Rave on - just one more time | Bangkok Post: Arts & Culture

As the saying goes, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. That's probably why most people don't find tribute albums too attractive as the featured artists either try to be faithful to the originals but fall short, or venture too far for the sake of being different and end up screwing up a good song. Things get even trickier when the artist you have to cover is Buddy Holly, one of the people who arguably invented rock 'n' roll.

If he hadn't died in that fateful plane crash in 1959, at the tender age of 22, who knows what else the bespectacled rock pioneer might have accomplished. Even in his short life, Holly left behind a catalogue of songs so enthralling they have continued to influence and inspire a myriad of musicians long after his death. Now, to celebrate what would have been Holly's 75th birthday (in September), a bevy of today's A-listers have gathered on Rave On Buddy Holly to give Holly's beloved songs from the '50s a contemporary spin.

One look at the lineup of contributors is enough to have music fans salivating as it includes a string of indie darlings such as the Black Keys, Julian Casablancas and Florence and the Machine, as well as heavyweights Paul McCartney (who happens to own the publishing rights to Holly's back catalogue) and Patti Smith. A glorious fusion of musical polar opposites, Rave On Buddy Holly also features unlikely bedfellows Cee Lo Green and Kid Rock.