Chuck Berry

The Chuck Berry falls ill during Chicago show; but refuses hospital

About an hour into a rapidly-deteriorating concert at the Congress Theater Saturday night, Chuck Berry slumped over an accompanist's keyboard before being helped offstage.

The 84-year-old rock and roll legend and a backing band of 3 Chicago musicians attempted to resume the show for a packed house about 15 minutes later, but Berry almost immediately was taken off again to be checked by paramedics who had been called to the scene.

After being examined, Berry returned one last time to thank the fans who had waited in hopes for the show to continue, but he left the stage -- using a bit of his signature "duck walk" -- without playing again. Shortly afterward, he walked out of the theatre's stage door on his own into an awaiting limousine. Berry signed a release saying he was OK, and he was not taken to a hospital, according to Fire Department spokesman Joe Roccasalva.

The Day The Music Died

Today, we remember the death of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and Big Bopper. This day is commonly known as "The Day the Music Died." It is the inspiration for the song "American Pie." This is the 50th anniversary of this event.

In 1959, Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper made what ended up being their last public appearances at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa. They died in a plane crash the next day.

Charles Hardin Holley (September 7, 1936 – February 3, 1959), known professionally as Buddy Holly, was an American singer-songwriter and a pioneer of rock and roll. Although his success lasted only a year and a half before his death in an airplane crash, Holly is described by critic Bruce Eder as "the single most influential creative force in early rock and roll." His works and innovations inspired and influenced both his contemporaries and later musicians, notably The Beatles, The Beach Boys, The Rolling Stones, Don McLean, and Bob Dylan, and exerted a profound influence on popular music.