Sonny Curtis

Sonny Curtis (May 9, 1937 – September 19, 2025) was an American singer and songwriter. Known for his collaborations with Buddy Holly, he was a member of the Crickets and continued with the band after Holly's death in 1959. He is a member of three music Halls of Fame including the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Curtis's best known compositions include "Walk Right Back", a major hit in 1961 for the Everly Brothers; "I Fought the Law", notably covered by the Bobby Fuller Four, the Clash, and Green Day; "Love is All Around", the theme song for The Mary Tyler Moore Show; "More Than I Can Say", co-written with The Crickets' drummer Jerry Allison and a hit for Leo Sayer in 1980, and "I'm No Stranger to the Rain", a No. 1 Country hit for Keith Whitley in 1989.

Birth and Death Data: Born Meadow (town in Terry County, Texas, United States), Died September 19, 2025 (Nashville (capital and largest city of Tennessee, United States) )

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1953 - 1964

Roles Represented in DAHR: guitar, lead guitar, violin, vocalist

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 1-25 of 56 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Decca 83848 1/20/1953 The best way to hold a girl Sonny Curtis vocalist  
Decca 83849 1/20/1953 Someday you're gonna be sorry Sonny Curtis vocalist  
Decca 83850 1/20/1953 No more tears Sonny Curtis vocalist  
Decca 83851 1/20/1953 Forever yours Sonny Curtis vocalist  
Decca 106297 12/15/1958 Frankie Frankenstein Jerry Allison instrumentalist, guitar, lead guitar  
Decca 106298 12/29/1958 That'll be alright Jerry Allison instrumentalist, guitar, lead guitar  
Decca 106514 11/21/1958 Someone, someone Crickets, The instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 106515 12/16/1958 Love's made a fool of you Crickets, The instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 107335 5/18/1959 I fought the law Crickets, The instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 107336 5/18/1959 A sweet love Crickets, The instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 107337 5/20/1959 Time will tell Crickets, The instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 107338 5/20/1959 When you ask about love Crickets, The instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 107339 5/20/1959 Young Foster Crickets, The instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 107340 5/27/1959 Deborah-1 Crickets, The instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 107341 5/27/1959 Why did you leave Crickets, The instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 107342 6/2/1959 Just this once Crickets, The instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 107343 6/2/1959 Baby let's play house Crickets, The instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 107344 6/2/1959 Ting-a-ling Crickets, The instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 108559 1/14/1960 Red headed stranger-1 Sonny Curtis instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 108560 1/14/1960 Talk about my baby-2 Sonny Curtis instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 108928 3/30/1960 Baby my heart Crickets, The instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 110997 8/21/1961 Baby won't you come out tonight Buddy Holly instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 110999 8/21/1961 I guess I was just a fool Buddy Holly instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 111000 8/21/1961 It's not my fault Buddy Holly instrumentalist, guitar  
Decca 111001 8/21/1961 I tried to forget (see note) Buddy Holly instrumentalist, guitar  
(Results 1-25 of 56 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Curtis, Sonny," accessed December 24, 2025, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/102239.

Curtis, Sonny. (2025). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved December 24, 2025, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/102239.

"Curtis, Sonny." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2025. Web. 24 December 2025.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/102239

External Sources

Wikipedia: Sonny Curtis

Discogs: Sonny Curtis

Allmusic: Sonny Curtis

IMDb: Sonny Curtis

Linked Open Data Sources

LCNAR: Curtis, Sonny - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n78075230

Wikidata: Sonny Curtis - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q540395

VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/62807721

MusicBrainz: Sonny Curtis - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/3d01cbe9-b68a-461e-9221-25bd2448ec6f

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