Rock Icon Dion Recalls 1959 Plane Crash That Killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens And The Big Bopper
When I called rock legend Dion DiMucci for an interview recently, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. When he answered the "Me" phone, I thought of his hard-guy roots in the Bronx gangs singing doo-wop at the inclinations. What would he be like? A macho guy like in his hit song, " The Wanderer?"
The truth is that Dion is a sensitive and funny person with stories. I mean real stories. Now 79, his memory is sharp and vivid. For an hour and a half, we discussed his experienced career. Who in real life is Runaround Sue, The Wanderer? What does Dion think about the invasion of British rock in the early sixties? What do you remember about Del Shannon? How does it feel like the guy who says he gave his seat to Ritchie Valens when that plane crashed killing Valens, JP "The Big Bopper" Richardson and Buddy Holly en route to their next gig in Fargo, ND, in February. 3, 1959?
Below is the first part of a series of edited interview excerpts that answer all those questions and more, including news of a new play about Dion's life that will open in New York soon. Part 1 below focuses on the tragic plane crash.
Dion DiMucci 1960 advertising shot
Dion DiMucci 1960 advertising shooting CAPITOL BOOKING CORPORATION
Jim Clash: Do You Think You've played "Runaround Sue" more often than you've done media interviews [laughs]?
Dion DiMucci: definitely [laughs]. I never got into this business to do interviews. It was always about the music.
Shock: let's start with a life-changing event. In 1959, a plane with the Big Bopper, Ritchie Valens and Buddy Holly crashed while you were all on the Winter Dance Party tour, killing the three stars and the pilot. You were 19 at the time. What are your memories now?
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DiMucci: it did change my life. I got to know Buddy Holly pretty well. I introduced him to Manny's music on 48th Street in New York and a clothing store on Third Avenue [laughs]. We all left that tour in January 1959. First we rehearsed in Chicago. Then we headed to Milwaukee on a bus. It wasn't the typical bus you see today, like a Golden Eagle. It was a yellow church school bus outside a parking lot. That was it.
It was a lot of fun in the back of that bus with Ritchie Valens, Buddy and The Big Bopper sharing each other's songs. After two weeks of the tour, the bus had broken so many times. That night in Clear Lake, IA, Buddy just got tired. He was a little older, 22 I think. It was very decisive. He impressed me because I was 19 and insecure. He decided to rent a plane so that we could get to the next stop, take a shower, get some sleep, do our washing. It was like 400 miles in blinding snow to Fargo, ND.
So he chartered a Beechcraft Bonanza. That night we were all tired after the show. He took us to this room. And he said, "Listen, there are only four seats on the plane.The pilot took one and there was only room for three others. One of the headliners couldn't go. So let's throw a coin to see who can fly and who goes on the bus. Ritchie was sick and wasn't really crazy about flying. Anyway we flipped the coin, and I won the toss.
Then we found out it was going to cost $ 36 for each of us. It would have been less than a two-hour flight. On the bus, we'd have to drive all night to Fargo. But when he said $36, a light went out in my head because my dad paid that monthly for rent in the Bronx. So I thought, ' I'm not going to spend an entire month renting just for a flight.'My main reason for not going was the $36! So I said to Ritchie, " please get on the plane. Take your coat. Stay warm. I'm going to see your guitars.Buddy then said to me, " look at my guitar, too. Take care of it like you take care of your testicles [laughs].I said it's okay. Later, when I saw Peter Townshend [The Who] Break a Fender guitar on stage, I thought it was sacrilege. Guitars were like gold to us.
Anyway, the four left for the airport around midnight. I got on the bus with some of the musicians. The plane took off, and in five minutes it crashed in a storm. The next morning, when we showed up and stopped at the hotel in Fargo, I remember it as a sunny day. We got off the bus and the locals were in the lobby watching this black and white TV. It was coming across the screen that these three rock and roll artists had died in a plane crash. Jim, it was hard to get my mind around her. I didn't even know how to hold on to that. It baffled me. I have a good memory before that happened, but after that I don't remember too much.
We stayed off tour for two more weeks. I was singing some of Ritchie's songs, some of Buddy's. We have telegrams from Bobby Darin, Phil Spector, Dick Clark, Paul Anka. Back then it was telegrams, not texts. When I finally returned to the Bronx, there was no grief counseling. My parents didn't talk about it. Nothing. Years later, I talked to my father. He said when he heard the news it felt like open heart surgery without anesthesia. My sister, Joanie, was making a peanut butter sandwich and collapsed on her knees. I didn't even know who he was in the plane crash. The news was that three rock-and-rollers had died.
Rock icon Dion DiMucci today.
Rock icon Dion DiMucci today. COURTESY OF DION DIMUCCI
In the lobby of the hotel, we had put ourselves on the line, making all these calls. But no one thought to call Ritchie's mother. Or Buddy's family. We didn't have their numbers. Many people did not even make it to their own homes because the lines were very busy. So many of these families just heard it on the radio, like my family. Radio was great in those days.
Those three guys affected my life on many levels. Friend once told me, " Dion, I don't know how to succeed, but I know how to fail. Try to please everyone, and you will not go anywhere."If he didn't tell me that, I probably would never have done "Runaround Sue," "The Wanderer," "Abraham, Martin and John.I miss those guys. Thank God that in my faith, relationships never end. I always ask for your prayers, because I feel that they are closer to the beatific vision and are helping me. I have three angels up there.
Editor's note: in another popular account of this story, musician Waylon Jennings is said to be the one who gave up his seat on the plane that fateful night. Jennings died in 2002.
[In the next parts of this interview series, we'll discuss the British Invasion, The Shannon, who Runaround Sue And The Wanderer are in real life, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, how Dion kicked his drug habit and more. Keep an eye on the Forbes channel.]
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