Scout's Honor No Internet Search R n' R Triva questions (4)

There is a cool, but somber, memorial in Clear Lake, Iowa, that marks the location where Buddy Holly's plane crash landed along an icy fence row on that fateful night.  It's a must see for any music lover if you are in that part of Iowa.

"A stainless steel guitar and a set of three stainless steel records marks the exact spot where the plane carrying Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, & JP ''The Big Bopper'' Richardson came to rest following their final concert at the Surf Ballroom. In 2009, a second monument was erected on the 50th anniversary of the tragedy honoring their pilot, Roger Peterson.  The outdoor memorial is located just under 1/2 mile along the fence row in a field north of Clear Lake. There is a large pair of black rimmed glasses marking the trail head on Gull Avenue.  The Winter Dance Party was a tour that was set to cover 24 Midwestern cities in 3 weeks. A logistical problem with the tour was the amount of travel, as the distance between venues was not a consideration when scheduling each performance. The tour bus was not equipped for the weather; its heating system broke shortly after the tour began.
By the time Buddy Holly arrived at the Surf Ballroom that Monday evening, he was frustrated with the tour bus and decided to charter a plane.  Richardson had developed a case of flu during the tour and asked Waylon Jennings for his seat on the plane. When Holly learned that Jennings wasn't going to fly, he said in jest, ''Well, I hope your ol' bus freezes up'' and Jennings responded, also in jest, ''Well, I hope your ol' plane crashes''. This would haunt Jennings for the rest of his life.
Ritchie Valens had never flown in a small plane before, and asked Tommy Allsup for his seat. Tommy said ''I'll flip ya for for the remaining seat.'' Valens won the coin toss, and with it a seat on the flight."

https://members.clearlakeiowa.com/list/member/plane-crash-site-of-buddy-holly-ritchie-valens-jp-the-big-bopper-richard-clear-lake-7383

@chazz101s: Jim Gordon is correct.

As The 3rd drummer’s name may not be as familiar to many as the other two, I’ll divulge it now: Earl Palmer. Earl considered himself a Jazz musician, but didn’t turn down offers for Rock ’n’ Roll recording sessions in the 1950’s and 60’s. He played on a lot of them, one being Little Richard’s "Keep A Knockin’". John Bonham was obviously a fan, as his intro in Zeppelin’s "Rock And Roll" is a carbon copy (inferior) imitation of Earl’s intro in the Little Richard song.

I and many other drummers went to Chadney’s restaurant in Burbank, California (directly across the street from the NBC studio where The Tonight Show is filmed) in the 90’s to see Earl and his little combo performing in the bar of the restaurant. I am not alone in considering Earl as the Father of Rock ’n’ Roll drumming. It is basically the same drumming the black drummers were already playing in Jump Blues music in the 1940’s, but with the backbeat (the 2 and 4 played on the snare drum) played louder.

In the related matter of the saxophone player who played in Rock ’n’ Roll bands from the 1950’s through the 80’s, it was Lee Allen. Lee is also heard on the recordings of Little Richard, and can be seen blowing sax behind Richard in the movie The Girl Can’t Help it. On drums is Richard’s road drummer, the great Charles Conner.

in the 1970’s Lee joined The L.A. roots band The Blasters, playing sax alongside Steve Berlin. I had the pleasure of seeing The Blasters (with Lee in tow) back Big Joe Turner in the mid-80’s at Club Lingerie on Sunset Blvd. Lee played in The Blasters throughout that decade, even I believe after Berlin left the band to join Los Lobos.

The Lee Allen song I referred to is entitled "Walking With Mr. Lee".

@waytoomuchstuff: If memory serves me, the bassist on the song in question---the title of which I don’t recall, but it was on Motown Records---is James Jamerson. James is my all-time favorite bass player, and to hear why, give a listen to his playing on Marvin Gaye’s "Pride And Joy". SO cool! Paul McCartney credits James with opening his eyes to the possibilities of the electric bass (especially the use of "inversion"). Listen to the difference between McCartney’s bass playing on Rubber Soul vs. Revolver.

OK, me again (and I haven't looked at replies beyond mine yesterday if there are any).

Sax player, 2nd try - Steve Douglas.

Btw, Daddy G was Gene Barge, but he played with Gary US Bonds and that was Norfolk/Tidewater, VA.

Now then, onward to the replies. . . .

'78 was a great year for music--i might have gotten half of #1 right as Dire Straits came to mind immediately but for me everything else was overshadowed by my favorite live album of all time that came out that year:  "Waiting for Columbus"

@bdp, got it - Lee Allen - good stuff.

Will have to scroll up screen to remind myself what I was trying to answer!