HOLLY DREAMED OF CHARLES COLLABORATION

Last updated: Tuesday, February 3, 2009

HOLLY DREAMED OF CHARLES COLLABORATION

Late music legend BUDDY HOLLY was so determined to record a duet with RAY CHARLES he once embarked on a road trip to track down the star.

RAY CHARLES

The Peggy Sue hitmaker dreamed of exploring music outside his own rock 'n' roll genre, and hailed R&B singer Charles and gospel singer Mahalia Jackson as his greatest inspirations.

And before his untimely death in a plane crash on 3 February 1959 - 50 years ago today - Holly even attempted to locate Charles in California, to beg him for a studio collaboration.

Holly's widow Maria Elena tells AOL.com, "He wasn't afraid to try things... I think he would have gone into different ways (had he lived). As a matter of fact, he also was very much interested in music like Mahalia Jackson and Ray Charles, gospel.

"We even went to California, looking for (Charles), but unfortunately he was on tour. (Buddy) wanted to do a duet with him and also with Mahalia. He said, 'I'll get him sometime or another.'"

Holly also considered branching out by singing in Spanish - and even asked his Puerto Rican bride to help him master the language: "He was planning with my aunt, who was one of the execs at Southern Music (Holly's music publishing firm), to do an album (in Spanish). (At the time of his death, he) was in the process of trying to get songs that he would be able to do.

"At the same time, I was trying to teach him how to pronounce the words correctly and, with a person from Texas, that's not so easy. But, you know what, he was really learning."

Source: WENN

| Tuesday, February 3, 2009

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HOLLY DREAMED OF CHARLES COLLABORATION

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