The son of Tommy Allsup, Austin Allsup, recently donated the actual microphone used by Buddy Holly during his final performance at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake on February 2nd, 1959, an event forever linked with “The Day the Music Died.”
Tommy Allsup was touring with Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J-P “The Big Bopper” Richardson in 1959, and lost a coin toss with Valens for a seat on an airplane that later crashed, killing the three performers and their pilot, in the early morning hours of February 3rd.
Austin Allsup, who is also a musician, competed as a contestant on the 11th season of “The Voice” on television.
This iconic artifact will be showcased at the upcoming Surf Ballroom Music Experience Center.
(Photo is courtesy of the Surf Ballroom, on the left is Jeff Nicholas, board president of the North Iowa Cultural Center and Museum, and on the right is Austin Allsup)
