That’s My Little Suzie

The first time I heard That’s My Little Suzie, I felt like the song didn’t exhaust itself in those two minutes. It has a rhythm that moves as if floating over the bass, with a guitar repeating a short but catchy pattern, almost like a musical greeting. It’s not Ritchie Valens’ most famous song, but if you play it on a small speaker, you quickly understand why it reached number 55 on the US Billboard in 1959. It sounds like something recorded quickly and without complications, as if Gold Star Studios in Los Angeles had captured exactly what the artist wanted to convey: a mix of youthful energy and that melancholy already hinting at his earlier tracks.

The album Ritchie Valens was released on February 12, 1959, just nine days after the musician died in a plane crash. All the songs on the record were recorded in a single session at Gold Star Studios, using equipment that today seems rudimentary but gave it that raw, direct sound. The same album also features Donna and La Bamba, but That’s My Little Suzie stands out: it has the air of a song made in one take, untouched. It lasted only 1:53, yet in that time it managed to climb the charts and linger in the memory of those who heard it on the radio.