J. P. Richardson, Jr.

J. P. RICHARDSON, JR.

The Big Bopper (born Jiles Perry “J. P.” Richardson, Jr.; October 24, 1930 – February 3, 1959) was an American musician, songwriter and disc jockey, whose big rockabilly look, style, voice, and exuberant personality made him an early rock and roll star. He is best known for his 1958 recording of “Chantilly Lace”. On February 3, 1959, Richardson died in a plane crash in Iowa, along with Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and pilot Roger Peterson. That event has become known as “The Day the Music Died”, because it is so called in Don McLean’s 1971 song “American Pie”. (More from Wikipedia)

Born J. P. Richardson, Jr. in 1930, the Big Bopper was the other rocker that passed on the day the music died. Starting with a brash “Hello, Ba-a-a-by!”, his big hit “Chantilly Lace” is simply a delight to the ears – a compelling chorus ending with “Oh, baby, that’s what I like!” that is interspersed with an improvised telephone conversation with his girlfriend. One listen, and there is no doubt that the Big Bopper was a born entertainer. I remember a reminiscence years ago where someone said he could have been a successful actor or comedian had he lived.

J. P. Richardson, Jr. – “Jiles” or “Jape” to his friends – grew up in Beaumont, Texas in the same government housing project as one of the greatest country musicians, George Jones, who died just this past April. After graduating from high school and a few years in college, J. P. Richardson, Jr. became a disc jockey at a local radio station, KTRM (now KZZB) and was permanently hired in 1949.

While at KTRM in 1953, Schlitz Brewing Company was offering a sponsorship to someone who could come up with a character that they could promote, so J. P. Richardson, Jr. invented “the Big Bopper” (“bop” comes from a form of jazz music called be-bop dating from the 1940’s and has become a slang term meaning all sorts of things). He then used this moniker in his recording career.

After being drafted in the Army for two years, J. P. Richardson, Jr. went into the Guinness Book of World Records for the longest continuous on-air period as a disc jockey. From April 29 to May 4, 1957 (a total of more than 122 hours), he played a mind-boggling 1,821 songs, ending with “Cattle Call” by Dinah Shore.

J. P. Richardson, Jr. offered one of his songs, “Running Bear” to another friend, Johnny Preston after hearing him perform at a local club. The song concerns a doomed romance between an Indian brave named Running Bear and an Indian maid named White Dove, who each come from warring tribes, much like the story of Romeo and Juliet. The song was recorded in 1958 and features the Big Bopper, George Jones and Bill Hall performing Indian chanting and Indian war cries. In January 1960, the song reached the top of the singles charts in both the U.S. and the U.K.

(June 2013/1)