Buddy Holly 035

Look closer for two song lyrics and five song titles: “All of my love All of my kissing You don’t know what you’ve been a-missing”(Oh Boy! ); “That’ll be the day that I die”(That’ll Be the Day); Everyday; Maybe Baby; Not Fade Away; Oh Boy!; Peggy Sue; True Love Ways; Rave On; Think It Over

Charles Hardin Holley was an American musician and singer-songwriter, born September 7, 1936. Holley was a central and pioneering figure of mid-1950s rock and roll. He was born in Lubbock, Texas, to a musical family during the Great Depression, and learned to play guitar and sing alongside his siblings. His style was influenced by gospel music, country music, and rhythm and blues acts, which he performed in Lubbock with his friends from high school.

He made his first appearance on local television in 1952, and the following year he formed the group “Buddy and Bob” with his friend Bob Montgomery. In 1955, after opening for Elvis Presley, he decided to pursue a career in music. He opened for Presley three times that year; his band’s style shifted from country and western to entirely rock and roll. In October that year, when he opened for Bill Haley & His Comets, he was spotted by Nashville scout Eddie Crandall, who helped him get a contract with Decca Records.

Holly’s recording sessions at Decca were produced by Owen Bradley, who had become famous for producing orchestrated country hits for stars like Patsy Cline. Unhappy with Bradley’s musical style and control in the studio, Holly went to producer Norman Petty in Clovis, New Mexico, and recorded a demo of “That’ll Be the Day”, among other songs. Petty became the band’s manager and sent the demo to Brunswick Records, which released it as a single credited to “The Crickets”, which became the name of Holly’s band. In September 1957, as the band toured, “That’ll Be the Day” topped the US and UK singles charts. Its success was followed in October by another major hit, “Peggy Sue”.

The album Chirping Crickets, released in November 1957, reached number five on the UK Albums Chart. Holly made his second appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show in January 1958 and soon after, toured Australia and then the UK. In early 1959, he assembled a new band, consisting of future country music star Waylon Jennings on bass, famed session musician Tommy Allsup playing guitar, and Carl Bunch on drums. The band embarked on a tour of the midwestern U.S. and after a show in Clear Lake, Iowa, he chartered an airplane to travel to his next show, in Moorhead, Minnesota. Soon after takeoff, on February 3, 1959, the plane crashed, killing Holly, Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper, and pilot Roger Peterson in a tragedy later referred to by Don McLean as “The Day the Music Died”.

During his short career, Holly wrote and recorded several songs. He is often regarded as the artist who defined the traditional rock-and-roll lineup of two guitars, bass, and drums. He was a major influence on later popular music artists, including Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, Elvis Costello, Marshall Crenshaw (who later played Holly), and Elton John. He was among the first artists inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in 1986. Rolling Stone magazine ranked him number 13 in its list of “100 Greatest Artists”.

 -credit wikipedia.com

From an autobiographical high-school essay by Buddy Holly: “My life has been what you might call an uneventful one, and it seems there is not much of interest to tell…I have many hobbies. Some of these are hunting, fishing, leatherwork, reading, painting and playing western music. I have thought about making a career out of western music if I am good enough, but I will just have to wait and see how that turns out.”

Holly did try to make a career out of western mu­sic, forming the Western and Bop Band with class­mates Bob Montgomery and Larry Welborn. Between 1953 and 1955, they performed regularly on Lubbock radio station KDAV and recorded demos of eleven Holly/Montgomery tunes.

-credit rockhall.com

The first print of each illustration is donated to silent auction for a non-profit organization.

Digital Print on Archival Matte – Original illustration done in graphite and the following prisma colors that match the 29¢ stamp published in Buddy Holly’s honor: Canary Yellow; Light Aqua; Golden Rod; Burnt Ochre; and Bronze

DERIVATIVE Work photo credits: face with cigarette: Buddy Holly and Waylon Jennings photographed in a photo-booth in Central Station, in New York City in January of 1959_wxpr_org –  jacket and guitar strap: 1543770440 buddyholly_eu

What you get:
$40 (36.95 + 3.05 tax)
11 x 14 Print Package with Authenticity Sheet
signed and numbered (run of 40)
Domestic Priority Mail $8 (Free shipping)