Watsonville
– The family members of Ritchie Valens will be honoring his
influential music with the Third Annual Winter Dance Party on Feb.
3 in Watsonville.
Watsonville – The family members of Ritchie Valens will be honoring his influential music with the Third Annual Winter Dance Party on Feb. 3 in Watsonville.
Valens is recognized by many to be the first Latino pop star, eventually influencing the music of artists like Carlos Santana and Los Lonely Boys. His tragic death at the age of 17 in the 1950s eventually helped to immortalize his short but electrifying career.
The Winter Dance will memorialize Valens and fellow rock icons Buddy Holly and the Big Bopper, who, along with Valens, tragically died when their small touring airplane crashed in Iowa on Feb. 3, 1959.
His family, the Valenzuelas, relocated in 1962 from southern California to Watsonville. One of his younger sisters, Connie Lemos, now resides in Hollister.
It was not until Daniel Valdez and his brother Luis Valdez, who founded the San Juan-based El Teatro Campesino, approached the Valenzuelas about telling the Valens story that he secured his place in rock ‘n’ roll history.
Luis Valdez directed the movie “La Bamba,” which told the story of the young Valens and eventually earned a Best Drama nomination at the 1987 Golden Globes.
Mario Ramirez, Valens’ younger brother, will be opening the show with his group The Backyard Blue’s Band. Ramirez sings and plays the harmonica.
John Mueller will perform as Buddy Holly. J.P. Richardson Jr., the Big Bopper’s son, will perform as the Big Bopper and Ray Anthony will perform as Ritchie Valens.
Tickets range from $20 to $40 and are available at Ticketmaster and the Santa Cruz Civic Center box office.
