Dance Party. He joined Waylon         Jennings, Tommy Allsup, and Carl Bunch. The band later recorded as the Jitters. (Jerry Allison, Sonny Curtis and Joe B.         Maudlin retained the rights to the name, the Crickets.) Ronnie Smith was committed to a state hospital in Texas for drug         abuse. On 25 October 1962, he hanged himself in one of the bathrooms. He was approximately 24.
Cowboy Copas
Cowboy Copas (Lloyd Estel Copas) was a chart-topping country singer with hits like "'Tis Sweet to Be Remembered,"         "Alabam" (number-one for three months), "Flat Top" and "Signed, Sealed and Delivered." In 1956, Cowpas took part in a         14-date country & western tour in Little Rock, Arkansas. Also on the bill were Hank Thompson, George Jones, Wanda         Jackson, and Buddy Holly & the Two-Tones (Sonny Curtis and Don Guess).
On 5 March 1963, Copas was returning from a benefit for the widow of "Cactus" Jack Call, a local disc jockey who died in a        car crash. He was riding in a single-propeller Piper Comanche with fellow country musicians Hawkshaw Hawkins and Patsy Cline.        Pilot Randy Hughes lost visibility around Camden, Tennessee and he hit some trees. The plane crashed in Fatty Bottom (70 miles        west of Nashville). All onboard were killed. (For the complete story, visit the Archive's Patsy Cline Tribute .) Cowpas was 49.
David Box
The original Crickets (Allison, Curtis, and Maudlin) also had their share of continuing tragedy. Seventeen-year-old David Box         was brought on as their new singer ("Peggy Sue Got Married"). He recorded with the band for a few years before going solo. On 23         October 1964, Box was killed when the Cessna Skyhawk 172 he was riding in crashed. He was 22 - the same age as Holly was when he         died.
Bobby Fuller
Bobby Fuller admired and emulated Buddy Holly. He had given a demo tape to Holly's parents, who forwarded it to Norman Petty,         Holly's former producer. The Bobby Fuller Four had a hit with"I Fought the Law," which was penned by Sonny Curtis (of the         original Crickets). The last song Fuller recorded was "Love's Made a Fool of You," which was written by Buddy Holly. On 18 July         1966, Fuller's body was found in his car at his house. He had been severely beaten, one of his right fingers was broken, and he         was drenched in gasoline. Friends stated that Fuller had recently been harassed by local mobsters, possibly in connection with a         woman. But the police judged his death a suicide. His death certificate states the causes of demise as asphyxia and inhalation of         gasoline, ruled as an "accident." Fuller was 23.          For more information on the life and death of Bobby Fuller, visit The Archive's Bobby Fuller Tribute .
Joe Meek
Joe Meek (Robert George Meek) was a pioneering record producer and songwriter. Meek's works include The Tornados' "Ridin' the Wind"        and "Telstar," which was the first song by a British act to reach #1 on the US Hot 100. Meek suffered from bouts of rage, paranoia        and depression which were exacerbated by his drug use. He became obsessed with Buddy Holly, whom Meek claimed visited him in dreams.        On the eighth anniversary of Holly's death (3 February 1967), Meek shot and killed his landlady before turning the single-barreled        shotgun on himself. He was 37.
Clyde McPhatter
Clyde McPhatter was the lead singer with The Drifters before going on to a successful solo career. McPhatters's solo hits         include "A Lover's Question," "Little Bitty Pretty One," and "Lover Please." In 1958, McPhatter participated in "The Biggest         Show of Stars for 1958 — The Autumn Edition," with Bobby Darin, Dion and the Belmonts, The Coasters - and Buddy Holly and the         Crickets. In 1972, McPhatter succumbed to liver, kidney, and heart failure. He was just 38.
Bobby Darin
In 1958, Buddy Holly recorded Bobby Darin's song, "Early in the Morning." Also that year, Bobby Darin participated in "The         Biggest Show of Stars for 1958 — The Autumn Edition," with Clyde McPhatter, Dion and the Belmonts, The Coasters - and Buddy Holly         and the Crickets. Darin died in 1973 from complications of heart surgery which was needed to repair a faulty valve. He was 37.         Five years earlier, Darin found out that his older sister was actually his mother; the woman he believed to be his mother was         actually his grandmother.
Phil Ochs
Phil Ochs was an anti-establishment folk singer, who used his songs to protest against the Vietnam War and to campaign for civil,         student, and labor rights. The FBI maintained a file on the singer nearly 500 pages long. Ochs sang a tribute to Buddy Holly on         his final album, Gunfight at Carnegie Hall (recorded in 1970; released in 1975). In 1973, Ochs was assaulted and almost killed.         During the attack he was strangled which permanently damaged his vocal chords. Sunken into depression, he hanged himself in 1976         at the age of 36.
The Buddy Holly Story
In 1977, a film was made depicting Buddy Holly's life and career. Gary Busey was nominated for an Oscar for his portrayal of Holly,         and the screenplay was written by Robert Gittler. After completing the film, Busey was involved in a nearly fatal motorcycle         accident. Gittler committed suicide shortly before the film's release.
Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley was The King of Rock & Roll, the most popular secular musician of all time. In October of 1955, Buddy Holly & the         Crickets opened for The King in Lubbock, Texas. (Interesting aside: After Holly's fatal plane crash, Presley sent a flower         arrangement to be displayed at the wake of "The Big Bopper.") On 16 August 1977, Elvis Presley died as the result of too many         drugs being present in his system. Elvis was 42.
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