Buddy Holly

Last week I had the chance to see The Buddy Holly Story at a Drury Lane Theatre in Oak Brook. The glittery decor of red velvet everything and lots of crystal chandeliers Drury Lane makes every visit festive. The production featured excellent musicians and singers. The only thing that surprised me was the audience. Buddy Holly was the ultimate rocker, right? So his fans were kids, right? So what were all these old geezers doing in the audience?

I started watching American Bandstand when I was 7 years old. I remember running home from second grade to watch Dick Clark and all the cool teenagers celebrating rock and roll! Those were glorious days! For the next 15 years I could do all the new dances and could sing all the words to the top 40 singles. I was in the know. I expected the audience to be made up of all those rocking teenagers.

So why was I the only kid at The Buddy Holly Story? The crowd reminded me of the bunch I saw at the Paul McCartney concert at the United Center. Gray-haired grandma types and guys with canes and walkers made up seventy-five percent of that audience. It’s a mystery how, this late in the game, the great rockers are finding a new audience among senior citizens. I didn’t see that one coming.