Holly was killed in a plane crash along with Richie Valens and The Big Bopper in 1959. Holly's guitar player Tommy Allsup was not on the plane because he gave up his seat to Valens. The crash was caused by bad weather and a 21-year-old pilot who was not qualified to fly in low visibility using just instruments.
Holly was on the "Winter Dance Party" tour when he was killed. He was flying from a show in Clear Lake, Iowa, to Fargo, North Dakota. In the early years of Rock and Roll, musicians often took dangerous chances getting where they needed to be.
The Beatles chose their name partly as a takeoff on Holly's backup band, The Crickets.
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