It’s time again for the girls to starch the poodle skirts, for the guys to grease back the hair and tune up the ’57 Chevy. Eddie Cochran Weekend is coming right up, and we’ll be ready and raring to go.

Each year as mid-June rolls around, I am reminded of how fragile life is and how vital that we use our own special talents now, not someday when we have more time or when we can afford it.

The Eddie Cochran story proves that statement over and over again. He was only 16 when he decided that music was his very life, and for the next five years he lived music, 24 hours a day. He began with playing his guitar at high school parties and his life ended while he was on tour in England. I don’t know if he ever gave a thought to someday having his name on high school music scholarships or weekends dedicated to his talent both in Minnesota and Great Britain. I rather doubt it. I do know that music was his passion.

Whenever I receive an email with someone requesting information from our archives, or when the phone rings and someone asks about a picture, or when a visitor says, “I remember ‘Summertime Blues,’ hmmm &045; was Eddie Cochran really from here?” I am reminded again how our lives are touched by other people.

We are excited to be co-sponsoring Eddie Cochran Weekend with the Low Bucks Car Club. That group works on this festival year-round, and the culmination of their efforts comes when scholarships are awarded to area graduating seniors who are planning on majoring in music &045; the end result of the decorated windows, the cruise, the drive in social, the car show and swap and all of the other weekend activities. Eddie lived what he believed, and more than forty years after his death, we are still recognizing his talent.

Recently, Terry Cole, a childhood friend of Eddie’s, brought in a copy of a London newspaper page from the &uot;Record and Show Mirror,&uot; Jan. 16, 1960. Across the top of the page in bold letters is the headline Sammy Davis Jr. … he is coming, followed by an article explaining the confusion of an unverified promised performance and later confirmation of that program on May 7.

Right next to the Sammy Davis Jr. article, in equally bold print, is the delightful article titled Eddie Cochran Arrives. The article states, “American rock ‘n’ roll singer Eddie Cochran arrived in this country &045; his first visit to England &045; on Sunday evening.

“He had little time to rest. Monday morning found him at rehearsals for the Marty Wilde TV show, ‘Boy Meets Girls.’ He appears in it this Saturday (16), and win tele-record a second spot in the programme for transmission on January 23.

“At his press reception laid on for him by DECCA in Hanover Street, London, Eddie said he would sing his new London label release ‘Hallelujah, I Love Her So’ in his first TV performance.

“Eddie is also appearing in two BBC programmes,” said Larry Parnes, who has arranged a tour for the beat singer. Eddie will co-star with Gene Vincent, another Parnes capture for this country. Billy Fury will also appear.

“Tour starts at Ipswich on January 24. Other dates: Coventry (28), Worcester (29), Bradford (3 0), Southampton (3 1), Sheffield (Feb 7), Woolwich (13), Taunton (14), Leicester (18), Dundee (20), Stockton-on-Tees (24) and Cardiff (26).

“In addition a tour of the Moss’ Empires Variety circuit has been arranged. From February 1, Eddie and Gene will play a week at the Empire, Glasgow. Other Moss’ Empire dates: Empire, Leeds (Feb. 29), Hippodrome, Birmingham (March 7), Empire, Liverpool (March 14), Empire, Newcastle (March 21), Finsbury Park Empire, London N (April 4) and Hippodrome, Bristol (April 11).

“There is also a possibility of a week at the Hippodrome, Manchester, starting March 28.&uot;

The article includes two wonderful pictures of Eddie, dressed in a suit and tie, looking poised and professional, appearing much older than his twenty-one years.

We all know the story. There were three months of successful concerts and screaming fans, and then the taxi accident on the way to Heathrow airport that ended his life. His music and his talent will live on forever in the hearts of those who watched him perform, and now there is another generation whose interest is equally as strong.

Freeborn County is indeed fortunate to be the home of the Eddie Cochran archives and the special Minnesota festival that honors his talent. Please join us for the festivities.

Bev Jackson is the executive director of the Freeborn County Historical Museum.