Albert Lea street renamed to honor musican Eddie Cochran

ALBERT LEA, Minn. (KTTC) – It was formerly James Street, but on Friday, the city of Albert Lea officially renamed the street to honor rock and roll legend Eddie Cochran.

“It would be kind of excited for Albert Lea to continue to build this, get more people into town for this weekend,” Albert Lea city council member Rich Murray said.

Cochran’s childhood home is only a couple blocks away from the street now named after him.

“We worked with fans, we worked with the city of Albert Lea, specifically the engineering department. We’re really thankful for all these community partners that we were able to work with so closely and so efficiently,” Freeborn County Historical Museum Director of Development and Outreach Ben Seavey said.

Cochran’s fans showed up to the unveiling in classic cars, something that seems to go hand-in-hand with rock and roll.

“That’s why you get all these cars from the 50′s, then you tack on cars from the 40′s and the 60′s, and it just becomes a great show,” Murray said.

The festival draws in people form all over the country and the world.

“We came in 2019, and we made a lot of friends. We love it here, so we’ve returned again,” England native Dave James said.

Dave James has hosted a number of Cochran festivals in his hometown in England and is even working on his own documentary about Cochran.

“I just got involved in the story, and I just thought he deserved a street named after him,” James said.

Fans say Cochran was a trailblazer in the rock-and-roll industry and leaves behind a legacy.

“He really pushed the genre forward. He was always on the edge. He’s not someone that most people will have heard of, but if you heard of them and they’re from the 50′s. They know Eddie Cochran,” Seavey said.

“It means everything. It’s been a long time coming, but it’s here now,” James said.

Eddie Cochran Car Show & Music Festival has created a community of fans to connect and share memories.

“It’s just a family. It’s just a feeling of family. Getting to meet people who knew him and sharing their memories,” James said.

“History is all around us. Even in the places you don’t expect,” Seavey said.

The Eddie Cochran festivities continue Saturday with a car show, a fun run and obviously a lot of live rock and roll music.

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