In the summer of 1949, Arthur "Buzzy" Verucchi and his brother-in-law Lester Dhesse opened the Les-Buzz Roller Rink on Route 6 in Spring Valley, Illinois. A year and a half later, in late December 1950, the venue held its first concert.
The Les-Buzz Ballroom quickly became the premier spot for dancing in north-central Illinois. For more than a decade the venue hosted legendary jazz performers and bandleaders such as Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Lionel Hampton and many others. The ballroom's slogan: "Where All The Name Bands Play." For many of the performers, Spring Valley was their only stop in Illinois outside of Chicago.
In the fall of 1955, the venue started to bring a new kind of dance music to the area - rock 'n' roll. Here is a list of some of the performers and dates.
September 17, 1955: Boyd Bennett & His Rockets
October 8, 1955: Bill Haley & His Comets
With one of the first uses of the term "rock 'n' roll" in the local press, one area announcement read, "On Oct. 8, Bill Haley and his Comets will invade Les-Buzz for a rock-and-roll session." It would be the first of at least four appearances by Haley over the next few years.
November 17, 1956: Teen-age Rock N Roll Show
Rock 'n' roll didn't immediately catch on in the Illinois Valley. Les-Buzz continued to book mainly big bands and dance orchestras. A "Teen-age Rock N Roll" show was advertised at Les-Buzz in November of '56 but no acts were listed. The following year would be different however, with several big rock 'n' roll shows.
May 18, 1957: Bill Haley & His Comets
June 14, 1957: Everly Brothers, Eddie Cochran, Nick Noble, Four Esquires
The poster refers to the Everly Brothers as "a relatively unknown act." Their first hit record, "Bye Bye Love," had just come out a few months earlier. They were reportedly paid $350 for their appearance. A local group, possibly the Nite Caps from LaSalle, served as their backing band that night. Don and Phil Everly, still fairly young themselves, reportedly went roller skating before the show.
Even though Eddie Cochran was perhaps better known than the Everly Brothers at the time, mainly due to his appearances in the The Girl Can't Help It and Untamed Youth, he had yet to record some of his biggest hits. "Summertime Blues" and "C'mon Everybody" wouldn't be released for another year.
November 9, 1957: Gene Vincent & His Blue Caps
This November date may not have been Vincent's first appearance at Les-Buzz. There is some evidence that he came to Spring Valley as early as September 1957. He performed at the Coliseum in Davenport, Iowa on September 22nd and was in Sterling, Illinois the next night, performing at the Sterling Auditorium. A month later, on October 27th, Vincent and the Blue Caps performed at the Hub Ballroom in Edelstein, Illinois.
Incredibly, audio from one of Vincent's earliest performances at Les-Buzz was recorded by an audience member. A tape of the show currently resides in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Archives. Vincent and the Blue Caps can be heard performing "Be-Bop-a-Lula," "Lotta Lovin'," "Dance To The Bop" and "Right Now." They also perform several Little Richard songs including "Long Tall Sally," "Rip It Up," and "Keep-A-Knockin." Vincent returned to Les-Buzz in less than a year.
June 27, 1958: Tommy Sands
"Tommy Sands, who's the latest rage of the teenage set as movie, TV and recording star, makes his only Illinois appearance this season on Friday night at the Les Buzz Ballroom in Spring Valley, flying there from Hollywood. Doors open at 8, with dance and show from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. DST. Sands is best known for his Sing, Boy, Sing recording and film." - Peoria Journal Star, June 25, 1958 |
| On stage at Les-Buzz: Tommy Sands' band including Hal Blaine on drums |
July 5, 1958: Buddy Holly & The Crickets
I could not find an advertisement promoting the concert but the show has been confirmed by several first hand accounts. The date is provided by various online sources. It appears to be the only Illinois show on this brief summer tour of the Midwest. Holly was scheduled to return in February.
July 26, 1958: Gene Vincent & His Blue Caps
August 16, 1958: SUMMER DANCE PARTY
- Danny & The Juniors
- Gerry Granahan
- Poni-Tails
- Jody Reynolds
- Buddy Morrow
- Danny & The Juniors
- Gerry Granahan
- Poni-Tails
- Jody Reynolds
- Buddy Morrow
September 13, 1958: Bill Haley & His Comets
September 20, 1958: AUTUMN DANCE PARTY
- Bobby Darin
- Jimmy Clanton
- Dion & The Belmonts
- Jo Ann Campbell
- Tony Pastor
October 25, 1958: Dale Hawkins & The Hawks
In a 2019 interview, Ron Volz mentions that his band, the Rockin' R's from Metamora, Illinois, opened for Conway Twitty and Bill Haley at Les-Buzz. He also talked about opening up for Gene Vincent but it is unclear if that was in Spring Valley or in St. Louis.
February 7, 1959: WINTER DANCE PARTY
Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper were just days away from performing at Les-Buzz when their plane crashed near Clear Lake, Iowa on February 3rd. Not more than a day after the crash, newspaper advertisements had replacement acts listed, stating "The Show Must Go On."
- Frankie Avalon
- Jimmy Clanton
- Dion & The Belmonts
- The Crickets
- Frankie Sardo
The poster for the show adds: "This is Frankie Avalon's only Downstate Appearance. He will not appear in Peoria with the show." Instead of Avalon, a young Fabian performed in Peoria and Springfield, the last two dates on the tour.
The Les-Buzz show was held the same day as Buddy Holly's funeral in Lubbock, Texas. His friends and bandmates, the Crickets, which included Tommy Allsup and a young Waylon Jennings, were unable to attend. Instead they were on stage in Spring Valley.
March 7, 1959: Bobby Darin, The Bell Notes
April 4, 1959: THE SPRING DANCE PARTY
- Kalin Twins
- The Bell Notes
- Link Wray & The Wraymen
- Bill Parsons
- Jesse Lee Turner
- All American Boys Band
April 18, 1959: Jimmy Bowen, The Big Beats
April 25, 1959: Bill Haley & His Comets
May 2, 1959: Duane Eddy, Dale Hawkins
May 9, 1959: Fabian
May 23, 1959: Conway Twitty & His Rock 'n' Roll Band
June 13, 1959: VACATION DANCE PARTY
- Gary Stites
- Freddy Cannon
- Frankie Ford
- The Mystics
- Carl Dobkins Jr.
- Barbara Evans
- Johnny & The Hurricanes
July 3, 1959: Frankie Avalon
July 10, 1959: SUMMER DANCE PARTY
- Jerry Keller
- Carl Mann
- The Tassels
- The Addrisi Brothers
- Skip & Flip
- Jo Ann Campbell
- Dicky Doo & The Don'ts
July 19, 1959: Fats Domino
August 1, 1959: Jimmy Bowen and the Rhythm Orchids
August 8, 1959: Jimmy Clanton, Gary Stites, The Tempos, Santo & Johnny, The Bell Notes, Dick Caruso
September 5, 1959: Floyd Robinson, Sonny James, Tony Bellus, Paul Peek, The Flames
September 19.1959: Talent Show Finals - 10 Big Acts
October 17, 1959: Jerry Lee Lewis
November 26, 1959: HOLIDAY TEEN HOP - Rock-A-Teens, Joe London, Tommy Facenda
March 5, 1960: Jimmy Clanton, The Champs, Johnny Ferguson, Frankie Ford, Ray Smith, The Nite Caps, Sandy Van
March 19, 1960: Conway Twitty
April 9, 1960: Bobby Rydell, The Nite Caps, Sandy Van, The Royal Notes
May 21, 1960: Johnny & The Hurricanes, Rod Lauren, Gary Stites, Johnny Restivo, Nicky DeMatteo, Carl Dobkins Jr., Danny Valentino, Harold Dorman
The Les-Buzz Ballroom and Roller Rink closed in April 1961. The building was sold and used as a discount center for a few years before it was completely destroyed by fire in December 1964. Thirty-five years later, a section of West Dakota Street in Spring Valley was renamed Les Buzz Way.
For those interested in getting a glimpse at what Les-Buzz looked like, an architectural model of the ballroom and roller rink is on display at the Spring Valley Historical Museum. They also have an assortment of memorabilia and photographs from the venue.
Verucchi's Ristorante in Spring Valley also has many photos and an original Winter Dance Party poster displayed in their bar area. In 2014, Dick Verucchi, a legendary musician in his own right, gave an in-depth and personal talk about his father, Buzzy, and the Les-Buzz Ballroom.