The Night Bo Diddley Banned the Beat Los Angeles Times "Whatever you do, do not play 'the Beat!' " That was the first thing Bo Diddley said to us before we walked onto the stage of the Music Machine club in West L.A. for two sets in 1983.
Who Do You Love? The Guardian Somewhere in a garden shed in Liverpool are probably boxes of Love Me Do singles that Brian Epstein had had bought to get his new group, the Beatles, in the charts. It was, you will remember, a short, bluesy 45 rpm that turned them from local Scouse heroes to international stars.
The Beat Lives On The New York Times In one of his best-known songs from the 1950s, Bo Diddley proclaimed “I’m a Man.” At his funeral and a celebration that followed, he was also lionized as a musical legend.
June 26, 2008
He's not the first name that comes to mind when you think of rock ‘n roll icons. He's usually not mentioned in the same sentence with Elvis or Buddy Holly or Chuck Berry. But maybe that's why I've always liked him.
"I don't sound like nobody!" Otha Elias Bates famously said in the 1950s.
That's the name he was given at birth, but most of the rest of the world knew him as Bo Diddley.
No one's exactly sure where he got that name. Sometimes, he'd say in interviews that it was a nickname he picked up as a kid. A takeoff of a popular phrase "You ain't bo diddley," which basically meant, "you ain't nothin'."
Other times, he'd claim he'd picked it up during his brief boxing career. In the ring (and on Chicago's notorious South Side), "bad bo diddley" usually meant someone you didn't want to cross.
However he got it, it's a name that not only defined a man, but a style all his own.
"I don't like to copy anybody," he once said. "Everybody tries to do what I do, update it. I don't have any idols I copied after."
"They copied everything I did, upgraded it, messed it up. It seems to me that nobody can come up with their own thing, they have to put a little bit of Bo Diddley there," he said.
What was "a little bit of Bo Diddley"?
It's often been described as a "relentless beat," similar to the sound of a chain gang. Or "the primitive, but irresistible beat he likened to a freight train."
Alan Freed, the Cleveland deejay who coined the term "rock ‘n roll," supposedly came up with it when he was introducing Bo Diddley.
"Here is a man with an original sound, who is going to rock and roll you right out of your seat."
Whatever it was, it was pure Bo Diddley. And many people tried to copy it.
The Rolling Stones took Diddley's "tradesman's knock" and put it to good use on "Not Fade Away." The Diddley sound, perfected on his imperfect square guitar, can also be heard on U2's "Desire," George Michael's "Faith," and garage classics like "I Want Candy," all written and first recorded by Diddley.
In addition to being a great song writer, Bo Diddley was also considered one of the pioneers of the electric guitar, adding reverb and tremelo effects. He even rigged some of his guitars himself.
"He treats it like it was a drum, very rhythmic," said E. Michael Harrington, professor of music theory and composition at Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn.
And that slightly distorted sound? Chess Records, Chicago's premier blues label in the 1950s, couldn't afford the best equipment. Instead of trying to clean it up, Diddley astutely chose to make it his trademark.
When he became the first black artist to appear on the Ed Sullivan Show, he was originally supposed to sing Tennessee Ernie Ford's "Sixteen Tons." Instead, he strummed the raucous riff from his signature tune, "Bo Diddley." Because the show was live, there was nothing Sullivan could do about it.
Didley was never invited back, but he didn't need to be.
Like a lot of early black musicians, he was cheated out of most of his royalties. But he seemed to take it in stride as part of the ups and downs of life.
He also enjoyed a bit of a resurgence later in life. He was even featured in the "Bo Knows" campaign for Nike and superstar athlete Bo Jackson.
"I never could figure out what it had to do with shoes, but it worked," Diddley said. "I got into a lot of new front rooms on the tube."
At an awards ceremony a few years before he died, he said he liked the recognition "but it didn't put no figures in my checkbook. If you ain't got no money, ain't nobody calls you honey."
Now who could argue with that?
Road Runner YouTube.com Bo Diddley, circa 1960, plays one of his signature hits.
Hoochie Coochie Man YouTube.com Muddy Waters, blues guitarists, sings "Hoochie Coochie Man."
Sweet Home Chicago YouTube.com Buddy Guy, called "the best guitar player alive" by Eric Clapton, plays "Sweet Home Chicago."
Who's your favorite "original" rock 'n roller?
17% 22% 0% 22% 39%
I've been a fan of the blues, jazz, and rock n roll since the 1960's.
I remember going to some blues clubs and being the only white guy there. but no one seemed to care...I found out later that Charlie Musselwhite was a white blues harmonica man. I was never able to master on the G-harp (harmonica) his composition called "Cristo Redemtpor".
Bo Diddley was a one-of-a-kind performer. He was also one of the first performers to have women in his band. Peggy James (known as Lady Bo), Norma-Jean Wofford (known as the Duchess), and Cornelia Redmond (known as Cookie).
He wrote, under a psuedonym, a popular song called "Love is Strange" for the duo Mickey and Sylvia.
All I can say is "Hey! Bo Diddley"!
With all respect to Mr. Didley, there is another electric guitar pioneer who deserves mention. Though he is essentially a jazz guitarist, rather than a rock-n-roller, the gentleman I have in mind is largely responsible for making the rock-n-roll sound possible. I speak of the inventor of the electric guitar, Mr. Les Paul.
At the age of 93, Les Paul is still playing, having first created a solid bodied, electrically amplified guitar when he was barely in his 20's.
Ten years ago, I worked as a reservationist at the Iridium Jazz Club where Mr. Paul had (and, I believe, still has) a regular Monday night gig. He was funny, irascible, and brilliant. He would invite audience members who had brought their Les Paul guitars in for autographs to come and play with him. Sometimes, he would even leave them to play on their own while he chugged a beer in the middle of the aisle in front of the stage, just listening.
Like so many jazz musicians, Paul has pushed boundaries and veered into folk, rock-n-roll, and other styles. To my mind, he is the most original of all originals. First and foremost, he may be a jazzman. But, without him, there is no rock-n-roll.
rings90 said...
Jazz & Blues
rings90 said...
Jazz & Blues two forms of music that can't be taught ~ You either know how to play it or not.
You're right it sound like nothing you've ever heard before & you will NEVER hear any of the songs sung the same way twice in your life.
I like Bo's music he's one of the first tunes I loaded into my MP3. One of my other favorite Black Musicians who still plays is Buddy Guy... Love his club in Chicago ~ although he rarely plays at it he is there to listen to the talented artists that do.
I did get the chance to see & hear him play he opened a few years ago for the Rolling Stones concert it was AMAZING. But the sad part of the evening was when you looked out to the other seats & realized most of the auditorium wasn't filled because no one really "Knew" who he was or doesn't appreciate his type of music. I personally enjoyed his sets more than Keith's solo set & some of Micks antics. Of course as always there's no accounting for some folks lack of musical taste.
Losing Bo was a loss of talent & straight self taught musical knowledge his presence will be missed by many.
If there are rewards to reap, I hope he's reaping his now. He was blessed with a gift and was a trailblazer in his exhibition of it and performances so that so many others could appreciate it. It's sad that the trailblazers never reap the financial benefits that those who later follow their paths do, but that's the way of the world.
.... and I forgot to add, how great is it to be able to that which you love the most>
Lovey said...
At the end of 8th grade, as a final lesson our [seemingly] 20-something teacher took an hour and walked us through the history of rock n roll [complete with music samples], shattering the public school assumptions that rock is simply "boring white people music".
Many people these days just don't seem to realize that actual GOOD music existed "back in the day", thinking that the Beatles sprung out of history following nothing but bluegrass.
Bo Diddley, you will be missed [probably more than you ever wanted to be].
drdgscott said...
To DreadPirateRoberts:
Not sure it has an address -- it's a shack on the right hand side of the road as you travel north on the main drag (the same road the race course is on), about 1/2-3/4 mile south of the racecourse entrance. Hope it's still in business, and that you find it every bit as good as I did.
Thanks, drdgscott. We'll keep our eyes peeled.