Reflecting on Bo Diddley after reading various obits and appreciations today, it’s clear that his contributions to rock’n’roll were mighty and many.
He pioneered the use of electric guitar effects: “reverb! Tremelo! Distortion!” marvels the Washintgon Post today.
He presaged gansta rap with his boastful and often lewd lyrics – his very first record was called “Bo Diddley” and his own name was a recurring theme. His only US top 40 hit, “Say Man”, was one of many duets with his female vocal foil, Norma-Jean Wofford aka The Duchess – unusually, he had women in his band. Other tracks saw him trading good-humoured insults with his sideman Jerome Green.
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As if that wasn’t enough, in 1957 he played guitar on Wyatt Earp by the Marquees, a Washington vocal group featuring a young Marvin Gaye. He also played tour support for the Rolling Stones in 1964 and the Clash in 1979 – groups who covered his songs included the Yardbirds, the Who and the Pretty Things (who based their whole approach on Bo).
But above all – or more accurately beneath all, there’s the Bo Diddley beat: bomp-pa bomp-pa bomp, bomp-bomp. There can’t be many artists who’ve invented their own rhythm. And what a primal, propulsively sexy beast the Bo Diddley rhythm is. Here are some records (not necessarily endorsed by 50p Bloke) that owe their existence to Bo’s beat:
• Buddy Holly's Not Fade Away
• (Maries the Name) His Latest Flame by Elvis Presley
• Johnny Otis's Willie and the Hand Jive
• I Want Candy by The Strangeloves
• Magic Bus by The Who
• 1969 by the Stooges
• How Soon Is Now by the Smiths
• Faith by George Michael
• U2's Desire
• Bruce Springsteen's She's the One
If anyone can think of any more, please post a comment below.
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