On This Day in 1957, Buddy Holly Topped the Charts With a John Wayne-Inspired Hit His Label Refused to Release

On this day (October 27) in 1957, Buddy Holly and the Crickets were at No. 1 on the Official UK Singles Chart with “That’ll Be the Day.” Initially, Holly recorded it with his group the Three Tunes. However, Decca Records rejected the single. So, he re-recorded it with the Crickets for Brunswick. It was distributed by Coral Records in the United Kingdom.

Holly and the Crickets had an interesting contractual arrangement. He was signed to Decca as a solo artist. His deal with the label stated he couldn’t rerecord any of the songs he cut with Decca for five years. This rule stood for songs the label didn’t release. As a result, when he recorded “That’ll Be the Day” for Brunswick Records, producer Norman Petty credited the recording to The Crickets because it had been less than a year since his original recording. This is why the band had an international hit with the song that Holly’s label initially chose to reject.

After The Crickets’ version of “That’ll Be the Day” became a hit, Decca released Holly’s solo version. Despite his widespread popularity, the Decca single still flopped.

How John Wayne Inspired a Major Buddy Holly Hit

After seeing Elvis Presley perform in 1955, Buddy Holly began trying to write a hit song. However, he had no luck. One evening, he and his friend and drummer Jerry Allison decided to go see a movie. They watched the 1956 John Wayne Western The Searchers.

Wayne’s character uses the phrase “That’ll be the day” several times throughout the film to dismiss what other characters say. This stuck with Allison. According to Songfacts, Wayne’s catchphrase inspired this major hit.

One evening, Holly and Allison were hanging out when the singer said it would be nice if they could record a hit. “That’ll be the day,” Allison replied. Before long, they had written “That’ll Be the Day.”

[RELATED: On This Day in 1959, Buddy Holly Made Music History With This Posthumous No. 1 Hit—Penned by His “Nemesis”]

The song made Holly an international sensation. Nearly two decades later, a new generation of listeners heard the song when it appeared in the 1973 George Lucas film American Graffiti.

Featured Image by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

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