Ritchie Valens
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Richard Steven Valenzuela, better known by his stage name Ritchie Valens, was an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. A rock and roll pioneer and a forefather of the Chicano rock movement, Vale
Valens in 1958
Billboard advertisement, December 15, 1958
Valens in 1959
Grave of Valens and his mother at San Fernando Mission Cemetery
Buddy Holly
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Charles Hardin Holley, known professionally by his stage name Buddy Holly, was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist who was a central and pioneering figure of rock and roll. He was born to a
Ritchie Valens
…what has become known as "The Day the Music Died", Valens died in a plane crash in Iowa, an accident that also claimed the lives of fellow musicians Buddy Holly and J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson, as well as pilot Roger Peterson. Valens was 17 years old at the time of his death. His eponymous debut album was…
Holly, c. 1957
Buddy Holly and the Crickets in 1957 (top to bottom: Allison, Holly and Mauldin)
Cashbox advertisement, August 3, 1957
Monument in front of Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa