The Day the Music Died and The year of the Rabbit.

On February 3, 1959, 52 years ago today, a small-plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa killed three American rock and roll musicians: Buddy Holy, Ritchie Valens, and J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson, as well as the pilot Roger Peterson. Buddy Holly was seven months short of his 23rd birthday, Valens three months from 18, Richardson 8 months from 29 and Peterson 3 months shy of 22.

(see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Day_the_Music_Died)

The musicians had appeared at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa and were flying on ahead of the tour bus to Fargo, North Dakota, the airport nearest the next venue at Moorhead, Minnesota. Clear Lake had a population of 6,158 according to the 1960 census, and Moorhead had a population of 22,934. The Surf Ballroom and now Museum is still there on the North East shore of the lake and the population has only increased by some 2000. It is 96% white. The venue can probably host around 1400 people. Not a huge crowd, assuming it was full, considering the performers who were appearing that night.

So far as Fargo is concerned, the population, according to the 2000 census, is 94.1% white of predominantly German (40.6%) andNorwegian (35.8%) ancestry. The rest are Swedish, English, French and Italian in that order. The make up of the local population in 1959 would not have been much different. Moorhead is much the same as Fargo with 92% white population as at the year 2000. North Dakota and Minnesota are divided by the Red River. Fargo and Moorhead are on either side of the river.

The Red River in Fargo-Moorhead, as viewed from the Fargo side of the river

The fans attending the musicians last concert would have been almost entirely of North European ancestry, and representative of the citizens of Garrison Keillor's Lake Wobegon, not exactly a hotbed of rock 'n' rollers in 1959; and yet, they turned out for the concert at the Surf Ballroom, beside a clear fresh water lake with no surf at all to its name. The price of admission on the night was $1.25. The last number played was Richie Valens' 'La Bamba' although some sources claim it was the Big Bopper's 'Chantilly Lace'. There must still be people out there who attended that concert, and probably still living in Clear Lake.

By all accounts the Winter Dance Party tour,as it was called, was a bit of a disaster for the group. Buddy Holly had as his backup band Tommy Allsup on lead guitar, Waylon Jennings on bass and Carl Bunch on drums. Also on the tour besides Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper were Dion and Frankie Sardo. Holly's band backed up all the acts. The venues were very small by even 1959 touring standards. With that line up, at $1.25 a ticket, there was clearly very little money in it, and a midwestern winter is pretty cold.

Poor young Roger Peterson was not even at the concert. The manager of the ballroom contacted him to arrange the charter. It appears to have been all a bit last minute as Buddy Holly wanted to get to the next stop ahead of the bus. How the other two joined him is the stuff of legend.

(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/p.moorcroft/Hollyville/tshaw5.htm)

Today is also Chinese New Year - The Year of the Rabbit.

Happy New Year and long live rock and roll