Feb 03 2009
The Day the Music Died
February 3, 1959, it was a cold night in Clear Water, Iowa when the three climbed into the private plane. It was the Winter Dance Party tour. The weather was bad and Ritchie didn’t like the idea of flying, in fact, he’d never flown before. The Day the Music Died refers to the fateful night three huge music stars, Ritchie Valens, Buddy Holly and J.P. Richardson (the Big Bopper) along with pilot, Roger Peterson, perished together. It would have been devastating to the era’s music lovers for just one of them to have left the scene, but all three at once was an unspeakable event.
Ten years later Don McLean wrote his song “The Day the Music Died,” mostly in remembrance and tribute to the tragic day, but also making references to other artists and political events of the time as well as his own experience of the event. The song moved upwards to #1 in 1972.
“I can still remember how the music made me smile. And I knew if I had a chance, that I would make those people dance. And maybe they’d be happy for a while…”
chrck out http://alzact.today.com for a link to the February days to celebrate