(1941 – 1959) Born Richard Valenzuela in the San Fernando Valley Valens died before he could realize his full potential as a rock ’n’ roller before his eighteenth birthday. His first single, “Come On, Let’s Go,” recorded when he was 17, was a western regional hit in 1958. Later that year the ballad “Donna” reached number two on the charts. Valens’ fame would rest ultimately on the flipside, the traditional Latin party song “La Bamba.” Valens died in a plane crash on his first major US tour with Buddy Holly and J.P. Richardson (the Big Bopper).