The Day the Music Died

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“The Day the Music Died” By Melissa Proctor “American Pie” performed by singer/songwriter Don McLean influenced me to write my paper on the three musicians this song is about, Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and J.P. Richardson “The Big Bopper”. I used to listen to this song when I was in high school at a local deli. We would all play this song on the juke box, not ever knowing the meaning of this catchy tune, until now. I also was raised on music of this era. Don McLean recorded his first album in 1969, “Tapestry” which was not a success. His luck turned around when he recorded his second album “American Pie” that ended up with two number one hits, “Vincent” and “American Pie”. McLean was inspired to write “American Pie” the day the music died in a plane crash in February 1959. He delivered newspapers as a boy and learned about the crash while on his paper route. That is where he came up with the line, “February made me shiver with every paper I delivered”. He wrote the song in 1971 which gave him a number one on the Billboard Charts for four weeks in a row. Charles Hardin Holley better known as Buddy Holly was born September 7, 1963. He was an American singer/songwriter famous for his rock and roll music. Critics claimed he was “the single most influenced creative force” in early rock and roll. Buddy influenced musicians like The Beatles and The Rolling Stones with the Stones adding a Bo Diddely beat to his song “Not Fade Away”. Buddy was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986. In 2004, Rolling Stones ranked him as number 13 among “The Greatest Artists of All Times”. And in 2011, Buddy Holly received his “Star” on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Buddy showed his talent at a very early age by playing a variety of instruments, including the guitar, the banjo, and the lap steel guitar. At age five Holly won a talent contest

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