Buddy Holly’s only Seattle shows were 60 years ago this week. We're reposting today in light of the recent passing of Crickets' drummer Jerry Allison, who was interviewed for the 2017 story.
It kicked off with a series of shows in Brooklyn in late August, followed by a dizzyingly paced three months of one and two-night stands across the US and Canada.
To get from one town to another for a show the next night, Allison and the other musicians spent a lot of time on the bus. Prior to arriving in Seattle, the tour had visited Portland, Vancouver, BC and Tacoma – in that order – on October 22, 23 and 24. “I don’t think we did sound checks as such in those days,” Allison said. “Everybody knew what to go play and we played every night [but] we had to get there in time to set up the drums and Buddy’s amplifier. On that tour, Nikki Sullivan was with us, so we had his amplifier. That fella named Junior that was the lead roadie – he helped us set up a lot of stuff, and we helped him do stuff, too.”
“I mean, we thought we were rich,” Allison said. “You know, 200 bucks a week is more than my folks made in 1957,” he said, chuckling.“I don’t know if it was as bad as the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show as far as the screaming,” Allison said, “but there were crowds that were enthusiastic.”“[The girls] would go nuts over the Everly Brothers and quite a few of the acts,” Allison said. “But The Crickets always attracted more guitar players and drummers than they did chicks.
The final date of the tour was in Richmond, Virginia on November 24. That same week, The Crickets debut LP,was released, and the band played two songs on The Ed Sullivan Show on CBS TV. Then, it was more touring, more TV, and more touring. “I’m just … I’m still in awe of the fact that’s still happening,” Allison said. “Like Paul McCartney told me one time, if it weren’t for the Crickets, there wouldn’t be anyThe Orpheum Theatre’s legacy, unfortunately, didn’t last quite so long. The venue did host a number of shows during the World’s Fair in 1962, and it continued to show first-run movies. It was even extensively remodeled and upgraded in 1963.
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