He was born in Lubbock, Texas, to a musical family during the Great Depression, and learned to play guitar and sing alongside his siblings. His style was influenced by gospel music, country music, and rhythm and blues acts, and he performed in Lubbock with his friends from high school. He made his first appearance on local television in 1952, and the following year he formed the group "Buddy and Bob" with his friend Bob Montgomery. In 1955, after opening for Elvis Presley, he decided to pursue a career in music. He opened for Presley three times that year; his band's style shifted from country and western to entirely rock and roll. In October that year, when he opened for Bill Haley & His Comets, he was spotted by Nashville scout Eddie Crandall, who helped him get a contract with Decca Records.
Holly's recording sessions at Decca were produced by Owen Bradley. Unhappy with Bradley's control in the studio and with the sound he achieved there, he went to producer Norman Petty in Clovis, New Mexico, and recorded a demo of "That'll Be the Day", among other songs. Petty became the band's manager and sent the demo to Brunswick Records, which released it as a single credited to "The Crickets", which became the name of Holly's band. In September 1957, as the band toured, "That'll Be the Day" topped the US "Best Sellers in Stores" chart and the UK Singles Chart. Its success was followed in October by another major hit, "Peggy Sue".
The album Chirping Crickets, released in November 1957, reached number five on the UK Albums Chart. Holly made his second appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show in January 1958 and soon after, toured Australia and then the UK. In early 1959, he assembled a new band, consisting of future country music star Waylon Jennings (bass), famed session musician Tommy Allsup (guitar), and Carl Bunch (drums), and embarked on a tour of the midwestern U.S. After a show in Clear Lake, Iowa, he chartered an airplane to travel to his next show, in Moorhead, Minnesota. Soon after takeoff, the plane crashed, killing him, Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper, and pilot Roger Peterson in a tragedy later referred to by Don McLean as "The Day the Music Died".
During his short career, Holly wrote, recorded, and produced his own material. He is often regarded as the artist who defined the traditional rock-and-roll lineup of two guitars, bass, and drums. He was a major influence on later popular music artists, including Bob Dylan, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, Weezer, and Elton John. He was among the first artists inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in 1986. Rolling Stone magazine ranked him number 13 in its list of "100 Greatest Artists".
I Guess I Was Just A Fool
Buddy Holly Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Even tried to tell myself we?d never met
Though you try, you can't deny
The beating of your heart
Though you try, you can't deny
A true love when it starts
I guess that I was just a fool
I guess I?ll go on loving you
Even though I know our love will never do
Well, though you try, you can't deny
The beating of your heart
Though you try, you can't deny
A true love when it starts
I guess that I was just a fool
In the song "I Guess I Was Just A Fool," Buddy Holly & The Three Tunes sing about a love that didn't work out. The singer acknowledges that they tried to forget their past love and convince themselves that they never met, but they couldn't deny the feelings they had. The singer admits that they were a fool for thinking that they could forget their past love and that they will continue to love them even though they know that their love will never work out.
The lyrics touch on the universal experience of love and heartbreak. The singer's inability to forget their past love and move on despite knowing that it will never work out is something that many people can relate to. The repeated line "though you try, you can't deny the beating of your heart" reinforces the idea that love is a powerful and uncontrollable emotion that can overcome rational thought.
Overall, "I Guess I Was Just A Fool" is a poignant and relatable song about the pain of unrequited love and the struggle to move on. The singer's heartfelt delivery of the lyrics makes the song even more emotionally resonant.
Line by Line Meaning
I thought that I could forget
I believed that I'd be able to move on from our love
Even tried to tell myself we'd never met
I attempted to convince myself that we'd never crossed paths
Though you try, you can't deny
Despite your efforts, you cannot reject
The beating of your heart
The love that you feel in your heart
Though you try, you can't deny
Despite your efforts, you cannot reject
A true love when it starts
The genuine love that begins to grow
I guess that I was just a fool
I realize now that I was foolish to think that I could forget you
I guess I'll go on loving you
I admit that I will continue to love you
Even though I know our love will never do
Although I understand that we can never be together
Well, though you try, you can't deny
Despite your best efforts, you cannot reject
The beating of your heart
The love that you feel in your heart
Though you try, you can't deny
Despite your efforts, you cannot reject
A true love when it starts
The genuine love that begins to grow
I guess that I was just a fool
I realize now that I was foolish to think that I could forget you
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: BUDDY HOLLY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Keith Mory
He was the best!!! i could only imagine how much more his great music he would have done😢
UNKNOWN WHYWANNAKNOW?
My brothers got me into be a Greaser 2006-07 I was about 10 years old. Now I'm gonna turn 24 in less than 5 months. As a kid I've always listen to Buddy and Ritchie. I never knew this song. Thank you.
Phantasm
One of my very favorites, thanks for the upload
FF Luigi shots
this is very rare song it was found some where in the 60's and it was released in 1964 i can't remember that record label but still it's very rare and this version was very clear compared to record that was found.
FF Luigi shots
recorded 1956
Beatedelic Records
Great song, very similar to Elvis' "I Forgot to remember to forget"
Steve Gross
another great tune
Steve Gross
one of the best of holly tunes"country bop"
Dennis Douglas
Ive never heard this, I kind of like it, Im a big BH fan, was this on Decca label ?
John Ramirez
whos still listening to this in 2023?