LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – The Buddy Holly Center hosted the “Buddy Holly Birthday Bash” to celebrate what would have been Buddy Holly’s 90th birthday.
Local musicians honored Holly’s contributions to the craft with live performances while visitors toured the museum and the J.I. Allison House, where Holly and the Crickets wrote their song “That’ll Be the Day.”
“We’ve already had people come from the UK and Spain right when we opened at 10 a.m.,” said Alexandra Pitts, curator at the Buddy Holly Center. “He was one of the first bands to travel overseas when they started touring, so the UK and Europe everybody over there really fell in love with Buddy and his style of music so they love to come over and celebrate his birthday as well.”
Holly died in a plane crash in Iowa along with the Big Bopper, Richie Valens and pilot Roger Peterson.
A month ago, artists installed new bronze statues of the musicians in Clear Lake, the town closest to the crash site. The statues commemorate the final concert the musicians gave the night before the crash.
For more information, people can call (806) 775-3560 or visit www.buddyhollycenter.org.
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