Dion DiMucci with Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, the Big Bopper (J.P. Richardson), Frankie Sardo, and other performers. On February 3, 1959, after a concert stop in Clear Lake, Iowa, Holly and others decided to charter a flight to the next venue rather than travel on the tour bus. Dion was invited to accompany the group but decided that he did not want to spend $36 for the flight, as it was the same monthly rent his parents paid for his childhood apartment and he couldn't justify the indulgence. The plane crashed, killing all on board: Holly, Valens, Richardson, and the pilot Roger
The Best of Ritchie Valens The Best of Ritchie Valens The Best of Ritchie Valens is a greatest hits package by Ritchie Valens. In 1981, Rhino Records began issuing a number of compilations from Bob Keane's Del-Fi Records catalog. This compilation was a follow-up to the first release "History of Ritchie Valens", a deluxe box set of Valens' original three Del-Fi albums. Six years later, with the success of the Ritchie Valens bio movie "La Bamba", along with Los Lobos' chart-topping version of the movie title track, the soundtrack album (which also peaked at #1), and even Los Lobos' version of "Come On, Let's Go"