When
Buddy Holly & the Crickets broke through nationally in 1957, they were marketed by Decca Records as two different acts whose records were released on two different Decca subsidiaries -- Brunswick for
Crickets records, Coral for
Holly records. But there was no real musical distinction between the two, except perhaps that the "
Crickets" sides had more prominent backup vocals. Nevertheless, coming three months after
The "Chirping" Crickets, this was the debut album credited to
Buddy Holly. It featured
Holly's Top Ten single "Peggy Sue" plus several songs that have turned out to be standards: "I'm Gonna Love You Too," "Listen to Me," "Everyday," "Words of Love," and "Rave On." The rest of the 12 tracks weren't as distinctive, though
Holly's takes on such rock & roll hits as "Ready Teddy" and "You're So Square (Baby I Don't Care)" provide an interesting contrast with the more familiar versions by
Elvis Presley. This was the final new album featuring
Holly to be released during his lifetime. Every subsequent album was an archival or posthumous collection.