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Bo Diddley

Bo Diddley's Genre:

Regional Blues, Blues, Electric Chicago Blues, Early R&B, Rock & Roll, R&B

Biography

He only had a few hits in the 1950s and early '60s, but as Bo Diddley sang, "You Can't Judge a Book by Its Cover." You can't judge an artist by his chart success, either, and Diddley produced greater and more influential music than all but a handful of the best early rockers. The Bo Diddley beat -- bomp, ba-bomp-bomp, bomp-bomp -- is one of rock & roll's bedrock rhythms, showing up in the work of Buddy Holly, the Rolling Stones, and even pop-garage knock-offs like the Strangeloves' 1965 hit "I Want Candy." Diddley's hypnotic rhythmic attack and declamatory, boasting vocals stretched back as far as Africa for their roots, and looked as far into the future as rap. His trademark otherworldly vibrating, fuzzy guitar style did much to expand the instrument's power and range. But even more important, Bo's bounce was fun and irresistibly rocking, with a wisecracking, jiving tone that epitomized rock & roll at its most humorously outlandish and freewheeling.

Before taking up blues and R&B, Diddley had studied classical violin, but shifted gears after hearing John Lee Hooker. In the early '50s, he began playing with his longtime partner, maraca player Jerome Green, to get what Bo's called "that freight train sound." Billy Boy Arnold, a fine blues harmonica player and singer in his own right, was also playing with Diddley when the guitarist got a deal with Chess in the mid-'50s (after being turned down by rival Chicago label Vee-Jay). His very first single, "Bo Diddley"/"I'm a Man" (1955), was a double-sided monster. The A-side was soaked with futuristic waves of tremolo guitar, set to an ageless nursery rhyme; the flip was a bump-and-grind, harmonica-driven shuffle, based around a devastating blues riff. But the result was not exactly blues, or even straight R&B, but a new kind of guitar-based rock & roll, soaked in the blues and R&B, but owing allegiance to neither.

Diddley was never a top seller on the order of his Chess rival Chuck Berry, but over the next half-dozen or so years, he produced a catalog of classics that rival Berry's in quality. "You Don't Love Me," "Diddley Daddy," "Pretty Thing," "Diddy Wah Diddy," "Who Do You Love?," "Mona," "Road Runner," "You Can't Judge a Book by Its Cover" -- all are stone-cold standards of early, riff-driven rock & roll at its funkiest. Oddly enough, his only Top 20 pop hit was an atypical, absurd back-and-forth rap between him and Jerome Green, "Say Man," that came about almost by accident as the pair were fooling around in the studio.

As a live performer, Diddley was galvanizing, using his trademark square guitars and distorted amplification to produce new sounds that anticipated the innovations of '60s guitarists like Jimi Hendrix. In Great Britain, he was revered as a giant on the order of Chuck Berry and Muddy Waters. The Rolling Stones in particular borrowed a lot from Bo's rhythms and attitude in their early days, although they only officially covered a couple of his tunes, "Mona" and "I'm Alright." Other British R&B groups like the Yardbirds, Animals, and Pretty Things also covered Diddley standards in their early days. Buddy Holly covered "Bo Diddley" and used a modified Bo Diddley beat on "Not Fade Away"; when the Stones gave the song the full-on Bo treatment (complete with shaking maracas), the result was their first big British hit.

The British Invasion helped increase the public's awareness of Diddley's importance, and ever since then he's been a popular live act. Sadly, though, his career as a recording artist -- in commercial and artistic terms -- was over by the time the Beatles and Stones hit America. He would record with ongoing and declining frequency, but after 1963, he never wrote or recorded original material on par with his early classics. Whether he'd spent his muse, or just felt he could coast on his laurels, is hard to say. But he remains a vital part of the collective rock & roll consciousness, and occasionally reached wider visibility via a 1979 tour with the Clash, a cameo role in the film Trading Places, a late-'80s tour with Ronnie Wood, and a 1989 television commercial for sports shoes with star athlete Bo Jackson. ~ Richie Unterberger

AOL Radio Stations Bo Diddley is Featured on (11)

SWAMI SOUND SYSTEM

Join the Swami and plummet into the abyss of primal punk, raw funk, scathing soul scorchers, lysergic psychedelic excursions, blown out reggae and dub and a vast assortment of exotic sounds from around the globe. Overlooked gems from the past and current underground noise collide as the Swami hurls song after song at your ears from the safety of his well soiled semi-magic carpet. He is the reverend of the irreverent and he welcomes you to take part in this celebration of feedback, tape hiss and reverb. The Swami Sound System will expose you to the most reckless songs ever created.

Blues

You may not have the right to sing the blues, but you certainly have the right to listen to them! Steeped in heritage, and delivering more heartache, pain, and suffering than most can handle, Blues packs a knockout one two punch to the audio midsection. All the King's are here; B.B, Freddie, and Albert bending notes far beyond those of mortal men. If you don't have the blues now, just listen for awhile...Blues on Slacker will have you shoutin' and hollerin' for more.

Hot Water Music Showcase

This is the Hot Water Music Artist Showcase station on Slacker Radio. Tune in to hear a station built entirely by the band including music hand-picked by Chuck, Chris, Jason and George as well as commentary about the songs that influenced their music and their lives.

The Kooks Showcase

This is The Kooks Artist Showcase on Slacker Radio. Tune in to hear a station built entirely by The Kooks including music hand-picked by each member of the band as well as commentary about the songs that influenced their music and their lives.

'50s Hits

I Love Lucy, Sputnik, Edsel, Rebel Without A Cause, Sack Dresses, Blue Suede Shoes, Winky Dink, Honky Tonk, Bandstand, Doo Wop, Rockabilly, and Rock 'n' Roll. The 1950’s were out of this world. So drive your Chevy to the levy and re-live the best music of the 50s on Slacker’s ‘50s Hits.

Traditional Blues

If you've ever loved, laughed, or cried, you can relate to the Blues. B.B. King, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Muddy Waters, and Keb Mo' are among the artists who you'll hear pouring their hearts out on the Traditional Blues station on Slacker Radio.

Dive Bar Jukebox

You walk through the doors and you know. This is it. The perfect dive bar. A cool crowd, great beers on tap and, above all, the perfect jukebox for a true music geek. Classic Rock, Classic Country, a lil' bit of Soul and the most important Indie Rock of all-time make this jukebox your all-time favorite. Welcome to Dive Bar Jukebox on Slacker Radio.

'60s Hits

It was the decade that defined a generation. The Gulf of Tonkin, Neil Armstrong, Spiderman, Little Deuce Coupe, Mustang Sally, Get Smart, Twiggy, and We Shall Overcome. Yeah, yeah, yeah...it was fab, gear, groovy and boss. Turn on, tune in, and drop out with '60s Hits on Slacker Radio.

Oldies

Oldies on Slacker Radio plays the best songs from the '60s and '70s and the '50s too!

The Current

The Current brings you the best authentic new music alongside the music that inspired it, from unique to universal, indie to influential, new to nostalgic. Broadcasting from the musical hotbed that is Minnesota, listen to The Current and you’ll see why we say, “Great Music Lives Here.” Find playlist, interviews and more at thecurrent.org.

Bo Diddley

This station plays the best music from and music from related artists like Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, B.B. King, Howlin' Wolf, Buddy Guy, Albert King, T-Bone Walker, Freddie King, Ray Charles, Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown and more.

All Stations

Bo Diddley's Selected Discography (50)

Ride On: The Chess Masters, Vol. 3 - 1960-1961

COMPILATION200954 Songs

Bo's the Man

Blue LabelCOMPILATION200711 Songs

I'm Bad

2013 MHR201317 Songs

Artists Related to Bo Diddley (50)

	Muddy Waters	Muddy Waters was the single most important artist to emerge in post-war American blues. A peerless singer, a gifted songwriter, an able guitarist, and leader of one of the strongest bands in the genre (which became a proving ground for a number of musicians who would become legends in their own right), Waters absorbed the influences of rural blues from the Deep South and moved them uptown, injecting his music with a fierce, electric energy and helping pioneer the Chicago Blues style that would come to dominate the music through the 1950s, ‘60s, and '70s.
	John Lee Hooker	He was beloved worldwide as the king of the endless boogie, a genuine blues superstar whose droning, hypnotic one-chord grooves were at once both ultra-primitive and timeless.
	B.B. King	Universally hailed as the reigning king of the blues, the legendary B.B. King is without a doubt the single most important electric guitarist of the last half century.
	Howlin' Wolf	In the history of the blues, there has never been anyone quite like the Howlin' Wolf. Six foot three and close to 300 pounds in his salad days, the Wolf was the primal force of the music spun out to its ultimate conclusion.
	Buddy Guy	Buddy Guy is one of the most celebrated blues guitarists of his generation (and arguably the most celebrated), possessing a sound and style that embodied the traditions of classic Chicago Blues while also embracing the fire and flash of rock & roll.
	Albert King	Albert King is truly a "King of the Blues," although he doesn't hold that title (B.B. does). Along with B.
	T-Bone Walker	Modern electric blues guitar can be traced directly back to this Texas-born pioneer, who began amplifying his sumptuous lead lines for public consumption circa 1940 and thus initiated a revolution so total that its tremors are still being felt today.
	Freddie King	Guitarist Freddie King rode to fame in the early '60s with a spate of catchy instrumentals which became instant bandstand fodder for fellow bluesmen and white rock bands alike.
	Ray Charles	Ray Charles was the musician most responsible for developing soul music. Singers like Sam Cooke and Jackie Wilson also did a great deal to pioneer the form, but Charles did even more to devise a new form of black pop by merging '50s R&B with gospel-powered vocals, adding plenty of flavor from contemporary jazz, blues, and (in the '60s) country.
	Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown	Whatever you do, don't refer to multi-instrumentalist Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown as a bluesman, although his imprimatur on the development of Texas blues is enormous.
	Willie Dixon	Willie Dixon's life and work was virtually an embodiment of the progress of the blues, from an accidental creation of the descendants of freed slaves to a recognized and vital part of America's musical heritage.
	Stevie Ray Vaughan	With his astonishingly accomplished guitar playing, Stevie Ray Vaughan ignited the blues revival of the '80s.
	Otis Rush	Breaking into the R&B Top Ten his very first time out in 1956 with the startlingly intense slow blues "I Can't Quit You Baby," southpaw guitarist Otis Rush subsequently established himself as one of the premier bluesmen on the Chicago circuit.
	Robert Cray	Tin-eared critics have frequently damned him as a yuppie blues wannabe whose slickly soulful offerings bear scant resemblance to the real down-home item.
	Johnny Winter	When Johnny Winter emerged on the national scene in 1969, the hope, particularly in the record business, was that he would become a superstar on the scale of Jimi Hendrix, another blues-based rock guitarist and singer who preceded him by a few years.
	Junior Wells	He was one bad dude, strutting across the stage like a harp-toting gangster, mesmerizing the crowd with his tough-guy antics and rib-sticking Chicago blues attack.
	Albert Collins	Albert Collins, "The Master of the Telecaster," "The Iceman," and "The Razor Blade" was robbed of his best years as a blues performer by a bout with liver cancer that ended with his premature death on November 24, 1993.
	Taj Mahal	One of the most prominent figures in late 20th century blues, singer/multi-instrumentalist Taj Mahal played an enormous role in revitalizing and preserving traditional acoustic blues.
	Bobby "Blue" Bland	Bobby Bland earned his enduring blues superstar status the hard way: without a guitar, harmonica, or any other instrument to fall back upon.
	Lightnin' Hopkins	Sam Hopkins was a Texas country bluesman of the highest caliber whose career began in the 1920s and stretched all the way into the 1980s.
	Guitar Shorty	When he's not turning somersaults, doing backward flips, and standing on his head -- all while playing, of course -- Guitar Shorty is prone to cutting loose with savagely slashing licks on his instrument.
	Eric Clapton	By the time Eric Clapton launched his solo career with the release of his self-titled debut album in mid-1970, he was long established as one of the world's major rock stars due to his group affiliations -- the Yardbirds, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Cream, and Blind Faith -- which had demonstrated his claim to being the best rock guitarist of his generation.
	Magic Slim	Magic Slim & the Teardrops proudly upheld the tradition of what a Chicago blues band should sound like.
	Etta James	Few female R&B stars enjoyed the kind of consistent acclaim Etta James received throughout a career that spanned six decades; the celebrated producer Jerry Wexler once called her "the greatest of all modern blues singers," and she recorded a number of enduring hits, including "At Last," "Tell Mama," "I'd Rather Go Blind," and "All I Could Do Was Cry.
	Robert Johnson	If the blues has a truly mythic figure, one whose story hangs over the music the way a Charlie Parker does over jazz or a Hank Williams does over country, it's Robert Johnson, certainly the most celebrated figure in the history of the blues.
	John Mayall	As the elder statesman of British blues, it is John Mayall's lot to be more renowned as a bandleader and mentor than as a performer in his own right.
	Otis Taylor	Bluesman Otis Taylor never skirted tough subject matter in a career that took him from the Folklore Center in Denver to a brief stay in London, England, to retirement from music in 1977, to being a successful antiques broker and, since 1995, back again to the blues.
	Chuck Berry	Of all the early breakthrough rock & roll artists, none is more important to the development of the music than Chuck Berry.
	Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble
	Elmore James	No two ways about it, the most influential slide guitarist of the postwar period was Elmore James, hands down.
	Jonny Lang	Modern blues in the '90s had a weird phenomenon of teenage blues guitarists rocketing to popularity with their first album.
	Kenny Wayne Shepherd	Kenny Wayne Shepherd and his group exploded on the scene in the mid-'90s and garnered huge amounts of radio airplay on commercial radio, which historically has not been a solid home for blues and blues-rock music, with the exception of Stevie Ray Vaughan in the mid-'80s.
	B.B. King Blues Band
	James Cotton	At his high-energy, 1970s peak as a bandleader, James Cotton was a bouncing, sweaty, whirling dervish of a bluesman, roaring his vocals and all but sucking the reeds right out of his defenseless little harmonicas with his prodigious lung power.
	Little Walter	Who's the king of all post-war blues harpists, Chicago division or otherwise? Why, the virtuosic Little Walter, without a solitary doubt.
	The Blues Band	England's the Blues Band is led by ex-Manfred Mann vocalist Paul Jones and guitarist/vocalist Dave Kelly, who, before forming the group in 1979, had been a member of the John Dummer Blues Band and issued several solo recordings on his own (Kelly had also received praise for his playing by such blues legends as Howlin' Wolf and John Lee Hooker).
	Luther Allison	An American-born guitarist, singer, and songwriter who lived in France since 1980, Luther Allison was the man to book at blues festivals in the mid-'90s.
	Susan Tedeschi	Guitarist, singer, and songwriter Susan Tedeschi is part of the new generation of blues musicians looking for ways to keep the form exciting, vital, and evolving.
	Sonny Boy Williamson II	Sonny Boy Williamson was, in many ways, the ultimate blues legend. By the time of his death in 1965, he had been around long enough to have played with Robert Johnson at the start of his career and Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page and Robbie Robertson at the end of it.
	Koko Taylor	Accurately dubbed "the Queen of Chicago blues" (and sometimes just the blues in general), Koko Taylor helped keep the tradition of big-voiced, brassy female blues belters alive, recasting the spirits of early legends like Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey, Big Mama Thornton, and Memphis Minnie for the modern age.
	The Fabulous Thunderbirds	With their fusion of blues, rock & roll, and R&B, the Fabulous Thunderbirds helped popularize roadhouse Texas blues with a mass audience in the '80s and, in the process, they helped kick-start a blues revival during the mid-'80s.
	Keb' Mo'	Guitarist/vocalist Keb' Mo' draws heavily on the old-fashioned country blues style of Robert Johnson while keeping his sound contemporary with touches of soul and folksy storytelling.
	Joe Louis Walker	Without a doubt one of the most exciting and innovative artists gracing contemporary blues, guitarist Joe Louis Walker has glowed like a shining blue beacon over the last decade.
	Hound Dog Taylor	Alligator Records, Chicago's leading contemporary blues label, might never have been launched at all if not for the crashing, slashing slide guitar antics of Hound Dog Taylor.
	Joe Bonamassa	Guitar mastermind Joe Bonamassa, a young player with the childhood dream of playing music similar to legends like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eric Clapton, and Jimi Hendrix, was 22 when he inked a deal with Epic.
	Dr. John	Although he didn't become widely known until the 1970s, Dr. John had been active in the music industry since the late '50s, when the teenager was still known as Mac Rebennack.
	Shemekia Copeland	The daughter of renowned Texas blues guitarist Johnny Copeland, Shemekia Copeland began making a splash in her own right before she was even out of her teens.
	Fats Domino	The most popular exponent of the classic New Orleans R&B sound, Fats Domino sold more records than any other black rock & roll star of the 1950s.
	Buddy Holly	Buddy Holly is perhaps the most anomalous legend of '50s rock & roll -- he had his share of hits, and he achieved major rock & roll stardom, but his importance transcends any sales figures or even the particulars of any one song (or group of songs) that he wrote or recorded.
	Roy Buchanan	Roy Buchanan has long been considered one of the finest, yet criminally overlooked guitarists of the blues rock genre whose lyrical leads and use of harmonics would later influence such guitar greats as Jeff Beck, his one-time student Robbie Robertson, and ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons.