The geek who kick-started rock'n'roll

William Skidelsky writing in The Observer, Sunday 8 February 2009

Buddy Holly was neither the most popular (Elvis), the most scandal-prone (Jerry Lee Lewis), nor the coolest (Chuck Berry) of the 1950s rock'n'rollers, but he was, according to many, the most influential. The gangly, myopic Texan shot to fame in August 1957, when his single That'll Be the Day reached number three in the US charts, and died just 18 months later in the plane crash that also cut short the lives of the Big Bopper and Richie Valens.

Not Fade Away: The Life and Music of Buddy Holly
by John Gribbin
pp208,
Icon Books,
£12.99

In the intervening period, Holly was astonishingly productive, composing and recording a string of hits with his band the Crickets. With songs such as onPeggy Sue, Rave on and Everyday, he not only captivated millions of teenagers; he also inspired some of the most inventive rock acts of the following decade, including the Rolling Stones (whose first hit was the Holly song Not Fade Away) and the Beatles (who named themselves partly in homage to the Crickets). Read the full review at The Guardian online.