Artists like the Everly Brothers, Roy Orbison, Conway Twitty, Ricky Nelson, Jan and Dean, and Little Richard all took the stage here. The Surf Ballroom was one of the first ballrooms in the state to feature rock 'n' roll, and the big name rock acts featured here made it a "must play" venue on the performance circuit. This was the case on February 2, 1959 when Anderson brought in the famed Winter Dance Party featuring Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, the Big Bopper and Dion. It was this fateful show that made the most lasting mark on the Surf Ballroom.It's been fifty-five years since February 3rd, 1959, the day day the music died, when Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and The Big Bopper died in an airplane crash near Mason City, after playing a gig at the Surf Ballroom. Waylon Jennings was new to the band, and didn't fly as there was no room for him on the plane.
The Surf hasn't changed. Here's how it looks today; the same way it looked in February, 1959.
Buddy Holly and the Crickets. Were you even alive when they played? I was, and I was just old enough be captivated by the new music coming out of the Philco radio in my bedroom. The signals from WCFL in Chicago had just enough reach to penetrate my bedroom walls late at night. To understand how revolutionary Buddy Holly was to the music world at the time, just look at the person who introduced him, and at the others in the background.
The Big Bopper. Hellllllo baaaaby! If you weren't alive back then, you've heard the Big Bopper anyhow, at every school dance, and on every oldies program on FM radio.
Richie Valens. Valens was slick, and was one of the young Italian crooners venturing from the standards into rock and roll. EDIT: Sixty Grit points out that Valens was not Italian, but was Mexican. Thank you, Senor Grits.
February 3, 1959. The Day The Music Died.
