Artist: Various Artistes
Genre: Others
(EQ Music)
Reviewer: KENNETH CHAW

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YOU may not know who Buddy Holly is, but you will surely recognise the countless artistes that drew inspiration from his work.

Charles Hardin Holley (stage name Buddy Holly) is said to be the pioneer of rock and roll, influencing some of the world’s greatest music acts such as The Rolling Stones, The Beatles and Bob Dylan, to name a few. But the talented singer-songwriter’s music career spanned less than two years before he was killed in a tragic plane crash at 22. What little time he had to create music, Holly made the best of it, crafting great tunes that would be played even half a century later.

Listen To Me: Buddy Holly is an album released to commemorate what would’ve been the singer’s 75th birthday. The album features performances by some of music’s biggest names that have been impacted by Holly’s music, singing to tunes drawn from his rich songbook.

The album opens with a feisty take on Not Fade Away by Fleetwood Mac’s Stevie Nicks, followed by an evocative rendition of Maybe Baby by Train’s lead vocalist Pat Monahon. Meanwhile, Imelda May was clearly having a good time when the Irish singer started howling midway through I’m Lookin’ For Someone To Love.

It seems Holly’s music has even rubbed off on some of today’s younger artistes. The Fray reprises the usually upbeat Take Your Time, introducing a dramatically more sombre, melancholic sound to the track while Zooey Deschanel does well by sticking closely to the original 1959 treatment on It’s So Easy.

For the perfect icing on the cake, you can trust The Beach Boy’s Brian Wilson to deliver. His spin on Listen To Me gives a nice finish to the album, as if to encourage audiences to continue listening to Holly’s music in years to come.

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