I feel like we’re losing touch – maybe for good – with the great songs from the 1950s. Maybe it’s natural – the people who grew up with that music are a small minority of our living world in 2026, and just about everything from the 1950s seems more historical than living at this point.
That doesn’t mean we have to forget it.
There are reasons why Buddy Holly is the subject of movies and maybe the greatest tombstone song of the 1970s. Yes, part of it is his place in rock-n-roll history and his tragic death. But there’s a reason why he was so important to my parents’ generation – it’s the music. Listen to “Well… All Right” – it’s simple and yet so catchy.
And also accessible and moldable. So many other bands have put out their version of this song. There’s a great post about that here
If you want to hear an almost exact copy of Holly’s song, check out Mike Berry’s (from REM) Buddy Holly compilation.