Deeply engrained in both rock ‘n’ roll lore and Texas culture is a wiry, bespectacled good ol’ boy from Lubbock that would inspire Bob Dylan, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Elton John, Eric Clapton among many other ‘rock god’ contenders, and remain an iconic staple in American popular culture. Despite his tragically brief life, Charles Hardin Holley, known widely as Buddy Holly, managed to influence the modern rock sound with his distinct style and sound that still resonates in music to this day. 

Today marks 67 years since Holly, Chicano rock teen idol Ritchie Valens, and rockabilly disc jockey J.P. Richardson a.k.a. “The Big Bopper” were all killed in a plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa while on a ‘Winter Dance Party’ tour. Their deaths shocked the music world, particularly at the heart of the American youth culture. Singer-songwriter Don McLean famously coined this event “The Day the Music Died” in his 1971 song “American Pie“.

However the show must go on, and the music demands fresh blood, so folks were scrambling to find a replacement to fill Holly’s shoes as frontman for the Crickets. The first replacement was 18-year-old Ronnie Smith from Odessa, TX. He was recommended by Crickets drummer Carl Bunch, who was in the hospital with frostbite the day Holly was killed. Smith had previously worked with the Crickets’ producer Norman Petty on tracks including “My Babe” and “I’ve Got a Love,” and had even met Buddy Holly in recording sessions.

While Smith managed to successfully finish the ‘Winter Dance Party’ tour, he did not achieve the level of stardom he was hoping for. After struggling with drug problems and institutionalization, Ronnie Smith tragically hanged himself in 1962 at age 22.  

Another prospective frontman was Earl Sinks, who had also previously worked with Norman Petty. He and guitarist Sonny Curtis provided vocals for the first Crickets album without Buddy Holly, In Style with the Crickets, which features the Curtis-penned song “I Fought the Law,” which thanks to the Bobby Fuller Four, the Clash, and the Dead Kennedys, has since become a classic punk anthem. 

After Sonny Curtis was drafted into the army in late 1959 and Earl Sinks left the band in early 1960, they were replaced by David Box on guitar and lead vocals. Box finished out the Crickets’ contract with Coral Records before going solo. In a haunting twist of fate, he too would be killed in a plane crash while touring in 1964. He was 21.

One of the many eager young musicians to step up when the Winter Dance Party tour needed artists to join the roster was Fargo schoolboy Bobby Vee. Upon hearing that his idol had died, the 15-year-old cobbled together a rock group and filled the vacant slot. Vee went on to be a teen idol in the 1960s and a major influence on Bob Dylan before passing away in 2011. 

Despite the many lineup changes and a particularly large shadow with horn-rimmed glasses to live under, the Crickets continued to ‘rave on’ well into the 21st century with Sonny Curtis and founding member Jerry Allison at the helm. Allison passed away in 2022 and Curtis in 2025. 

All of the remaining members of the Crickets were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012 (Holly himself was inducted in 1986). While rock ‘n’ roll has gone through quite an evolution over the last seven decades, we can thank Buddy Holly among the pioneers that helped establish the blueprint for what it means to truly rock. 

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