FEBRUARY 3, 1959 is a day etched into the memories of rock n roll fans of all ages. It was, quite simply, the day the music died.
A plane carrying The Big Bopper, Ritchie Valens and Buddy Holly crashed in Iowa, while transporting the musicians on the Winter Dance Party tour of the frozen Midwest in the United States.
While it brought a tragic end to the life of three incredibly talented musicians, they have never been forgotten.
Buddy Holly was a musical genius and just 22 when he died. Self-taught on the guitar, he was able to make it do things that no one else had done. With his band, the Crickets, they pioneered rock ‘n’ roll tunes, from That’ll Be The Day and Peggy Sue.
Over a short career, he released an incredible selection of music: It’s So Easy, Heartbeat, True Love Ways … hits every one. And he also had a number of posthumous hits too: Bo Diddley, What To Do, Love Is Strange.
It is a legacy that has stood the test of time.
So much so that in 1989, some 30 years after his death, a rock n roll musical launched in Plymouth. And it was so successful that it is now on its 30th-anniversary tour.
Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story retells the life and replays the hits from one of the founding fathers of rock n roll.
Over the years, it has a long stint in London’s West End, toured the world and next week will be at the Theatre Royal Windsor. More than 10,000 performances in total have been given.
The current Buddy is Christopher Weeks, who understands the pressures on his shoulders when recreating the musician.
“You really do feel the sense of history,” he said. “The show is 30, and it’s now 61 years since the fatal plane crash. There are two layers of history there.”
And now Christopher is part of that history, it’s not something he takes for granted.
“The anniversary programme has pictures of all the previous Buddys in the centre spread. Being on that spread is quite unbelievable.”
Music runs in Christopher’s family, something that is important as the cast in Buddy need to play as well as act. And with Buddy’s energetic performance, it’s important.
“My father is a guitarist,” Christopher says. “He was born in ‘56. He wasn’t really into rock n roll, but he went to a matinee [of Buddy] and took me and my brother to enjoy it in the evening.”
And now he is on stage rather than in the audience.
“It’s taken a lot of work to play like Buddy,” Christopher admits. “There are specific techniques that Buddy created and employed.
“We spent a week listening to the original songs – I knew the original cast soundtrack inside out.
“We also watched as much footage as we can, but there’s not much out there. In the end, we’d listen to 32 bars of music, and play it back to get as close to it as we could. It was trial and error.”
And being on tour since September means that he’s getting better at Everyday every day.
“At this point, we feel pretty good, but we persevere to reach the next level of it.
“It’s not note-for-note, but the energy is there and the feel of Buddy is there.”
So why is Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story so successful 30 years on. After all, rock n roll is seldom in the charts these days.
“It’s one of those shows where you go ‘I know this one’,” Christopher says, adding that by the time the audience gets to the Clear Lake Concert that closes the show, “The audience is waiting to get dancing”.
“I come off stage with a big smile on my face every time, I’m full of adrenaline and energy,” he adds.
This is not the first time that Christopher has performed at the Theatre Royal Windsor – he grew up in Marlow so the historic stage is “my local venue”.
And he can’t wait to bring the music of Buddy to it.
“It’s just the most joyful celebration of an incredible story,” he says. “It’s pure entertainment, not a history lesson.
“In 18 months, he changed music more than anyone else.”
By getting the audience dancing in the aisles and introducing a new generation to one of music’s greats, it ensures that Buddy’s legacy will not fade away.
Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story is at the Theatre Royal Windsor from Monday, February 24 through to Saturday, February 29. For more details, or to buy tickets, call the box office on 01753 853888 or log on to www.theatreroyalwindsor.co.uk
