Which Buddy Holly song was inspired by John Wayne?

It sounds like the start of a ordinary weekend with mates…. three guys go to the movies.

But when it’s Buddy Holly, Jerry Allison and Sonny Curtis it’s an outing that ends in a hit song.

It was June in 1956 when the trio went to watch The Searchers, starring John Wayne. Throughout the movie Wayne is heard to say ‘that’ll be the day’.

And now you’ve got that song they came up with in your head already, haven’t you?

‘That’ll be the Day’ was first released that year but it was the second recording, with The Crickets, that saw it become a hit that has stood the test of time.

It has been re-recorded by a number of musicians over the years, including The Everly Brothers in 1965 and Linda Ronstadt in 1976.

However it was a recording in 1958 that is particularly memorable. It was made by the Quarrymen as their first ever song. This band went on to some fame under another name – The Beatles. If you are lucky enough to have a copy of that first record you’d want to look after it carefully. It’s thought to be worth $US 136,000 ($AU 171,000). 

The song was even listed at 39 on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list. 

Do you agree it belongs this high on the Greatest Songs list?