On Feb. 3, 1959, rock and roll legends Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. Richardson (aka "The Big Bopper") died in a plane crash in Clear Lake, Iowa. The date is often referred to as "The Day The Music Died".

You remember Valens' hit "La Bamba" and Buddy Holly's hits "Peggy Sue" and "Not Fade Away". The Big Bopper recorded "Chantilly Lace" and "White Lightning".

Holly, Valens, and the other musicians were headed to their next tour stop in Fargo, North Dakota when the crash happened just outside of Clear Lake, Iowa in the middle of a winter storm. The crew had just performed at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake as part of the Winter Dance Party Tour. The tour was demanding, as it covered 24 cities in as many days.

Because the tour bus was very cold and even caused one musician to develop frostbite on his feet, Buddy Holly rented a charter plane out of Mason City to help him and his team on the tour.

The crash claimed the lives of all three musicians as well as the plane's 21-year-old pilot. Valens was just 17 at the time of the plane crash.

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The official cause of the crash was determined to be pilot error caused by weather conditions.

Waylon Jennings, who had offered his plane seat to The Big Bopper, would pay tribute to Buddy Holly in his song "Old Friend".

Of course, you know Don McLean's anthem "American Pie". A lyric in it references the Feb. 3rd crash, calling it "the day the music died".

Quad Cities Live Music Venues That Aren't Live Music Venues Anymore

Nostalgia Alert!.

We've compiled a quick list (by no means comprehensive) of venues in the Quad Cities that are no longer music venues but to us will ALWAYS hold a special place were we saw some great shows and made some incredible memories.

To many of us the live music scene wasn't just a concert here & there. It was an every weekend affair. And it didn't matter if it was a touring band or your buddy's band. We were going to be there with a beer in hand and scream along with guitars that were way too loud in a room that was improperly treated acoustically and make some bad decisions.

The Best Iowa Concert Venues

Now that we are going to shows again, we wanted to share the best concert venues in Iowa with you. Which venues need to be added to the list? Send the name and some photos of your time there to ryan.mccredden@townsquaremedia.com

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