Ritchie Valens minutes after takeoff for reasons still unknown. The crash killed all three passengers and pilot Roger Peterson instantly upon impact. As with Holly and Richardson, Valens suffered massive and unsurvivable head injuries along with blunt force trauma to the chest. At just 17 years old, Valens was the youngest to die in the crash. The tragedy inspired singer Don McLean to write his 1971 hit "American Pie", immortalizing February 3 as "The Day the Music Died". Valens's remains were buried at San Fernando Mission Cemetery, Mission Hills, California. Valens was a pioneer of Chicano rock and Latin rock and inspired
Everyday (Buddy Holly song) his album "Gunfight at Carnegie Hall" in 1974. Elliott Murphy recorded this song for a French tribute, "Every Day Is a Holly Day", in 1989. In 1990, the British guitarist Peter White recorded it for the album "Reveillez-Vous". Fiona Apple recorded a cover version for the Buddy Holly tribute album "Rave On Buddy Holly" in 2011. Patrick Stump contributed a cover version to the Buddy Holly tribute album "" in 2011. The song is also on the 2012 Japanese CD "Levi Dexter & Gretsch Brothers", featuring Rockabilly Hall of Fame inductee Levi Dexter. In 2016, the Canadian singer-songwriter Jordan Paul