"Donna" is a song written by Ritchie Valens, featuring the 50s progression.
The song was released in 1958 on Del-Fi Records. It was Valens' highest-charting single reaching No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart the following year. (Stagger Lee by Lloyd Price was at number one.) It was written as a tribute to his high school sweetheart Donna Ludwig.
The song was recorded on December 16, 1958, at the Gold Star Studios in Los Angeles. Bob Keene is listed as having been the leader of the session, which included Earl Palmer on drums; Buddy Clark on bass; and Valens, Rene Hall, Irving Ashby, and Carol Kayeon guitars.
"Donna", the second Ritchie Valens single released, was the A side of the influential song "La Bamba".
This single was only one of three, along with the previous single ("Come On, Let's Go"/"Framed" – Del-Fi 4106) and the follow-up ("Fast Freight"/"Big Baby Blues" – Del-Fi 4111) ever released in Valens' lifetime.
Original Del-Fi pressings of "Donna"/"La Bamba" include black and sea green labels with circles, later replaced with solid sea green or solid dark green labels.
Early 1960s pressings have black labels with sea green "sawtooth" outer edge.
Valens' version was positioned at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart when Valens died. Three weeks after Valens' death, the song peaked at No. 2.
