On This Day in 1957, Buddy Holly Topped the Charts With a John Wayne-Inspired Hit His Label Refused to Release
Buddy Holly and the Crickets reached No. 1 on the UK singles chart on 27 October 1957 with “That’ll Be the Day”, after Decca had rejected Holly’s first recording. The story shows how a label’s decision and Holly’s recording contract helped turn the song into a hit under the band’s name.
Holly first recorded the song with the Three Tunes, but later re-recorded it with the Crickets for Brunswick, released in the UK by Coral. Because his Decca contract barred him from re-recording songs made for the label for five years, producer Norman Petty credited the new version to the Crickets; Decca later issued Holly’s solo take, which flopped. The title phrase was inspired by John Wayne’s repeated line in the 1956 Western *The Searchers*, and the song found another audience in the 1973 film *American Graffiti*.
In short
- The Crickets topped the UK chart with “That’ll Be the Day” in 1957.
- Decca had rejected Holly’s first recording of the song.
- John Wayne’s line in *The Searchers* inspired its title.
Explained simply
Buddy Holly was an American singer and songwriter who first recorded “That’ll Be the Day” with a group called the Three Tunes. Decca, the record company he was signed to, turned that recording down. Holly later made a new version with his band, the Crickets, for Brunswick Records; it was released in the UK by Coral.
Holly’s Decca contract barred him from re-recording songs he had made for the label for five years. Producer Norman Petty therefore credited the new recording to the Crickets, while Decca later released Holly’s original solo take. The title came from a line repeatedly spoken by John Wayne in the 1956 film The Searchers, and the song reached another generation of listeners through the 1973 film American Graffiti.
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