Much of Bobby Vee's early career owed a lot to Buddy Holly. It was the success of Holly's Peggy Sue that prompted Bobby to write Suzie Baby, a song recorded for the Soma label that was subsequently picked up for national distribution by Liberty, earning Bobby a long term contract into the bargain. It was, however, Buddy Holly's untimely death that allowed Bobby Vee to fill in for the rest of the Winter Dance Party tour in 1959 and gave him widespread exposure. His most successful material was drawn from the Tin Pan Alley group of writers, most notably Gerry Goffin and Carole King, with his best known smash being Rubber Ball (although that particular hit was bettered by a number of singles on the charts). in 1962 fifteen of his biggest hits were gathered together for the Golden Greats compilation, an album that undoubtedly lived up to it's name.