Music WI: Buddy Holly lives, but Waylon Jennings dies?

As cool as it would be to see this, I just can't imagine a world with no Waylon. Taking nothing away from Buddy, Waylon had that voice and that stomping style.
 
As cool as it would be to see this, I just can't imagine a world with no Waylon. Taking nothing away from Buddy, Waylon had that voice and that stomping style.

I don't want to imagine a world without Waylon. The man's impact was enormous. Purely electric C&W (that is two electric guitarists, electric bass, pedal steel, and drums) simply would not have happened without him. While Willie Nelson was the songwriter of the outlaw country movement, Waymore gave it it's sound.
 
Some things that haven't been touched on yet:
Buddy was working on an album of songs all in Spanish at the time of his death. Also, he really wanted to work with Ray Charles and Mahalia Jackson.

I can easily see the Spanish album dedicated to the memory of Ritchie Valens. That would be the likely break with his rock career. Follow that with a more R&Besque album including duets with Charles and Jackson. Both those would likely get a WTF reaction from his teeny bopper fans and a bit of a slow down. That fits well with his personal life - the wife and kids.

Then Ray starts doing his country thing, and boom - Buddy makes his big comeback somewhere around 64-5. Maybe something in collaboration with Johnny Cash. As for the drugs question, this is probably the point where he just says no, based on what he sees it doing to Cash.

It may be the Holly sound instead of the Austin or Bakersfield sound, but I think the Outlaws will still stick as a more general name.


One interesting butterfly is how authorities deal with releasing names of accident victems. Maria Elana's misscarrage OTL is one reason they don't release names until after families have been notified. That's not happening ITTL.
 
Without Waylon, a lot of things are going to change. First off, you are going to see a lot less electric guitar in country music. He made the electric guitar acceptable as a lead instrument. Also, the influences of rock and roll are going to be aren't going to be as welcome in country music. Jennings was one of the first performers to really set out and tour on his own.

(If you couldn't tell, I'm kind of a big fan of Mr. Jennings :D)

Well, I'm not sure there will be less electric guitar; Ernest Tubb was the first to bring the electric guitar mainstream in the genre, and others followed him. If Waylon doesn't, then Hank Jr. certainly will.

In fact, there will still, likely, be an 'outlaw country' movement springing up in the 1970s, even without Mr. Jennings. Might Kris Krisofferson fill Waylon's place (he was a bit more on the hippi side, for lack of a better term, but Kris is certainly no weakling!)

The biggest question is, how does Holly's music develop? It reminds me of a house party I went to with my best friend some years ago. We were all sitting around, spinning some vinyl, and the talk turned to Buddy Holly. I mentioned that, if Holly had lived, I wonder how he would have dealt with the psychedelic sound. My best friend looked at me ad pointed out that, if Holly had lived, he might not ahve been born (I forget his exact logic, except that his Dad was a huge Buddy Holly fan), and asked if Psychedelic Buddy Holly was worth losing him.

Everyone looked at my buddy, nodded their heads, and said "Well, now that you mention it ..." :D

Truthfully, the effects of a surviving Holly on Rock'n'Roll could be huge. Elvis will still be competing against Holly, no "The Day the Music Died" etc etc etc etc.
 
I know plenty of Buddy Holly songs - whereas Waylon Jennings wouldn't have a clue - did he have many (mainstream) hits or was he just a C & W singer!?
 
I know plenty of Buddy Holly songs - whereas Waylon Jennings wouldn't have a clue - did he have many (mainstream) hits or was he just a C & W singer!?

"Luckenbach Texas (Back to the Basics of Love) hit #25 on the pop charts an #16 on the adult contemporary charts.
"Theme from the Dukes of Hazzard" hit #21 on the Billboard Top 100.

There were some more that broke 100 on the pop charts. See: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waylon_Jennings_discography#section_2
 
I'd love to see the 80s crossover supergroup ITTL - Travelling Wilburys + the Highwaymen (the country supergroup rather than the folk group). Buddy Holly, Johnny Cash, Roy orbison, and Bob Dylan, for sure. Maybe Neil Young. Hell, toss in John Lennon for good measure. No reason he's dead in 1980. That's about as close to the Stephen King's hell of a band as you might get realistically... one to make strong men cry, real women weak in the knees, and kiddies widdle their pants. ;)


Buddy Holly would have done the Dukes of Hazzard theme
 
BigWillyG said:
For starters we probably never have Southern Rock.
I wonder. If Buddy lives, he could adapt Tejano or country into rockabilly, which was already well-established. IMO, it's a small step to country rock. Country & rock were much closer in the '50s than most realize. (Not the audience, but as musical forms.)
DaveH said:
he quits the band in disgust and changes his name to Dave Clark.Neither he nor his bandmates are ever heard from again.
:D:D I doubt it. (Funny, tho.) Could be he teams up with Dave Clark to form a band. (The Six Man Electrical Band? No?:p) The idea of OTL's Dave Clark becoming a top-rank stuntman does appeal to me, tho.:cool: (Can't you just see him doing the high fall from "Sharkey's Machine"?:cool: {No discredit to Dar Robinson intended.:eek:})
Kalvan said:
the London Based Blues Rock scene of The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Yardbirds, Peter Green era Fleetwood Mac, and Ten Years After will as a result do that much better without the competition.
:cool::cool: Also means Dire Straits does better.:cool::cool: It also suggests Clapton, as a solo act, is much less-known in the U.S. TTL (what with covers of reggae songs).
Kalvan said:
either California Country Rock will be known in the mainstream for more than just The Grateful Dead's country years and The Eagles, or else Southern Rock will be even bigger and last longer than OTL
I'd expect Poco & ARS to be bigger, too. Linda's covers of Buddy would do better (& maybe Mi Canciones, too). Also the likes of Stevie Ray Vaughan. All of which pleases me no end.:cool:
Osakadave said:
I expect this doesn't butterfly away either surf rock or the British blues scene. I expect the British Blues will develop a harder sound over time and we end up with an even more explicitly blues based metal. Jimi may even be a bigger hit in the UK in this case.

Jim Morrison would almost certainly go in this direction, probably with a big dose of bop and cool jazz. I see a dirtier Kerouac. Maybe Iggy would actually end up repalcing Jim after his death ITTL...

Surf rock will probably sound a lot more rockabilly.
This is sounding better all the time.:cool::cool: (Not to say I want The Ventures' theme from "5-O" to sound like electric Flatt & Scruggs, mind you...:eek:) Bluesier R&R & country, "rockier" country, both sound really good.
 
You know, its weird. I'm listening to The Troggs, right now, and their song "I Do, Do"; and it sounds so Buddy Holly. Not sure what that means, but I think its certainly means something.
 
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