Waylon Jennings was born in Littlefield, Texas, on June 15, 1937. His mother gave him his first guitar when he eight years old. Though Waylon was kicked out of music classes at school due to an apparent lack of talent, his mother taught him to play the instrument. Jennings initially worked as a radio DJ and formed a friendship with Buddy Holly at the age of 21. Shortly after, he was invited to join Holly’s band as a bassist and toured with the rock legend before his death in 1959. In his autobiography, Jennings admits that he was initially meant to be on the flight that crashed killing Holly, Richie Valens and the Big Bopper. Shaken by the accident, Jennings returned to his home in Lubbock, Texas, where he spent time working as a DJ and recording for a small local label. He signed with A&M records after moving to Phoenix, Arizona in the early 1960s.He would go on to become a major country star in the 1970s, with hits like "This Time” and "I'm A Ramblin' Man." His biggest mainstream success would come with the theme song to the TV show "Dukes Of Hazzard," which hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Jennings also provided the voice-over narration for the series.