RAB LEDs Light Up Famed Buddy Holly Statue

RAB Lighting is ensuring that a rock and roll legend will “Not Fade Away” by lighting the walkway to the popular tribute statue of Buddy Holly in Lubbock, Texas with its energy-efficient LED bollards.

Famous for songs “Peggy Sue,” “Oh, Boy!” and “Maybe Baby,” hit-maker Buddy Holly died tragically in a plane crash in 1959 at the age of 22, an event that has since been immortalized in rock history as “the day the music died.” In a fitting tribute, sculptor Grant Speed created an 8-foot bronze statue of the rock and roll Hall of Famer, which was recently moved to the newly-created Buddy and Maria Elena Holly Plaza, located across the street from the Buddy Holly Museum. There, encircled by a “Walk of Fame” honoring other West Texas musicians, actors, and artists, park representatives determined that the walkway to the memorial needed better lighting to both showcase the statue as well as provide safe passage for the throngs of residents and tourists who visit the landmark daily.

“Before, there were only three lights illuminating the Buddy Holly statue and no pathway lighting leading up to it at all,” says Scott McWright, Master Electrician for the City of Lubbock Parks & Recreation Department. “Now located in a presentation area in a newly-built 2 ½-acre park, we realized we needed to light a pathway up to the landing area to create a more special effect. We wanted a high-impact lighting solution that would also be energy-efficient and require minimal maintenance.”

Working with the RAB Lighting Application Engineering team and Lubbock-based electrical distributor Electracom Supply, McWright elected to light the walkway with RAB’s 20 Watt LED bollard fixtures, which were installed in March 2011. “We wanted to light the pathway around the statue but not overpower it,” Electracom Purchasing Manager Rick Morris explains. According to Morris, “the RAB fixtures were a perfect solution in that they deliver crystal clear, highly-efficient light as well as long life and low maintenance.”

RAB ’s popular BLED20 system features a 42" high rectangular bollard which delivers 20 watts of high-efficiency LED light -- perfect for low-level lighting applications. “RAB’s BLED20 fixture was an ideal choice to light the area approaching the Buddy Holly statue,” confirms Ross Barna, CEO of the Northvale, New Jersey-based company. “Aside from being optimally-suited for pathway lighting, the fixtures are full cutoff, fully shielded designs that deliver light precisely where it’s needed. They’re rated to last 50,000 hours, ensuring long life and minimal maintenance. In addition, the park will benefit from the outstanding color uniformity and rendition of the 20 Watt LED light engine, which provides equivalent light output to 150 Watt Metal Halide systems while consuming less than 20% of the energy.”

According to Lubbock Parks Department’s McWright, “the RAB LEDs look great – installation was simple, the system is very user-friendly, and the light output has been fantastic. It was a high quality solution that also met our budget, so we feel it was a great value for the investment.”

Lubbock’s Parks & Recreation Department is so pleased with its lighting choice that it’s considering conversion to RAB LEDs in the 30 other parks that it maintains for the city. In the meantime, the park’s management is thrilled to have installed a highly-efficient and long-lasting lighting system to illuminate and pay homage to this famous rock legend. “It’s a nice tribute to Buddy Holly,” McWright concludes, “and the best he’s ever looked.”