Ritchie Valens Memorial Freeway

The California legislature this past week renamed a portion of Interstate 5 near Pacoima in the San Fernando Valley after Rock & Roll legend Ritchie Valens who grew up in Pacoima.

Ritchie was born in Pacoima and developed his own musical style. La Bamba, Come On Let's Go & Donna were just a few of his hits; produced by him at a young age. Ritchie produced a catalog of hits that many musical artists would only dream of; all produced when he was just a teenager. He would die in a horrific plane crash at the age of 17 alongside Buddy Holly and the Big Bopper on a day that would eventually be called The Day the Music Died.

Ritchie Valens was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2001. And now, his hometown is honoring him with the ultimate southern California tribute- naming a Freeway after him.

Barrett Strong, 1941 - 2023

Burt Bacharach, 1928 - 2023

“Race Music” - Calling Out Around The World

Berry Gordy had a Dream- to bring sweet soul music to the world. He knew he had a tough job ahead of him; there were many who wanted to see him fail, if only because of their prejudices. As a result, Berry expected much of the performers he turned into superstars. Performers had to take charm classes and comport themselves well. Berry knew that the world would be harsh on his talent because some people would be looking for them to fail. As the motto on the albums stated- “It’s what’s in the grooves that counts.” By focusing on seemingly unrelated things, Mr. Gordy made sure that audiences paid attention to the music- and not “Race”. It certainly wasn’t a coincidence that Billboard retired the term “Race Music” from its charts after the rise of Motown. Soul and rhythm & blues- the Motown Sound- would conquer the world.

Ralphcast

Search This Blog