Whatever Became Of: Bobby Vee

Bobby Vee, born Robert Velline in Fargo, North Dakota, was a pop singer who had a string of hits during the 1960's. His career took off when he filled in for the recently deceased Buddy Holly. Although Vee played saxophone in the high school band, he had other aspirations. "I wanted to rock out. We were playing all the standard band pieces and I wanted to do "Yakety Yak", says Vee. He saved enough money from working his paper route to by a Harmony guitar.

On February 3, 1959, now known as "the day the music died", a plane carrying Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and The Big Bopper, crashed in an Iowa corn field killing all on board. The plane was headed for Fargo, North Dakota for a concert. The promoters looked for local talent to fill the opening slot of the concert and settled on 15-year old Bobby Vee.

Throughout his career, Bobby Vee had 28 songs on the Billboard 100 charts. Vee's firts hit was in 1959 when he recorded "Susie Baby" in Minneapolis. His next big hit was "Devil or Angel", which peaked at #6. Other hits include: "Rubber Ball", "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes", "Take Good Care Of My Baby", "Earth Angel" and "Come Back When You Grow Up."

In 2012, Bobby Vee announced that he was diagnosed with the early stages Alzheimer's Disease.