that's right, kids! it's america's first punk, mr. buddy holly!! buddy, AKA charles harden, could very well have been the first punk rocker. first of all, a white guy playing rock n roll (or actually, ANYONE playing rock n roll) at the time was considered controversial, or dare i say, SHOCKING? not to mention those glasses. and he put together the first 3-piece rock n roll band. so anyone after that who did have a band with only 3 people (which didnt happen too often until the punk movement anyway), was influenced, directly or indirectly, by buddy holly.

also, buddy was such a great negotiator (and a clever son of a bitch!) that he got the first recording contract guaranteeing artistic freedom. whatever he wanted, he got. and he wouldn't bend. if that's not punk i dont know what is.

so, that being said, let's take a look at "buddy holly's greatest hits".

this is a good showcase of all the classics, and a great start for any new fan (are there such a thing as "new buddy holly fans"?). "that'll be the day", "lookin for someone to love", "oh boy", "peggy sue" (my favorite!!), and "rave on" are all here. that would be enough for me, but LOOK!!! there's 13 MORE songs to bop to!

the songs i wouldn't listen to for more than a few seconds:

"fool's paradise"- the backing vox are just fuckin annoying.

"heartbeat"- reminds me too much of jimmy buffet or some other white guy trying to sound a little tropical, hahaha...

"true love ways"- the orchestras turn me off. this is why i hate most of the crooners like frankie and dean.

"it doesnt matter anymore"- EWWWW!! pizzicato is for 60's laundry detergent ads.

"raining in my heart"- see last 2 reasons.

if i pretend those songs arent on here, it's a great album. thats usually what i do when i love most of someone's songs, so as not to spoil my opinion of the whole band. or i tape all the songs i like and return the CD to the store. either way, i LOVE the music of buddy holly, and besides, i got this CD burnt for me for free.

reviewed by sam sinister.