David Box: the eerie life of Buddy Holly’s replacement in The Crickets
February 3rd, 1959, was a day that echoed through the world as ‘the day the music died’. It was the day that one of rock and roll music’s brightest sparks, Buddy Holly, died tragically in a plane crash in Iowa along with Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper, and aircraft pilot Roger Peterson. This death signalled the end of an era for many music fans, with nobody able to replicate or replace the pioneering songwriting of Holly. As the showbiz adage goes, however, ‘the show must go on…’
After all, Buddy Holly did not operate entirely in operation. For much of his career, he thrived as a member of The Crickets, during which time he recorded the vast majority of his most iconic recordings, including ‘Peggy Sue’. Towards the end of his time on Earth, Holly split from the group and embarked on a solo tour, which ultimately wound up in his tragic death at the age of only 22. With his departure from the group and subsequent death, the rest of The Crickets were in need of a new guitarist and lead vocalist. Originally, Sonny Curtis was slated for that role, but the musician was drafted into the Army in 1959.
Embroiled in the traumas of death and war, The Crickets eventually turned to a young musician by the name of David Box. Like Holly, Box hailed from Lubbock, Texas, and had a knack for infectious rock and roll guitar tunes. Joining the ranks of The Crickets in 1960, Box was immediately thrown into the recording studio, cutting the single ‘Don’t Cha Know’, with ‘Peggy Sue Got Married’ used as the B-side. Holly had originally penned that B-side, but Box took to it with effortless grace, giving promise to the future of The Crickets.
The 17-year-old showed an incredible level of promise during his early days with The Crickets, helping to revitalise their career as a band after the death of their defining member. Between 1960 and 1964, the young Texan was living a life of rock fantasy, recording multiple singles, touring with the likes of Dusty Springfield, and even earning the respect of his hero, Roy Orbison. Much like Buddy Holly had been years prior, Box was among the most promising young stars of the American music scene.
Also, like Holly, Box’s career was destined to end in tragedy. In October 1964, Box was travelling from Sugar Land, Texas, to Houston in a Cessna 172 Skyhawk alongside various fellow musicians from Houston. In a morbidly familiar series of events, the small aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff, killing everybody onboard, including the 21-year-old Box. Although, by that time, he had not been a member of The Crickets for three years, the death still presented striking similarities to the death of Buddy Holly five years prior.
In fact, upon learning of Box’s death, the parents of Buddy Holly were among the first to visit the musician’s grieving family. Reportedly, Holly’s father, Lawrence Odell Holley, told Box’s parents, “People would tell you that time heals the pain, but it does not.”
David Box was never allowed to reach his full potential before being cut down at the age of 21, but he was certainly on track to reach the upper echelon of American rock music. Far from being a pretender to Holly’s throne, the Texan songwriter was gifted in his own right, both as a songwriter and performer.
Sure, his small discography never sold all that well, but his career never had a chance to properly get going before his untimely death in 1964. Had he continued on, he might even have eclipsed the legendary reputation of Buddy Holly. Instead, he remains a footnote in the story of The Crickets, largely remembered solely for his morbid connection to the ‘Peggy Sue’ songwriter.
