Rave On Buddy Holly is a compilation album by various artists released on June 28, 2011, through Fantasy Records/Concord Music Group and Hear Music. A tribute album to musician Buddy Holly, who died in a plane crash in 1959 at age 22, the title refers to the song "Rave On", one of his biggest hits. Contributing artists included Paul McCartney, who owned Holly's publishing catalog at the time of the album's release, and Graham Nash, a former member of The Hollies, who were named in commemoration of Holly.
Critical reception of the compilation album was positive overall; many reviewers appreciated the album in its entirety but criticized select performances. Rave On Buddy Holly reached a peak position of number 15 on the Billboard 200 and also charted on the Top Canadian Albums, Top Digital Albums and Top Rock Albums charts. "Dearest", performed by The Black Keys, received a nomination for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 54th Grammy Awards (2012).
A similar 75th birthday tribute album, Listen to Me: Buddy Holly, was issued just over two months later. It contained a similar range of songs, but by a different group of artists—although Zooey Deschanel appears on both albums (as a solo artist on Listen to Me and as a member of She & Him on Rave On).
Composition
The album opens with The Black Keys' "Dearest", just over two minutes in length. Cee Lo Green's vocals on "(You're So Square) Baby I Don't Care" last just ninety-three seconds; the song has a total length of just over one minute and thirty seconds.
Reception
Overall, critical reception of the album was positive, though many reviewers criticized select tracks. Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine complimented the artists involved for not settling for "mere replications" of Holly's song, for playing "fast and loose", and for "radically reinterpreting the original" recordings. However, Erlewine described Karen Elson's cover of "Crying, Waiting, Hoping" as "overly ornate" and categorized Lou Reed's "Peggy Sue" as "turgid grind". David Fricke of Rolling Stone lauded McCartney's "It's So Easy" and Nash's "Raining in My Heart", describing the latter as a "deft balance of folk-rock sparkle and overcast-afternoon sigh". Fricke also appreciated the contributions by Nick Lowe, Justin Townes Earle, and especially Patti Smith's "Words of Love", which he claimed was delivered as a "precious wish" just as Holly had written. BBC Music contributor Mischa Pearlman complimented performances by Smith, Lou Reed, Cee Lo Green, and Julian Casablancas, as well as Kid Rock's "soulful" cover and Modest Mouse's "hushed reimagining" of "That'll Be the Day". Pearlman also criticized McCartney's performance, writing that he "trie[d] a little too hard", and was disappointed by Fiona Apple and Jon Brion's cover for sounding "almost a carbon copy" of the original. She summarized the album as a "wonderful testament to [Holly's] songwriting prowess, longevity and legacy".
Paste magazine's Jeff Gonick positive review highlighted The Black Keys' "beautifully minimalist" cover, Casablancas' "rich and rocky" title track, My Morning Jacket's "beautifully crafted croon", as well as Modest Mouse's performance. Marc Hogan of Spin magazine gave Rave On Buddy Holly an eight rating on a ten-point scale and described Green's performance as "so good it'll give you hiccups". The Washington Post'''s Allison Stewart preferred artists whose performances were more similar to the original, including Apple, Elson and Earle; she criticized Modest Mouse and McCartney, whose covers differed greatly from the original, though she complimented Kid Rock's "Detroit soul rave-up" despite its differences. NPR contributor Stephen Thompson wrote a positive review of the album, claiming that the featured musicians "prove to be a nice fit for Holly's timeless words and tunes" and "give this collection the sweetness its source material demands, without losing sight of the melancholy that lies beneath." One reviewer for The Salt Lake Tribune expressed similar sentiment, describing the album as a "fitting, often avant-garde and unusually fun tip of the hat to one of the best penners of melodies ever", specifically highlighting contributions by Green and McCartney.
Track listing
Personnel
Rob Ackroyd – guitar C. C. Adcock – guitar, mixing, percussion, producer Jerry Allison – composer Laurie Anderson – electric violin Rusty Anderson – backing vocals Fiona Apple – vocals Dan Auerbach – guitar, mixing, organ, vocals Johnny Badanjek – drums The Black Keys – arranger, producer Jake Blanton – bass, guitar, mixing, producer Tommy Brenneck – 6-string electric bass, arranger, electric guitar, engineer, keyboards, mixing, slide guitar Jon Brion – acoustic guitar, backing vocals, electric guitar, percussion, producer Isaac Brock – guitar, vocals Boudleaux Bryant – composer Felice Bryant – composer Greg Calbi – mastering Sarth Calhoun – bass Patrick Carney – drums Justin Carpenter – piano Julian Casablancas – vocals Eric Caudieux – editing Ali Chant – assistant Keefus Ciancia – upright piano Larissa Collins – art direction Bob D'Amico – drums Jay Dee Daugherty – drums, percussion Zooey Deschanel – vocals John Doe – vocals Steve Donnelly – guitar Karen Elson – vocals Dave Feeny – mixing Dave Ferguson – acoustic bass, engineer, mixing Ryan Freeland – engineer, mixing Bob Gibson – composer Rich Gilbert – guitar Bryce Goggin – engineer Mike Green – drums Andrew Greene – trumpet The Grey Area – producer Christopher Hayden – drums, percussion Roy Hendrickson – engineer Joe Henry – producer Terrence Higgens – drums, percussion Jimmy Hole – package layout Buddy Holly – composer Aaron Johnson – trombone Clay Jones – engineer, producer David Kahne – engineer, mixing, producer David Kalish – engineer, Hammond B3 Fats Kaplin – fiddle Lenny Kaye – acoustic guitar David Kemper – drums Julia Kent – strings Kid Rock – engineer, vocal harmony, vocals Steve "Doc Ching" King – engineer Rob Kleiner – engineer, percussion, piano, snaps Greg Koller – engineer, mixing Abe Laboriel Jr. – backing vocals, drums Dawn Landes – engineer Jerry Leiber – composer Stewart Lerman – engineer, mixing, producer Greg Lesiz – electric guitar Fernando Lodeiro – assistant, assistant engineer Nick Lowe – acoustic guitar, vocals Benji Lysaght – guitar Graham Marsh (producer) – acoustic guitar, bass guitar, clapping, engineer, mixing, programming Mary Ramirez – guitar Chris Masterson – backing vocals, guitar Joe Mauldin – composer Gary Maurer – mixing Joey Mazzola – guitar Val McCallum – electric guitar Paul McCartney – acoustic guitar, producer, vocals Ellas McDaniel – composer Scott McPherson – drums Konrad Meissner – backing vocals, drums Leon Michaels – tenor saxophone Lisa Molinaro – viola Bob Montgomery – composer Rob Moose – strings Chris Morrissey – backing vocals, bass Rob Morsberger – Hammond B3, organ (pump) Nick Movshon – bass guitar Jenni Muldaur – backing vocals Rachel Nagy – vocals Mike Napolitano – mixing Graham Nash – Fender Rhodes, percussion, vocals William Nash – producer Steve Nawara – bass Ivan Neville – Wurlitzer Jenny O. – percussion, producer, vocals John Parish – mixing Matt Perine – sousaphone, upright bass Norman Petty – composer David Piltch – bass Prentice Herman Polk Jr. – composer John Porter – engineer Randall Poster – compilation producer, liner notes Vance Powell – engineer, mixing Matt Radford – bass Bret Rausch – production coordination Brian Ray – backing vocals James Raymond – arranger, engineer, mixing, piano, producer, programming Lou Reed – engineer, guitar, mixing, producer, vocals Gelya Robb – compilation producer Chris Scruggs – pedal steel Adam Selzer – engineer Gus Seyffert – mixing Tony Shanahan – baritone guitar, double bass, organ (pump), producer, sitar, vocals Joshua V. Smith – assistant engineer, mixing assistant Patti Smith – vocals Sebastian Steinberg – bass Homer Steinweiss – arranger, drums Mike Stoller – composer Bryon Steward - Piano Niki Sullivan – composer Sean Sullivan – engineer Isabella Summers – piano Matt Sweeney – arranger, backing vocals, electric bass, electric guitar, guitar, mixing, producer, vocal harmony The Tall Boyz – arranger, mixing Jared Tankel – baritone saxophone Benmont Tench – celeste Bill Tilghman – composer Entcho Todoro – strings Alex Carlos Toval – assistant engineer Robert Trehern – drums Marc Urselli – engineer, mixing M. Ward – guitar, producer Joan Wasser – string arrangements, strings Mark Watrous – Bas Dessus Benjamin Weikel – drums Florence Welch – vocals Sonny West – composer Jack White – drums Jack White III – mixing, producer Paul "Wix" Wickens – piano Hal Willner – producer Yim Yames – producer Wilder Zoby – transfer assistant
Chart performance and recognitionRave On Buddy Holly peaked at number 15 on the Billboard 200. The album also reached number twenty-one on the Top Canadian Albums chart, number thirteen on the Top Digital Albums chart, and number two on the Top Rock Albums chart. "Dearest", performed by The Black Keys, received a nomination for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 54th Grammy Awards (2012).
Chart (2011)Peakposition Canadian Top Albums21 U.S. Billboard 20015 U.S. Top Digital Albums13 U.S. Top Rock Albums2
Release history Region Date Label Format Catalog United States June 28, 2011 Hear Music CD 3267002 Fantasy LP FAN33123
See alsoListen to Me: Buddy Holly, another tribute album to Holly released in 2011Just Tell Me That You Want Me: A Tribute to Fleetwood Mac, a 2012 tribute album also released by Hear Music as a follow-up to Rave On Buddy Holly''
References
External links Official site