(CelebrityAccess News Service) – The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum and Case Western Reserve University have planned their eighth annual American Music Masters program, with Buddy Holly, who was inducted into the Hall in 1986, being honored on December 5-6.
"Buddy Holly is truly one of the icons of rock and roll music," said Terry Stewart, president and CEO of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. "In his tragically brief career, Buddy Holly created a body of work that is still reverberating through the rock world today."
"I am truly pleased that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is recognizing Buddy a second time by honoring him as an American Legend," said Maria Elena Holly, Holly's widow. "Buddy was among the first group of musicians inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and now being a member of this very select group of musicians is a wonderful tribute to him as a person and to his great talent. I want to thank Buddy's fans around the world who continue to enjoy his music and who keep his legacy alive. I also want to thank the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for honoring my husband in this very special way. Lastly, I want to thank the Buddy Holly Center in Lubbock, Texas, Buddy's hometown, for helping make this exhibition a special one that all will enjoy."
The highlight of the series is the Tribute Concert at the Drury Theater, Cleveland Play House on December 6. Participants will include John Mellencamp, Tommy Allsup, the Bacon Brothers, Marshall Crenshaw, Bill Pinkney and the Drifters, Joe Ely, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Nanci Griffith, Maria Elena Holly, Wanda Jackson, Lenny Kaye, Kevin Montgomery and John Mueller.
An interdisciplinary conference on Holly's music, life and legacy, sponsored by Case Western Reserve University, will take place on December 6 beginning at 9:00 a.m. at Case's Ford Auditorium in the Allen Memorial Library. The conference will feature a keynote address by Greil Marcus. Bill Malone, author of Country Music, USA, will also be giving an address. Panelists and musicians will include Tommy Allsup, Marshall Crenshaw, Joe Ely, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, John Goldrosen, Nanci Griffith, Jim Henke, Maria Elena Holly, Wanda Jackson, Lenny Kaye, Bill Pinkney of the Drifters and Warren Zanes.
There will be a concert at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum on December 5 featuring the Raveonettes paying tribute to Holly.
The Museum will open a Buddy Holly exhibit December 5 in the Ahmet M. Ertegun Exhibition Hall. The exhibit was created in conjunction with the Buddy Holly Center in Lubbock, Texas. –Bob Grossweiner and Jane Cohen
