![]() You’ve dedicated many studies to Woody Guthrie. To mention your background, I would like to say that you were the Director of Libraries, Professor of Education and taught Oklahoma history at Tulsa University. JE: Joining us is your friend Guy Logsdon, Guy, it is nice to have you here. JE: You are coming up on your 80th birthday? TA: Yes, the big 8-0. ![]() Tommy AllsupĪfter a lucky coin toss in 1959, he became a successful western guitarist and music producer. I was born in Owasso on November 24th, 1931, so that makes me 79 years old. Tommy, would you state your full name, your date of birth and your present age? Tommy Allsup: Tommy Allsup. Chapter 2 - 7:24 Allsup Family John Erling: My name is John Erling and today’s date is September 8, 2011. Thanks to our sponsors, Tommy’s story is preserved on the Oklahoma oral history website. Along with his good friend Guy Logsdon, Tommy will talk about his career. Tommy led The Crickets, which included Waylon Jennings, and finished the tour. Holly and Valens were killed along with The Big Bopper on February 3, 1959, when for unknown reasons the plane crashed. Ritchie Valens had never flown before and flipped a coin with Tommy for a place on the plane. In was the winter 1959 when Buddy Holly after a concert in Clear Lake, Iowa hired a pilot to take them to Fargo, North Dakota. After meeting Buddy Holly in 1958, Tommy Allsup toured with Buddy Holly & The Crickets. It was after high school that he became a member of Johnny Lee Wills and All His Boys, performingĪt Cain’s Ballroom in Tulsa. The musical family moved to Claremore and in 1947 as a sophomore in high school, Tommy organized a Western-style band calling themselves the Oklahoma Swingbillies. He produced recordings featuring his guitar style, including “The Buddy Holly Songbook Featuring the Guitar of Tommy Allsup.”Ĭhapter 1 - 1:16 Introduction Announcer: Western swing guitarist and music producer Tommy Allsup was born on his Cherokee mother’s allotment near Owasso, Oklahoma, the twelfth of thirteen children. He played a major role in putting swing into country music. He continued his life in music as a session guitarist and record producer. Holly and Valens were killed along with the Big Bopper, on February 3, 1959, when for unknown reasons, the plane crashed. Ritchie Valens, had never flown before, flipped a coin with Tommy for a place on the plane. It was winter 1959 when Buddy Holly after a concert in Clear Lake, Iowa, hired a pilot to take them to Fargo, North Dakota. After meeting Buddy Holly in 1958, he toured with Buddy Holly and the Crickets. Later, in Lawton, Oklahoma Tommy fronted his own band in the Southern Club. After high school he became a member of Johnnie Lee Wills and All The Boys band playing in Cain’s Ballroom in Tulsa. In 1947, as a sophomore in high school, Tommy organized a Western- style band called the Oklahoma Swing Billies. The twelfth of thirteen children, the musical family moved to Claremore. The story is legend but the term “The Day the Music Died” was coined by Don McLean’s song “American Pie.Western Swing guitarist and music producer Tommy Allsup was born on his Cherokee mother’s land allotment near Owasso, Oklahoma. Ritchie is known as the first ‘Chicano Rockstar’ at only 17 years old he had made a significant impact with not only his music but representation for aspiring Chicano musicians. We play Ritchie Valens on our station, but it’s more than just the music. (the Big Bopper) Richardson, and Valens climbed into a single-engine Beechcraft Bonanza that crashed into a cornfield in a snowstorm just after take-off. Valens wanted to fly as well so he and Allsup (Holly’s guitarist) held a coin toss for the final seat. … I couldn’t believe how cold it was,” wrote Jennings, who played bass for Holly on the tour. “It was so cold on the bus that we’d have to wear all our clothes, coats and everything. ![]() With tour members getting frostbite, sick, and dirty clothes combined with not getting good sleep, they decided to take a plane. They ended up making it to Clear Lake, but their next stop was Moorhead. Before what they would know would be their last performance, their bus broke down on an icy highway and they were stranded in the northern Wisconsin forest. The tour was miserable and was not routed for efficiency or safety. They were traveling in mid-winter and it was absolutely freezing. They were headed to their next stop on their tour. Richardson, and pilot Roger Peterson were killed in a plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa. On February 3, 1959, Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, “The Big Bopper” J.
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