Ritchie Valens Biography, Photos and Posters

Ritchie Valens

Biography

Born: May 13, 1941
City and Country of Origin: Pacoima (LA), San Fernando Valley, California
Music Training: self taught guitar, trumpet
Awards:
Top Recordings: "Come On, Let's Go," "Donna," "La Bamba," "Little Girl," "We Belong Together"
Ritchie Valens Biography: Richard Steven Valenzuela was an influential pioneer of the rock and roll era, in particular Spanish rock and roll. He is best remembered for his rock and roll recording of the traditional Mexican folk song "La Bamba." However, his biggest hit was the A side of the record "Donna" which hit number 2 on the charts. The song also had a second incarnation after Valens' fatal air crash.

Although he did not speak Spanish he was brought up on traditional Mexican mariachi music. His father encouraged him to learn to play the guitar and trumpet at an early age. He also taught himself to sing and play the drums. Although he was lefthanded he mastered the traditonal right-handed version of the instrument.

When he was 16 he joined a local band named The Silhouettes as a guitarist. He also performed as a soloist at parties and other social gatherings. His high energy performance earned him the nickname "The Little Richard of the Valley." In May 1958, Bob Keane, the owner and President of Del-Fi Records, a small Hollywood record label, heard about a young performer from Pacoima by the name of Richard Valenzuela. Keane went to see Valenzuela play in San Fernando and was so impressed by the performance that he invited Ritchie to audition at his home in the Silver Lake area of Los Angeles, where he had a small recording studio in his basement. The recording equipment comprised an early portable tape recorder — a two-track Ampex 6012 — and a pair of Telefunken U-87 condenser microphones.

Keane signed Ritchie to a recording contract on May 27, 1958, and had his name changed to Ritchie Valens in order not to give him a wider appeal than just the Latin market. Keane had Valens re-record several of the songs they recorded in his basement at Gold Star Studios in Hollywood with a full band. The demos which featured Ritchie singing and playing the guitar are available on the Del-Fi album Ritchie Valens — The Lost Tapes.

At this point Valens quit high school to focus on his career. Keane booked Valens for appearances all across the country. To meet this schedule Valens had to overcome his fear of flying which came from an unfortunate incident while he was in junior high school. TWo planes collided over the playground killing or injuring sevearl of his friends. Valens appeared on Dick Clark's American Bandstand in Philadelphia on October 6, where he sang "Come On, Let's Go," in Hawaii along with Buddy Holly and Paul Anka and on Alan Freed's Christmas Jubilee in New York City in December. On the 27th of December he previewed "Donna" on American Bandstand.

As part of his promotional efforts Valens joined what was termed "The Winter Dance Party" tour of the Midwest. Other member of the tour included Buddy Holly with a new back-up band, Tommy Allsup on guitar, Waylon Jennings on bass, and Carl Bunch on drums; Dion and the Belmonts; J.P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson; and Frankie Sardo. Conditions on the bus carrying th eperformers were deplorable during the frigid Midwest winter and several members fell ill including Carl Bunch who had to be hospitalized with severely frostbitten feet.

Buddy Holly, fed up with the conditions on the buses, decided to charter a small plane for himself and his back-up band (Buddy's former bandmates Jerry Allison and Joe Mauldin retained claim to the name The Crickets) to get to the next show on time, get some rest, and get their laundry done. After the February 2, 1959 performance at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa, Holly, Richardson (who pleaded with Waylon Jennings for his seat because he was stricken with flu), and Valens (who had won Tommy Allsup's seat after a coin toss), were taken to Clear Lake airport by the manager of the Surf Ballroom.

The plane, a four-passenger Beechcraft Bonanza, departed for Fargo, North Dakota into a blinding snowstorm bound and crashed into farmer Albert Juhl's cornfield shortly after takeoff. The crash ended the lives of all three passengers, as well as that of the 21 year-old pilot, Roger Peterson. This event is often said to have inspired singer Don McLean's popular 1971 ballad "American Pie", and immortalized February 3 as "The Day the Music Died". The event also inspired the Eddie Cochran song "Three Stars", which specifically mentions Holly, the Big Bopper, and Valens.
Died: February 3, 1959

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