The Day The Music Died (The Buddy Holly Plane Crash) - DISASTER BREAKDOWN
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- čas přidán 28. 07. 2024
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Twitter: / chloe_howiecb
A big thank you to my good friend Rosalyn who made this piano version of "American Pie" listen to the full version here: • American Pie Piano Ver...
In 1971, there was a little known song that was recorded and released, that song was titled “American pie”. In the lyrics of the song, the writer makes reference to a February day that then became known as “The Day The Music Died”. This is in reference to a 1959 plane crash that killed not only the pilot of that plane but also three iconic musicians and performers of that era. But how did this tragedy actually happen. Delving into this incident we’ll uncover the story of a pilot who was way out of their depth when faced with a horrifying situation. That’s what we’ll explore today as we delve into what really happened The Day the Music Died.
#aviation #planecrash #america
Sources:
web.archive.org/web/201308261...
www.findagrave.com/memorial/5...
www.theguardian.com/music/202...
whrc-wi.org/americanpie.htm
• What Really Happened t...
aviation.stackexchange.com/qu...
www.thisdayinaviation.com/tag...
If you found this video to be interesting, be sure to subscribe as there is a new video every Saturday. This video also went out to my Patrons on Patreon 48 hours before going out publicly. Consider joining here from £1 per month: www.patreon.com/DisasterBreakdown
A big thank you to my good friend Rosalyn who made this piano version of "American Pie" listen to the full version here: czcams.com/video/fU4NB9l_vzA/video.html&ab_channel=RosalynAspinallMusic
Twitter: twitter.com/Chloe_HowieCB
You did a very tasteful version of Buddy Holly and the day the music really did die. I remember awakening one morning to hear this news and was shocked, devastated and thought I would never get over this traumer. I had only been playing guitar 2 years and all I played and sang was Buddy Holly and the Crickets.
Oh Boy, Peggy Sue, Every Day, Rave On. Well, that was Buddy, and of course I have the movie as well as La Bamba. 😢
Excellent job with this one. Pulls on the heartstrings, even though I was born 10 years after this happened. Thank you.
Have you covered the crash that took Patsy Cline's life?
Lovely job, hon.
I thank you for making things clear about all the instruments. Enjoy your videos and have learned a ton as I go through A&P (aircraft mechanic) school. Keep up the great work!
Fun fact: This plane crash is partly why I exist. The musician who lost the coin toss was a studio musician and later in life his girlfriend cheated on him so he quit music entirely and went to work in a factory in baltimore. He sold his expensive "studio clothes" to my grandfather, and my grand mother loved how well my grandfather dressed for a factory worker. So now I exist...
That’s a great story. I hope you have some photos of your granddad in his spiffy duds!
Wow amazing story
Awesome story!!
Tommy Allsup lost his plane seat to Valens from a coin toss
@blackhorizen915.......so your saying Tommy Allsup sold your grandfather his clothes? because he's the one that lost the coin toss to Ritchie Valens.......
It’s amazing that a counter-intuitive flight instrument was allowed on aircraft by the FAA.
The FAA was founded just six months before the crash; the plane in question was built in 1947, and I can’t work out if the Civil Aeronautics Administration would’ve had responsibility for the individual flight instruments
Exactly. It seems like some kind of prank. Oh lets invert the attitue indicator, that will sure confuse the pilots. Why was it even made. Whats the purpose of an inverted attitude indicator?
@@hyper0699 Maybe it was standard in some countries at that time.
@@hyper0699t was probably just easier to manufacture if you hold something level and change the attitude of you hand around it without letting the object move you'll see it moves in the same way as a Sperry indicator it was designed in the 40s and was probably built to be as easy to manufacture as possible since it was either designed for the war effort or designed just after the war and the private sector was retooling for civilian production again either way it's not the indicators fault just that of a sadly under experienced pilot
Soviet-style aircraft have an alternative style of attitude indicator if I remember correctly.
This flight in hindsight just feels ill-fated. Apparently when Valens won the coin toss for his seat, he commented “That’s the first time I’ve ever won anything in my life.”
That and the fact after Jennings got swapped for Richardson Buddy Holly went “Well, I hope your damned bus freezes up.” To which Jennings responded “Well, I hope your ol’ plane crashes.” Just haunting in a way.
Waylon Jennings said multiple time that indeed the sentence still haunted him in a way, even until his death. Back in the day PTSD was barely understood and survivor's guilt was even less understood.
I remember a documentary being aired on February 3, 2009 in honor of the 50th anniversary of the accident. Waylon Jennings was interviewed as part of it. He got choked up recalling that exchange with Buddy, saying he felt so guilty that that was the last thing he’d ever said to his friend. It made me get teary listening to him recount that memory.
I can’t imagine living with that kind of guilt, especially during a time when mental health wasn’t considered a valid thing.
@@LeSarthoisYeah, obviously he couldn't have known but I can only imagine how awful that would be.
Its hard to describe how devestating this crash was to the Music industry. Buddy Holly at the time was one of the biggest stars in music. The Big Bopper was constantly on the Billboard 100 with Chantilly Lace and White Lightning, and created the first Music Video. Richie Valens was one of the fastest rising Stars in the world, with massive hits in La Bamba, Let's Go, and Donna. In one crash we lost the present and future of the industry, and really didn't recover until the British Invasion of the 60s.
I played in a band in the 2000s and we played the Surf Ballroom. The owner / manager is still the same guy who shuttled these amazing musicians to Mason City Airport that day. It was an incredible piece right out of history...
Incredible to think Buddy, Richie and Big Bopper could still be alive today if a pilot just shrugged off a sense of shame that day instead of hiding it.
Oh man
This pilot likely had no idea just how badly visibility and ground reference would deteriorate until after he'd left the circuit and continued to climb into more sparsely-lit rural surroundings - at which point he would have discovered the unfamiliarity of this aircraft's artificial horizon. Returning to the airport would have been just as daunting because he'd still need instruments to turn around and maintain altitude. With his limited experience and the resulting spatial disorientation he and his passengers were hooped either way. His not-informative-enough weather briefing - combined with his limited experience in actual IMC conditions and possibly a get-there-itis mind-set in light of who his passengers were - likely led to him believing this would be just another night flight with enough visual reference to complete the trip safely. Had he known before taking off just how blind he'd have to be flying - and how mis-leading this out-dated instrument would be vs. the ones he was more familiar with - he likely WOULD have cancelled the flight.
Still, the fact remains that this chartered company was not certified to fly into IMC conditions in the first place. The flight therefore should never have been allowed to take place even if the experienced IFR-rated owner of the company had been their pilot rather than Mr. Petersen.
@@zeus014 Disaster Breakdown guy was very clear that they were given insufficient weather information, and had no reason to believe visual flying would not be possible.
@@truerosie It seems rather clear that the owner of the company was the bad guy in this context.
Let's not forget that flying in the 50s and 60s was a VERY high risk proposal compared to nowadays.
Isn’t that around the same time they started offering flight insurance policies at terminals?
@@SomeGuyFromOK It was life insurance, but yep
It is still VERY high risk to fly today if the pilot makes bad decision to fly in adverse weather condition and darkness without knowing how to fly by instruments
@@bennisvcat1340 Or to put it this way, general aviation is still fairly high risk. Commercial aviation has become incredibly safe. But if you gave the same regulations to GA that make CA safe, GA would just die - GA planes would become a lot more expensive, and pilot certifications a lot harder (and more expensive). It's a hard problem; there may not be a good solution.
Great point, my Dad was a B29 and later WB50 flight engineer; and he REFUSED to fly commercially in that time period. He had a PPL so didn't mind flying himself. But, when a guy with 17 missions over Japan and 10 more over Korea thinks it's unsafe you gotta wonder.
You really outdid yourself with this one. Very moving account. I had goosebumps at the end when you said the flight is known as "The day the music died".
Glad you like the video!
I was balling like a baby by the end...😢
"and they were singin'..."
The 1987 movie, La Bamba, which was a biographical drama based on Ritchie Valens, was my introduction to this accident as a kid in the 80's.
Not sure about the historical accuracy of that movie - including the full story behind the song "Donna", written for his ex-girlfriend of that name. After his death, the song screamed its way up the charts.
My watching of this movie also made me aware of the teenage genius musician Richie Valens
@@smwca123that movie took some liberties with the Donna relationship and made him out to be a better behaved kid than he was, but besides those two things, overall that movie is considered pretty accurate and much more accurate than the previous movie about him “The Buddy Holly Story”.
Ritchie’s brother was still alive when La Bamba was made and he said it was pretty accurate and he liked it which I guess lends some credence to the accuracy of the movie.
There's something oddly poetic about how the wreck took so long to be found. Like, movie's at its end the last scene is a time-lapse of the bodies slowly getting covered in snow.
Wow Chloe, this one was so good! The timing of you saying "the day the music died" and then the piano playing just that line. Goosebumps ❤
I'm not crying YOU'RE crying :
@@kcsmiscvideos218 I don't think I've ever cried to a DB video before, this one I did 😅
You're only getting better and better for each video you release, dear Chloe. This one was soooo great! It truly was a sad night. I wonder what these wonderfully gifted musicians would have done in the years after, if this horrible accident hadn't happened. And that poor, young pilot... I feel nothing but sadness for him. I'm guessing he was pushed into it pretty hard, since it was a big deal for that tiny airline to have three of the biggest musicians of the world flying with them, but I could of course be wrong. They were all so young... It breaks my heart. Keep up the good work! Your videos are one of the highlights of my week.
Thank you so much for tuning in and watching 😊
I agree! I'm always super happy when you pop up in my feed. Your analysis is excellent and I love the respect you show for the people involved 💜
Private plane 1959 over an incredibly flat state (and I'm from the Midwest I know flat) during a blizzard. That is a horridly dangerous flight. Checked it out, the moon was a waning crescent on that night. That poor kid, those were such bad conditions. Of course you were right that he did not have the qualifications but in those years those conditions killed a lot of pilots who were fully qualified and highly experienced and even flying for highly regarded airlines.
The V tail Beachcraft Bonanza was called the widow maker
Iowa isn't terribly flat, but I see your point. Everything about this flight was a mistake.
@@davidmorley7778 or the fork tailed Doctor killer, a lot of Doctors bought them and don't devote the time to get and stay proficient. Then in the late 70's and early 80's they found out some troubling things about the design. Isn't it a little strange that the popular Bonanza went out of production before the Debonair, the Debonair being the ugly sister, the same basic aircraft with a conventional rudder and elevators? Not unlike a sister ship to the Edmund Fitzgerald the Arthur B Homer was quietly taken off the lakes and scrapped not long after a major retrofit. Many feel that was done to destroy evidence of structural failure in that ship that the Edmund Fitzgerald probably had.
There was no blizzard. Not even close. The snow was light and visibility was good, though it was windy. The snowstorm of concern was developing rapidly enroute, not over Iowa, and they never reached it. Remember those on the ground watched the Bonanza for 5 minutes or so, heading away at cruise-climb speed (presumably). That means visibility was several miles, and not close to IMC. The CAB report gives the conditions, and I don't remember the exact visibility (maybe 6 miles?), but it was solid VMC at the time. It wasn't poor visibility because of the weather. Farms in those days weren't lit overnight like many are today. That piece of ground was always invisible on a cloudy night. It was that ridiculous Sperry gyro. He hadn't been trained on how to use it. He had never flown that plane before. He had always flown Dwyer's two other Bonanzas, each with the standard attitude indicator.
Actually where the plane crash occurred isn't to far from Pilot Knob, the 2nd Highest point in Iowa and the terrain is hilly. I'm not a geologist but I suspect the terrain to the North of Clear Lake is part of the feature that made the lake as well. The Winnebago River wanders through the area, the Iowa river about a dozen or so miles to the west. It does get flat south of Clear Lake or again about 10 miles or so west of the Iowa River. Heck where I lived in Tennessee and parts of Michigan where I grew up are flatter than where i live in Iowa.
Accidents like these just show how far aviation safety has come. Back in the 50s, the FAA didn't exist, instruments were rudimentary, and there were few safety regulations. Nowadays, safety regulations are stricter, pilots are better informed, and instruments are so advanced that planes can almost fly themselves. An accident like this is unlikely to happen today, because people have learned from these accidents.
I can probably look up a GA accident within last 6 months that will have exactly same sequence of events (sans the old ADI, but that was less likely the cause). Inexperienced pilot, IMC, spatial disorientation, graveyard spiral.
So you can believe that this accident very much can and does happen still quite often. The only way how to prevent it is to be diligent in your flight preparation, thorough examination of the meteorological conditions and your skills.
As soon as I saw the title card teased on Twitter, I knew that's what this video was. When I was a kid, my dad told me about it while we were listening to the song. I'd never heard the specifics before, so thank you for making this video. The end gave me chills. So well put together.
You tell the story so carefully, so empathetically, it's great. Thank you.
Thank you!
Having your friend record that haunting version of American Pie was an inspired idea Chloe. Wouldn't expect anything less from you.
It reminded me of the kind of tune youd hear from a music box.
It almost made me cry.
Something that's often overlooked about Buddy Holly is just how influential he was to music for the decades following his career. Indeed, one of the bands most inspired by him was The Beatles, who credit their name as being inspired by The Crickets, who observed that he played guitar and sang in roughly equal measure, and felt inspired by the fact that he wrote his own music.
I never particularly understood Buddy Holly's importance to the history of music. I was born nearly forty years after his passing. Even still, my parents would reference him and play his music, (although that may have been influenced by my Dad's entire side of the family being from Buddy Holly's birthplace). But I really began to know his value when I visited the Buddy Holly Museum in Lubbock, Texas. It helped me discover a man whose music influenced a generation of musicians and whose impact on the culture of American music is still palpable today.
Thank you for documenting this crash, Chloe. It's fascinating to know so much more about the event that killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper. I'd always known the vague outline of the crash, but most historical documentation focuses on the effects of the event rather than any information on the crash itself.
I saw a Beatles documentary years ago, I think it was Paul who said he studied film of buddy’s guitar playing as the sound was so good ,,, and realised that buddy played the guitar strings upwards as well as down,....so he did the same from then on
@@alpiekaarElvis and Bob Dylan also credited him as a big influence in their music and he opened for Elvis at one point.
@@alexburke1899 thanks I never knew about that
And his songs still hold up, which cannot be said for a lot of songs from that period (including some Bopper songs, honestly)
And of course, it influenced Grahm Nash, who called his group The Hollies, and then went on to co-found the Super Group Crosby Still and Nash.
Now we need the story of the crash with Lynyrd Skynyrd
Since when you uploaded a video about Aaliyah plane crash, I expected you to upload video about The Day The Music Died., and you actually did it.
I'm familiar with this accident, and I appreciate the instrumental version of american Pie, adding to the sober atmosphere to this tragedy that took the lives of 4 people may their sole rest in peace!
Drove my Chevy to levee but the levee was dry. Great song. I'm a musician and I have the upmost respect for these 3 great musician, God bless them 🙏
I believe the word is levee.
But, shouldn't it be the river that's dry? I bet they kept an initial mistake, perhaps found it better...kept it?
His boss literally sent that pilot out to die! How could he not know that? I thought it wasn't legal to fly without an IFR rating at night! Wonderful video, I cried. I am certain when I was taking flying lessons years ago I was told VFR pilots had to land before sunset because only IFR allowed after, and I wonder if that is as a result of this incident?
In the US, VFR at night is allowed. And I think you have to log some night time flying to get your private pilots license, although not sure about that.
@@johnstudd4245 Looked it up seems you're right. I flew a LONG time ago, but I have to say I don't think it should be allowed anyway. Too easy for things to go wrong over areas with no lighting or over water. Should be IFR only at night. Sadly, this guy supposedly had some IFR. I actually blame his boss, he should never have been sent out with this flight.
@@charlotteinnocent8752 I’ve got to do a VFR night cross-country still for my license. A minimum of 50 nautical miles each way. I’m in an area with loads of hills and unpopulated areas. It’ll be fun. You’ve got to fly using your instruments a lot to do that.
No you can do VFR at night, you have to maintain a specific level of proficiency, meaning you have to have done in in recent history to be current. Technically the weather conditions that night may of been VFR, marginal VFR but still VFR. We can debate if he was legal or not, not much debate if he was in over his head or not. I live about 12 miles from the crash sight. I never met Jerry Dwyer but his widow used to come into the Hardware store I worked at 6 years ago, I waited on her a few times and spoke with her. There was a little fly in the hitch with her she would charge to the Dwyer Aircraft sales account but you had to know to look for that account, it wasn't under her name or her late husband's you had to know where to look to find the account. If I remember it was in the system as "Aircraft sales, Dwyer. At that point I'm not sure the business still existed but the bills got paid every month so I didn't care.
I remember when it was announced that these three musicians had died in that crash. At first I thought it was not possible, that maybe on or more had survived. But it eventually sank in at that all three were gone. A real sad day. Buddy Holly is still my favorite Rock--in-Roll star.
More than a video about plane crashes, this has been a great cultural, historical and, above all, deeply emotional program. Thank you and congratulations.
Thanks for watching!
I literally mentioned this crash to someone two days ago, commenting that it and the Alliyah crash are messed up in the same kind of way (pilots that shouldn't have been flying, compounding issues, and music artists taken from us way before their time). This crash doesn't get covered very often, so I'm happy to see you did a video on it.
The main reason for the Alliyah crash was that the plane was overloaded and incorrectly loaded. The center of gravity was much to far aft and the plane could not be controlled and was sure to crash.
@@johnstudd4245 ...and the pilot was not qualified. He had falsified his training records.
Well done. American Pie has always held a special place in my heart, especially after I learned of the influence. Buddy Holly was just at the start of his career. Some people say that music today would look vastly different if he hadn't gotten on that plane.
That song was a staple at my parents' parties for decades. A classic.
Supposedly McLean was asked about the meaning of the song, and he replied "It means I never have to work again".
The beginning with "American Pie" really gave me chills, it synced perfectly with the video and I have actually not seen a full video on CZcams about the Buddy Holly plane crash until now. Extremely high quality as always, keep it up!
I often wonder how differently the music industry would have evolved, had they not died. What great songs did we miss out on? Guess We'll never know.
I always think about this too 😔
That untimely death opened the door initially for the rise of Motown in the early 1960's and eventually the _British Invasion_ starting in the late fall of 1963. Had these three lived, it would likely have made African-American music less well-known and probably would have delayed the _British Invasion_ , in my opinion.
As much as I already know this one, your version sent chills through me. Thank you for this and all you do. "The day the music died." 💔
I remember reading the medical examinations of the bodies... Definitely unsurvivable injuries all very similar for each passenger, just slightly different levels of fatal head trauma.
Thankfully it was on impact and they probably didn’t have time to comprehend they were about to crash.
I thought the Bopper and Valens were about the same. They were unidentifiable by the face.
The Patsy Cline was more grotesque: the bodies were dismembered. And in the Jim Reeves' case four years later, he was almost chopped by the propeller.
Just like with Aaliyah's unfortunate accident, an otherwise inexperienced pilot was put in a situation that would've been an absolute no no to any pilot that wanted to stay alive. Rip to all of those men.
One of the first songs I learned to play on guitar.(American pie)
great way how you showed this tragedy in a way we would have empathy of, keep it up!
Wonderful video! I am from Lubbock, Tx the home of Buddy Holly and I appreciate you discussing this tragic day. Let us all remember his music and legacy! Also remember that the Beatles would have never been if Lennon and McCartney had never seen him live in the UK. The name of their group is a obvious homage to the "crickets". If anyone is a fan of Holly, there is an excellent museum in Lubbock, Tx with his paraphernalia including his iconic glasses recovered from the crash site in 1959. Thanks again for all the great videos you produce!!
Who the hell designed that instrument like that? Insane! 😢
@Siegfried Alemeir thanks!
@@HundshuntWas description of the pilot going down because he thought he was doing up incorrect?
This is a brilliantly made video. Respectful to those involved and that haunting version of American pie, just brilliant.
What’s truly messed up is that Weylon Jennings was supposed to be on that flight, but at the last minute he gave up his seat to a fellow musician (I forget which one) whom he was friends with since the other musician was supposed to be at another location and Jennings himself didn’t have anywhere urgent to be, and you just know that has to weigh heavily on his heart knowing that if he hadn’t given up his seat, his friend would be here instead of himself.
Big Bopper. He was sick, and so Jenning had him go so he wouldn’t get sicker on the bus. He’s the one who joked that he hoped the plane crashed when Valens said he hoped the bus froze. He had survivor’s guilt for the rest of his life.
He was Buddy's bassist on that tour. After Buddy heard about him giving his seat up, he joked to Waylon "I hope your bus freezes." Waylon joked back "Well, I hope your plane crashes." He said that he was haunted by that for the rest of his life.
Waylon
@@Author.Noelle.Alexandria Buddy Holly had booked the flight for himself, Waylon Jennings and Tommy Allsup, each was going to pay 1/3 of the charter fee. Allsup gave up his seat ostensibly so he didn't have to pay for it, the rumor was that he needed the money to pay bills. Waylon Jennings however flipped a coin and lost and relinquished his seat. Something usually not discussed is that with The Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens in the back of the AIrcraft put the aircraft out of it's permissible weight and balance specifications. Had Waylon Jenning been on board it would of been worse as he was a big man. Buddy Holly had been taking flying lessons and wanted to ride in the front, how do you tell the boss "no you have to ride in the back"? We'll never know what happened in the aircraft that night. There's been speculation that Holly may of been at the yolk. Holly's gun was found in the corn field that spring, was something nefarious going on or was it simply dislodged and thrown from the aircraft during the crash like the passengers?
I really love the style of your videos. Your narration really makes one put themselves into the situation, which is further helped by the editing
Thank you :)
Thank you for including the photo of the pilot at the very end along with the other three - it was a devastating accident in any way that you look at it, but I feel a little sad that the pilot's name isn't up on the memorial. I doubt his mother cried any less harder for the loss of her son than the loved ones of the three musicians. The miscarriage hit a sorrow that no mother should ever know, and my heart aches that Holly's wife lost both her husband and her child. :(
The way you pace your words is very gentle and steady, and you bring home the sombreness and emotion to it while at the same time saying the chain of events so clearly. You have an amazing channel here Chloe and you are an amazing presenter
Our family lived about 42 miles (Osage, Iowa) from Clear Lake, Iowa. My oldest brother and a couple of his friends attended this concert. He was a huge music fan and we had tons of 33 RPM albums and lots of 45's to play at our house and carry to friends house to enjoy the great music. It was said that the day of this crash, it was the day "the music died". My oldest brother passed away last year. At my brother's funeral, I told the standing room only crowd at his funeral that the music did not die that day, it lived on with my brother, who, like me, loved the music and history behind the songs. As a side note, he was a part time disc jockey on the USS Bonne Homme Richard CVA-31, off the coast of Vietnam. Rest in peace my brother. You are gone, but not forgotten and our love for music lives on. I salute you!
That's a wonderful story. Thank you for sharing
Thank you for this video. Your friend/colleague who played the rendition of American Pie you included somehow managed to capture a particular somberness, and how you edited it into the video magnified that even more.
That attitude instrument! No wonder the pilot was confused!
Thank you so much for this one. "American Pie" is one of my favorite songs, if not #1 on my list.
This video was great, and I will say as you said one of the best you've done. Thank you again. Cheers!
I’m so glad you covered this tragedy. As is your usual fashion… You did an absolutely fantastic job! I appreciate the way you explain things. Very easy for someone like me to follow and understand, as I’m just in the beginning of my love of aviation so, my knowledge is a bit rough. You break concepts down, beautifully. Thank you! ☺️✈️
The intro to this video is absolutely beautiful (entire video was great)
American Pie was a massive part of my childhood, despite being born in 2000. My parents would play a CD of hits from the 80s, and that song along with Horse With No Name and Mr. Sandman were apparently my favorites, though I only recall a love for the first two songs. American Pie was the first real song that I memorized the lyrics to, and I sang it at my parents 20th and 25th anniversary parties. While I was aware of the crash and deaths that birthed this song, I wasn't aware of any details beyond that.
Amazing job Chloe. I started watching a few days ago and am now bingeing this whole back catalog while I crochet!
VFR into IMC. As someone who’s been watching general aviation crashes from the Air Safety Institute channel recently, that’s one that comes up a lot even in modern crashes.
With the lack of weather information combined with the unusual attitude indicator, that plane never had a chance.
Another bit of trivia is this crash kick started Bobby Vee's career as he was asked to perform with his band to cover for Buddy
My favorite video thus far! One incident I’d love to see you cover is United 232, in my opinion, the most incredible story of fighting until the end
As well as that DHL flight that survived being hit by a missile
The owner of the flight company is the main culprit to blame for this tragedy!
I must commend you for an excellent account of what happened and all the information related to a devastating accident.
This is the best explanation I've seen of what happened that awful night. Thank you.
The best one you did yet with respect to the people who passed.
Thank you!
What's interesting is how despite how dangerous flying was back then, judging by the fact the alternative was driving on country roads filled with snow in the middle of nowhere, All I wonder is why they didn't start using charter flights SOONER.
Buddy Holly and crew were not at fault for their own demise. It was the poor performance from the pilot and the weather that killed everyone on board.
Your beautiful narration brought me to tears.
Hearing my name at the end of the video was really the highlight of my week haha. Love your videos, Chloe!
That you so much for supporting the channel :)
I agree with the assessment. Possibly your best ever. Smashed it out of the park! Well done. Extra special credit to the pianist. That really added the perfect touch, especially at the ending. Ive been looking forward to it since you teased it and was more than worth the wait.... love from Iowa.
Wow, that into was beautiful. The slow rendition of American Pie haunting the background is **chef's kiss** perfect. 👌
The exacting details on this channel are well appreciated. It's a story that's been told many a time but the attitude indicator aspect of this tragedy is one I've never heard of before.
You just keep getting better with every video, Chloe! It's not a stretch to say this one is the best you've ever done... I WILL say it's probably the most reverent and beautiful I've seen on YT "over no more than a plane crash" pretty much across the board...
AND nothing against the report/story or presentation. I think it might help to have an addendum along, though, for those who might not know and/or who might be interested.
The "Tour From Hell" shaped up not just for being in the American Midwest during winter, but specifically in the Northern Midwest during winter. From a little north of "midway" to the southern end of the States, the Midwest is known as "the Plains" because it's all VERY flat, and almost 100% grassland. From the Plains through the Canadian border, is much known as "the Badlands" because it's not even fit to be grassland. It's rocky and sandy soil that barely supports scrub, and is still largely flat enough to leave winds completely unchecked. Many even know much of the midwestern territories as "Tornado Alley" because of all the horrendous wind-storms that rip up everything in their path through there. In winter, that same unchecked wind brings down the arctic blasts with icy additions to already saturated, wintry fronts from over the Pacific... That turns most winters into about as close to a "Frigid Hell on Earth" as you'll find just about anywhere. It's miserable, and there's no relief without trees or mountains, even rolling hills don't baffle the constant rush of air sucking the life, heat, and even your very soul right out of you. SO rattling around in a repurposed school-bus with little or no heat would be similar to sailing the North Atlantic on an outrigger canoe with your cut-off jeans and a ratty T-shirt.
AND legend has it, the Big Bopper got his seat on the plane from Waylan Jennings, who was playing bass guitar at the time as part of the accompaniment. I've heard it that Holly talked Jennings out of the seat, largely because the Bopper was sick and getting worse, so Jennings did the favor, a gesture some might suggest was against the nature of Jennings' later "outlaw guitarist" character as he seemed to project himself in his own career... BUT with that sorted out, the musicians joked as young men often do in the field, and Holly wished Jennings the luck of freezing to death in the ratty old bus... AND Jennings famously wishing Holly to crash in that plane.
Understandably, after the crash was known, Jennings purportedly blamed himself and spiraled a bit out of control... carrying that guilt for years after, and supposedly even writing references to it in his music... though some references may be more subtle than others.
"The Day the Music Died" is a dubious point in American Pop-culture history, but it's still almost difficult to hear the phrase and not run across someone only too happy to share what it means, the exact event, and even how it effected them if they're old enough to remember, even today. ;o)
Excellent presentation, thank you. One of your best. Love your friend's piano version of the song.
Yeah, I've watched a lot if not all of your videos. And would agree it's one of the best!
Just found your channel and I'm obsessed! Amazingly high quality, you clearly know your stuff and put great care into these. Thanks for what you do :)
How utterly adorable was that little 21 year old pilot. Also, I had no idea Buddy Holly was even married, and certainly didn't know he had a pregnant wife.
Great video as usual. One small point, I'd like to raise. When talking about Roger Peterson flying experience, you stated that he has "just" 700 hours which implied that this number was low. That is inaccurate. While in the US, you need 1500hrs to get your Airline Transport Pilot License, you only need 250 to get your commercial license which would allow you to fly cargo or corporate planes. In Europe it's even lower with only 200 required in Europe to put you in an airline's cockpit and a lot on airliners even have flight academy for people fresh out of school.
As you correctly said later in the video, the issue was the pilot, lacking of an IFR rating, flying into IMC weather.
Honestly I had no idea American Pie referred to an actual event until this video! Thanks a lot for making this :D
Never knew most of these fact Chloe. Unbelievable. Non instrument rated, in snow, dark, freezing weather? That’s a literal death sentence! And the Sperry instrument? Flying for 30 yrs and never heard of such a thing. So tragically informative. Thank you.
I've waited a long time for a proper breakdown of this accident. Thank you for creating this.
In keeping with this theme could you do a video on the crash that took the life of Johm Denver?
I'll certainly be adding it to my list
@@DisasterBreakdown thank you,sir
Probably your best video so far. Will done 👍
Thank you!!
I agree, this has to be one of your best videos, honestly. The way the ending at 15:20 was delivered and what not made me tear up, including the use of that rendition of American Pie, which in this context certainly sounded quite heartbreaking. This is *such* a tragic story, in every way, and you told it incredibly well. Rest in peace to those 4 men.
Long, long time ago
I can still remember..
Oooh, the ending especially was so well done! I actually got something in my eye there a little bit. Doesn't happen often watching a CZcams video. Thank you!
I will add that the person who gave up their seat to Richie Valance was Waylon Jennings, who went on to be a huge country and western star.
By far this the best episode 👏 🙌 keep on doing aviation docs❤
Another superb, content-rich, well researched video. I particularly appreciated the excellently written, presented and edited intro. Just brilliant. Bravo sir/team!
Never expected to appreciate an old yet amazing song from my childhood more thanks to an air crash video on CZcams.
Suddenly the lyrics "I can't remember if I cried when i read about his widowed bride" makes more sense. It was reffering to Buddy Holly's wife.
Great video, Chloe. Really well done
Thank you!
I watch several aviation accident channels, but I just realized I hadn’t seen this covered in the CZcams format. I felt like I knew this story, but it was actually so much sadder. Ignoring restrictions, an inexperienced pilot at the peak age to wanna look cool for some rock stars, the WORST combo of flight conditions, at night, but DAMN that comparison of the 2 instruments. It looked upside down to me in 4k…
Well, now, Chloe ... this may be the first documentary video I've seen on this crash that hasn't given me the boak. So ... props for that!
I love your style of presentation here - soft-spoken, even-toned, and almost lilting. And - much as I love all these videos you do - this one is closer to me: I'm 61 now and have been a Buddy Holly fan since I was 13.
Thank you. :)
I already knew this sad story; your work is really great on summmarizing what happened and (what so many articles and video forget) to explain how the pilot was as much of a victim of circumstances than his passengers.
I really liked that his picture was included in the end along with Buddy Holly's, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper's pictures.
Excellent narrative, sensitively done - bravo!
Fascinating details. Great collection of content you’ve built up, keep it up!!
Thank you!!! Will do :)
I'm not too clued up on my older music so didn't know this happened and assumed it was actually going to be about Don McLean. I do love the song American Pie despite not knowing its origins.
This is your best video to date. The music choices and your writing were perfect and it brought out real emotion. I do want to join your Patreon, just keep meaning to update it. Hopefully this will be motivation to do it. Keep up the amazing work Chloe!
Thanks for this one, Chloe. I was already familiar with the whole story but I’m glad to see you delving into deeper history. I personally would like more videos of events before the “jet age”. Again, great work!
Wow, I never knew about the instrument problem. Thanks for the info!
I knew a doctor who had a Bonanza from Louisana who got caught in a strong thermal updraft that he couldn't get out of no matter what he did flaps landing gear taking him way up above 12,000 until finally he got "dumped out" when he came down and landed at the nearest airport just about shit a brick!
Thank u for doing this one amazing job 👍🏼✌🏼
I read a crash and coroner report from this accident and the coroner took his fee out of the money on their persons! It was the tackiest thing I’ve ever seen. He literally wrote(and this is just an example) person 1 had 500 less 25(my fee) now 475. I thought the state paid these people!
It was a rural area in 1959... You can't judge everything by today's standards.
@@smelly_elvis It was still tacky
@@smelly_elvis Also it was theft
Poor Ritchie was afraid of planes... He knew his impending doom. That shows how miserable he was on that bus to wanna take a plane, being one of his biggest fears.
The guy Ritchie beat in the coin flip was Waylon Jennings. After winning Richie joked that he hoped Jennings would freeze on that ol bus, and Jennings joked back that he hoped Richies damned plane would crash. Jennings was haunted by it for years, even recounting it in one of his later songs 3:17
That was so interesting, thank you! What song was it?
@@danielabackstrom the song was “A Long Time Ago.” It’s towards the end and you kinda have to pay attention but he provides a subtle nod to this infamous event.
No coin toss of Ritchie was with Tommy Alsup and this is Buddy qui made a remark/joke to Waylon and this one answered him:,"I hope etc"
Horribly tragic but you did a fantastic job with this one.
Well done, as always. Thank you.
Wonderful job! Thank you so much for the video!
Thanks for watching!
Great breakdown this make me want to see the movie again. I have not seen it in years. Thank you for doing these musicianscrashes. I enjoyed this one also.
Thanks for watching!
Small point of clarification. Not all Beech Bonanza's are V tail. But the V-Tail is known as the "Doctor Killer"
..this is the second video of yours I have watched, and I think you are doing an outstanding job, with the facts, the presentation, and script and narration...even the music ( with credits!...who else does THAT!? ) Keep up the great work...on to the next story!
Another fantastic video. Thanks for the work you put in to it.
Thanks
Really lovely tribute. Your research was thorough, your words were well thought out, and your friend's musical contribution was poignant and perfectly composed.
And I'm so glad you included a tribute to the young pilot, too. He is so often left out as a victim of this tragedy. At 21, he was just a boy, and his family would have been utterly devastated.
Beautifully done, Chloe. Bravo.
I live in the Clear Lake Iowa area. They often talk about Roger Peterson here. Seems his wife worked for one of the radio stations here in town and some local radio personalities have commented on the people they knew that were involved in the concert and the crash.
As an Iowa resident I’m so happy you made this video! Fantastic work as always
Glad you like it :) Thanks for watching!