All-Time Great Concert

Buddy Holly & the Crickets / Ritchie Valens / Frankie Sardo / Dion and The Belmonts / The Big Bopper

Winter Dance Party Tour

Feb 2, 1959 (67 years ago)

Surf Ballroom     Clear Lake, Iowa, United States

 

This was the final concert performed by Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and "The Big Bopper" J. P. Richardson. That night, the three boarded a charter plane to Moorhead, Minnesota, but the plane crashed around 1:00 AM on February 3, 1959. All three musicians and the pilot died. The date of the crash is now known as “The Day The Music Died" and became the topic of Don McLean’s 1971 hit song “American Pie” in 1971. A monument commemorating the tragic event was built outside the venue, which has been added to the National Register of Historic Places and named a National Historic Landmark.

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Band Line-up (5)

  Buddy Holly & the Crickets
  Ritchie Valens
  Frankie Sardo
  Dion and The Belmonts
  The Big Bopper

Concert Details

Date:
Monday, February 02, 1959
Venue:
Surf Ballroom
Location:
Clear Lake, Iowa, United States

Band Genres

Doo-Wop 5 bands

Doo-Wop:
Rock And Roll 4 bands

Rock And Roll:
Rockabilly 4 bands

Rockabilly:
Rock & Roll 4 bands

Rock & Roll:
Pop 2 bands

Pop:
Rock 2 bands

Rock:
Rock N Roll 2 bands

Rock N Roll:
Oldies 2 bands

Oldies:
Bebop 1 band

Bebop:
Cool Jazz 1 band

Cool Jazz:
Folk 1 band

Folk:
Folk Rock 1 band

Folk Rock:
Hard Bop 1 band

Hard Bop:
Heavy Metal 1 band

Heavy Metal:
Jazz 1 band

Jazz:
Metal 1 band

Metal:
Pop Rock 1 band

Pop Rock:
Power Metal 1 band

Power Metal:
Singer-Songwriter 1 band

Singer-Songwriter:
Symphonic Metal 1 band

Symphonic Metal:
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Photos (8)

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Buddy Holly & the Crickets / Ritchie Valens / Frankie Sardo / Dion and The Belmonts / The Big Bopper on Feb 2, 1959 [301-small]

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Buddy Holly & the Crickets / Ritchie Valens / Frankie Sardo / Dion and The Belmonts / The Big Bopper on Feb 2, 1959 [071-small]

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Buddy Holly & the Crickets / Ritchie Valens / Frankie Sardo / Dion and The Belmonts / The Big Bopper on Feb 2, 1959 [309-small]

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Buddy Holly & the Crickets / Ritchie Valens / Frankie Sardo / Dion and The Belmonts / The Big Bopper on Feb 2, 1959 [295-small]

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Buddy Holly & the Crickets / Ritchie Valens / Frankie Sardo / Dion and The Belmonts / The Big Bopper on Feb 2, 1959 [294-small]

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Buddy Holly & the Crickets / Ritchie Valens / Frankie Sardo / Dion and The Belmonts / The Big Bopper on Feb 2, 1959 [292-small]

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Buddy Holly & the Crickets / Ritchie Valens / Frankie Sardo / Dion and The Belmonts / The Big Bopper on Feb 2, 1959 [269-small]

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Buddy Holly & the Crickets / Ritchie Valens / Frankie Sardo / Dion and The Belmonts / The Big Bopper on Feb 2, 1959 [267-small]

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Attendees (2)

Comments & Reviews:

Aug 04, 2024

I Wonder Why
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A Teenager in Love
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No One Knows
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Don't Pity Me

Dion and the Belmonts at the Surf Ballroom Feb 2 , 1959 with Buddy Holly , Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens

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