Carl Bunch acts on the tour, including Ritchie Valens and J.P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson. When Bunch had to be left behind in Wisconsin, hospitalized for frostbite he experienced after the tour bus heater failed, Holly and Valens took turns in the drum chair playing behind the various acts. On February 3, 1959, Holly, Valens, and Richardson were killed in a plane crash en route to the next tour stop. Bunch rejoined the tour on February 5, in Sioux City, Iowa. Ronnie Smith, Jimmy Clanton and Fabian were also recruited to help fill out the playbill. The tour ended on February 15,
The Big Bopper fatal plane crash, Tommy Dee wrote and recorded a song titled "Three Stars" in tribute to Richardson, Holly, and Valens. It was later recorded by Eddie Cochran, a friend of the three musicians who himself would die prematurely a year later in an automobile crash. Van Halen's song "Good Enough" from their 1986 album "5150" begins with singer Sammy Hagar calling out "Hello Baby!", imitating the Big Bopper's hook in "Chantilly Lace". Phil Lewis of L.A. Guns does the same in their song "17 Crash" from their 1989 album "Cocked & Loaded". The "Simpsons" episode "Sideshow Bob Roberts" features a