The Buddy Holly Story

1. In the movie Ray we saw Charles witnessing racism as a black artist trying to break into a music business run by whites. In this movie we see Buddy Holly viewing racism as a white man trying to break into that same business as a white artist playing “colored music”. Compare their experiences. Use a Venn diagram or a basic table to help you organize your thoughts. Once you’ve gathered the information, write a brief comparative analysis.

2. Commercialism in the 50s and 60s in some ways came in the form of producers who were responsible for pulling together all the elements that went into a song, often leaving the artist out of the creative process. Why was Holly so adamant that he be the producer of his own music?

3. “There just aint such a thing as a hit record with just three guys playing.” Why do you think the producer feels so strongly about his position? Assess the strengths and limitations of playing with just three people? Use examples from the movie to help make your point.

4. Buddy Holly and his “Crickets” got their name from a bug in their drum. What’s in a name? Does the name of the band really matter? Do you think it was that big of a deal that he gave up the “Crickets” name? Consider other notable bands and the ways in which their names matter or not.

5. What if “the day the music died” hadn’t happened and Buddy Holly and the others on the plane (Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper, etc.) had lived? What would they have done? How would music be different? Would their places in the history of rock be the same?

6. Why do you think Rockabilly as a genre was so short lived?

The Buddy Holly Story

1. In the movie Ray we saw Charles witnessing racism as a black artist trying to break into a music business run by whites. In this movie we see Buddy Holly viewing racism as a white man trying to break into that same business as a white artist playing “colored music”. Compare their experiences. Use a Venn diagram or a basic table to help you organize your thoughts. Once you’ve gathered the information, write a brief comparative analysis.

2. Commercialism in the 50s and 60s in some ways came in the form of producers who were responsible for pulling together all the elements that went into a song, often leaving the artist out of the creative process. Why was Holly so adamant that he be the producer of his own music?

3. “There just aint such a thing as a hit record with just three guys playing.” Why do you think the producer feels so strongly about his position? Assess the strengths and limitations of playing with just three people? Use examples from the movie to help make your point.

4. Buddy Holly and his “Crickets” got their name from a bug in their drum. What’s in a name? Does the name of the band really matter? Do you think it was that big of a deal that he gave up the “Crickets” name? Consider other notable bands and the ways in which their names matter or not.

5. What if “the day the music died” hadn’t happened and Buddy Holly and the others on the plane (Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper, etc.) had lived? What would they have done? How would music be different? Would their places in the history of rock be the same?

6. Why do you think Rockabilly as a genre was so short lived?