1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die - #8 The Crickets - The Chirping Crickets (1957)

THE CRICKETS - THE "CHIRPING" CRICKETS (1957)

Track Listing – standout tracks in bold

1. Oh Boy
2. Not Fade Away
3. You've Got Love
4. Maybe Baby
5. It's Too Late
6. Tell Me How
7. That'll Be The Day
8. I'm Looking For Someone To Love
9. Empty Cup (And A Broken Date)
10. Send Me Some Lovin'
11. Last Night
12. Rock Me Baby

The debut album by Buddy Holly and the Crickets and sadly the only one featuring Buddy Holly that was released during his lifetime. It’s hard to really appreciate just how important this record is to the history of music. In just over 20 minutes you get the hits "That'll Be the Day" and "Oh, Boy!", classics like "Not Fade Away," "Maybe Baby," and "I'm Looking for Someone to Love." Those tracks alone rank near the best rock & roll songs of the 1950s. Perhaps EVER. They are prime examples that all you need is a great riff, a chorus that you can sing along with and you have the perfect rock and roll song.
In the history of rock and roll this ranks right up there with Elvis’ debut release. Without Elvis breaking down the barriers - there would have been no way for Buddy Holly to have gotten his music onto the radio and therefore no way the Beatles debut lp – heavy with Buddy Holly influences – ever gets made. This makes “Chirping’ one the most important lp’s ever made. Hands down!!