LogFAQs > #957375875

19. Buddy Holly & The Crickets Thatll Be the Day (1957)
from the album The Chirping Crickets

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eq9FCBatl3A

Key lyrics:
You say youre going to leave, you know its a lie
Because thatll be the day when I die

Where Elvis Presley helped bring rock and roll to the masses, Buddy Hollys short career did just as much to push the genre in a new direction. It is not surprising to learn that the first song The Beatles recorded, back when they were The Quarrymen, was a cover of Thatll Be the Day. Hollys guitar jangled, a sound that would define so much of popular rock from the 60s onward.

Buddy Holly played with a lighter edge than many of his contemporaries. After the electric opening, the guitar disappears through much of Thatll Be the Day. The actual sound that defines much of this track consists of harmonizing, a simple bass strum, and some soft percussion. The vocal portions may as well be a pop song. But Holly wields the guitar with precision, and its sudden reappearance during a short instrumental break halfway through is mesmerizing. Buddy Holly played up stark contrasts his work was a direct reference point on Pixies Doolittle, and you can find a taste of their signature quiet-loud dynamic so many decades earlier here.

The arrangement on most early rock tracks are simple, but songs like Thatll Be the Day are proof that simple sometimes means better. The vocal sections effortlessly roll along, and the electrifying break is as effective today the little punches from the drum near the end are the perfect icing. Dozens of major artists cite Holly as a direct influence, and it is easy to understand why. His little songs cut straight to the point many artists could learn from his pointed brevity.

---

My top 100 games (with write-ups): https://foolfantastic.com/top-100-video-games-project/