Metascore
74

Generally favorable reviews - based on 23 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 23
  2. Negative: 1 out of 23
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  1. 70
    Still, assuming the point of any tribute album is to show the full breadth of the artist's influence, Rave On is a breezy success.
  2. The way his heedless old songs liberate cautious young professionals lays to rest any doubts as to whether he belongs in the same pantheon as George M. Cohan and Irving Berlin. He just bequeathed us a smaller book.
  3. Jul 15, 2011
    75
    The performances range wildly in ambition, from straight-forward readings (Justin Townes Earle's "Maybe Baby") to spooky reinventions (Julian Casablancas' electro-shock "Rave On").
  4. Jul 6, 2011
    89
    Rave On Buddy Holly takes classic tracks and, for the most part, offers instantly memorable covers of them. It's not quite an A, but it's as close as anything I've reviewed in a while.
  5. Jul 5, 2011
    80
    All the musicians on Rave On Buddy Holly run such a gamut that it's hard to dispute Buddy Holly's continuously far-reaching influence in music. At the same time, if these songs weren't on a covers album, it would be easy to mistake them for a Lou Reed original or an old Modest Mouse track.
  6. Jul 5, 2011
    70
    Forget about considering the album as a whole and figure out which of the 19 translators here appeal to you. The originals will always be there waiting.
  7. Jun 30, 2011
    70
    While Rave on Buddy Holly is no substitute for the real McCoy, it is a serviceable collection of songs that serve as a sad and profound reminder of the loss that popular music as a whole suffered on the Day the Music Died.
  8. Jun 30, 2011
    80
    Whatever the treatment of his songs, Holly's knack of pairing of simplistic, catchy melodies with understated--almost flippant--melancholy always shines through. As such, over 50 years since his death, this is a wonderful testament to his songwriting prowess, longevity and legacy.
  9. Jun 29, 2011
    70
    In another regard, Rave On Buddy Holly is quite different. Encouraged by producer Randall Poster, the 19 artists involved do not settle for mere replications of Buddy's hits, they play fast and loose, sometimes radically reinterpreting the original.
  10. 80
    This tribute compilation ranges far and wide accordingly.
  11. Jun 28, 2011
    70
    There are 17 other tracks on Rave On, at least half a dozen too many.
  12. Jun 28, 2011
    80
    Rock'n'roll pioneer Buddy Holly was no stodgy purist, an idea the best of this all-star tribute adopts gracefully.
  13. 70
    A few of the songs stick too closely to the originals, going to show that it's best to do something daft and unexpected rather than just trace the lines of greatness. You can't improve on perfection, but you can certainly play around with it.
  14. Jun 28, 2011
    80
    It's tough to find fault with such an inspired collection, but some moments aren't quite as standout as others.
  15. 91
    Tribute albums are usually mawkish, well-meaning bores. Not Rave On Buddy Holly: Nineteen acts interpret proto-rocker Holly's canon with vigorous invention.
  16. Mojo
    Dec 12, 2011
    100
    Perhaps not as many musical genres are represented as might have been but it's still a good reminder of just how many styles Holly's music crossed and influenced, if not invented. [Aug. 2011, p. 99]

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