Waylon Jennings

Waylon Arnold Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American country singer-songwriter and guitarist. Jennings first became famous as a member of Buddy Holly's backing band. On February 3, 1959, while playing shows with Holly, he gave up his airplane seat J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson. The airplane crashed after it took-off killing Richarson, Ritchie Valens and Buddy Holly. Jennings claimed that in the years afterward he felt severe guilt over the crash.^[1]

Waylon Jennings
Waylon Jennings, 1976
Background information
Birth name	Waylon Arnold Jennings
Also known as	Hoss
Born	(1937-06-15)June 15, 1937 Littlefield, Texas, US
Died	February 13, 2002(2002-02-13) (aged 64) Chandler, Arizona, US
Genres	Country
Occupation(s)	Musician, songwriter
Instruments	Voice, guitar
Years active	1959–2002
Website	www.waylon.com

By the 1970s, Jennings had become associated with a country music scene known as outlaw country. Jennings recorded a series of albums with Willie Nelson in the late 1970s which increased the popularity of the outlaw country sound.

In 1979, he recorded the theme song for the television show The Dukes of Hazzard. Jennings also became the narrator of the show for all seven seasons.

In the 1980s he formed the group The Highwaymen along with Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson.

In 2001, he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

On February 13, 2002, Waylon Jennings died in Chandler, Arizona from health complications due to diabetes.^[2][3]

Singles

• "Luckenbach, Texas (Back to the Basics of Love)" (1977), #1 on Billboard's country chart
• "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys" (with Willie Nelson) (1978)
• "Theme from The Dukes of Hazzard (Good Ol' Boys)" (1980)

Related pages

• List of country musicians from Texas

References

1. "Flashback: How Waylon Jennings Survived Buddy Holly Crash". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2017-10-15. Retrieved 2017-10-17.
2. "Waylon Jennings, Country Singer, Dies at 64". The New York Times. 2002-02-13. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-10-17.
3. "Waylon Jennings Dead at Sixty-four". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2018-03-11. Retrieved 2017-10-17.